Life and Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng

an extraordinary testament to human brutality.” -Elena Brunet, Los Angeles Times “A harrowing story of personal suffering and tragedy, and at the same time a savage and compelling indictment of Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution, if not of Chinese communism itself. “An absorbing story of resourcefulness and courage.” -J. Even in English, the keenness of her thought and expression is such that it constitutes some form of martial art, enabling her time and again to absorb the force of her interrogators’ logic and turn it to her own advantage.” -Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, The New York Times “Far from depressing, it is almost exhilarating to witness her mind do battle.

An astounding portrait of one woman’s courage, Life and Death in Shanghai is also a penetrating account of a terrifying chapter in twentieth-century history. Life and Death in Shanghai is the powerful story of Cheng’s imprisonment, of the deprivation she endured, of her heroic resistance, and of her quest for justice when she was released. When she refused to confess that she was an enemy of the state, she was imprisoned and placed in solitary confinement, where she remained for more than six years. Educated at the London School of Economics, the widow of an official of Chiang Kai-shek’s regime, and an employee of Shell Oil, Cheng enjoyed comforts that few Chinese could afford. Her background made her an obvious target.

In August 1966, a group of Red Guards ransacked Nien Cheng’s home. This phenomenal, unforgettable book captured the attention of the world just as Communism started to collapse, and is considered a twentieth-century classic, both for Cheng’s incisive writing and the light it throws on totalitarian history. Upon its initial publication, Life and Death in Shanghai, Nien Cheng’s searing memoir of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, was an instant international best seller.

Life and Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng