In the Guardian, Martin Jacques reviews “The Changing Face of China: From Mao to Market” by John Gittings:
Gittings is one of that rare breed of journalists who has maintained a specialist interest in his subject for so long and with such thoroughness that he commands the respect of academic specialists and journalists alike. In a field increasingly populated with Johnnies-come-lately, Gittings is a Johnny-come-early: one only has to read this book to feel the depth and span of his knowledge. Far from holding the view that China’s modern history began in 1978, one of Gitting’s central objectives in the book is to try to make sense of the relationship between the Maoist period of Chinese history from 1949 to 1976 and the frenzied period of Deng-inspired economic growth that has ensued.
