The Asia Pacific Memo has posted two short video clips of a three part interview with preeminent Asia scholar and former Harvard professor Ezra Vogel. Vogel recently released a lengthy and meticulously researched biography of Deng Xiaoping that was ten years in the making.
In a series of three interviews with Paul Evans, Ezra Vogel addresses the origins of his book, Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China. He discusses its construction and provides insights into the character, career, and impact of the man who more than any other shaped contemporary China.
The interviews were recorded during Professor Vogel’s visit to UBC when he spoke about the impact of Deng’s international connections beginning with his time in France in the 1920s.
See part one of the interview, in which Vogel discusses why he decided to begin writing Deng’s biography. In part two, Vogel speaks about what shaped Deng as a leader. Also, Inside-Out China provides a thoughtful roundup of many reviews of the book. For more about the book see The Skeleton’s in Deng’s Closet from the CDT Bookshelf.