Now in paperback, an intimate, elegant account of a society in turmoil: the most important book in a generation about the Chinese people and their long, heartbreaking battle for political freedom.

Out of Mao's Shadow offers a startling perspective on China and its remarkable transformation, challenging conventional wisdom about the political apathy of the Chinese people and the notion that prosperity leads automatically to freedom. Like David Remnick's Lenin's Tomb, this is a moving story of a nation in transition, of a people coming to terms with their past and struggling to take control...