WinneroftheLionelGelberPrizeNationalBookCriticsCircleAwardFinalistAnEconomistBestBookoftheYearAFinancialTimesBookoftheYearAWallStreetJournalBookoftheYearAWashingtonPostBookoftheYearABloombergNewsBookoftheYearAnEsquireChinaBookoftheYearAGatesNotesTopReadoftheYearPerhapsnooneinthetwentiethcenturyhadagreaterlong-termimpactonworldhistorythanDengXiaoping.AndnoscholarofcontemporaryEastAsianhistoryandcultureisbetterqualifiedthanEzraVogeltodisentanglethemanycontradictionsembodiedinthelifeandlegacyofChina’sboldeststrategist.OncedescribedbyMaoZedongasa“needleinsideaballofcotton,“DengwasthepragmaticyetdisciplineddrivingforcebehindChina’sradicaltransformationinthelatetwentiethcentury.HeconfrontedthedamagewroughtbytheCulturalRevolution,dissolvedMao’scultofpersonality,andloosenedtheeconomicandsocialpoliciesthathadstuntedChina’sgrowth.Obsessedwithmodernizationandtechnology,DengopenedtraderelationswiththeWest,whichliftedhundredsofmillionsofhiscountrymenoutofpoverty.Yetatthesametimeheansweredtohisauthoritarianroots,mostnotablywhenheorderedthecrackdowninJune1989atTiananmenSquare.Deng’syouthfulcommitmenttotheCommunistPartywascementedinParisintheearly1920s,amongagroupofChinesestudent-workersthatalsoincludedZhouEnlai.Dengreturnedhomein1927tojointheChineseRevolutiononthegroundfloor.Inthefiftyyearsofhistumultuousrisetopower,heenduredaccusations,purges,andevenexilebeforebecomingChina’spreeminentleaderfrom1978to1989andagainin1992.Whenhereachedthetop,DengsawanopportunitytocreativelydestroymuchoftheeconomicsystemhehadhelpedbuildforfivedecadesasaloyalfollowerofMao--andhedidnothesitate.
