Rating: 
Summary: An Absorbing Memoir
Review: Red China Blues is journalist Jan Wong's account of seduction by Communist China. A child of capitalism, she petitioned to enroll in Beijing University during the Cultural Revolution, and lived in China for years, progressively becoming more disillusioned with Maoism. Her book is best described as a collection of stories that illuminates different facets of Chinese society under Mao, and later Deng, and chronicles her awakening to the terrifying realities of Communism. Wong writes with both grace and gravity, quickly sketching characters that readers will care for despite the crudeness of their portraits, and yet never letting the quick pace of her story overshadow the seriousness of her theme. The most disappointing aspect of the book is the narrative's perspective - a generation afterwards, with perfect hindsight. In writing from the future, she cannot avoid her revelations, and her capitalist tendencies are dishearteningly obvious throughout. While her choices provide an interesting contrast with her commentary, the reader will not be able to fully comprehend her primary motivation, which makes for a subsequent unclear understanding of her actions. Another shortcoming of Red China Blues is the intensity with which it strikes the reader during China's most recent years, particularly the Tiananmen Square Massacre. In deluging her audience with repeated atrocities, Wong leaves us benumbed rather than anguished. In spite of this, this is a book that should be read, simply because it goes where no other can hope to so authoritatively go. Jan Wong has a story hers alone to tell, and she has told it with startling forthrightness and simplicity. And in the end, perhaps our numbness speaks far more eloquently than our pain could have.
Rating: 
Summary: Great book
Review: This book is great for anyone interested in recent Chinese history and what life was like for ordinary Chinese under Mao and beyond. Wong was one of only a handful of Westerners allowed to study in China during the 1970's, and as such her perspective is nearly unparallelled. Most people really don't much about day-to-day life in China and this makes for a very interesting read.
Her story, however, is so fraught with self-deprecation that it's hard to take her seriously and one must question what really goes on inside her head. She tells stories of slaving on state farms and in communist machine factories and witnessing horrible societal abuses. She consistently relates stories of her questioning of her own Maoist faith and how easily she allowed herself to be manipulated by half-wit propaganda agents. The problem is she never establishes why she was such an ardent socialist and why she so passionately wanted to reject the West. Rather, she comes across during her time in China as an immature hippie / marxist wannabe brat incapable of any form of advanced thought. Now that she is 'reformed' and sees those Chinese regimes for what they were, she can write this book. But the reader is frequently overcome with an urge to shake the author and pull her head out of the sand; since there is no reasonable justification for her actions and why she in fact stuck her head three feet down in the sand, one cannot have much sympathy for Wong and she loses credibility.
Rating: 
Summary: Great historical book, but rather poor personal story
Review: This book is great for anyone interested in recent Chinese history and what life was like for ordinary Chinese under Mao and beyond. Wong was one of only a handful of Westerners allowed to study in China during the 1970's, and as such her perspective is nearly unparallelled. Most people really don't much about day-to-day life in China and this makes for a very interesting read.
Her story, however, is so fraught with self-deprecation that it's hard to take her seriously and one must question what really goes on inside her head. She tells stories of slaving on state farms and in communist machine factories and witnessing horrible societal abuses. She consistently relates stories of her questioning of her own Maoist faith and how easily she allowed herself to be manipulated by half-wit propaganda agents. The problem is she never establishes why she was such an ardent socialist and why she so passionately wanted to reject the West. Rather, she comes across during her time in China as an immature hippie / marxist wannabe brat incapable of any form of advanced thought. Now that she is 'reformed' and sees those Chinese regimes for what they were, she can write this book. But the reader is frequently overcome with an urge to shake the author and pull her head out of the sand; since there is no reasonable justification for her actions and why she in fact stuck her head three feet down in the sand, one cannot have much sympathy for Wong and she loses credibility.
Rating: 
Summary: Honest Biography of a dissappointed Student
Review: This is a book written by someone who was naive enough to believe in Maoist principles. However the book provide a good insight into the changes that China has seen. But the prespective is always one from the student who keeps trying to believe in the Maoist China. The book doesnot provide a historical prespective of China but rather a students prespective and it is also very Beijing Centric. It does not cover regions outside of Beijing. One thing that one does see is the failure of Maoism and how the leadership in Beijing changes and how the principles conveniently change with the leadership. Also the book covers the student riots for democracy which give one the impression that democracy resides in China and is bursting to be let out. In general this is a good book that I would recommend for someone who is interested in the very honest Biography of Ms. Wong a general understanding of how China (in specific Beijing) has changed over her time in China.
Rating:
Summary: Loved it!
Review: What a fascinating book! I loved it. It is a wonderful piece of writing and it's easy to see why Jan Wong is such an acclaimed journalist. I have been to China and have many friends from there. From everything they have shared with me regarding their own experiences, Red China Blues fits exactly with their descriptions of life in those times. Having been born in 1948 and lived under far different circumstances, I find the history of China during the Mao years fascinating. Red China Blues rings true and it is written with wicked humour as well as much sympathy/empathy. Jan Wong has heart and her account of the Tienanmen Square massacre is the most moving I have ever read. I believe it is a totally accurate account and I found myself weeping as I read it. I was profoundly moved and gained a much deeper insight of the events that took place at that time. In fact, I learned many things about China through this marvellous book and was hungry for more. I couldn't put it down and can't wait to read her latest, Jan Wong's China which I have just purchased.
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