Rating: 
Summary: Truly Shoddy work
Review: Nathan once said at a conference I was attending that he writes what sells and won't write what does not.This book like all of his work is shoddy from an academic standpoint. While it might be interesting to read, there is no substantial merit to anything Nathan writes. He wants to denigrate China's leadership so that he can stay in the spotlight in the US and make money selling his books. Stay away from this book until Nathan actually backs up what he writes with solid evidence.
Rating:
Summary: Truly Shoddy work
Review: Nathan once said at a conference I was attending that he writes what sells and won't write what does not. This book like all of his work is shoddy from an academic standpoint. While it might be interesting to read, there is no substantial merit to anything Nathan writes. He wants to denigrate China's leadership so that he can stay in the spotlight in the US and make money selling his books. Stay away from this book until Nathan actually backs up what he writes with solid evidence.
Rating: 
Summary: A Fascinating Look at the Fourth Generation
Review: Starting late last year, a new generation of leaders -- often referred to as the "fourth generation" -- began to take over the top posts in China. This book is something of a scorecard of what we might be able to expect from them as they lead China. Based on what is supposedly a Chinese insider's look at secret files on the new leaders, China scholars Andrew Nathan and Bruce Gilley write a highly readable account, focusing mainly on the seven men they expected to form the sixteenth Politburo Standing Committee (the book went to print before the announcement of the new leadership in November, 2002 -- however, most of the Chinese leaders it examines are still in power; with the exception of the early retirement of Li Ruihuan, it appears the authors were mainly correct in their early predictions). The authors also briefly deal with other PRC leaders, including the top women leaders and those early candidates for leading the fifth generation. One of the final chapters focuses on the way the new leadership sees China's place in the world, including most importantly its relationship with the U.S. This is a superb book that is not harmed by its being somewhat dated by recent events. Its only flaw is there is no index, leaving a reader to flail around when he wants to reread sections on particular leaders.
Rating:
Summary: A Fascinating Look at the Fourth Generation
Review: Starting late last year, a new generation of leaders -- often referred to as the "fourth generation" -- began to take over the top posts in China. This book is something of a scorecard of what we might be able to expect from them as they lead China. Based on what is supposedly a Chinese insider's look at secret files on the new leaders, China scholars Andrew Nathan and Bruce Gilley write a highly readable account, focusing mainly on the seven men they expected to form the sixteenth Politburo Standing Committee (the book went to print before the announcement of the new leadership in November, 2002 -- however, most of the Chinese leaders it examines are still in power; with the exception of the early retirement of Li Ruihuan, it appears the authors were mainly correct in their early predictions). The authors also briefly deal with other PRC leaders, including the top women leaders and those early candidates for leading the fifth generation. One of the final chapters focuses on the way the new leadership sees China's place in the world, including most importantly its relationship with the U.S. This is a superb book that is not harmed by its being somewhat dated by recent events. Its only flaw is there is no index, leaving a reader to flail around when he wants to reread sections on particular leaders.
Rating: 
Summary: New Rulers: A Consensus Team for Jiang
Review: The value of this book is severalfold. It gives intriguing hints at the nature of top level Chinese decision-making processes. It contains excellent biographical sketches of top leadership in the Chinese Communist Party -- new and old. And it reveals relationships among the various players that is invaluable in attempting to fathom the workings of a secretive government that sees its relationship with the United States as the core of its foreign policy. Even with insider information (the secret files), it is always risky business to predict the future, and authors Andrew Nathan and Bruce Gilley are surly aware of this. The fact that they got most of their predictions right isn't as important as examining the ones they got wrong, and trying to figure out what may have happened. Jiang Zemin stepped down as general secretary and president -- as predicted -- but stayed on as chairman of the powerful Centeral Military Commission. This event was not foreseen. What happened? Nathan and Gilley forecast that the Standing Committee of the Politburo would consist of seven members. That group today stands at nine. (The PRC constitution allows for seven to nine members on the PBSC.) One of the seven predicted to attain Standing Committee status, Li Ruihuan, was not chosen. Li, a reform-minded member of the previous Standing Committee, didn't make the cut for this one, even though he would have been young enough to serve another term before "mandatory" retirement at age 70. Credit Jiang Zemin for his ouster. Three unexpected members were chosen -- Huang Ju, Jia Qinglin, and Wu Guanzheng. Nathan and Gilley discuss these men (and many others) as well as the leaders they predicted would rise to power. There are brighter red stars than Huang Ju. Jiang has mentored him since Shanghai days in the 1980s. A former mayor and party chief of Shanghai, his daughter is married to a pro-Taiwan newspaperman from San Francisco. Jia Qingling, a former Beijing party chief, was the best man at Jiang's wedding, and saved by Jiang after a corruption scandal involving Jia's wife. Wu Guanzheng is secretary of the important Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the CPC. An ally of Jiang, he has close links with Hu Jintao as well. The new members of the PBSC that were correctly predicted by Nathan and Gilley are: Hu Jintao, Mr. "Zero Defects" is China's first "resume president." Hu used force in Tibet in 1989 two months before Tiananmin, creating the precedent for the June 4 massacre. Jiang labeled him the "core of the fourth generation." Wen Jiabao is a protégé of Zhu Rongji and supported by anti-Jiang factions. As premier of the State Council, he will oversee economic reforms. A capable administrator, he has been called "most dazzling." Wu Bangguo. A Jiang man from Shanghai days, Wu oversaw the Three Gorges dam project. He is said to have a "common touch" and is cautious about reform. Zeng Qinghong has been mentored by and is the former personal secretary to Jiang Zemin. Zeng is perhaps the most influential member of the Standing Committee, and a possible challenger to Hu Jintao. Li Changchun is supported by Jiang, but lost the premier's position because of purported missteps in Guangdong. Still, he was able to solve problems in the province and bring it in line with Beijing's policies in the 1990s, making it a favorite of Jiang and where he chose to announce his "Three Represents" campaign in 2000. Luo Gan. Mr. "Go To" when there's trouble, Luo controls the security apparatus of PRC, including the People's Armed Police. He did Li Peng's bidding at Tiananmen. At least seven of the nine are Jiang's men. One of the interesting, if not amazing things that the authors show is that the succession to power of the "fourth generation" leadership in China is the most orderly transition of power in China's history. No small claim. Still, it remains to be seen how these men will govern and engage in foreign affairs. None of the nine have any direct military experience. Only one has studied outside China (Luo Gan), and only one has had international travel (Hu Jintao). The preceeding leadership "traveled extensively, made diplomatic visits, attended summits, and entertained a ceaseless stream of visitors from abroad." To varying degrees each man is well-grounded in domestic policy, and they are poised to work together as a consensus team under the watchful eye of Jiang. As Nathan and Gilley point out, and as many China-watchers agree, "stability" will be a key word in making policy at home and abroad. Last year, some of my Chinese colleagues in Beijing attempted to forecast the future too. "There are others besides Hu Jintao," one high-ranking PLA officer told me. But he missed the mark more than "China's New Rulers" did. If you're interested in the inner workings of the CCP, and the relationship between different levels and persons of power in Beijing, you'll appreciate the information this book conveys.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read
Review: This book is an excellent read for anyone who wants to know about China's rulers. Granted the "secret files" in the title made me a little skeptical, but after reading the book and reading other articles as well, this book feels "real." It will be interesting to see how the new leaders guide China and how they will react to the challenges that come up. To go along with this book, I recommend James C.F. Wang's "Contemporary Chinese Politics," the latest edition.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read
Review: This book is an excellent read for anyone who wants to know about China's rulers. Granted the "secret files" in the title made me a little skeptical, but after reading the book and reading other articles as well, this book feels "real." It will be interesting to see how the new leaders guide China and how they will react to the challenges that come up. To go along with this book, I recommend James C.F. Wang's "Contemporary Chinese Politics," the latest edition.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read
Review: This book is an excellent read for anyone who wants to know about China's rulers. Granted the "secret files" in the title made me a little skeptical, but after reading the book and reading other articles as well, this book feels "real." It will be interesting to see how the new leaders guide China and how they will react to the challenges that come up. To go along with this book, I recommend James C.F. Wang's "Contemporary Chinese Politics," the latest edition.
Rating:
Summary: Inside background on Chinese leadership
Review: This book is an interesting survey of the careers and prospects of the new group of rulers installed in China in November 2002 based on leaked, edited internal party reports as supplemented by background information provided by the leaker. The authors seem to be in a position to judge the credibility of this information, though I can only imagine that the information is filtered through some subtle lens which would only be detectable to the true insider. Now, this book went to press in September 2002 so it seems that some of the predictions did not come to pass and these issues may or may not be addressed in future editions. The book is well written straight forward account of the intrigues that led this group of men to the control of the lives of a billion people. Recent press reports show that this transition is just as opaque to the Chinese as it is to Americans, which only increases the importance of this book and its Chinese language counterparts. The compelling thing about this story is the bit of light it sheds on the Chinese power structure. There are a series of overlapping factions, interests and affinities of such small distinction that I am not sure that even the players fully understand the game. Prof. Nathan provides some information but does not attempt to explain it all in detail.
Rating:
Summary: Look Inside Zhongnanhai
Review: This book is great for anyone from a curious reader to an "expert sinologist" (who rarely know what they are talking about). While I would never advocate accepting any foreign policy text-especially one on China-without serious skepticism, I think this is an overall accurate look at the inside.
As many of the other reviewers have noted, this book became dated as soon as it went to print, but that is not as big of a fault as one might imagine. With a quick glance at the news source of your choice (or the reviewer a little further down the page) will bring you up to date quite easily.
My one disagreement worthy of mention is his definition of the world multipolarity- "many nations having a say in world affairs." While I agree that is what American pundits mean by the term, I would argue that Chinese politicians mean something slightly different. Praise for multipolarity is actually an effort to tie the US down to the UN (where China of course wields a veto) and other means of international oversight of US foreign policy decisions. There is a subtle difference between the meaning in the this word in the lexicons of the leaders of the two nations. America means it much as the authors describe it, but China means it as constrain America.
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