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SotR is a 1st person narrative of Liang Heng, who came of age during the political and social upheavals of Mao-era China. The Liangs (Liang is the family name) were not high-ranking communists, but Heng persuasively depicts how his family’s story was not atypical for the era. Beginning in the 1960’s, the Cultural Revolution raised political loyalty and revolutionary zeal to the chief priorities of the state – so much so that even a relatively homogenous political society was brought to the brink of civil war. As Heng grows up, the Chinese leadership embarks on many economic and political programs, many of which turn disastrous, and virtually all result in suffering. In a climate where revolution was the ideal, fellow citizens were encouraged to denounced each other and write for themselves damning self-criticisms. The revolution turns personal even before the proper advent of the Cultural Revolution. Heng’s mother, a politically reliable woman with a stable Police job, earns a nearly fatal (but otherwise permanent) “black mark” when denouncing her superiors. Ironically, the impetus for her actions came from The Party itself, which encouraged, if not commanded frank discussion as part of “The Hundred Flowers” campaign. Heng’s father takes severe action to protect the family from his wife’s denunciation – actions which seem especially cruel but tragically prove immensely justified (and ultimately futile) as the story continues. I first read SotR in college – even for those who aren’t students of Chinese history, it’s an effective study in how mob rule can legitimize itself by exploiting political dogma, no matter how little understood or simply nonsensical. At the same time, it’s an incredibly readable story. The author knew he could choose between submerging his family in the story of the cultural revolution and instead opted to tell a very personal story which informs the era quite well.Read full review
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