The republican era and the emergence of communist leadership during the anti-Japanese war of resistance -- The ascent of the vigilante militia : the violent antecedents of Mao's war communism -- The onset of collectivization and popular dissatisfaction with Mao's "yellow bomb" road -- The mandate abandoned : the disaster of the Great Leap Forward -- Strategies of survival and their elimination in the great leap forward -- The escape from famine and death -- Indignation and frustrated retaliation : the politics of disengagement -- The market comes first : the economics of disengagement and the origins of reform -- Persistent memories and long-delayed retaliation in the reform era
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 349-364) and index