The Great Transformation Audiobook By Chen Jian, Odd Arne Westad cover art

The Great Transformation

China’s Road from Revolution to Reform

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Great Transformation

By: Chen Jian, Odd Arne Westad
Narrated by: Feodor Chin
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $21.49

Buy for $21.49

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

THE FIRST THOROUGH ACCOUNT OF A FORMATIVE AND LITTLE UNDERSTOOD CHAPTER IN CHINESE HISTORY

Odd Arne Westad and Chen Jian chronicle how an impoverished and terrorized China experienced radical political changes in the long 1970s and how ordinary people broke free from the beliefs that had shaped their lives during Mao’s Cultural Revolution. These changes, and the unprecedented and sustained economic growth that followed, transformed China and the world.

In this rigorous account, Westad and Chen construct a panorama of catastrophe and progress in China. They chronicle China’s gradual opening to the world—the interplay of power in an era of aged and ailing leadership, the people’s rebellion against the earlier government system, and the roles of unlikely characters: overseas Chinese capitalists, American engineers, Japanese professors, and German designers. This is a story of revolutionary change that neither foreigners nor the Chinese themselves could have predicted.

©2024 Odd Arne Westad and Chen Jian (P)2024 Recorded Books
20th Century China Economic History Imperialism Military War
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

“Westad and Chen have written a masterful account of China’s modernization that illuminates the path it took to emerge as America’s only true peer competitor.”—Graham Allison, author of Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides’s Trap?

What listeners say about The Great Transformation

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    8
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    7
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

What a Must Read Book

I have been telling my friends and family they have to read this book. Yes I find China fascinating but it is a book about leadership and intrigue and turning points and challenges. Deng taking control of China in 1976-78 didn’t not sound possible until it happened. Have to read this book, especially now as the USA is about to go through changes lead from the top.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Clear synthesis of a complex issue

I liked the narrative and the analysis of key people and events. What I liked less was the pronunciation of Chinese names

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Strong political history, ok economic history

Relative newcomer to modern Chinese history. The political history was richly detailed and engaging, if a bit overly detailed at times, to my novice ears. I would have liked a bit more color and texture in the economic and business stories associated with the liberalization. There are short capsule histories of businesses, but never lasting more than a few paragraphs. Would have benefited from deeper engagement with some of these stories.

Very good performance.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!