"A compelling tale and one which should interest not just historians but anyone wanting to understand the rural mechanics of the People's Republic of China."

--Theresa Munford, Far Eastern Economic Review

"By far the best book on the impact of the Chinese Communist Party on peasant life."

--Jonathan Mirsky, The Observer

Yale University Press Web Site, March, 2000

This is a detailed portrait of social change in the North China plain, depicting how the world of the Chinese peasants evolved during an era of war and revolution and how it in turn shaped the revolutionary process.