Mao The Unknown Story - By Jung Chang (Book)**NEW

Jung Chang's WILD SWANS was an extraordinary bestseller throughout the world, selling
more than 10 million copies and reaching a wider readership than any other book about
China. Now she and her husband Jon Halliday have written a groundbreaking biography of
Mao Tse-tung.

Based on a decade of research, and on interviews with many of Mao's close circle in China
who have never talked before - and with virtually everyone outside China who had significant
dealings with him - this is the most authoritative life of Mao ever written. It is full of startling
revelations, exploding the myth of the Long March, and showing a completely unknown Mao:
he was not driven by idealism or ideology; his intimate and intricate relationship with Stalin
went back to the 1920s, ultimately bringing him to power; he welcomed Japanese occupation
of much of China; and he schemed, poisoned and blackmailed to get his way. After Mao
conquered China in 1949, his secret goal was to dominate the world. In chasing this dream
he caused the deaths of 38 million people in the greatest famine in history.

Combining meticulous history with the story-telling style of WILD SWANS, this biography
makes immediate Mao's roller-coaster life, as he intrigued and fought every step of the way
to force through his unpopular decisions. The reader enters the shadowy chambers of Mao's
court, and eavesdrops on the drama in its hidden recesses. Mao's character and the
enormity of his behaviour towards his wives, mistresses and children are unveiled for the first
time.

This is an entirely fresh look at Mao in both content and approach. It will astonish historians
and the general reader alike.