A Higher Kind of Loyalty

At first glance, you could mistake this work as just another in the growing "I survived the Cultural Revolution" genre of books. However, while this does address Liu's treatment during the Cultural Revolution, it goes far beyond typical books of the genre. In the words of the late-Arthur Miller, "But it is not quite the now-familiar tale of tortures and endless persecution, for there is a powerful stylistic directness, a wealth of detailed observation, and the passionate humanity of a witness and victim of the most surrealistic tyranny of this or any other age." This sentence is the most apt description, and it isn't surprising that it came from someone once persecuted due to perceived political views half-a-century ago. This is a powerful read. Liu Binyan joined the Communist Party during the anti-Japanese War in the 1940s. His goal was idealistic, borne out of an undying love and patriotism for his country. Sadly, the leaders of the Communist Party didn't have the same idealistic visions held by Liu. Liu was constantly persecuted for trying to help the Party and thus the country. Liu displays a passion for the common people of China that the Party cadres could have learned well from, but by in large would refuse to do. This is very readable and compelling. As a journalist himself, Liu has presented a compelling tale of the true situation during his life in China. The fact that this is a translation from the original Chinese does little to detract from the attractiveness of the narrative. Of interest to this China watcher was the use of time-worn phrases that the Chinese Communists use in the media, all of which within China is under their control. While the phrases have changed to some extent, the media in China still uses such phrases to this day. While this work is a bit dated in that it was published in 1990, many of the methods used by the media and the control of that media by the Chinese Communists hasn't changed significantly since the time this book was published. This book is a must read if you are interested in contemporary China, or if you are interested in the general topic of the human struggle for improvement and, most of all, liberty.

Absolutely absorbing! Liu Binyan is showing why he is seen as China's most influential investigative reporter. The book reads like a novel. It takes the reader inside the soul of the ordinary Chinese people. Page after page is filled with images of tremendous dignity and courage in the face of a strangulating system. Characters come alive like the young woman, Zhang Zhixin, who realized that Mao's policies had failed and said so. For this she was condemmed to death by firing squad. But in order to prevent her from having the last word the State cut her larynx. Curt Vonnegut's answer to what it is in the German character that allowed such atrocities to happen in WW2 echoes repeatedly "obedience". Obeying laws that are not in the common good. The spirit of the Chinese people rises high above and will not be quieted by violence. "We will all repent in this generation not only for the hateful words and deeds of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people." Martin Luther King