The Culture of Power: The Lin Biao Incident in the Cultural Revolution
Qiu (history, Old Dominion Univ.) is the daughter of a general who served in the Chinese air force under Lin Biao, Mao Zedong's chosen successor, who died in a mysterious plane crash in 1971. Unlike the sensationalized version, Yao Ming-le's The Conspiracy and Murder of Mao's Heir (LJ 6/1/83), Qiu's book focuses on the broader systemic, traditional, and personal factors that led to conflict between Mao and Lin. Qiu provides reasonable evidence that, even at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution in 1966, the 73-year-old Mao was suffering from senile paranoia and that his wife, Jiang Qing, long oppressed by the Communist Party, was finally able to make her mark. Qiu suggests that Lin had psychoses that absolutely prevented him from claiming a public role and that Lin's wife, son, and daughter had different ways of promoting Lin as one of the leaders of the Chinese revolution, thereby challenging Mao's authority. Qiu uses the Lin Biao "affair" as a case study on the chaos of the Cultural Revolution. Highly recommended for all libraries.APeggy Spitzer Christoff, Oak Park, ILCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.