China: Thoughts from the New Helmsman

In a bestseller, Deng tries to ensure the survival of his ideas

The official Red Flag journal billed it as "a brilliant book marking a period of great historical change." Its publication, declared the people's daily, was "a major event in the political life of the party." From across the country, provincial leaders sent messages extolling the author as "the Helmsman" and "the Chief Architect," encomiums that were once reserved for Mao Tse-tung. In bookstores Chinese readers snapped up 2 million copies on the first day of sale, and the first printing of 12 million quickly sold...

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