Nixon and Mao: The Week That Changed the World-Fast Shipping

Description

Margaret MacMillan, praised as “a superb writer who can bring history to life” (The Philadelphia Inquirer), brings her extraordinary gifts to one of the most important subjects today–therelationship between the United States and China–and one of the most significantmoments in modern history.

In February 1972, Richard Nixon, the first American presidentever to visit China, and Mao Tse-tung, the enigmatic Communist dictator, met foran hour in Beijing. Their meeting changed the course of history and ultimately laidthe groundwork for the complex relationship between China and the United States thatwe see today.

That monumental meeting in 1972–during what Nixon called “the weekthat changed the world”–could have been brought about only by powerful leaders: Nixonhimself, a great strategist and a flawed human being, and Mao, willful and were assisted by two brilliant and complex statesmen, Henry Kissinger and ChouEn-lai. Surrounding them were fascinating people with unusual roles to play, includingthe enormously disciplined and unhappy Pat Nixon and a small-time Shanghai actressturned monstrous empress, Jiang Qing. And behind all of them lay the complex historyof two countries, two great and equally confident civilizations: China, ancient andcontemptuous yet fearful of barbarians beyond the Middle Kingdom, and the UnitedStates, forward-looking and confident, seeing itself as the beacon for the world.

Nixon thought China could help him get out of Vietnam. Mao needed American technologyand expertise to repair the damage of the Cultural Revolution. Both men wanted anally against an aggressive Soviet Union. Did they get what they wanted? Did Mao betrayhis own revolutionary ideals? How did the people of China react to this apparentchange in attitude toward the imperialist Americans? Did Nixon make a mistake incoming to China as a supplicant? And what has been the impact of the visit on theUnited States ever since?

Weaving together fascinating anecdotes and insights, anunderstanding of Chinese and American history, and the momentous events of an extraordinarytime, this brilliantly written book looks at one of the transformative moments ofthe twentieth century and casts new light on a key relationship for the world ofthe twenty-first century.