The Long March: The True History of Communist China's Founding Myth

The Long March chronicles the 4,000-mile journey undertaken by the Chinese Red Army in 1934-35. Author Sun Shuyun retraces the route while interviewing survivors and examining historical records to separate fact from propaganda. Sun contrasts the official Communist Party narrative with accounts from participants who experienced the march firsthand. Her research includes previously unpublished documents and testimonies from veterans in their 80s and 90s who shared their memories before passing away. By walking sections of the route herself, Sun provides geographical and cultural context for this pivotal moment in Chinese history. She visits key sites and remote villages where local witnesses and their descendants maintain oral histories of the Long March passing through their regions. The book examines how historical events transform into national mythology, and what that process reveals about both the past and present. Through this deconstruction of an origin story, deeper questions emerge about the relationship between truth, power, and collective memory.

Readers appreciate Sun Shuyun's firsthand interviews with Long March survivors, which reveal discrepancies between the official Communist Party narrative and participants' experiences. Many note the book's value in documenting these stories before the last survivors passed away. Readers highlight the author's personal connection as a Chinese citizen who grew up believing the propaganda before discovering contradicting evidence. One Amazon reviewer noted: "Her perspective as someone who learned the myth before uncovering the truth adds credibility." Common criticisms include repetitive writing and a sometimes confusing narrative structure. Several readers mention difficulty keeping track of military units and geographical locations. Ratings: Goodreads: 3.8/5 (289 ratings) Amazon: 4.2/5 (47 ratings) Most critical reviews focus on the book's organization rather than its content or conclusions. A Goodreads reviewer wrote: "Important historical revelations but needed better editing." Reviews consistently praise the research and historical significance while noting the writing could be more engaging.

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🔹 The author Sun Shuyun retraced the entire 6,000-mile route of the Long March on foot, interviewing survivors and discovering that many of the famous stories about the march were heavily embellished or fabricated for propaganda purposes. 🔹 While Communist propaganda claimed 86,000 soldiers started the Long March, historical records show only about 10,000 survived to reach their destination in Shaanxi province - far fewer than officially reported. 🔹 Sun Shuyun was uniquely positioned to write this book as she grew up in China learning the glorified version of the Long March in school, but later gained access to both Chinese and Western historical archives while studying at Oxford University. 🔹 The book reveals that Mao Zedong was carried by litter for much of the journey and did not actually walk the route, contrary to the popular image of him marching alongside his troops. 🔹 One of the March's most celebrated stories - the crossing of the Dadu Chain Bridge - was dramatized significantly. Rather than a desperate battle, surviving witnesses told the author that the crossing was relatively unopposed.