Model Rebels

Reviews / Votes

"Bruce Gilley offers us a riveting tale of local resistance and a timely reminder that great wealth can trigger defiance rather than acquiescence." -Kevin O'Brien, author of Reform Without Liberalization "This engrossing narrative explains how Yu Zuomin, a dedicated communist, took advantage of China's market reforms to lead his historically poverty-stricken Daqiu Village to astounding and ostentatious wealth. Bruce Gilley portrays Yu as a new kind of peasant rebel. He insightfully draws out the way in which the Party-run Chinese media first lavished praise on Yu and then, when he overstepped his bounds, demonized him." -Thomas Gold, author of State and Society in the Taiwan Miracle "The meteoric rise and fall of China's most famous village, Daqiu, and its audacious former boss, Yu Zuomin, provides a cautionary tale of the perils and pitfalls of 'getting rich quick' in post-reform China. In this outstanding book, Bruce Gilley turns a powerful microscope on Daqiu, skillfully rendering its story as a first-class political thriller. Gilley writes so well, his arguments and exposition are so clear, and his case study is so fascinating that the reader is apt to devour it in a single sitting - as I did." -Richard Baum, author of Burying Mao: Chinese Politics in the Age of Deng Xiaoping"