Mao [Book] : the real story / Alexander V. Pantsov with Steven I. Levine.

Originally published in Russian: Moskva : Molodaia Gvardiia, 2007, under title Mao Tzçedun.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [675]-713) and index.

Note on the Spelling of Chinese Words -- Cast of Characters -- Introduction: Myths and Realities -- pt. 1. The Apprentice -- The Foster Child of the Bodhisattva -- On The Threshold Of A New World -- "I Think, Therefore, I Am" -- The Sound of Footsteps in a Deserted Valley -- Dreams of a Red Chamber -- The Great Union of the Popular Masses -- Breathing World Revolution, or The Magic Of Dictatorship -- "Following the Russian Path" -- The Lessons of Bolshevik Tactics -- pt. 2. The Revolutionary -- Entering the Guomindang -- Hopes and Disappointments -- Playing with Chiang Kai-shek -- The Collapse of the United Front -- The Path to the Soviets -- Red Banner over the Jinggang Mountains -- A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire -- Under the Comintern's Wing -- Dog Eat Dog Communist-Style -- The Long March -- The Xi'an Incident -- The Flirtatious Philosopher -- Consolidating Control over the CCP -- Stalin, Mao, and the New Democratic Revolution in China -- pt. 3. The Dictator -- Visit to the Red Mecca -- The Korean Adventure -- The Contradictions of New Democracy -- Socialist Industrialization -- The Great Turning Point -- The Emancipation of Consciousness -- The Great Leap Forward -- Famine and Fear -- "The Dismissal of Hai Rui from Office" -- To Rebel Is Justified -- The Red Guard Tragedy -- The Mystery of Project 571 -- Death of The Red Emperor -- Epilogue -- Appendix: Mao Zedong's Chronology -- Appendix: Mao Zedong's Genealogy.

This major new biography of Mao uses extensive Russian documents previously unavailable to biographers to reveal surprising details about Mao’s rise to power and his leadership in China. .