The Journey West (Photos, Maps)

Author: Edgar Snow (USA), Leshan
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2002-06-01
Features: Red Star Over China is a highly descriptive and factual reporting work with exquisite writing. The author authentically recorded his observations and experiences during his field reporting in the Northwest Revolutionary Base Area of China (primarily Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region centered around Yan'an) from June to October 1936. It provided the world with a truthful account of China, the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, and many of its leaders and commanders. Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai are among the most representative figures portrayed by Snow. In October 1937, Red Star Over China was first published by Gorden & Gordon, causing a sensation worldwide. When the Chinese translation was published in Shanghai in February 1938, due to the start of the Anti-Japanese War and considerations of the united front, the title was changed to Journey to the West. Despite this, the book became a banned work under the Nationalist regime in China. Journey to the West not only achieved great success in political terms but also became a model for similar works in the art of reportage. The character portrayals, environmental descriptions, and narrative perspectives in the book reached almost an almost miraculous level. After the publication of the Chinese translation of Journey to the West, it also generated a huge response in China, with thousands of young Chinese taking up the revolutionary path after reading it.