The Revenge of Heaven : Journal of a Young Chinese

By Ken Ling

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345029852
• ISBN13: 9780345029850
• Release Date: January 1972
• Publisher: Putnam
• Length: 438 Pages

Customer Reviews

A Chinese 'Lord of the Flies' Era

Ken Ling writes an autobiographical account of his teenage years in Xiamen, China during the Cultural Revolution. As a former American student at Xiamen University, I had a particular interest in Ling's description of life in Xiamen during this brutal era. It is transparent about the ugly events of this young student's life as he experienced what I would describe as a quasi-civil war among his peers. It is a description of actual events fitting for the "Lord of the Flies" story. Gang violence, mob rage, the absence of 'civilized' authority are all characteristic of Ling's story. While not unnecessarily graphic, some of the brutalities among the students, such as violent mass rape of female 'prisoners' turned my stomach. It was hard for me to imagine such brutalities taking place as I compared it to my own experience a few years ago with the warm, hospitable Chinese students I befriended. It confirmed what I have long thought of the Cultural Revolution. It is the most puzzling deviation from Chinese values of filial respect, hierarchy, and tradition in their history. I can describe the Cultural Revolution, but I cannot explain why it took such a brutal and revolutionary form. Its difficult to say why I wouldn't give this book a 5 star rating. Perhaps its topic is a bit narrow. The author isn't as reflective in certain places as I would prefer. Honestly, though the determining factor is my difficulty identifying with the protagonist. He is no hero to me...and it is hard to see him as a victim either. Unlike Nien Cheng in "Life and Death in Shanghai," one does not come away from reading this book struck with admiration for the author's heroic spirit.