Ten Years of Madness

Anecdotes from the Cultural Revolution

"Ten Years of Madness" is a collection of good anecdotes by various people who witnessed the Cultural Revolution. Most are stories about people and families who have been wronged, although there are a few stories about active participants in the Cultural Revolution. "The Story of a Smile" was particularly interesting. It is a tragedy that caused me to chuckle. The author's commentaries at the ends of each anecdote are trivial and unnecessary. Nevertheless, this is a good read.

Oral history is an important approach to Chinese Cultural Revolution studies. In this work, Feng provides his interview records with 100 people who experienced the Cultural Revolution themselves. Theses interviews contain impressive multi-layered stories of individuals during the depressing periods, which adds to the historiography of Chinese Cultural Revolution with candid accounts from ordinary people. They are also valuable resources to study the historical memories of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, as well as how this historical event impacted the lives of Chinese people in various ways.