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At the height of the McCarthyite hysteria of the 1950s, John Paton Davies, Jr., was summoned to the State Department one morning and fired. His offense? The career diplomat had counseled the U.S. government during World War II that the Communist forces in China were poised to take over the country—which they did, in 1949. Davies joined the thousands of others who became the victims of a political maelstrom that engulfed the country and deprived the United States of the wisdom and guidance of an entire generation of East Asian diplomats and scholars.
The son of American missionaries, Davies was born in China at the turn of the twentieth century. Educated in the United States, he joined the ranks of the newly formed Foreign Service in the 1930s and returned to China, where he would remain until nearly the end of World War II. During that time he became one of the first Americans to meet and talk with the young revolutionary known as Mao Zedong. He documented the personal excesses and political foibles of Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek. As a political aide to General Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell, the wartime commander of the Allied forces in East and South Asia, he traveled widely in the region, meeting with colonial India's Nehru and Gandhi to gauge whether their animosity to British rule would translate into support for Japan. Davies ended the war serving in Moscow with George F. Kennan, the architect of America's policy toward the Soviet Union. Kennan found in Davies a lifelong friend and colleague. Neither, however, was immune to the virulent anticommunism of the immediate postwar years.
China Hand is the story of a man who captured with wry and judicious insight the times in which he lived, both as observer and as actor.
- Sales Rank: #813399 in eBooks
- Published on: 2012-01-31
- Released on: 2012-01-31
- Format: Kindle eBook
Review
"Among the State Department's 'China Hands' of the 1930s and 40s, John Paton Davies was one of the most eminent, until our domestic debates destroyed his career. China Hand is a gripping account of that era."—Dr. Henry A. Kissinger
"An often funny, always insightful account of an adventurous and wonderful life. John Paton Davies was an American hero—judicious, discreet, and reliable—who deserves to be remembered by a book as good as this one."—Nicholas Thompson, author of The Hawk and the Dove: Paul Nitze, George Kennan, and the History of the Cold War
"The book is filled with vivid personalities and brings to life the fluid strategic situation at the end of the war. Its wry style makes for a delightful read, even though the foreordained outcome suffuses the story with regret."—Foreign Affairs
China Hand is low-key but forceful, at times quite deliciously witty. . . . No doubt China Hand will be of particular interest to students of Chinese history from the 1930s to the 50s and of American diplomacy during the same period, but its greatest value is as the personal testament of a man who was the wholly innocent victim of political opportunism yet retained his sense of personal worth and, equally important, his undying loyalty to the country that had served him so poorly. His life should be an object lesson to everyone.—Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post
"An important book about a pivotal time in America, with relevance for the present and future. As history and biography, China Hand is first rate."—Dan Rather
A History Book Club selection
"From his battles with Senator McCarthy, to his heroic achievements in the Burmese jungle, from his insightful predictions of the Chinese civil war, to his ultimate dismissal from the U.S. Foreign Service, Davies holds nothing back. Loaded in story and analysis, China Hand is a terrific book about a fascinating figure in American history."—Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Lion
""[This] globetrotting memoir is rich in intrigue, candid, credible, and masterfully told."—Andrew Burstein, The Advocate
"China Hand is a vital missing link in the terrible story of America savaging itself politically over the Communist conquest of China. This testimony by a leading victim in that maelstrom of hysteria and falsehood makes sobering reading in today's political climate."—Robert MacNeil
"Davies predicted more accurately than anyone else, prior to the Cold War, what China's course would be during it. We are most fortunate to have his posthumous autobiography available at last, in which he explains, in shrewd and sparkling prose, how he did this. His book is a major new contribution to World War II and early Cold War history."—John Lewis Gaddis, author of George F. Kennan: An American Life
About the Author
John Paton Davies, Jr. (1908-99) was a Foreign Service officer in the U.S. Department of State from 1931 to 1954. He was also the author of Foreign and Other Affairs and Dragon by the Tail: American, British, Japanese, and Russian Encounters with China and One Another. Todd S. Purdum is national editor of Vanity Fair. Bruce Cumings is Gustavus F. and Ann M. Swift Distinguished Service Professor in History and the College at the University of Chicago. He is the author of several books, most recently Dominion from Sea to Sea: Pacific Ascendancy and American Power.
Most helpful customer reviews
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
This Book Was Too Short
By MikeinSeattle
I found myself hoarding the last 30 pages, or so. I thought, "If I don't read them all now, I'll have some some more for tomorrow." John Paton Davies was in an unique position to observe some of the key events of an extraordinary era. We are lucky he was such a keen observer and a gifted writer, as well as being a significant participant. He writes of the key players and events in an easy, accessible style, with a subtle humor and much wit. His understatements and objectivity make the struggles and follies of the principal actors in World War II China stand out in sharp relief. He saw General Joe Stillwell clearly and sympathetically, and he clearly details the enormously complex structure Vinegar Joe had to contend with. There are portraits and glimpses of Stalin, Mao, FDR, and more, as well as a jungle adventure among head-hunters in Burma. What a great read! And there are some valuable lessons about the vagaries of politics, the price of honesty and loyalty, and the need to assess policies clearly and honestly. Worth remembering in a presidential campaign year...
"China Hand" is an entertaining and worthwhile read.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful.
Broken China
By Christian Schlect
Very good on the internal struggle for China in the 1930s-40s; and on the United States role then with China, both militarily and diplomatically. All interested in modern China would benefit from reading this well written autobiography.
It provides one intelligent observer's viewpoint, not a balanced history. One comes away, however, thinking the career diplomat John Paton Davies, Jr. was correct about a lot of things related to the political future of China and the region. It is highly unfortunate that his views eventually lost out to those of the sharp-elbowed "China Lobby," led by supporters of Chiang Kai-shek.
The book is quite informative on Mr. Davies' start at the State Department and his close ties in the early years of World War II to U.S. General "Fighting Joe" Stilwell. His description of Washington, D.C. foreign policy making under FDR, especially as related to China and winning the war against Japan, is clear, incisive, and devastating.
There are oddities in this narrative to the modern eye, such as Mr. Davies' ardent defense of media leaks and cavalier approach to classified official documents. Also, his failure to mention much about his father-in-law, who just happened to be our country's first ambassador to India.
The book tails off in both form and substance when the now-deceased author hits the 1950s and his eventual dismissal from the State Department.
The epilogue provide by Professor Cumings might have been much better if it kept a focus on the book's subject (the life of and career of John Paton Davies, Jr.), rather than bemoaning the current state of diplomacy in our "still provincial country."
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful.
Insightful, witty, wonderful read
By Jo Manley
Just got my copy yesterday and couldn't put it down. This is a personal history of tumultuous times, told with dry wit and extraordinary understanding. One of those books you're sad to finish because you'd love to keep reading.....
See all 19 customer reviews...
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