The Long March by E Jocelyn and A McEwen. S/C. 350 pp 1985

First edition published by Constable 2006. The softcover and inside pages are in good condition. Some spotting on first page. Binding still sturdy. With many black and white photographs and a map of the Long March from 1934 to 1935. Plus endnotes and an index.

This is the true story behind the legendary journey that made Mao's China.

In October 1934, the First Front Army of the Chinese Communist Party fled impending annihilation. As Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist forces closed in for the kill, 80 000 men, women and children left their homes to escape with Mao Zedong into the unknown. One year, 4 000 miles and countless battles later, fewer than 4 000 were left. From these bedraggled survivors would grow the army of millions that conquered China for Mao 14 years later.

In 2002, Ed Jocelyn and Andrew McEwen set off to retrace the Red Army's journey and record the experiences of the last remaining witnesses and participants of the Long March. This book is based on eye-witness evidence and contemporary records. It contrasts starkly not only with the official version, but also with recent claims that the March was a fraud. The Long March really did happen but not as Mao told it.