A spirited memoir by a former Chinese factory worker who grew up in Nanjing, participated in the Tianamen Square protest and ended up as an international journalist. Lijia Zhang worked as a teenager in a factory producing missiles designed to reach North America, queuing every month tog ive evidence to the 'period police' that she wasn't pregnant. In the oppressive routine of guarded compounds and political meetings, Zhang grew disillusioned with 'The Glorious Cause' and set out to learn English. She flaunted her intellectual independence from wearing bright, Western style clothes to organizing the largest demonstration by Nanjing workers in support of Tiananmen Square protest in 1989. By narrating the changes in her own life, Zhang chronicles  the momentous shift in China's economic policy: her factory, still an ICBM manufacturer, won the bid to cast a giant Bronze Buddha as the whole country went crazy for profit. Socialism is great! Is a testament to Zhang's personal triumph over the controlled existence that was supposed to be her destiny. ' a rare and intimate glimpse of a country and culture that are now reshaping our world' Pankaj Mishra  Lijia Zhang was born and raised in Nanjing. Her articles have appeared in numerous international publications, including South China Morning Post, The Japan Times, The Independent, The Washington Post and Newsweek. She is a regular speaker on BBC radio and NPR. She lives in Beijing with her two daughters.

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