Episode · The Ezra Klein Show · 2026-07-14
Books mentioned on What Americans Need to Understand About China | The Ezra Klein Show
Kevin Rudd recommended The Party's Interests Come First by Joseph Torigian and The Souls of China by Ian Johnson, and discussed Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and The prince by Niccolò Machiavelli.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Nineteen Eighty-Four
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is a dystopian novel depicting a totalitarian regime characterized by extreme surveillance, psychological manipulation, and the rewriting of history.
Discussed“In fact, he reminds me of that last scene in Orwell's novel with Winston, where he realizes as he disappears into oblivion that he loved Big Brother all along and the party always comes first.”
Where to get it
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The prince
The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli is a classic 16th-century political treatise offering a pragmatic, unflinching guide on how political power is acquired, maintained, and wielded.
Discussed“If we've looked at our Machaveli carefully in the prince, Machaveli often speaks of the need to mask one's own ambitions and to mask one's own ideas while being a loyal servant of the prince of the time before you yourself end up in power.”
Where to get it
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The Party's Interests Come First
The Party's Interests Come First by Joseph Torigian is a political biography chronicling the life of Xi Zhongshu, a prominent Chinese revolutionary and the father of China's current leader, Xi Jinping.
Recommended“So there's a great book by Joseph Tigian the party's interests come first the life of Xi Jong Shin father of Xiinping. It's a great book and a great read.”
Where to get it
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The Souls of China
The Souls of China: The Return of Religion After Mao by Ian Johnson is a sociological and journalistic account examining the dramatic resurgence of traditional faiths, grassroots religious practices, and spiritual life in contemporary China.
Recommended“The second is um Ian Johnson uh the souls of China, the return of religion after Mao. Um and it's about uh what is occurred on the grounds in the grassroots with the rise of various forms of Dowoism, Buddhism, Protestant Christianity”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (2) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“He's published that in a book on Xiinping. He's also the author of the avoidable war.”
“He's published that in a book on Xiinping. He's also the author of the avoidable war.”