Mia Quick- Son of the Revolution

Son of the Revolution is a moving story based on the life of Liang Heng. In reading Son of the Revolution, I have gained great insight into the cultural revolution in China. The historic movements of the period, the influence of "Mao Thought", and the personal effects of the period on the Liang family are related in stirring detail. I'm only through about 100 pages of the book, but so far the central issues are: The role of family, influence of relationships, and the power of Mao Thought. Regarding the role of the family, Son of the Revolution begins with one of the most destructive occurrences of Heng's life; the re-education of his mother and his parent's subsequent divorce following her banishment. Following the divorce of Heng's parents, the Liang family becomes the object of scorn. They are ostracized on the social level as well as the political level. Both of Heng's sisters are denied entry into the prestigious Red Guard due to the intense political scorn imposed on the family. The "questionable" political allegiance of the Liang family continues to plague the family members as the novel goes on. As you can see the influence of relationships is huge. Being associated with the wrong people can easily be the political and social downfall of any given person on any given day. As aforementioned, the power of Mao Thought is another recurring theme throughout the book. One of the first words out of young Heng's mouth is his sworn allegiance to Chairman Mao Zedong, which is a bit scary if you ask me. I can't believe the power Mao has over the people of China, it's appalling. I'm looking forward to finishing this book and learning more about Heng and the influence of Mao!