While the title and cover of the book may mislead some toward the notion that CEO, China may be some kind of sensationalist piece, focused upon how Xi Jinping, as many sources proclaim, is the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao, and therefore, would be heavy on the sensationalism, and low on the academic dimension, nothing could be further from the truth.
CEO, China is a highly academic and thoroughly analytical work that understands and explains the nature and dimensions of power within modern China. So, rather than being purely a biographical work on Mr Xi Jinping, the book also contains analysis of China's political system, and projections upon China's path of development.
Understanding China's political system is a difficult task to say the least. It is opaque and enigmatic, even to those with insider's views. Therefore, any works that claim to have a clear analysis or understanding should be met with skepticism, although Kerry Brown makes no such claims within his work. Rather, he acknowledges the complexity of the task, and makes no grandiose pronouncements.
As well as a decent analysis of China's political system, that would bring those unfamiliar partially up to speed, and perhaps shed some new light for those already well versed (including this reader) Brown also provides a decent background on Xi's father, Xi Zhongxun, revealing him to be a rather moderate and noble figure among the 8 Immortals (Xi Zhongxun's inclusion in this group is disputed).
However, the biography and insight into Mr Xi Jinping himself is just as good as the rest of the book. Among the questions many will be curious about is, how did Xi Jinping rise to power? It is a question that has baffled many, including this reader, and there are no simple explanations. The clear reason why this invites speculations is that Xi clearly was not the preferred choice of his predecessor, Hu Jintao, who would clearly have preferred his protege from the Youth League Li Keqiang, however, the explanation that Xi Jinping is a "Jiang man" also fails to adequately explain his rise.
Brown makes no grand statements, rather he offers the context of Xi's life and career with the explanation that all the tests in local government, national government, coupled with background and service, could mean that he considered "the right stuff" by a sufficient amount of the party's brokers to inherit the party's scepter and orb.
Kerry Brown also offers insight into Xi's domestic agenda and his foreign policy views, with enough to make possible projections of where the party and China is headed, and the possible pitfalls along the way.
Brown makes no pronouncements of Xi being all powerful, rather he acknowledges the reality that power is a fragile thing, and it can be lost if one makes sufficient enemies, or makes a false step. Similarly, Brown posits a well known, but rarely acknowledged reality, that real danger lies within the party itself in the form of Maoists, and if a Maoist was to rise high enough, and carried sufficient charisma (ala Bo Xilai) Xi (and arguably the country) could be in serious trouble.
On the whole, CEO, China is both immensely readable, and insightful. It is a truly penetrating analysis of the nature of power in modern China, and gives a thoroughly balanced and insightful perspective on China's current, Paramount Leader.
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