Sublime

Stalin accepted the drain on vital transport resources needed to remove—for instance—74,225 “Volga Germans” from their own little republic to remote Kazakhstan. Later, they would be followed by many more such outcasts, notably Chechens and Crimean Tatars.

In the eleventh century, once again convinced that: she could use her great strength to usher in an era of peace, China turned to diplomacy and did so brilliantly. She discovered that it cost far less to pacify her enemies with tribute than it did to maintain an elephantine army, so she paid her enemies off. To keep these hulking powers from her th

No people had a more profound attachment to the past than the Chinese. In the face of this enormous obstacle to reform, Mao’s strategy was simple: Instead of struggling against the past, he turned it to his advantage, associating his radical Communists with the romantic figures of Chinese history. Weaving the story of the War of the Three Kingdoms

economy overseen by the Communist Party. Zhu is a tall, angular man, known for his energy and impatience. Larry Summers, the former treasury secretary and president of Harvard, once estimated Zhu’s IQ at 200. As mayor and premier, Zhu had all kinds of nicknames alluding to his determination: One-Chop Zhu, Zhu the Boss, even Madman Zhu, for his will

Then into this totally male stronghold dropped a ravishingly pretty woman, Valentina Petrochenkova, one of the last recruits to the women's regiments.