Zha Jianying’s fifth of her five-part memoir, Trains: A Chinese Family History of Railway Journeys, Exile, and Survival is here. This installment delves into the harrowing impact of the Anti-Rightist Campaign and Cultural Revolution on her family, revealing how her grandfather and uncle were punished for their dissenting views. It also reflects on Zha’s journey as a student in the U.S. and Europe, offering a poignant contrast between lived trauma and the Western romanticization of Maoist China.
