A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire (January 1930) (Part One)

We begin our close reading of Mao’s January 5, 1930 letter to Lin Biao. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 David Apter and Tony Saich, Revolutionary Discourse in Mao’s Republic Mao Zedong, “A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire” Some names from this episode: Lin Biao, commander of the first column o...