Private Revolutions: Coming of Age in a New China
Yuan Yang

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Published: 2024

Shortlisted for the 2025 Women's Prize for Non-Fiction

Yuan Yang, the first Chinese-born British MP, tells the stories of four Chinese women striving for a better future in an unequal society. From June, who dreams of going to university rather than raising pigs, to Sam, forced into hiding as her activist peers are lifted from the streets, this is a singularly immersive portrait of a rapidly changing nation – and of the courage of those caught in the swell.

Leafy plant illustration

This book traces a moment of transition in China through the lives of four women who were growing up in the years after Tiananmen Square. These coming-of-age stories are ones you rarely hear of: individuals who want different lives from their parents and who are battling the system in the hope of a better life. It’s eye-opening, beautifully written and carefully researched.

Kavita Puri

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