Chinäs dismantling of the Mao-era commune system under Deng Xiaoping has been seen as a successful turn away from a misguided social experiment. Joshua Eisenman marshals previously inaccessible data to overturn this narrative, showing that the commune modernized agriculture, increased productivity, and laid the foundation for future rapid growth.

List of Figures and Illustration
Foreword, by Lynn T. White III
Prologue: Chinäs Missing Institution
1. Introduction: Assessing Commune Productivity
Part I: Creating Chinäs Green Revolution
2. Institutional Origins & Evolution
3. Chinäs Green Revolution
Part II: Sources of Commune Productivity
4. Economics: Super-Optimal Investment
5. Politics: Maoism
6. Organization: Size and Structure
7. Burying the Commune
8. Conclusion
Appendix A. Essential Official Agricultural Policy Statements on the Commune, 1958¿1983
Appendix B. National and Provincial Agricultural Production Data, 1949¿1979
Appendix C. Essential Official Agricultural Policy Statements on the Commune, 1958¿1983
Notes
Bibliography