The Hundred-Year Marathon: China's Secret Strategy to Replace America as the Global Superpower

The Hundred-Year Marathon: China's Secret Strategy to Replace America as the Global Superpower By Michael Pillsbury New York, NY: Henry Holt & Co., 2015 336 pages $30.00 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Author Michael Pillsbury's book The Hundred-Year Marathon, which is about China's quest to become the world's primary superpower by 2049 (the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China), contains three key elements. First, this book is unique in that, with regard to China's geopolitical strategy, it attempts to weave two important elements of Chinese historical and cultural thought, namely the use of stratagems and the concept of shi (how to attain a strategic advantage over an opponent), throughout the entire narrative. Pillsbury relies extensively on writings and strategic lessons learned from the Warring States period, stating, "I learned that the Warring States mind-set has long been dominant among China's leaders." Pillsbury stresses that hawks have "persuaded the Chinese leadership to view America as a dangerous hegemon that it must replace." Other works on Chinese strategy typically move away from this emphasis, making the analysis feel less "Chinese" and more "Western." Second, Pillsbury offers readers several insights regarding his personal history that indicate the extensive depth of his knowledge and why his book has to be taken seriously. His information comes from his access to classified sources (where the shi concept was mentioned often, he writes), personal interviews among a host of primary sources in China (to include former leader Deng Xiaoping), and access to Chinese defectors. His ability to read and speak Mandarin, access to such sources, and his work with the Central Intelligence Agency, and his role as a policy advisor were also important. Third, Pillsbury's book, perhaps unintentionally, may long serve as a primer for aspiring Chinese analysts. He offers educators several areas where they should direct their attention. For example, he lists the nine principal elements of Chinese strategy that form the basis of the Hundred-Year Marathon, and in the conclusion of the book he lists concepts the United States can adopt from China's Warring States era to offset or counter China's strategic aims. Further, to insure analysts are not taken in by Chinese claims the United States is nothing more than a global hegemon or a great Satan, he explains in some detail how much assistance America has provided China over the years, in economic, diplomatic, and military terms. …