Chen Hansheng was not only a pioneer of modern Chinese social science,remembered for the village studies he organized by teams of researchers in the 1930s. He was also a political operative whose career as an underground and aboveground Communist activist spanned the twentieth century and the globe. This book draws on unique interviews, beginning in 1979, with Chen himself, his family and associates, along with an exhaustive examination of documents,writings, and archives, to build a rounded portrait of Chen, the man, and his world.

　　“Stephen MacKinnon’s lifetime study of eminent social scientist and Communist Chen Hansheng makes for an absorbing, thrilling, and illuminating read. This product of decades of researching Chen,and of years of discussions with him, MacKinnon shows us how one enterprising and creative scholar became dedicated to the cause, worked for it, and then ended his life sad and angry about what became of the Chinese Communist Party in power.”—Hans van de Ven, University of Cambridge

　　“In this, his latest, book, Stephen MacKinnon brings us a piece of research he has been working on for over forty years. His biography of Chen Hansheng brings to life a man who lived to the ripe old age of 107 and who is probably most famous as one of China’s premier social scientists. He was also, as MacKinnon demonstrates, centrally involved in sub rosa Communist activities most notably in the spy ring surrounding Richard Sorge and Ozaki Hotsumi.”—Joshua Fogel, York University (Toronto)