The Last Manchu

The Autobiography of Henry Pu Yi, Last Emperor of China

De: Paul Kramer, Henry Pu Yi

Narrado por: Gildart Jackson

In 1908, at the age of two, Henry Pu Yi ascended to become the last emperor of the centuries-old Manchu dynasty. After revolutionaries forced Pu Yi to abdicate in 1911, the young emperor lived for 13 years in Peking’s Forbidden City, but with none of the power his birth afforded him. The remainder of Pu Yi’s life was lived out in a topsy-turvy fashion: fleeing from a Chinese warlord, becoming head of a Japanese puppet state, being confined to a Russian prison in Siberia, and enduring taxing labor. The Last Manchu is a unique, enthralling record of China’s most turbulent, dramatic years.

©2010 Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Important and fascinating." ( The New York Times)

Fascinating

One of the top autobiographies that I’ve ever read. Intriguing and fascinating from the start to the end.

A case of bad narration ruining a great story

The story is truly fascinating. Like most Westerners, prior to this book, I only knew about the life story of China's last emperor from Bertolucci's 1987 movie. After I started listening to this, I also looked him up on the (sign, where else) good old wikipedia. This autobiography glossed over, albeit understandably, A WHOLE LOT of things, including the total omission of such unimportant fact as the murder of the newborn child of the empress). And of course, one can't help noticing all that propaganda. Despite all the above-mentioned issues, it is fascinating to hear such fascinating life story from his own perspective...But seriously, couldn’t the narrator at least make a tiny little more effort in pronouncing any the Chinese names correctly?

Amazing

If you're not very interested in the history, the economics, a lot of the finer details, this may drag a bit for you. it can come off a little dry. But I thoroughly enjoyed it, because I have an obsession with this particular historical figure.
the performance was also exquisite, it was nice to have a narrator who actually understands how to say foreign words.

A Marvelous and Ultimately Sad Memoir

This relatively short but detailed memoir covers the epic events of the last hundred years, told by Henry Pu Yi, the last appointed emperor of the Q'ing Dynasty. Pu Yi clearly underwent enough psychological trauma for several lifetimes - complete lack of childhood boundaries; virtual imprisonment after the birth of the Republic of China; collaboration and betrayal with the Japanese in Manchukuo; incarceration by the Soviet Union; ideological re-education by Communist authorities. I found his perspective to be startling. How can a person be simultaneously so pitiable and yet insufferable? Both helpless and haughty? Fascinating. Much of the emotional impact of the memoir comes from the fact that we readers know that he was being taken advantage of by many sides - yet Pu Yi seems tragically oblivious. I surmise that this memoir emerges from the massive "confessions" generated in the re-education camp - it definitely has mea culpa overtones.

It is a useful companion to the Bertolucci film, incidentally, which seems to follow this memoir fairly closely (with a few extra characters here and there for drama). The narrator does a remarkable job of interpreting Pu Yi's persona (cool, and with little affect) and does pretty well on the Chinese pronunciations. Bravo!

The Last Manchu

If you're a fan of history--and Chinese history particularly--then this book is for you. Well done and excellently performed, I enjoyed it immensely.

Great book

A wonderful book that has a great amount of valuable information to draw from. Highly recommended!

Very interesting book

A very interesting POV on the history of era. Of course, this POV is influenced by his various educations, but I find that a valuable historical insight in itself.

China’s Romulus augustulus

The story of a pathetic, selfish, and cruel person who never saw or understood anything beyond his immediate surroundings, and ended as a mere propaganda tool either unconsciously or consciously. He just happened to be made the last emperor of Qing dynasty

A man bound to the end

This man's life was that of a desperate struggle to be free, yet always being bound. Either bound by the corrupted traditions of the Qing Dynasty as a child, emperor in name only. Or bound by the ambitions of Imperial Japan, a pawn of great power geopolitics. Or bound by the pernicious nature of Communism, again a pawn for domestic propaganda. Only in death was he free. His is a story to be told of why man should and will always seek freedom.

Wow! What a great book!

As an avid fan of Chinese history, Pu yi's journey was incredible! I admire how he was able to get through what he did and was finally able to get what he wanted: to be a free man in so many ways.