An inside look at the new generation of Chinese leaders

Its mistakes aside, China's New Rulers contains a wealth of interesting material that provides a blueprint, though somewhat vague, of China's political future.

Along with lengthy bios of the leaders, there are sections detailing their personal statements on political reform, democracy, free press, and domestic as well as international affairs. These comments are especially revealing and, unfortunately, they show that Taiwan shouldn't pin its hopes on the new leadership to extend any olive branches its way.

For all their expertise in managing the country's affairs, when it comes to relations with Taiwan and the US, the Fourth Generation is likely to be as difficult as the last. Consider Zeng Qinghong's (曾慶紅) remarks about the DPP and Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁): "He has power but no idea how to use it; he is not a skilled politician. The Taiwanese support him for the time being only out of a certain emotionality, but emotion has to be sustained for a long time [to be of any importance]. Across the board, the democratic transfer of power to the DPP is interpreted by China's highest leaders as a temporary anomaly that simply must be waited out. As for what it reflects of the will of the people of Taiwan, they appear to have little perception or interest."

The Fourth Generation holds similarly warped views of the Sino-US relationship, which they discuss almost in the manner of conspiracy theorists convinced of a devious Pentagon plot to contain and destroy China.

Students of Chinese politics will find this book of enormous value for the light it sheds on the internal struggles during the Jiang years, the divergent views exposed within the Communist Party on the future of China and the comprehensive run-down on what was the most harmonious and meritocratic transfer of power in the country's history.

By bringing the new rulers' private comments and confidential materials out into the open, China's New Rulers may actually do the leadership a favor by briefing the world about whom they will be dealing with for at least the next five years and probably the next 10 years. But for the book to have that use, people will have to finish reading it first and for nine out of 10 readers that's an unlikely possibility.