The earliest edition of Mao Zedong's biography was discovered recently in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province.
The book, written by renowned American journalist Edgar Snow, was published in Shanghai on November 1, 1937, according to the Guangzhou-based Yangcheng Evening News.
In the book, Snow described in detail the experiences of Mao's childhood and his revolutionary early life, causing a great stir in areas controlled by the Kuomintang such as Shanghai.
According to historical documents, 70,000 copies of the book were published.
Edgar Snow was the first western journalist to travel to Yan'an,a revolutionary base in northwestern Shaanxi Province.
Snow interviewed Mao Zedong there in July, 1936, and wrote the book according to the interpreter's version of Mao's talks with him.
Zhang Qiwu, the book's owner, is a senior colonel in the Guangdong frontier armed police. He said the book was one of the few biographies of Mao published in the 1930s in Kuomintang-occupied areas.
Given the fact that the book contains a great deal of precious historical information, it will contribute to the research of the history of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and to the ideological thoughts of Mao Zedong.
(Xinhua News Agency October 30, 2002)
