The best-known Western literature about the Long March

Red star over China by Edgar Snow (1937)

As the first Westerner to meet the leaders of the Chinese Communists, Snow's book provides the authorized account of their lives, in addition to offering a detailed history of the Long March from the author's own perspective and his delight at seeing this promising political force gradually mature. The book also includes a number of photographs that add veracity to Snow's account.

The Long March 1935: The Epic of Chinese Communism's Survival by Dick Wilson (1982)

Wilson believes that there was not one Long March, but a series of treks, as various Communist armies in the south of China headed to the north and west. The depiction of Mao Zedong is not necessarily based on accounts by people who knew him, but is much more about the way the author wanted him to be.

The Long March: The untold story by Harrison E. Salisbury (1987)

A well-rounded documentary-style work that mainly focuses on the circumstances that led up to the Long March, and how the Red Army overcame numerous difficulties. Harrison adopted a neutral position to ensure that the book would be unbiased toward China or the Red Army. It contains a large selection of first-hand material collected by the author during a 1984 visit to China.

The Long March: The true story behind the legendary journey that made Mao's China, by Ed Jocelyn and Andrew McEwen (2006)

An account of the march based squarely on eyewitness accounts that combine the story of the historic trek with images of a changing society and the protagonists' personal experiences. It provides a picture of China, past and present, seen through the eyes of two Chinese-speaking Western journalists who backpacked from one remote village to the next through mud and rain.

Choosing Revolution: Chinese women soldiers on the Long March by Helen Praeger Young (2007)

About 2,000 women participated in the Long March, but their experiences of this seminal event in the history of the CPC were rarely represented. To rectify this omission, Young presents oral histories of 22 female veterans of the legendary walk to victory.

(China Daily 10/24/2016 page6)