儘管很多著作都談論過毛澤東在權力如日中天時黨內外對他的崇拜，卻還沒有一本專著系統地探討這種「崇拜毛」的現象及其本質。本書即是該領域研究的開山之作。
作者收集了大量機密檔案文獻、大小物證、政治傳單等，在扎實史實基礎之上，指出對毛的崇拜不同於以往的皇帝崇拜，而是現代特有的統治工具，並層層分析了其背後邏輯和理性操作。研究集中於探討對毛的言辭崇拜與儀式崇拜，不僅引人入勝地重現了狂熱荒誕的歷史現場和細節，更敏銳地發掘出在瘋狂異化的表象背後，這種崇拜所具有的工具性、現代性與政治性。
本書為理解文革乃至中國的未來，提供了獨到且富有洞見的角度，因為書中所討論的崇拜現象及邏輯，在今日中國仍然沒有走遠。
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這本關於毛澤東崇拜的研究著作，深刻犀利地分析了當代中國領袖崇拜的政治和概念起源。除官方媒體資料和中央指令之外，作者還使用了地方檔案以及從舊貨市場收集到的原始文獻，並以此為基礎將地方政府還原為更具體的基層幹部、解放軍軍官、互相競爭的中共領導人等，他們在製造毛崇拜的過程中都發揮了關鍵作用。文革中紅寶書的出版，讓億萬中國人得以直接學習毛語錄，破除了由黨壟斷的解釋權，並造成了持續的後果。本書對毛澤東崇拜的言辭與儀式的研究極具價值、引人入勝，並且告訴我們，對中國這段重要歷史時期的研究仍然大有可為。—周錫瑞（Joseph W. Esherick，美國加州大學聖地亞哥分校榮譽教授）
里斯的大著基於難得的史料，為我們闡述了對毛澤東的個人崇拜在中國的盛衰，其中大量檔案材料是從未引用過的。對「崇拜毛」這一複雜的社會現象，里斯作了精闢的分析，並提出了具有說服力的見解 。至於這是一個特殊時代的特殊現象還是一個可稱之為周而復始的形態，諒讀者們自有評說。—沈邁克（Michael Schoenhals，瑞典隆德大學教授）
本書是全世界第一部探討崇拜毛澤東的問題和現象的專著。書中較細緻地追述了這種崇拜的由來和演變，並深入概括了其在「文化大革命」時期的體現和氾濫，十分具體地展現了對毛澤東的崇拜在語言、媒介、儀式和用品等等層面上的諸多特點，進而頗為有力地從現當代世界中許多領袖崇拜文化的視角分析和把握了這種崇拜的影響、意義和取向。本書充分顯示了作者對於中國現代歷史研究的學術功力和學理水平。—唐少傑（清華大學教授）

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