How Pol Pot Came to Power: Colonialism, Nationalism, and Communism in Cambodia, 1930–1975

Praise for the first edition:

“Given the highly secretive nature of Pol Pot’s activities, the precise circumstances and manoeuvres that propelled him to the top of the heap will perhaps never be known. But Kiernan has come impressively close to it. . . . And he has presented it in a wide perspective, drawing interesting comparisons with communist movements in Indonesia, Thailand, Burma and India. . . . Incisive.”—T. J. S. George, Asiaweek, “Editor’s Pick of the Month”

“A rich, gruesome and compelling tale. . . fascinating, well-researched and measured . . . a model of judgement and scholarship.”—Fred Halliday, New Statesman

“[Kiernan’s] capacity for dogged research on three continents, and his mastery of every ideological nuance. . . [are] awe-inspiring.”—Dervla Murphy, Irish Times