Nine books are a bit too many, it is better to read less for the first time, and it is better to
read selected books (such as the Anti-Dühring. (2)
September 27


[1] On September 18, 1970, Zhou Enlai and others wrote to Mao Zedong, saying, "We are
sending you the Chairman's instructions and catalogue on the selection of 32 books by Marx,
Engels and Lenin in 1964. We have selected nine books from them and five books from
Chairman Mao's works." "Please approve them." The nine books by Marx, Engels and Lenin
selected by Zhou Enlai and others are: 1. The Communist Manifesto; 2. Critique of the Gotha
Programme; 3. Anti-Dühring; 4. Feuerbach and the End of Classical German Philosophy; 5.
Imperialism is the Highest Stage of Capitalism; 6. The State and Revolution; 7. The
Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky; 8. "Left-Wing" Communism, an Infantile
Disorder; 9. On Marx, Engels and Marxism." The five selected works of Mao Zedong are: 1.
On Practice; 2. On Contradiction; 3. On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the
People; 4. Speech at the National Propaganda Work Conference of the Communist Party of
China; 5. Where Do Correct Ideas Come From? Mao Zedong's comments were written on the
report submitted by Zhou Enlai and others for examination. On January 6, 1970, the Central
Committee of the Communist Party of China issued a circular on the study of senior cadres
reviewed by Mao Zedong. The circular quoted Mao Zedong's comments and pointed out
that "Recently, Chairman Mao once again instructed at the Second Plenary Session of the
Ninth Central Committee of the Party that senior party cadres, no matter how busy they are
at work, must squeeze out time to read some books by Marx and Lenin to distinguish true
Marxism-Leninism from false Marxism-Leninism."
 [2] Refers to Engels' Anti-Dühring.