Be very careful with this topic, as it can be quite difficult to get a fair assessment of the situation, given ideological narratives. You can very easily wind up with a completely slanderous critique or uncritical worship, depending on who you read.

One book I would recommend though is "Battle for China's past" by Mobo Gao, which gives an interesting outlook on the Cultural Revolution from the eyes of the common folk.

It would also be very useful to read up at least a bit on the "Century of Humiliation" (as the Chinese tend to call the period from First Opium War up until the Communists won the civil war in 1949), beforehand as it had a tremendous influence on China and shaped many decisions, even to this day.

I do not study really past the Maoist period, but here are some good sources for a plethora of things from 1949-1979:

Roderick MacFarquhar, Michael Schoenhals, Mao's last revolution (Cambridge, etc.: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2008)

Roderick MacFarquhar, The Origins of the Cultural Revolution, Volume II: The Great Leap Forward, 1958-1960 (Columbia University Press, 1987)

Jasper Becker, Hungry Ghosts - China's Secret Famine (New York: Henry Holt, 1998)

Li Zhisui, The Private Life of Chairman Mao - The Memoirs of Mao's Personal Physician (London, etc.: Random House, 1996)

Frederick Teiwes and Warren Sun, China's Road to Disaster - Mao, Central Politicians, and Provincial Leaders in the Unfolding of the Great Leap Forward 1955-1959 (Armonk: M.E. Sharpe, 1998)

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If youre looking for a specific subject, dont be afraid to ask! If you need a general overview of just everything I'd recommend the Cambridge History series of China, Vol. 15 deals with the Maoist period.