Book Reviews

In Paperback!

The Lost Daughters of China is finally out in paperback!

The Lost Daughters of China is that rare book that can be many things to different people. Part memoir, part travelogue, part East-West cultural commentary, and part adoption how-to, Karin Evans's book is greater than the sum of its parts. Evans weaves together her experience of adopting a Chinese infant with observations about Chinese women's history and that country's restrictive, if unevenly enforced, reproductive policies. She and her husband adopted Kelly Xiao Yu in 1997, and anyone curious about adopting from a Chinese orphanage—which houses girls and disabled boys—will learn about the mechanics and the emotional freight of the two-year process. Borrowing an image from Chinese folklore, Evans conveys herself, her husband, and their daughter as tethered by a red string that yoked them across an ocean and an equally awesome cultural divide.

Wan Hu Is In the Stars

Review from Publishers Weekly:

Just as she did in her acclaimed Chin Yu Min and the Ginger Cat, Armstrong uses simple, elegant prose to conjure up the mystical beauty of Chinese folklore. Wan Hu, the hero of this original tale, suffers from classic poet's distraction, endlessly musing about the stars, unaware that he is wearing only one shoe or sporting a rice pot instead of a hat. While the rest of the villagers scoff at the poet's "foolish dreams," the kindly gardener listens to Wan Hu's ambitions of traveling to the heavens to be among the stars. First Wan Hu climbs the highest mountain, then he harnesses a flock of geese so that they might lift him up into the sky. Finally, inspired by a fireworks display, Wan Hu builds himself a contraption that catapults him into the air and out of sight. (Ages 5-up.)

Spymaster

If you like spending a lot of money on a book, you might want to check out Spymaster: Dai Li and the Chinese Secret Service, which currently sells for $75 at Amazon.com.

The most feared man in China, Dai Li, was chief of Chiang Kai-shek's secret service during World War II. This sweeping biography of "China's Himmler," based on recently opened intelligence archives, traces Dai's rise from obscurity as a rural hooligan and Green Gang blood-brother to commander of the paramilitary units of the Blue Shirts and of the dreaded Military Statistics Bureau: the world's largest spy and counterespionage organization of its time. In addition to exposing the inner workings of the secret police, whose death squads, kidnappings, torture, and omnipresent surveillance terrorized critics of the Nationalist regime, Dai Li's personal story opens a unique window on the clandestine history of China's Republican period. This study uncovers the origins of the Cold War in the interactions of Chinese and American special services operatives who cooperated with Dai Li in the resistance to the Japanese invasion in the 1930s and who laid the groundwork for an ongoing alliance against the Communists during the revolution that followed in the 1940s. Frederic Wakeman Jr. illustrates how the anti-Communist activities Dai Li led altered the balance of power within the Chinese Communist Party, setting the stage for Mao Zedong's rise to supremacy. He reveals a complex and remarkable personality that masked a dark presence in modern China—one that still pervades the secret services on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

It certainly looks interesting. But for $75, I'm not going to find out for myself . . .

Adoption Book

Little Miss Ladybug And Her Magical Red Thread "is a beautifully illustrated storybook which introduces the world of adoption to a young child. It's gentle, and loving approach captures the imagination as the little miss ladybug follows her red thread bringing together the loving parents with their waiting baby."

Little Dog

Little Dog and Duncan and Little Dog Poems are two children's books written by Kristine O'Connell George and illustrated in water color by June Otani. Each book has about 40 poems and features a beautiful little Asian girl as the owner of the dogs. Here is one of the poems:

Birthday
Only someone
who loves Little Dog
very much
would bake
birthday cookies with
liver powder.

(Thanks Jen on PAC!)

Little Dog and Duncan

Little Dog Poems

Pearls

During my last trip to China, I bought pearls for the first time. I had never been interested in pearls, but a Chinese-American co-worker told me that you could get them in China for a great price. I have since developed a deep appreciation for the beauty of pearls.

If you are interested in learning about pearls, I highly recommend the Pearl Buying Guide. It is full of stunning color pictures (on thick, glossy paper), practical advice, and covers such topics as color, surface perfection, size and weight, pearl treatments, clasps, etc.

While I was pleased with my pearl purchases from China, I would have had a much different perspective had I read this book before the trip.

Book Recommendation

Carolyn from APC gives a thumbs up for Culture Smart China: A Quick Guide to Customs and Ettiquette.

I found "Culture Smart! China" to be very informative. It's a small book (4 1/4" X 6 1/2 ") so I can carry it around with me easily. It gives a condensed history of China as well as general attitudes of the people there and what to expect so your culture shock isn't overwhleming.

Book Review

I consider Chinese for Today one of the poorer Chinese language texts on the market. There is very little I can recommend about this book. It is an introductory text, but the first lesson introduces words like Lu3you2ju2 (the Tourist Bureau) that are not only difficult for the beginner to pronounce, but also aren't necessarily considered essential introductory vocabulary. Rather than teaching the language from the ground up, each chapter focuses on specific situations, such as "Welcome," "Introduction," "Looking for Someone," "To the Post Office," etc. While this may be handy as a language travel guide, it is not conducive to effective language acquisition. The end result is frustration on the part of the student. Avoid this book if you can.

I rate it: Two Stars out of Five.

Book Review

Just Enough Chinese . . . or "How to Get Frustrated in China" . . .

This book is better than nothing. But don't fool yourself by thinking that the subtitle of the book, "How to Get By and Be Easily Understood," is anything near accurate. There is NO WAY any Chinese speaker is going to understand a thing you say from this book, unless you have had a semester of college-level Chinese. On the plus side, the contents are divided nicely into useful sections such as everyday expressions, meeting people, shopping for food, etc. Since the Chinese characters are included with each phrase, you can at least show the person with whom you are trying to communicate.

I rate it: Three Stars out of Five.

Book Review

Iris Chang, author of the acclaimed The Rape of Nanking, has a new book about the struggles and achievements of the Chinese in America. Her new book, The Chinese In America: A Narrative History has received excellent customer reviews at Amazon.com.

The book was recently reviewed in the Far Eastern Economic Review (subscription required). Some excerpts:

Chang has written the first comprehensive account of the Chinese-American experience. Other nonfiction books examining Chinese-Americans tend to focus on limited aspects of the immigrant experience, while Chang tackles the entire history, breaking it down into three main waves, starting with the gold seekers and migrant labourers from China's coastal cities in the 1800s. The Chinese were active in the California Gold Rush in the 1850s and worked on the American transcontinental railway in the late 1860s. The story of Chinese professionals of the mid-20th century forms the book's middle and, finally, Chang writes about the wave of immigrants entering the U.S. in the last two decades of the 20th century.

At 500 pages, Chan's book is a comprehensive account that relates experiences and incidents in an engaging and thought-provoking way. At times, she tends to belabour the ill-treatment of the Chinese, when her facts and anecdotes garnered from impeccable research can tell the story fully on their own. The final result is an important book that fills a gaping hole in Asian-American studies.

Daughter From Afar

Visit the website for Daughter From Afar, by Sarah Lynn Woodard.

This adoptive mother shares her true story about the sadness and joys of the long process to adopt an abandoned Chinese baby girl. Sarah Woodard reveals with humor, sensitivity and honesty the adoption process, the journey to bring home her daughter and the ultimate adventure of becoming a mother.

Families Are Forever

Families Are Forever is a highly-recommended book written from the perspective of a six-year-old girl who was born in China and adopted by a single mom.

(Thanks to Bonnie on APC!)

We See the Moon

EMK Press is a publisher of adoption themed materials for Infants to Young Adults from the perspective of the child. We also believe that information is power and have developed a series of informational guides to help parents on the journey of creating an adoptive family.

The book, We See the Moon, by Carrie Kitze, has just been translated into Chinese, and is "perfect for foster families and orphanage director gifts."

Book Review

Balzac Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, by Sijie Dai, presents the story of two young men moved from the city to the Chinese countryside to be re-educated during Mao's Cultural Revolution. The young men discover and read a number of foreign books (forbidden during the revolution), the contents of which captivate their thinking.

BLCS is beautifully written and has an evenly flowing prose. It gives a glimpse into the toils and struggles so many in history have had to endure. For the most part, I found reading it relaxing and enjoyable.

As a whole, though, I cannot give an enthusiastic recommendation. First, the plot wasn't overly gripping; while I finished it in two sittings, there was rarely a spot where it wouldn't have been easy to put it down. While the narrative contained some twists and turns, it was for the most part linear and often predictable. Ultimately, the story's conclusion left me unsatisfied.

I think a word of warning is also in order for those who are sensitive about mature themes. BLCS contains some crudeness and graphic imagery, as well as some explicit sensuality. Additionally, an important component of the plot deals in a matter-of-fact way with a subject that is divisive and many find offensive.

With these considerations, I rate it: Three Stars out of Five.

Green Gold: The Empire of Tea

In the July 10, 2003, Far Eastern Economic Review, Erling Hoh writes about Green Gold: The Empire of Tea, “If you like good tea, this book should be a pleasure to consume, claiming as it does that the fragrant leaf has led to many improvements in the existence of mankind.”

In 1830, China produced virtually all the world's tea, and England exported 1,500 tonnes of opium a year to China to finance the vast amounts of tea it imported from the Middle Kingdom. In 1835, the tea plant was found growing wild in the Indian province of Assam, and a year later, the first six chests of Assam tea were delivered to Calcutta. By the turn of the century, the cheap, strong Assamese leaf had destroyed the Chinese export market.

“This is one of many fascinating tales the author tells in his world history of tea, which could have been an epic spanning centuries, continents and cultures, and more than the mere 285 pages of this book.”

Oxford Starter Chinese Dictionary

Chinese Starter Dictionary As a "beginning" student of Chinese for a few years now, I have gone through a large number of Chinese language resources. The Oxford Starter Chinese Dictionary is one that I would unhesitatingly recommend to anyone.

The dictionary is at the right level for beginning students. The entries are limited to the most commonly used words. This is a major advantage for those who like to learn vocabulary by browsing a dictionary -- you are sure to be learning useful words (as opposed to specialty or infrequently used words). There have been only a few times where I have look for a word that wasn't included in this dictionary. I expect that the casual learner of Chinese will not outgrow this dictionary for at least a year or two.

I found the format of the dictionary uncluttered and very user friendly. In addition to the standard word and definition, entries also include very useful notes of clarification. For example, after the character for hui4 ("to be able to") there a note explaining that this character can also be pronounced as kuai4 with a different meaning.