Arranged by letter of the alphabet, with at least one entry per letter, these short pieces capture the variety of daily life in contemporary China....
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reviews
Dec 10, 2011
Ensiform
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he author is a Minnesota man who taught American literature in a small town, Xi’an, for a year. He’s a self-described Transcendentalist who admires the Whitman injunction: “resist much, obey little.” So his take on his Chinese experience is, of course, heavily shadowed by the Tiananmen massacre which occurred shortly after he finished the book. Holm’s writing is sharp; his acceptance of himself as a Barbarian and willingness to explore everything (he prefers to ride the in the crowded third-c
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Jan 14, 2010
Jennifer
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I am really enjoying this book. It was written by a Minnesotan who spent a year in China in the mid 1980s. It is that timing that makes the book so interesting. Just a few years after the Cultural Revolution ended, and well before the economic revolution began. The author wrote the book after returning to the US, and just after the Tiananmen Square incident. It was a time of great uncertainty about the future of China, and the author feared that event was the starting point of another chaot
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Dec 30, 2010
Ammie
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I seriously love Bill Holm. He's cranky and suspicious of technology, has lived most of his life in a small town in Minnesota, and spent a year in China willfully bending rules and having a heartbreak and uproariously good time. There's dirt, and noodles, and humor, and music, and it's just goddamn lovely.
Jul 13, 2010
Reid
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English professor goes to China to teach for a year in a small technical college and falls in love with the people he meets and works with. Holm has a gift for wry, warm, poignant humor.
Dec 15, 2010
Perry
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Fascinating and hilarious stories about Holm's experiences while teaching in Xian. My favorite story was Chinglish. I was laughing out loud. Great stuff!!
Jun 03, 2009
Kathy
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This book was recommended to Nancy and I by the Ambassador for Iceland. I had high hopes, because I really liked Bill Holm's Eccentric Islands. The premise here is that he spent one year teaching in China in the early 1980s, and wrote a variety of essays (one for each letter of the alphabet). This book would be a whole lot better if there were only 13 letters in our alphabet. The essays became redundant, and when I got to "T" I did something that I almost never do, I gave up on the boo
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Dec 18, 2010
Rudy
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My original favourite book on China. A true China classic that has not got the attention it deserves.
Jun 18, 2008
Karen
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This book gave some great insights into China. The last updated publication was in 2000 so things have changed quite a bit I suspect. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed reading about Bill Holm's descriptions of what actually happens to the foreigner who lives "in country" and the many different ways he encounters those often spoken words "mei you" (not have).
Oct 21, 2008
Kristen
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An American ex-pat living in China tells hilarious stories about living as a foreigner in China and finding he's a foreigner in the US as well. This was one of my favorite books during Peace Corps -- he put so many of my thoughts and experiences into words.
Dec 07, 2009
Jackee
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This book was given to me after I returned home from a year in Iraq and was having trouble adjusting back to American Living. It gave me some great perspective on everything I was experiencing. Great read for anyone who has traveled.
May 05, 2011
Rosemary
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Can't get this from my library and nor does the Aussie kindle store. If it is really good - let me know and I will try harder to get the latest edition that has an update on China. Any others to especially recommend?
Mar 22, 2011
Maura
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A collection of essays about an English professor spending a year teaching in China. His rants are brilliant; his humor reminiscent of Bill Bryson; and his insights served me well on my trip over there.
Jul 09, 2007
Nate
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I love first-hand experiences recounted through written words. This one hits close to home since I too came home crazy from China shortly after reading this simple, yet powerfully well constructed work.
Apr 02, 2011
Harley
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This was the first China book I read as I we were thinking about a Chinese adoption. It is a wonderful read and my intro to Bill Holm.
Jun 23, 2008
Carol
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this is the kind of book i should write on china. or maybe not. he pretty much covers it all. hao ha ha le.
May 14, 2008
Gina
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It's my China life. I can relate to it. It is now dated but not by too much. Some traditions don't die.
Nov 23, 2007
Marie
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Bill Holm is a wonderful writer and really makes the reader feel all the beauty and sadness of life in China.
Nov 01, 2007
Liss
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I identified with Bill Holm's experiences in China so much I laughed out loud while reading.
Feb 05, 2012
Jan 21, 2012
Jan 17, 2012
