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Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party
Nine-year-old Ling is very comfortable in her life; her parents are both dedicated surgeons in the best hospital in Wuhan. But when Comrade Li, one of Mao's political officers, moves into a room in their apartment, Ling begins to witness the gradual disintegration of her world. In an atmosphere of increasing mistrust, Ling fears for the safety of her neighbors and, soon, for herself and family. Over the course of four years, Ling manages to grow and blossom, even as she suffers more horrors than many people face in a lifetime.
248 pages, Hardcover
First published August 14, 2007
103 people are currently reading
2228 people want to read
About the author
Ying Chang Compestine
31 books135 followersA leading national authority on culture and cuisine, award-winning author, and former food editor for Martha Stewart's Whole Living magazine, Ying Chang Compestine has written 27 books across multiple genres, including picture books, YA novels, and healthy adult cookbooks. She has hosted cooking shows, worked as a food editor for Martha Stewart’s Body+Soul, and was a spokesperson for Nestle Maggi and Celestial Seasonings.
Her novel "Revolution is Not a Dinner Party" and her memoir "Growing Up Under a Red Flag" recount her childhood during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. These works have received awards globally and high praise from prestigious media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal and Publisher's Weekly. Her novel "A Banquet for Hungry Ghosts" is currently being adapted into an animated TV series.
Named one of the "50 Great Writers You Should Be Reading" by The Author's Show, her books have sold worldwide in multiple languages. Endorsed by Dr. Andrew Weil, her cookbook "Cooking with an Asian Accent" has been described as “a contemporary new cuisine.”
Ying believes food can be both healthy and delicious and that healthy eating is the key to a long, happy life. By integrating her background into her recipe creation, she features the three most critical Asian principles of food in her dishes: satisfaction of the senses, yin-yang balance, and medicinal properties.
In addition to writing, Ying has been a sought-after keynote speaker for high-end cruise ships, private jets, and resorts, including The World Residences at Sea, Crystal, Silver Sea, Viking, TCS World Travel, and Canyon Ranch. Ying is also frequently invited to speak at schools and conferences worldwide to share her journey as a writer—how her life in Wuhan, China, inspired her work—and to promote healthy eating and living. Her website is www.yingc.com
Her novel "Revolution is Not a Dinner Party" and her memoir "Growing Up Under a Red Flag" recount her childhood during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. These works have received awards globally and high praise from prestigious media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal and Publisher's Weekly. Her novel "A Banquet for Hungry Ghosts" is currently being adapted into an animated TV series.
Named one of the "50 Great Writers You Should Be Reading" by The Author's Show, her books have sold worldwide in multiple languages. Endorsed by Dr. Andrew Weil, her cookbook "Cooking with an Asian Accent" has been described as “a contemporary new cuisine.”
Ying believes food can be both healthy and delicious and that healthy eating is the key to a long, happy life. By integrating her background into her recipe creation, she features the three most critical Asian principles of food in her dishes: satisfaction of the senses, yin-yang balance, and medicinal properties.
In addition to writing, Ying has been a sought-after keynote speaker for high-end cruise ships, private jets, and resorts, including The World Residences at Sea, Crystal, Silver Sea, Viking, TCS World Travel, and Canyon Ranch. Ying is also frequently invited to speak at schools and conferences worldwide to share her journey as a writer—how her life in Wuhan, China, inspired her work—and to promote healthy eating and living. Her website is www.yingc.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 387 reviews
May 31, 2018
Ling loves life.
As the daughter of both a modern surgeon and an expert in Chinese medicine, Ling has been raised to embrace both the wonders of the outer world and China's unique traditions. Her family and her home are a blend of both. And her parents are committed to helping build a successful new China.
But the Maoist regime in China does not embrace the same ideals as Ling's family. Knowledge, education, success--they all become the enemy. And that means Ling's parents and Ling, herself, are soon labeled, targeted, and in danger.
Will any of them survive?
I swept through Revolution is Not a Dinner Party in a day. Ling is easy to like, with very human dreams, strengths, and weaknesses. A well-written mid-grade novel, reminiscent of Ji-li Jiang's Red Scarf Girl and likely to appeal to readers from age 10 to adult.
As the daughter of both a modern surgeon and an expert in Chinese medicine, Ling has been raised to embrace both the wonders of the outer world and China's unique traditions. Her family and her home are a blend of both. And her parents are committed to helping build a successful new China.
But the Maoist regime in China does not embrace the same ideals as Ling's family. Knowledge, education, success--they all become the enemy. And that means Ling's parents and Ling, herself, are soon labeled, targeted, and in danger.
Will any of them survive?
I swept through Revolution is Not a Dinner Party in a day. Ling is easy to like, with very human dreams, strengths, and weaknesses. A well-written mid-grade novel, reminiscent of Ji-li Jiang's Red Scarf Girl and likely to appeal to readers from age 10 to adult.
January 3, 2016
A smart, resourceful girl dealing with the aftermath of the Cultural Revolution.
October 18, 2023
اون لحظهای که لینگ از بلندگوی مدرسه خبر مرگ مائو رو شنید، اون لحظه رو لازم دارم.
واقعاً قلبم گرفت وقتی فهمیدم نویسنده داستان رو بر اساس زندگی خودش و خانوادهش نوشته. و همۀ اون چیزهای وحشتناک هستهای از واقعیت داشتهن.
در طول خوندنش خیلی عذاب کشیدم. زندگی برای یه خاورمیانهای آلردی خیلی زجرآور هست، داییجان.
واقعاً قلبم گرفت وقتی فهمیدم نویسنده داستان رو بر اساس زندگی خودش و خانوادهش نوشته. و همۀ اون چیزهای وحشتناک هستهای از واقعیت داشتهن.
در طول خوندنش خیلی عذاب کشیدم. زندگی برای یه خاورمیانهای آلردی خیلی زجرآور هست، داییجان.
March 10, 2024
از دستم در رفته که چهقدر باهاش گریه کردم.
این دردهای سنگین مستاصلم میکنن. نمیتونم درست توضیحش بدم. یه لحظهای بود که خودم رو گذاشتم جای یه شخصی و خیلی ناراحت شدم، ولی وقتی به این فکر کردم که چیزی که من «یک لحظه تصور میکنم و تموم میشه و میره» یا حتی از دور و به این شکل تجربهش میکنم برای عدهای عین واقعیت بوده و هست و خواهد بود... نمیدونم. فقط همین، سنگینه.
این دردهای سنگین مستاصلم میکنن. نمیتونم درست توضیحش بدم. یه لحظهای بود که خودم رو گذاشتم جای یه شخصی و خیلی ناراحت شدم، ولی وقتی به این فکر کردم که چیزی که من «یک لحظه تصور میکنم و تموم میشه و میره» یا حتی از دور و به این شکل تجربهش میکنم برای عدهای عین واقعیت بوده و هست و خواهد بود... نمیدونم. فقط همین، سنگینه.
July 16, 2022
انقلاب خاله بازی نیست، بهترین عنوانی بود که میشد برای توضیح این کتاب استفاده کرد.
داستان دختر ۸ ساله ای که در ابتدای انقلاب کمونیستی صدر مائو زندگی میکند و فقط به خاطر کارگر نبودن خانواده اش متهم به خیانت، سرکشی و "بورژوا" بودن هست. "بورژوا" هایی که با کوپن زندگی میکنن و تابستون برق برای کولر و زمستون گاز برای بخاری و خیلی زود حتی آب برای خوردن و لباس برای پوشیدن ندارن.
توصیف و تصورات این دختر از انقلاب کمونیستی، آدم های درگیر این انقلاب و عکس العمل مردم به اتفاقات خیلی دقیق و روشنگر و جالبه. تحولاتی که شیفتگی بیش از اندازه مردم به یک نفر در کشور و حرفهاش به وجود آورده بسیار برای من و شما خواندنیه.
این کتاب مثل هر کتاب سطح سنی نوجوان طوری تموم میشه که نه شما و شخصیت هاش دردی نداشته باشید. و من همیشه یه پایان خوش رو نقطه قوت داستان ها میدونم.
اما بالاخره ذهن آدم درگیر میشه.
آیا هیچ انقلابی پایان خوشی داره؟
داستان دختر ۸ ساله ای که در ابتدای انقلاب کمونیستی صدر مائو زندگی میکند و فقط به خاطر کارگر نبودن خانواده اش متهم به خیانت، سرکشی و "بورژوا" بودن هست. "بورژوا" هایی که با کوپن زندگی میکنن و تابستون برق برای کولر و زمستون گاز برای بخاری و خیلی زود حتی آب برای خوردن و لباس برای پوشیدن ندارن.
توصیف و تصورات این دختر از انقلاب کمونیستی، آدم های درگیر این انقلاب و عکس العمل مردم به اتفاقات خیلی دقیق و روشنگر و جالبه. تحولاتی که شیفتگی بیش از اندازه مردم به یک نفر در کشور و حرفهاش به وجود آورده بسیار برای من و شما خواندنیه.
این کتاب مثل هر کتاب سطح سنی نوجوان طوری تموم میشه که نه شما و شخصیت هاش دردی نداشته باشید. و من همیشه یه پایان خوش رو نقطه قوت داستان ها میدونم.
اما بالاخره ذهن آدم درگیر میشه.
آیا هیچ انقلابی پایان خوشی داره؟
February 14, 2025
This book starts out on the mellow side, but winds up getting pretty intense. The situation in Portland has been so much on my mind lately that the whole theme of government soldiers barging in on peaceful citizens strikes surprisingly close to home, considering it’s taking place in China 50 years ago. I’m inclined to choose this as one of the books I read with the middle schoolers this year. Also made me want to learn more about the Cultural Revolution, since that’s something I really know almost nothing about.
March 15, 2014
Really interesting book about a young girl's perspective on the Chinese Cultural Revolution from the 1960's to 1970's.
As I read this, I found myself feeling so thankful for the freedom of speech that we enjoy here in the U.S. We are so lucky. If our government/government leaders do something we don't like, we can say "I don't like this" to ourselves, to a friend, or to the world, and we don't have to worry about the government forcing us from our jobs/homes/families and sending us to prison or labor camps. WE ARE SO LUCKY!
Easy and simple in it's writing, the author does a good job of describing the cultural atmosphere. The characters are interesting and engaging, and the situations are compelling.
As I read this, I found myself feeling so thankful for the freedom of speech that we enjoy here in the U.S. We are so lucky. If our government/government leaders do something we don't like, we can say "I don't like this" to ourselves, to a friend, or to the world, and we don't have to worry about the government forcing us from our jobs/homes/families and sending us to prison or labor camps. WE ARE SO LUCKY!
Easy and simple in it's writing, the author does a good job of describing the cultural atmosphere. The characters are interesting and engaging, and the situations are compelling.
January 14, 2022
Regardless of the actual photo of the author on the cover, heightening the framing of this book as a memoir, it is 100% fiction according to the author herself in the afterword. It’s giving the same blatant propaganda energy as “Night” by Elie Wiesel.
It is very clear why this book became so popular in the rabidly anti-communist west. It’s a novel for children written by someone with “lived experience”—aka it’s a clever piece of propaganda utilizing 2010s radlib woke politics with very little context given (ie: why were rich people “burdened” when rations were implemented? What about the rest of the majority peasant society accessing consistent and assured resources for the first time? Why am I supposed to feel bad about a girl being bullied for being wealthy?).
It is very clear why this book became so popular in the rabidly anti-communist west. It’s a novel for children written by someone with “lived experience”—aka it’s a clever piece of propaganda utilizing 2010s radlib woke politics with very little context given (ie: why were rich people “burdened” when rations were implemented? What about the rest of the majority peasant society accessing consistent and assured resources for the first time? Why am I supposed to feel bad about a girl being bullied for being wealthy?).
March 31, 2015
I'm really interested in biographies about people's lives in China. After reading Mao's last dancer I decided to read "revolution' I loved the book so much that I took it everywhere I went and finished it within a day. Mao's Last dancer and Revolution are one of my favourite books at the moment, they have got me more interested in Chinese history. I would love to read more books like these.
August 14, 2020
Liked this a bit more than Red Scarf Girl, but both are excellent.
September 11, 2020
Amazing! It’s....just,wow. I loved this story soooooo much! I think that this had good detail with an amazing story!
January 27, 2024
So bitter it tightens your chest, but so sweet it turns that tightness into tears.
If you want to read a book about a girl growing up in China in the 1970s, written by a girl who grew up in China, this is the book for you.
The story is beautifully written, yet so honest and brutal. I learned a lot.
Highly highly recommended.
CW: Suicide
If you want to read a book about a girl growing up in China in the 1970s, written by a girl who grew up in China, this is the book for you.
The story is beautifully written, yet so honest and brutal. I learned a lot.
Highly highly recommended.
CW: Suicide
March 22, 2009
While still reading this book, I am struck by the perspective of the young girl as she tries to figure out what is going on around her. Like many young girls, girls who I teach, she is mostly focussed on how the world is treating her: she is being bullied at school, people are disappearing around her, she can't have the things she wants, her parents are whispering. Kids I work with are becoming more and more aware of their surroundings, and I hope they are questioning the way things are. This book lends credence to the thoughts of the young girl, making her out to be a thinker, one who reflects upon the actions and words of those around her. She is capable of learning from her environment and times. I don't know a lot about the Chinese Cultural Revolution aside from the limited stories I remember of young people wanting what we have in America. In the 70s I was having my own struggles "growing up" in a place where people who I thought were good did mean and evil things like Comrade Li. Like Ling, my world as I had envisioned it was deteriorating, not to the extent of her world in China, but nonetheless. Her parents did what I think is the natural thing to do in any crisis: shelter the children, keep on doing what they think is best, take a low key stance, look to the future and what might be (listening to Voice of America, practicing English). Compestine shows how complicated a Cultural Revolution is as she depicts the way political unrest affects the daily lives of people, in this case the doctors who are a part of the "bourgeois".
Since Compestine wrote this book based on her experiences growing up during the Cultural Revolution I feel that as the insider she gives a realistic picture of how a young girl growing into adolescence would think and act. I was wondering if it wasn't a bit farfetched to have Ling face and fight the Young Pioneers physically, but overall she stuck to simple straightforward language that didn't skirt around the issues. Using the death of Mao and the following civil war like circumstance seemed like a reasonable way to end the story and bring the family together.
I guess the part that bothers me, and this is the human aspect of the historical context, is that the revolutionaries wanted the bourgeois to give up their lavish life-style and work in the shoes of the peasant class. However, once in power the revolutionaries BECOME the bourgeois, adding cruel punishments and tortures to their treatment of their perceived enemies.
Her attention to the details of food, also come from the perspective of someone who knows about food. At times I could smell and taste the food. My stomach grumbled in sympathetic hunger...maybe that's because I am skipping lunch to try to keep up with all the reading.
China's Cultural Revolution is a serious topic, and I thought well presented in this book appropriate for middle schoolers. It ended with with hope.
A book like this gives me the human perspective of the historical event. It makes me want to know more, so I go to Bob, my history source, for an informed world history perspective. He reminded me that Mao brought order to China. My response is that for many great thinkers power goes to their heads. They think their ideas are so far superior to any others, that they use any and all resources and propaganda they can gather to force their ideas on others; cruelly punishing any who resist.
Met Ying Chang Compestine at IRC Thursday, she is delightful. One thing she said that made an impression was that when the writing gets hard like many of the events in Revolution, she works on her humorous picture books or cook books. She also told us about her next book Banquet for Hungry Ghosts where she illuminates social and political issues via the ghosts. She'll visit China BEFORE the book comes out since she may not be welcome AFTER the book is out.
Since Compestine wrote this book based on her experiences growing up during the Cultural Revolution I feel that as the insider she gives a realistic picture of how a young girl growing into adolescence would think and act. I was wondering if it wasn't a bit farfetched to have Ling face and fight the Young Pioneers physically, but overall she stuck to simple straightforward language that didn't skirt around the issues. Using the death of Mao and the following civil war like circumstance seemed like a reasonable way to end the story and bring the family together.
I guess the part that bothers me, and this is the human aspect of the historical context, is that the revolutionaries wanted the bourgeois to give up their lavish life-style and work in the shoes of the peasant class. However, once in power the revolutionaries BECOME the bourgeois, adding cruel punishments and tortures to their treatment of their perceived enemies.
Her attention to the details of food, also come from the perspective of someone who knows about food. At times I could smell and taste the food. My stomach grumbled in sympathetic hunger...maybe that's because I am skipping lunch to try to keep up with all the reading.
China's Cultural Revolution is a serious topic, and I thought well presented in this book appropriate for middle schoolers. It ended with with hope.
A book like this gives me the human perspective of the historical event. It makes me want to know more, so I go to Bob, my history source, for an informed world history perspective. He reminded me that Mao brought order to China. My response is that for many great thinkers power goes to their heads. They think their ideas are so far superior to any others, that they use any and all resources and propaganda they can gather to force their ideas on others; cruelly punishing any who resist.
Met Ying Chang Compestine at IRC Thursday, she is delightful. One thing she said that made an impression was that when the writing gets hard like many of the events in Revolution, she works on her humorous picture books or cook books. She also told us about her next book Banquet for Hungry Ghosts where she illuminates social and political issues via the ghosts. She'll visit China BEFORE the book comes out since she may not be welcome AFTER the book is out.
February 17, 2010
"A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery, it cannot be so refined, so leisurely and gentle, so temperate, kind, couteous, restrained and magnanimous. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another."
-from Chairman Mao's Little Red Book
6 years ago I spent a month in China. In Beijing- I spent time with a 90 year old woman in the Hutong. This woman was one of the few left to have had her feet bound. As I sat next to her gazing at her feet then mine... hearing her story of what it was like to grow up in China and then to live in the Hutong during the cultural revolution- I could almost feel the pain she had survived.
Revolution Is Not A Dinner Party is a moving tale whose basis has been taken from the life of the author and stories of those who lived during that time period to 1976.
The book was very well written. I could not put it down. It
was one of those that you felt like you were remembering the tale- not reading it. The words jumped off the page and into my heart.
There was a point in the story when a Female OBGYN had had half her head shaved in punishment because she refused re-education. She ran to her apartment and committed suicide as opposed to them killing her first. She left her mother and 2 sons. The guard demanded her to come back to the courtyard but all they got was a dead body. The sons lost control with grief and anger and lashed out at the guard. In turn the guard almost killed the one son because he would not draw the class line. The grandmother could not bare to see her grandsons die so she drew the line against her daughter in her grief and accepted her daughters re-education.
Just one of many horrifying moments in history, no? Why do people repeat the mistakes- the atrocities- over and over and over. And in the midst- there is always the unsung hero's who try and help others. They didn't intend to be a hero when they woke up in the morning- life situations evolved and they rose to the occasion with their conscious in tact.
Don't miss this read of a 9 year old girl's story of growing up and trying to survive in an unforgiving situation.
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February 3, 2016 The book Revolution is Not a Dinner Party is a wonderful story that tells about the main character, Ling’s experiment during the Cultural Revolution. She is just a normal and young daughter, only fifth grade when she gets isolated from her special friends and family members. Her life changes and changes how she reacts to people while surviving to live. She always imagines being with her special people once again; can she finally succeed being with her special people?
I adore this book because of how the author writes this book. The author, Ying Chang Compestine pulls the reader into the book, making the reader think they are Ling. This book is very descriptive and it would be a great chance to learn what happened during the Cultural Revolution. This story never made me predict what’s going to happen next, which made me more desired to read this book and enjoy it.
I encourage reading this book to other readers. The story is fabulous, the story made me never stop reading. I want to share this stupendous book I read over the past days. This book could be your best book to people who are not a good reader or readers who cannot find a good book to read. This book is very descriptive and has an amazing story about one girl. I hope this book will be your best book. I recommend this book to you.
I adore this book because of how the author writes this book. The author, Ying Chang Compestine pulls the reader into the book, making the reader think they are Ling. This book is very descriptive and it would be a great chance to learn what happened during the Cultural Revolution. This story never made me predict what’s going to happen next, which made me more desired to read this book and enjoy it.
I encourage reading this book to other readers. The story is fabulous, the story made me never stop reading. I want to share this stupendous book I read over the past days. This book could be your best book to people who are not a good reader or readers who cannot find a good book to read. This book is very descriptive and has an amazing story about one girl. I hope this book will be your best book. I recommend this book to you.
November 13, 2017
Some things never change! I've read enough books about upheavals and revolutions to where the routine starts to become the same. Whether on the far right or far left, freedoms are taken, food becomes scarce for the non-elite, neighbors are pitted against neighbor, and children pitted against parents while the media is controlled and the radio blasts pro regime music. This particular account taking place in China is especially interesting as it, unlike World War II stories, takes place in my lifetime. I'd heard about the Cultural Revolution, but I'd never realized the extent of it. The author bases the story on her own family and experiences and they are quite amazing. It is fascinating to me how China has morphed from the 70s, to the 80s when I was able to visit, to the present. The book starts out a bit silly and slow as a basis for character growth and development through the family's challenges, so don't be put off by the first chapter or so.
May 8, 2018
For some reason I thought this book was going to be an autobiography. Although the book reflects many of the author's experiences growing up, it is an actual fiction book. This would be a good book for a 6th-8th grader to read to learn about the Chinese "revolution". Great historical fiction, but not exactly what I was expecting.
July 6, 2019
This was just ok for me, more because the audiobook was a little weird. The narrator’s attempt at Chinese accents was kind of strange and borderline offensive. But it is a devastating story seen through the eyes of a young girl who sees her world turned upside down by the Chinese Cultural Revolution. The sense of fear and paranoia throughout society was very tangible and well-written.
April 13, 2015
Ling lives in Maoist China, idolizing Chairman Mao. When she goes to her new school, she wants to fit in and be like everyone else, but her family are billed as bourgeois sympathizers, so no one dares befriend her. Even her old friends abandon her. When
November 30, 2021
Revolution is Not a Dinner Party tells the story of Ling a bright young girl growing up during the Maoist regime. As the daughter of a surgeon and Chinese medicine expert she had been raised to value knowledge, and embrace new ideas. She is an incredibly smart young girl and as we see Ling and her family try to survive during these times we see how truly resilient and resourceful she really is. When she and her family become the enemy her world comes crashing down. It was so heartbreaking to read this book as it is inspired by the author’s experiences and in the book Ling witnesses so many traumatic events. Despite that, it was also an interesting book. When books are told through the perspective of a child it makes for such an intriguing narrative. This is a middle grade novel but I think it is a very insightful and inspiring story that anyone can read.
September 12, 2024
First off, Ling's relationship with her father was so sweet. She was such a well-written main character. You knew exactly what her strengths and weaknesses were.
I learned a decent amount about China's Cultural Revolution, and what shocked me most is that the Red Guard was made up of middle and high school students! Students were killing and imprisoning anyone who spoke out against the government.
This was a required school read, which means if I had picked it up on my own, I probably would have rated it 4½ stars.
I learned a decent amount about China's Cultural Revolution, and what shocked me most is that the Red Guard was made up of middle and high school students! Students were killing and imprisoning anyone who spoke out against the government.
This was a required school read, which means if I had picked it up on my own, I probably would have rated it 4½ stars.
October 4, 2019
Ovaj poluautobiografski, polufiktivni roman prati djetinjstvo autorice u sedamdesetim godinama prošlog stoljeća za vrijeme Maove vladavine u Kini. Smatrana dijelom buržoazije zbog zanimanja svojih roditelja (doktori), autorica bilježi događaje koje su njena obitelj i prijatelji prošli do njezine 14. godine života. Dosta se brzo čita, stil je pitak i dosta emocionalan. Preporuka.
June 29, 2018
Interesting and quick to read. I think this is written for younger readers so I am not the correct demographic.
February 26, 2023
4.5
ترجمه فارسی: انقلاب خاله بازی نیست.
نشر پیدایش و ترجمه خوب و روان توسط خانم فریده خرمی.
ترجمه فارسی: انقلاب خاله بازی نیست.
نشر پیدایش و ترجمه خوب و روان توسط خانم فریده خرمی.
May 8, 2020
Audio book. Asian Readathon May 2020
October 11, 2025
Such an interesting take on the cultural revolution of China, exploring the repercussions of totalitarianism 8/10,
February 26, 2019
05 June 2007 REVOLUTION IS NOT A DINNER PARTY by Ying Chang Compestine, Henry Holt, August 2007, ISBN: 0-8050-8207-7; Audio edition on CD by Listening Library, ISBN: 0739356321
"When we reached our courtyard, Comrade Li and the Red Guards were pasting new posters and slogans on tree trunks and all three buildings. The air was heavy with the smell of fresh ink. I spotted a white poster with Father's name on it in black ink. Over his name was a big red X, bright as blood.
" 'Why are they doing this, Daddy?' I whispered. Father held my hand tighter and walked faster without answering. Once in our apartment, he ran to the fireplace, lit a fire, and threw in his letters and books. Wisps of burnt paper bumped around inside the fireplace like frightened black butterflies. He even threw in his red tie and the English book we had made together. The fire slowly destroyed the picture of the little girl -- first her dress, then her ice cream, and finally her face and hair. Sitting in Father's large leather chair, I fought back tears, feeling my happy days were burning away with the girl.
"Father picked up the picture of the Golden Gate Bridge from above the fireplace. I held my breath as he stared at it. At last, he put it back. 'I can't do it. Not yet,' he mumbled. I let out my breath."
Ling's blissful childhood steadily unravels. First, half her family's apartment is confiscated to provide living quarters for Comrade Li, the new political officer for the hospital. Next, Dr. Wong, her father's best friend is taken away after being cited by Comrade Li as an enemy of the State. Then Ling is shunned and attacked at school for being from "a nonworking bourgeois family" because her father is a surgeon at the hospital rather than being a worker in a factory, in the army, or on a farm.
It does not matter that Dr. Wong and Ling's father had both previously turned down valuable opportunities to emigrate to America and practice medicine with Dr. Smith, their teacher from San Francisco but, instead, chose to put their energy into the new China.
Things continue to spiral downward:
"Father was soon ordered by Comrade Li to mop floors and scrub bathrooms in the hospital. He could no longer work as a doctor."
Ying Chang Compestine's gut-wrenching story, set in China in the 1970's, is being published as a middle school novel. Her editor explained to me that some names have been changed. But the events depicted here were the real deal for the author. She lived this tale of terror during her childhood and adolescence in the city of Wuhan during the era preceding Mao's death.
The book also serves as Compestine's ode to the father who struggled to provide her a happy and fulfilling childhood amidst the horrors of the Cultural Revolution, while also being steadfast in his determination to abide by and pass on the Physician's Creed that he had taken to heart, and of which he had hidden a copy in their home:
"...A great physician should not pay attention to status, wealth, or age. Nor should he question whether his patient is an enemy or friend."
I'm sure that when those who are familiar with my freedom-loving big mouth and attitude have the opportunity to read REVOLUTION IS NOT A DINNER PARTY, they will readily agree that I could well have been dead a long time ago had I suffered the fate of growing up an adolescent in Ling's world of Maoist China.
"Father had always told me knowledge was the most important thing in life. Was class struggle an excuse to punish good people? I felt frustrated that I had no one to whom I could ask my questions."
This past weekend I lugged or mailed nearly 75 lbs. of advanced reading copies from my trip to Book Expo in New York City. It is certainly hard to imagine that anything I picked up could be more riveting or significant than this one is.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
richiepartington@gmail.com
"When we reached our courtyard, Comrade Li and the Red Guards were pasting new posters and slogans on tree trunks and all three buildings. The air was heavy with the smell of fresh ink. I spotted a white poster with Father's name on it in black ink. Over his name was a big red X, bright as blood.
" 'Why are they doing this, Daddy?' I whispered. Father held my hand tighter and walked faster without answering. Once in our apartment, he ran to the fireplace, lit a fire, and threw in his letters and books. Wisps of burnt paper bumped around inside the fireplace like frightened black butterflies. He even threw in his red tie and the English book we had made together. The fire slowly destroyed the picture of the little girl -- first her dress, then her ice cream, and finally her face and hair. Sitting in Father's large leather chair, I fought back tears, feeling my happy days were burning away with the girl.
"Father picked up the picture of the Golden Gate Bridge from above the fireplace. I held my breath as he stared at it. At last, he put it back. 'I can't do it. Not yet,' he mumbled. I let out my breath."
Ling's blissful childhood steadily unravels. First, half her family's apartment is confiscated to provide living quarters for Comrade Li, the new political officer for the hospital. Next, Dr. Wong, her father's best friend is taken away after being cited by Comrade Li as an enemy of the State. Then Ling is shunned and attacked at school for being from "a nonworking bourgeois family" because her father is a surgeon at the hospital rather than being a worker in a factory, in the army, or on a farm.
It does not matter that Dr. Wong and Ling's father had both previously turned down valuable opportunities to emigrate to America and practice medicine with Dr. Smith, their teacher from San Francisco but, instead, chose to put their energy into the new China.
Things continue to spiral downward:
"Father was soon ordered by Comrade Li to mop floors and scrub bathrooms in the hospital. He could no longer work as a doctor."
Ying Chang Compestine's gut-wrenching story, set in China in the 1970's, is being published as a middle school novel. Her editor explained to me that some names have been changed. But the events depicted here were the real deal for the author. She lived this tale of terror during her childhood and adolescence in the city of Wuhan during the era preceding Mao's death.
The book also serves as Compestine's ode to the father who struggled to provide her a happy and fulfilling childhood amidst the horrors of the Cultural Revolution, while also being steadfast in his determination to abide by and pass on the Physician's Creed that he had taken to heart, and of which he had hidden a copy in their home:
"...A great physician should not pay attention to status, wealth, or age. Nor should he question whether his patient is an enemy or friend."
I'm sure that when those who are familiar with my freedom-loving big mouth and attitude have the opportunity to read REVOLUTION IS NOT A DINNER PARTY, they will readily agree that I could well have been dead a long time ago had I suffered the fate of growing up an adolescent in Ling's world of Maoist China.
"Father had always told me knowledge was the most important thing in life. Was class struggle an excuse to punish good people? I felt frustrated that I had no one to whom I could ask my questions."
This past weekend I lugged or mailed nearly 75 lbs. of advanced reading copies from my trip to Book Expo in New York City. It is certainly hard to imagine that anything I picked up could be more riveting or significant than this one is.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
richiepartington@gmail.com
April 27, 2023
An interesting look at the transference of power to Communism. Shows the corruption and not any benefits except to those in power.
May 4, 2019
I listened to this book and found it very engaging. What strength it takes to not follow the majority when that majority is in power and controlled by evil. Example set by strong characters who believe in justice and treat others with dignity makes this book a valuable addition to classroom libraries.
September 29, 2022
Ich habe dieses Buch schon vor einer Weile gelesen und wusste zu der Zeit noch nichts über Mao, von daher kann ich wohl behaupten, dass dieses Buch nicht als Einstiegslektüre in die Zeit von Maos Diktaur eignet aber sehr wohl spannend ist. Die Protagonistin der Gecshichte ist das Mädchen auf dem Cover. Sehr schön geschrieben! Bleibt auf jeden Fall gut im Gedächnis und ist die Erfahrung wert.
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