Ginseng Dreams: The Secret World of America's Most Valuable Plant

Book Description

For thousands of years, cultures around the world have relied on herbal medicine for healing. Only recently have Americans flocked to once-suspect botanical treatments for the promise of good health and longevity. Among the most treasured of these plants is American ginseng, revered by millions of Asians as a virtual panacea that sustains every system of the human body.

In Ginseng Dreams, Kristin Johannsen chronicles the remarkable world of the mysterious plant that commands as much as two thousand dollars a pound. She unfolds ginseng's history and its future through the stories of seven people whose lives center on it: a huckster, a field researcher, a farmer, a ginseng "missionary," a criminal investigator, a broker, and a cancer researcher. Each of them brings a different perspective to the elusive root—and each is consumed by a different dream.

Despite its venerable past and medicinal promise, American ginseng faces an uncertain future. Urban sprawl and environmental destruction threaten its fragile forest habitat, and the law provides little recourse against ginseng thieves who roam the backwoods. One step away from endangered species status, this precious plant of so much promise could soon be lost to us forever.

Ginseng Dreams tells the extraordinary story of a natural treasure and the spell it casts on those who seek it.

Customer Reviews:

Seven personal stories are used to illustrate ginseng's problems and potentials.......2006-06-20

The use and influence of ginseng in the lives of seven who have invested their lives and money in its promise is documented in a history which blends botany and economics under one cover. Ginseng is consumed by hundreds of millions in Asia daily and commands a hefty price, but despite its high selling price, the future of American ginseng is uncertain - threatened by environmental problems. Seven personal stories are used to illustrate ginseng's problems and potentials.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

A small plant with a big story.......2006-04-10

I grew up eating ginseng root and drinking ginseng tea, often being told of its curative and healthful properties. I always took such claims with a grain of salt, but occasionally I would hear of studies purporting to validate ginseng's restorative ability in the endurance of rats. Unknown to me then, an American variety of ginseng grows in the eastern U.S. and has been harvested and exported for over three hundred years. Here was a story waiting to be told, and Ms. Johannsen's "Ginseng Dreams" tells it from the perspective of both the plant and the people whose lives have fallen under its spell.

As the book's subtitle suggests, the focus of "Ginseng Dreams" is the ecology and economics of American ginseng, with particular emphasis on the preservation and cultivation of wild ginseng in Appalachia and Wisconsin. A highly valuable Chinese export, with prices reaching $500 a pound, American ginseng attracts poachers who take plants from public lands. Along with the destruction of ginseng's natural forest habitat, the combination of greed, urban development, and ginseng's need for precise growing conditions-- just the right amount of shade on a slope neither too steep for runoff of valuable nutrients nor too shallow to pool water and not too crowded with other ginseng plants, for starters--suggest a bleak future for wild American ginseng, especially when enforcement of existing laws protecting wild plants is impotent at best.

Johannsen writes with immediacy and vividly of her various ginseng excursions, whether trekking through the shady forests of Kentucky with a field researcher, visiting ginseng dealers in the oppressive heat of Hong Kong, or attending a class with eager-eyed entrepreneurs on ginseng cultivation. Each of the seven chapters tells the story of a different person who is intimately involved with a different aspect of our relationship with ginseng, e.g. its growth, cultivation, preservation, conservation, trade, and research. She fills in her reporting with ginseng facts, folklore, and history, tying in the ancient tradition of the root as the most revered of medicinal plants, with the current economics driving ginseng poachers, to modern research on the its potential anti-cancer properties. "Ginseng Dreams" reads like a good yarn, and like any good yarn, it carries a moral. Our increasing demand for ginseng, both local and global, and the lengths we are willing to go to fulfill them threaten the American ginseng's survival at the moment we are beginning to unlock its secrets and unfulfilled potential.

Book Description

Michelin Green Guide Chateaux of the Loire

Average customer rating:

100 years of success
This book belongs to the nice new Green Guides collection

Michelin Green Guide Chateaux of the Loire (Michelin Green Guides)
Michelin Travel Publications , and Michelin Travel Publications
Manufacturer: Michelin Travel Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Maps | Atlases & Maps | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 2060001234

Book Description

This title in the acclaimed Michelin Green Guide series is your indispensable guide to the Loire Valley, cradle of the French Renaissance, with the splendid chateaux built by the great rulers and artists of the land. Besides a rich artistic and historical past, the region boasts great natural beauty and offers visitors the gastronomic delights of local cuisine and wines.

Customer Reviews:

100 years of success.......2000-05-16

Because France does not change that much, Michelin Green Guides do not change either. They still keep this handy pocket format that all other publishers copied. You will find more color pictures in this new 2000 series. They are not very artistic. You might prefer drawings that Michelin used in their first editions. They just show most common aspects of Loire valley cultural heritage. Alphabetic order is still an original (and useful) feature for a guide book (as long as you start reading with "itineraries propositions". New: suggestions about restaurants and places to stay. Michelin authors don't tell you everything you would expect from a french guide-book. Still, they tell you what is most important. You cannot make any mistake if you follow their advice. So bring this guide-book with you ... and buy the Knopf or Eyewitness guide to get a more detailed view of our nice region.

This book belongs to the nice new Green Guides collection.......2000-05-13

The most typical feature of this collection is the alphabetical order used for touristic sites presentation. This book is very useful as long as you buy another guide-book such as Knopf "Loire valley" or Eye Witness guide on the same subject. Colour pictures, restaurant recommandations are part of the renewal of the Michelin collection (best known for its restaurant bible: "The Red Guide"). "A wine and food guide to the Loire" is book that will bring some excitement to your trip. Books like "Really rural" or "the french café" will help you to push doors never opened yet by any foreigner. "Loire, touring wine country" is also a very useful book. While in the Loire Valley, be sure to rest some time 100 miles from Mont-St-Michel at Chateau de Bois-Briand (a very small "ordinary" castle in Nantes where we spend a simple, happy life after years of travelling).

Michelin Green Guide: Chateaux of the Loire (Green Tourist Guides)

Average customer rating:

Not as perfect as Michelin Red Guide but still a must!

Michelin Green Guide: Chateaux of the Loire (Green Tourist Guides)
Michelin Travel Publications
Manufacturer: Michelin Travel Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Loire Valley (Eyewitness Travel Guides)

ASIN: 2061322034

Customer Reviews:

Not as perfect as Michelin Red Guide but still a must!.......2000-03-07

Because France does not change that much, Michelin Green Guides do not change either. They still keep this handy pocket format that all other publishers copied. They still are very shy with pictures. They don't tell you everything you would expect from a french guide-book. Still, they tell you what is most important. You cannot make any mistake if you follow their advice. So bring this guide-book with you ... and buy the Eyewitness guide to get a more detailed view of our nice region.

Chateaux of the Loire (Michelin Green Guide)

Average customer rating:

Chateaux of the Loire (Michelin Green Guide)

Manufacturer: The Dickens Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KS3RZW

Michelin Chateaux of the Loire - English Edition (early Green Guide - First Edition)

Average customer rating:

Michelin Chateaux of the Loire - English Edition (early Green Guide - First Edition)
Michelin
Manufacturer: News Chronicle Book Dept, London
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000VIX60M

Product Description

This 4.75" x 10.25" soft cover has green wraps with a b/w illus. (not photo) of the Chateau of Chambord on the front. 98 pages contain the following chapters: A note from the Publishers, The Chateaux of the Loire, Abbreviations and conventional signs, Map of Things to See and Tourist Areas, Introduction to the Journey, Touring Programmes, Towns and Things to See, Index, and A few Books on the Region. Text is in black with red page borders and hi-lights. At bottom of front cover, on the left, is "1st edition".

Michelin Green Guide Chateaux de la Loire

Average customer rating:

Michelin Green Guide Chateaux de la Loire
Michelin Staff
Manufacturer: French & European Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Michelin Green Guide: Chateaux of the Loire (English Edition, 4th ed)

Average customer rating:

Michelin-Chateaux of the Loire
An excellent overall guidebook

Michelin Green Guide: Chateaux of the Loire (English Edition, 4th ed)

Manufacturer: Michelin Travel Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

French | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Nonfiction | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books

Travel | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books

All French Books | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 2061322042

Book Description

A tourist guide in English for the Chateaux of the Loire region of France.

Customer Reviews:

Michelin-Chateaux of the Loire.......2000-02-20

Just returned from Loire (2/00) and found the book very useful in picking what places to go while on limited time budget but I can see where the book would be really handy for those with more time. Very useful general historical and architectural background info. Only drawback is that there's no info on hotels/restaurants. I think you need their red series for that.

An excellent overall guidebook.......1998-04-28

The book was very informative as to the regions, including excellent recommendations on food and accommodations.

Michelin Green Sightseeing Travel Guide Chateaux de la Loire (France) French language edition

Average customer rating:

Michelin Green Sightseeing Travel Guide Chateaux de la Loire (France) French language edition

Manufacturer: French & European Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

French | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Nonfiction | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books

Travel | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books

All French Books | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 0686564162

Michelin Green Travel Guide Chateaux of the Loire

Average customer rating:

Michelin Green Travel Guide Chateaux of the Loire

Manufacturer: French & European Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Michelin the Green Guide Chateaux of the Loire (Michelin Green Guide: Chateaux of the Loire English Edition)

Average customer rating:

Michelin the Green Guide Chateaux of the Loire (Michelin Green Guide: Chateaux of the Loire English Edition)

Manufacturer: Michelin Travel Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1906261253

Customer Reviews:

Bookmark patterns Included!.......2000-08-02

This book is highly unique in the fact that in addition to bulletin board ideas and patterns, it includes a bookmark for teachers and librarians that goes with the theme of the board. What a wonderful idea! I would highly reccommend this book as a great addition to a library's or teacher's professional collection.

Book Description

Franklin can tie his shoelaces, count by twos, button buttons and zip zippers. He likes fly pie, baseball, his blue blanket, his night-light and the color purple. And, like all kids, he likes to talk about himself. Now he has a special place to write everything down and he's left room for a friend. With Franklin's help, children can write in, draw and record everything about themselves in their own keepsake album.

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful Book!.......2000-02-19

This workbook-type book was wonderful! I used it a few years ago with my son who is now 10 years old, and am ordering 2 more for my foster toddlers who will soon be leaving us. "Frankin and Me" is fantastic for reflecting on a child's self and events that occured in their lives. Not only I, but my son as well, have enjoyed looking back each time we get this book out. I hope that someday when my foster children are long gone and look back in this book that they are able to remember more about themselves and where they were. Very nice to complete and pack away for future smiles! :-)

different type of book.......2000-01-20

This book is more of a workbook not a story book. A chance for your child to discover themselves. Re: the other review All the franklin books are like that. The other characters look diff than franklin,and the story is a little different also.But they are still enjoyable and teach good lessons.

This book was terrible........1999-07-30

I was so disappointed in this book. My two year old son loves Franklin and his friends, but this was a complete waste. It really isn't a book to read, but a "memory" book instead, where you are to put in photos and other information about your child. The worst part was that although Franklin looked something like his character in the show, the "friends" looked NOTHING like themselves-they were just pictures of animals of the same breed. I'm not sure what the other Franklin books are like, but I would not recommend this one.

Mi tortuga y yo/Me and My Turtle (Amo a Los Animales)

Average customer rating:

Mi tortuga y yo/Me and My Turtle (Amo a Los Animales)
Hartmut Wilke
Manufacturer: Hispano Europea Editorial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Animal Care & Pets | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Reptiles & Amphibians | Animal Care & Pets | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

La Fauna | Al Aire Libre y La Naturaleza | Libros en español | Formats | Books

Average customer rating:

Passionate, informative, and beautiful!

My Turtle and Me
Hartmut Wilke
Manufacturer: Barron''s Educational Series
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Animal Care & Pets | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Reptiles & Amphibians | Animal Care & Pets | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

Product Description

Turtles that are well cared for will generally live for a very long time and become virtually life-long companions. Here is advice on proper housing, feeding, protection against disease and parasites, and most important?understanding your pet turtle. Books in this series are written especially for inexperienced pet owners, for parents whose kids would like to have a pet, and for kids who simply want to learn more about animals that make good pets. Boys and girls are also introduced to the golden rules of pet care, and are advised on how to create affection and trust between themselves and their pets. Several gatefold pages in each book open wide to display attractive photo essays on animals and their care. Every book in this series contains approximately 80 full-color, high-quality photos, as well as instructive drawings. Paperback / 96 Pages / 6 1/2 x 7 7/8 / 2002

Customer Reviews:

Passionate, informative, and beautiful!.......2002-06-04

Wilke is my all-time favorite author on the subject of turtle care. This book is lovely! There are colorful graphics and wonderful photos. The information is clear and not at all preachy. It is a great book for beginners and seasoned turtle enthusiasts. it offers simple care instructions for the beginner, as well as tips on how to get to know your turtle better. There are even a few tips on training your turtle and developing trust between a turtle and its keeper.

La de voz de la tortuga, una historia que mi suegra me contó.(TT: Te Voice of the Turtle, story my mother-in-law told me.): An article from: Letras Libres

Average customer rating:

La de voz de la tortuga, una historia que mi suegra me contó.(TT: Te Voice of the Turtle, story my mother-in-law told me.): An article from: Letras Libres
Guillermo Cabrera Infante
Manufacturer: Editorial Vuelta, S.A. de C.V.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Letras Libres, published by Editorial Vuelta, S.A. de C.V. on July 1, 1999. The length of the article is 3147 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: La de voz de la tortuga, una historia que mi suegra me contó.(TT: Te Voice of the Turtle, story my mother-in-law told me.)
Author: Guillermo Cabrera Infante
Publication: Letras Libres (Magazine/Journal)
Date: July 1, 1999
Publisher: Editorial Vuelta, S.A. de C.V.
Volume: 1 Issue: 7 Page: 59

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Average customer rating:

Growing Vines

Lots of Great Information and Photos, Well Organized

Compact and Straightforward

Ortho's All About Vines and Climbers (Ortho's All About Gardening)
Ortho
Manufacturer: Ortho
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Landscape | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Reference | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Ortho's All About Shade Gardening (Ortho's All About Gardening)

Ortho's All About Pruning (Ortho's All About Gardening)

Ortho's All About Perennials (Ortho's All About Gardening)

Ortho's All About Ground Covers (Ortho's All About Gardening)

Ortho's All About Shrubs and Hedges (Ortho's All About Gardening)

ASIN: 0897214269
Release Date: 1999-01-15

Book Description

Explains how versatile vines and climbers provide solutions to landscaping problems.

Extensive selection and planting guide presents more than 100 recommended varieties.

Detailed instructions for each variety on siting, support, care, and pruning.

Authoritative information to make every reader an expert on climbing plants.

Eye-catching design.

Customer Reviews:

Growing Vines.......2007-01-10

Vines are one of the most difficult plants to grow. Once they are established, they seem to take care of themselves. But the establishment is the thing. This book starts at the very basics. Helps you pick the vine best for your area and then gives you the all important steps for planting and early care. The vine plant listing is extensive with good photographs to help you make the right selections. Great for the beginner to the seasoned gardener.

Lots of Great Information and Photos, Well Organized.......2002-08-14

All About Vines and Climbers by Ortho has much information on a variety of vines/climbers and is well organized and categorizes them in many ways--zone, type, color, fruits, fragrance, winter appearance, etc. Also offered is planting advice for plants, seeds, cuttings, and pruning advice and where to purchase vines, and different types of structures to grow vines on. Even mentioned are gourd vines!

In the past years, I started to add vines to a giant trellis (an old dilapidated greenhouse that I converted to a giant trellis) as a hobby and I find this book helpful because not all mailorder houses or nurseries carry the many different sorts of vines and so one is often not really sure of what is all available. I was familiar with the major ones, but now I know I can add some great new ones! It is a basic book, but it offers more information compared to a more comprehensive all around book that has a vines' section.

It is so far the best book on vines/climbers that I have read.

Compact and Straightforward.......2000-02-09

This book is great for the beginning vine grower. All of the most common vines are described in detail. Recommendations are given for various climates and growing schemes. I have practically worn my book out from using it so much. What a handy reference!

Average customer rating:
Developments in Genre Between Post-Exilic Penitential Prayers and the Psalms of Communal Lament (Academia Biblica (Society of Biblical Literature) (Paper))
Richard J. Bautch
Manufacturer: Society of Biblical Literature
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Old Testament | Criticism & Interpretation | Reference | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1589830474

Book Description

This book examines how penitential prayers reflect literary conventions operative in the psalms of communal lament and how these conventions are at times modified in the prayers. The point of departure is the recognition that penitential prayers become well attested in Judaism after the exile. A review of prayers from Third Isaiah and the Writings indicates that in these expressions of penitence, one element is dominant: the confession of sin. This work analyzes the confession of sin and other elements common to both the penitential prayers and the psalms of communal lament. By analyzing elements that are constitutive of shared form, it becomes possible to state the literary relationship between the psalms of communal lament and the post-exilic prayers of penitence.

Developments in Genre between Post-Exilic Penitential Prayers and the Psalms of Communal Lament.(Book review): An article from: The Journal of the American Oriental Society

Average customer rating:

Developments in Genre between Post-Exilic Penitential Prayers and the Psalms of Communal Lament.(Book review): An article from: The Journal of the American Oriental Society
Adam C. McCollum
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B000WCO4BC
Release Date: 2007-09-20

Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Journal of the American Oriental Society, published by Thomson Gale on October 1, 2005. The length of the article is 1201 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Developments in Genre between Post-Exilic Penitential Prayers and the Psalms of Communal Lament.(Book review)
Author: Adam C. McCollum
Publication: The Journal of the American Oriental Society (Magazine/Journal)
Date: October 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 125 Issue: 4 Page: 547(2)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Are you embarrassed to admit that your photos look like a child took them? Do you get nervous when you have to buy film, select camera batteries, or need to take off the lens cap? Don't you wish all your snapshots could be picture perfect? Don't worry! The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Photography will teach you the basics, as well as some tricks of the trade. Whether you want to take memorable photos of your children or make your nature shots extra special, now you can feel confident every time you point and shoot! In this Pocket Idiot's Guide you get:

Customer Reviews:

Great!.......2004-01-28

Good pocket book! Filled with very useful info!

The pocket idiot's guide to photography.......2000-04-06

The book's intentions are good yet the print is very fine and hard to read. If you do not understand camera vocabulary such as SLR or autofocus, other words and all of the functions of the camera, this book won't be entertaining. If you have an APS or digital camera I wouldn't recommend you to buy this book for those categories are not present in this book, but if you are just looking for techniques for taking pictures or tips than this is the book of choice for you.

The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Great Photography

Average customer rating:

The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Great Photography
Shawn Frederick , and Bill Gutman
Manufacturer: Alpha
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Reference | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Digital SLR Cameras & Photography For Dummies

ASIN: 1592574025

Book Description

Make every picture perfect.

For anyone who's tired of taking bad photos, this book is the answer. Here, readers learn all they need to know to improve their pictures—for both film and digital cameras—from stocking a camera bag to setting film speed, processing, and more. Complete with chapters on the elements of great pictures as well as tips and advice from a professional lensman, this book will help even casual point-and-shoot photographers get better results.

• There are 177 million cameras in the United States shooting an average of 17 billion photos per year
• Photos and illustrations throughout
• Digital camera sales have exploded in recent years
• Perfect size and format for easy take-along in a camera bag or purse

Average customer rating:
Pocket Idiot's Guide to Photography 6-copy clip strip ID (The Pocket Idiot's Guide)

Manufacturer: Alpha
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 1592572537

Average customer rating:

A good read!

Not Bad, Not Great - Just OK

Redeeming the Past: A Father and Daughter Remember

A Brillant family memoir

Previous reviewers were ignorant.

The Girl from Purple Mountain: Love, Honor, War, and One Family's Journey from China to America
May-lee Chai , and Winberg Chai
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Authors | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

My Lucky Face

Hapa Girl: A Memoir

I Never Saw Another Butterfly

The Life of Olaudah Equiano (Dover Thrift Editions)

Glamorous Asians: Short Stories & Essays

ASIN: 0312302703

Book Description

In The Girl from Purple Mountain, Winberg Chai and his daughter May-lee explore their familys history to reconstruct the extraordinary life of its matriarch. Ruth Mei-en Tsao Chai was born in China in the early 1900s, during the reign of the last emperor. Educated by American missionaries, she was one of the first women admitted into a Chinese university, during an era when most Chinese women were illiterate and had bound feet. Later, as the Japanese Army advanced across China during World War II, her quick thinking kept her family alive as they fled and eventually immigrated to the U.S. This is a true family epic set against the shifting tides of 20th-century China.

Customer Reviews:

A good read!.......2004-05-18

There isn't much mystery to the plot, nor it explicitly explained why Ruth changed her burial decision. However, it's packed with Chinese culture, details of what life was like in China, the political movements, etc.. I recommend this book strongly to any one who would like to learn more of the Chinese culture/history, specially to the ABCs (America born Chinese).

Not Bad, Not Great - Just OK.......2004-02-21

This book is not a page turner. However, there was just enough there that I wanted to read it to the end. Get some closure, perhaps.

I understand some of the criticism directed at this book. There are parts of it where the authors are simply making up events, but at least they outright tell you so; e.g., "Here is how I imagine my grandmother's suitor." I didn't find this irritating or annoying. Just awkward, for a biographical piece.

I was disappointed that there wasn't more to the "mystery." No climactic ending - for better or worse. In the end, this woman who had already left her husband twice, left him one final time because she could not overcome her bitterness and jealousies. She started as a modern Chinese woman full of spirit and energy, but ended up being someone old and spiteful. Someone who would hold a 30-40 year grudge. Someone who would disown her own son. How sad.

Redeeming the Past: A Father and Daughter Remember.......2003-11-28

I had real reservations about this book. A woman who would go out of her way to make sure she was not buried next to her husband seemed to me to be less than worthy of my time. I didn't like her. I want to read about someone with whom I can form some identity. I looked at this book several times at the bookstore and passed it up. Then a friend handed it to me and told me to read it.

I have always said that some of the best books I have read have come as an interruption to what I was "supposed" to be reading. This book is one of them. The introduction on the dust jacket describes a woman who makes a secret arrangement to be buried alone in a mausoleum. The book seeks to understand and explain this unusual behavior. But I didn't want to understand. I am tired of caring why strange people do strange things. Such an act seemed unheroic. But something completely unexpected happened to me as I read this book. I was prepared to hear an elaborate excuse by the writer for why her grandmother did what she did. I had concluded that I could never identify with such a person. But I was completely unprepared for the extent to which I identified with the writer herself.

We are worlds apart. Literally. She grew up in America. I was born in Tokyo, and I grew up in the northern part of Japan. My parents were American missionaries, who went to Japan as volunteers after World War II. My grandparents came from Norway. I do not look Japanese. Not at all. Throughout my childhood, I was always a foreigner. Gaijin. Nevertheless, I am a child of Asia.

When my parents took me to America at the age of 13, I had serious misgivings about that new country. We moved to a small town in Minnesota, about as far removed as it is possible to be (both culturally and geographically) from the place that had been my home. I forgot Japanese. But through all the years I have lived in America, I have never forgotten the strange feeling I had when I came to that small Midwestern town and tried to fit into a world where I knew nothing about anything, even though I was a native speaker of English.

This book is about a woman who hated her father, and the ripple effect that this bitterness had over three generations. But it is written by a woman who loved her father, and with whom, in spite of clear generational differences, she was able to collaborate on a book about, of all things, relationships.

The book is written by May-lee with her father, Winberg. It is about Ruth and Charles-her grandparents, his parents. Charles adores his wife, but he is forever the unfortunate recipient of the unresolved rage she feels for her father. In that sense, Charles is a pathetic figure. He really can't do anything right. But, Ruth, of course, is more pathetic. She epitomizes in every way the Biblical injunction, "Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled (Hebrews 12:15)." The whole book reverberates with the effect this root of bitterness has on the whole family.

But there is a unique redemptive quality to this book that took me quite by surprise. You see, in writing the story of her grandmother, especially in writing this story with her father, May-lee "redeems" her grandmother, because she displays all the qualities that I can now imagine Ruth probably had and would have displayed if she had not been so eaten up with hatred for her father. The cover of the book shows a picture of Ruth and Charles at the time of their marriage. But I wasn't paying attention. Somehow I had it that this was a picture of the father-daughter team that wrote the book. So, as I was reading this book, I thought the pretty lady on the cover was the author. For me, Ruth became May-lee, and Charles became Winberg. At least for awhile. Then I caught on. But the initial impression never left. In a very real sense, May-lee became what her grandmother, unbound, would have been. And there is tremendous power in the way she gently prods her father to recover his past. It's all very unusual-you see, even though the book is not really supposed to be about May-lee herself, she becomes, in writing the book, the heroine of the story.

This is a book with heart. Read it. Then give it to someone else. Make this world a better place by reading, and encouraging others to read what will surely be one of the most life-enriching books you have encountered.

A Brillant family memoir.......2003-03-24

Winberg Chai' mother, Ruth Mei-en Tsao Chai, died unexpectedly. He then found out that his mother had secretly arranged to be buried alone, instead of in the share plots that his father had purchased years ago. Winbery then felt that, as Ruth's first-born son, he has the obligation to explore the family history to reconstruct his mother's life and to seek the answer of his mother's fateful decision. This book is about Winberg's family history and memoir. He finished this book with the help of his daughter, May-Lee Chai. I read some book reviews before I picked up this book at the library. I disagreed that this book is full of "fictionalized events." I think this book provides very good discussion about family history and its roots. It is an enjoyable reading. I like it.

Previous reviewers were ignorant........2003-02-25

Just because you cannot comprehend anyone having a hard life, doesn't mean you have to discredit the authors of this wonderful book. I am currently taking a course in Asian Political Cultures from Winberg Chai at the University of Wyoming, and I find him to be an incredible source of inspiration. Read this book and ignore anything the previous reviewers, or the critic from the New York Times have said.

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