An Autobiography of sorts
You guys should check out The Diary of Ma Yan: The Struggles and Hopes of a Chinese Schoolgirl. It was a birthday gift, and a very good one (thanks, Cam!). This book is a translation of Ma Yan's diary, which she wrote from age 13-14. The book in theory is a quick read due to the author's youth; however the content may make you slow down a lot.
Ma Yan is a girl living in one of the poorest regions of China: the government has declared her region uninhabitable. However, her family and most of the villagers still remain in the region because they cannot afford to go anywhere else. To give you an idea of their finances, Ma Yan went without food for about two weeks in order to afford a ballpoint pen. She survived solely on a single rice ration a day, whereas normally her money would go to vegetables to suppliment the rice.
Reading her diary reminded me of reading Anne Frank's diary. Both girls face unimaginable circumstances beyond their control, and lead exceedingly bleak and depressing lives, yet still manage to see beauty in the world. Fortunately for Ma Yan, her story ends well, and in the end you want to cry because you are happy, not because you are horribly depressed and emotionally drained, as I experienced with Anne Frank's diary.
Anyhow, this book is a definite must-read, not only for the overall beauty of Ma Yan's story, but also because of the insight it allows us into the lives of Chinese people, the details of which are often closely guarded by the government. Pick up this book (you'll have to ask Cam where he got it). I give it an 8.5/10
Ma Yan is a girl living in one of the poorest regions of China: the government has declared her region uninhabitable. However, her family and most of the villagers still remain in the region because they cannot afford to go anywhere else. To give you an idea of their finances, Ma Yan went without food for about two weeks in order to afford a ballpoint pen. She survived solely on a single rice ration a day, whereas normally her money would go to vegetables to suppliment the rice.
Reading her diary reminded me of reading Anne Frank's diary. Both girls face unimaginable circumstances beyond their control, and lead exceedingly bleak and depressing lives, yet still manage to see beauty in the world. Fortunately for Ma Yan, her story ends well, and in the end you want to cry because you are happy, not because you are horribly depressed and emotionally drained, as I experienced with Anne Frank's diary.
Anyhow, this book is a definite must-read, not only for the overall beauty of Ma Yan's story, but also because of the insight it allows us into the lives of Chinese people, the details of which are often closely guarded by the government. Pick up this book (you'll have to ask Cam where he got it). I give it an 8.5/10
posted by VB at 10:13 PM
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