Mao's Last Dancer - Hardcover

Cunxin, Li

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802797792 ISBN 13: 9780802797797

Publisher: Walker & Co, 2008

Synopsis

At the age of eleven, Li Cunxin was one of the privileged few selected to serve in Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution by studying at the Beijing Dance Academy. Having known bitter poverty in his rural China home, ballet would be his family's best chance for a better future. From one hardship to another, Cunxin demonstrated perseverance and an appetite for success that led him to be chosen as one of the first two people to leave Mao's China and go to American to dance on a special cultural exchange. But life in the U.S. was nothing like his communist indoctrination had led him to believe. Ultimately, he defected to the west in a dramatic media storm, and went on to dance with the Houston Ballet for sixteen years.

This inspiring story of passion, resilience, and a family's love captures the harsh reality of life in Mao's communist China and the exciting world of professional dance. This compelling memoir includes photos documenting Li's extraordinary life.

About this title

Review:

[A] fascinating memoir told simply but passionately, with subtle humor and unguarded emotion. The Houston Chronicle
Mix Billy Elliot with Torn Curtain and you ll have some of the tale in very broad outline well-paced full of adventures. Kirkus Reviews

Fascinating reading unfolds with honesty, humor, and a quiet dignity. This book has wide appeal, for it concerns not only a dancer s coming of age in a turbulent time but also individual strength, self-discovery, and the triumph of the human spirit. Library Journal
The facts of his life are astonishing on their own, but what makes Li Cunxin s engrossing autobiography so captivating is his enthusiastic retelling of every twist and turn. Vogue (Australia)"

"[A] fascinating memoir...told simply but passionately, with subtle humor and unguarded emotion."--The Houston Chronicle
"Mix Billy Elliot with Torn Curtain and you'll have some of the tale in very broad outline...well-paced...full of adventures."--Kirkus Reviews

"Fascinating reading...unfolds with honesty, humor, and a quiet dignity. This book has wide appeal, for it concerns not only a dancer's coming of age in a turbulent time but also individual strength, self-discovery, and the triumph of the human spirit."--Library Journal
"The facts of his life are astonishing on their own, but what makes Li Cunxin's engrossing autobiography so captivating is his enthusiastic retelling of every twist and turn."--Vogue (Australia)

-[A] fascinating memoir...told simply but passionately, with subtle humor and unguarded emotion.---The Houston Chronicle
-Mix Billy Elliot with Torn Curtain and you'll have some of the tale in very broad outline...well-paced...full of adventures.---Kirkus Reviews

-Fascinating reading...unfolds with honesty, humor, and a quiet dignity. This book has wide appeal, for it concerns not only a dancer's coming of age in a turbulent time but also individual strength, self-discovery, and the triumph of the human spirit.---Library Journal
-The facts of his life are astonishing on their own, but what makes Li Cunxin's engrossing autobiography so captivating is his enthusiastic retelling of every twist and turn.---Vogue (Australia)

Review:

"An inspiring true story of courage and determination." (Adeline Yen Mah, author of Falling Leaves)

"His vivid descriptions of life at home, surviving on family love and dried yams, and of the harsh regime, make riveting reading." (The Guardian)

"[A] heartening rags-to-riches story." (Publishers Weekly)

"Mao's Last Dancer is a modern fairy-tale. Li Cunxin's story is a breathtaking indictment of brute Communism, told with great honesty." (Kate Adie)

"Appalling, brave and funny ... you cannot do better than to read this book." (The Mail on Sunday)

"The listener's interest never flags ... [Paul English] imbues the narrative with ingenuousness and enthusiasm. The result is an audiobook that is superior to its source." (AudioFile Magazine)

About this edition

• Publisher: Walker & Co
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0802797792
• ISBN 13: 9780802797797
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 304