Mao's Last Dancer - Softcover

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Li Cunxin was born in a small village near the city of Qingdao, in northern China. At eighteen, he was selected to perform at the Houston Ballet, which led to a dramatic defection to the United States. He has performed as a soloist with the Houston Ballet and as a principal artist with the Australian Ballet.

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Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

PART ONE - MY CHILDHOOD

Chapter 1 - HOME

Chapter 2 - MY NIANG AND DIA

Chapter 3 - A COMMUNE CHILDHOOD

Chapter 4 - THE SEVEN OF US

Chapter 5 - NA-NA

Chapter 6 - CHAIRMAN MAO's CLASSROOM

Chapter 7 - LEAVING HOME

PART TWO - BEIJING

Chapter 8 - FEATHER IN A WHIRLWIND

Chapter 9 - THE CAGED BIRD

Chapter 10 - THAT FIRST LONELY YEAR

Chapter 11 - THE PEN

Chapter 12 - MY OWN VOICE

Chapter 13 - TEACHER XIAO's WORDS

Chapter 14 - TURNING POINTS

Chapter 15 - THE MANGO

Chapter 16 - CHANGE

Chapter 17 - ON THE WAY TO THE WEST

Chapter 18 - THE FILTHY CAPITALIST AMERICA

Chapter 19 - GOOD-BYE, CHINA

PART THREE - THE WEST

Chapter 20 - RETURN TO THE LAND OF FREEDOM

Chapter 21 - ELIZABETH

Chapter 22 - DEFECTION

Chapter 23 - MY NEW LIFE

Chapter 24 - A MILLET DREAM COME TRUE

Chapter 25 - NO MORE NIGHTMARES

Chapter 26 - RUSSIA

Chapter 27 - MARY

Chapter 28 - GOING HOME

Chapter 29 - BACK IN MY VILLAGE

Chapter 30 - ANOTHER WEDDING

AFTERWORD TO THE ORIGINAL EDITION

PART FOUR - MY STORY CONTINUES

Chapter 31 - KEEPING HEARTS WARM

Chapter 32 - 'NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE"

Chapter 33 - PAPER WISHES

Acknowledgements

DISCUSSION GUIDE

PHOTOGRAPHIC CREDITS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

"Li's well-paced account of the ensuing cloak-and-dagger episodes that lead to his defection to the West adds suspense to a tale already full of adventures, but there are no conventional bad guys to be found in it. Indeed, he writes with fine compassion for the Chinese consul who attempts to dissuade him from becoming an outcast: 'unlike me, he had to go back and would probably never manage to get out again.' Nicely written and humane: for anyone interested in modern Chinese history or for fans of dance."

'Kirkus Reviews

"Honest and refreshing."

"Adeline Yen Mah,
author of Falling Leaves

"A moving, true story of family love and a boy's great courage on his journey from terrible poverty to the world stage'one of the books of the year."

'Women's Weekly (Australia)

"It is in large part this book's resemblance to good fiction that renders it so readable. The scene in the Chinese consulate after Cunxin defects is fraught with real menace, charged with potential for violence and even international incident, and could hardly be better described . . . a crackling yarn."

'the Sunday Independent (Ireland)

"Li Cunxin has written a remarkable book about his own remarkable journey. It is really about the nature of family love, courage, and obsession. Mao's Last Dancer is told with simplicity, but Li's style is deceptive. It takes skill to write simply, just as it takes years of backbreaking work to make ballet look elegant and effortless."

'the Sydney Morning Herald

'very evocative."

'Financial Times

'remarkable."

'the Sunday Telegraph (London)

"His autobiography traces profound political change, from the disastrous results of Mao's Great Leap Forward in the late 1950s to China's gradual opening after 1978, under new paramount leader Deng Xiaoping.' 'Gold Coast Bulletin (Australia)

"Anything but boring."

'Houston Press

"Mao's Last Dancer is not a typical dancer's story. Yes, Li triumphs over physical pain. More important, he illustrates the sustaining power of deep cultural roots and enduring familial love. Evoking a vivid sense of life's evolution in communist China and the stark contrast of Western society, he also crosses chasms of the heart. And while Mao's Last Dancer is not a self-improvement book, Li's courage and perseverance ultimately make his story more inspiring than a dozen tomes by the likes of Dr. Phil."

'Houston Chronicle

"His story will appeal to an audience beyond Sinophiles and ballet aficionados."

'Publishers Weekly

"He is an expert storyteller, and his memoir'which includes his struggles to perfect his art in the tense political framework, the complex events surrounding his defection, and the heart-breaks and joys of his professional and personal lives'makes for fascinating reading. The portions dealing with his childhood and loving family in Qingdao are especially poignant, and the work as a whole 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

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Readers Guide copyright © 2010 Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Quotations in chapters 6 and 7 are from the songs 'I Love Beijing Tiananmen' and 'We Love Chairman Mao' (author's own translation).

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ISBN: 9781101458778

Li, Cunxin, date.
Mao's last dancer / Li Cunxin.
p. cm.

ISBN: 9781101458778

1. Li, Cunxin, date. 2. Ballet dancers'China'Biography.
3. Defectors'China'Biography. I. Title.
GV1785.L475A3
2004
2003047199
792.8'092'dc21
[B]

To the two special women
in my life'my mother and my wife

A WEDDING

QINGDAO, 1946

On the day of her marriage, a young girl sits alone in her village home. It is autumn, a beautiful October morning. The country air is cool but fresh.

The young girl hears happy music approaching her house. She is only eighteen, and she is nervous, frightened. She knows...