Third Quarter Outside Reading Book Review

Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin. Penguin Books, 2003. Genre: Autobiographical Novel,
nonfiction

Mao's Last Dancer is about Li Cunxin, a peasant boy living in Qingdao, China with his parents and six brothers. His family was incredibly poor, with barely enough dried yams to go around at dinner time. But life changes for the Li family when ten-year-old Cunxin gets chosen to go to Madame Mao's School of Dance in Bejing in 1971. When there, the students learn how to write Chinese, dance, and of course, learn everything in Chairman Mao's red book. Over time, Cunxin improves as a dancer, and finds himself with once in a lifetime oppurtunities. He gets to go to America, and experience fame and fortune as an immensly talented ballet dancer.While there, he runs into language barriers (because he didn't know any English before going to America), and mishaps with the Chinese government. Yet he still tries to find love in the west, and focus solely on dancing. Cunxin lives his dream, and he gives family a proud name.

"[A] fascinating memoir... told simply but passionately, with subtle humor and unguarded emotion." -Houston Chronicle.

Mao's Last Dancer is very easy to read and get into. It is told by Li Cunxin himself, as he and his family stuggle to survive in a poor town. He is given rare oppurtunities to break free from his small town, and his poor country to go to the amazing city of Houstin, Texas in America. I haven't read any other books by him, and I'm not sure if he has even written any other books. But if he did write another book, I would read it in a heartbeat. The paragraphs go by very quickly, and it is easy to read. The reader never knows what the next turn in the book is, and that's what makes it so good.

"I had gone back home and expected to leave them feeling light and optimistic. Instead I was leaving with a confused heart" (437).

I have never really liked nonfiction books, but Mao's Last Dancer convinced me to alter my opinion. It was much better than I expected, and I'm not really into dancing. But I understood this book, and the fact that it was a true story was really what made it inspiring. It is hard to believe that a poor peasant boy can become a world-wide famous dancer, and have the chance to leave his poor life in China for a wealthier life in America. It is an awesome book, and I'd definately recommend it to anyone who wants to give nonfiction books a try. This book is a really inspirational and beautiful tale on how one person can make a difference in their own life.