Sounds Of The River. A Memoir Of China

Cover Type: Softcover
Book Condition: Very Good
Jacket Condition: None Issued
Publisher: William Heinemann
Publisher Place: London
Publisher Year: 2003
Edition: Reprint

Description: 307 pages. Book is in Very good condition throughout.

Publishers Description: Teenager Da Chen gathers soil from the riverbank near his village in China's far south, before he leaves to attend university in Beijing, to bear witness to his past and contain the sounds of the river of his childhood. Later, spilled onto the dry earth of the North, they will merge two parts of Da's life, in this second volume of his lyrical trilogy of memoirs, a sequel to the acclaimed Colours of the Mountain. eginning with his first train journey to Beijing from his parents farm, we rumble along with him in the overcrowded and disease ridden railway carriage to the university. Here the author faces a range of challenges, including poor living conditions, lack of food, and suicidal roommates. Undaunted by these hurdles and armed with a dogged determination to learn English and familiarise himself with 'all things Western', he must compete with every other student to win a chance to study in the US - a chance that rests in the shrewd and corrupt hands of the all powerful professors. In a richly textured story - by turns poetic, ribald, hilarious, and heartbreaking - Chen retains his indomitable spirit, but will he be any closer to attaining his goal?

ISBN: 9780434010653