by Anchee Min (Author)
When Anchee Min left China in 1984 her knowledge of English was minimal. She tried to write this autobiography in her own tongue, but found it impossible. Only with the emotional freedom granted by a new language could she find her means of expression. This powerful and candid memoir immortalises her coming of age in the Red Guard, the harbouring of illicit love amidst a regime bent on human alienation and her recruitment from rural hard labour into Madame Mao's burgeoning movie industry.
Format: Paperback
Pages: 256
Edition: New
Publisher: Phoenix
Published: 24 Oct 1996
ISBN 10: 0575400102
ISBN 13: 9780575400108
Book Overview: A powerful and moving autobiography from an author with a truly original voice Anchee Min's Empress Orchid has been selected for Richard and Judy's Bookclub 2006 Reissued in a beautiful new cover design 'A riveting account' Amy Tan 'Mysterious and moving ... brave and uplifting' Independent on Sunday 'A beautifully written account of a mass psychosis and a testament to the courage, powers of survival and ability to love in appalling privations' Shena Mackay, Sunday Express