Book: I Love Yous Are for White People

It is another book about the Vietnamese Boat people. It described how they escaped from Vietnam to their dreamland "America." In order to reach their dreamland, they gained sponsorship from churches by faking their religious belief.

The author was five years old when he and his family arrived California. This book recaptures his family's harrowing escape from the Communists in Vietnam and the difficulties new life in the "promise land," including his own dangerous gang experience during his youth in Los Angeles.

The most typical person in the world?

I seldom watch news. Last night I heard from Nightly News about the most typical human face report. According to the news, the most typical person in the world has the face of a 28-year-old Han Chinese man.

How do we define "the most typical person"? It is simply by appearance?

I have a graduate degree in Journalism. But I have to say that I do not understand what the 21st century journalism anymore. What kinds of news they put on the prime time in nowadays? Oh well, the world has been changed

No kidding.

Book: Angie Chau's Quiet As They Come

It is a book about the Vietnamese boat people's new lives in San Francisco. They found themselves in between two different cultures. They are also haunted by their memories and customs and at the same time, raised their kids in their new motherland.

The story is honesty and generosity; yet it is hard to follow in some ways if you only have a little knowledge about the Asian culture. Some chapters are written from a child's view of the new country; some chapters depicted the difficulties life of the adults.

Try to read this book and make your own "judgment."

Book: Diamond Hill, Memoirs of growing up in a Hong Kong Squatter Village

I read the book review a couple of month before the book was released. - It is a must-read book for anyone who grew up in Hong Kong in the 1950s and 1960s! The author gives many insights into a low-income neighborhood ... actually it was a refugee neighborhood at that time. Many people escaped from Communist China in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

This book reminds me Martin Booth's book, Gweilo: Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood. This book is written by a Chinese native Hong Kong while Gweilo is told from a British boy who grew up in Hong Kong.

Mind, Body, Health: East wind blows West

I have been practicing Tai Chi and Chi Gong for a few years. I have tried different styles and forms. I found the following DVDs are very helpful:

(1) David Dorian Ross's Tai Chi
(2) Qi Gong for Cleansing - Daisy Lee and Francesco Garri Garripoli
(3) Qi Gong for Daily Practice - Daisy Lee and Francesco Garri Garripoli
(4) Qi Gong for Stress Relief - Daisy Lee and Francesco Garripoli

Mind goes, Qi follows -Wisdom, Peace, Balance ...

Book: My Life As a Chicken

Written by Ellen Kelley, this is a book about a chicken who want to be the first-ever chicken triathlete. I love this book - the adventure of "Pauline Poulet" is so excited. She escapes her dreary life of doing nothing but laying eggs; but she winds up in a scary REAL wood.

The story reminds my late pet chicken "Pumpkin." - She loved to explore the bushes near my property. She hid herself in the cellar. She loved to sleep in my arm with her head resting on my thumb....

Chickens are actually smarter than we thought. They also have feelings.

This children book tells us about an "unusual" life of a chicken. The story is excited but humorous. The illustrations are great. It is not only a good bedtime story, but also a story reminds us that chickens are NOT just at the bottom of our food chain. Chickens can be our best friends, or our dearest pets.

Kindle or Book?

It is a VERY common question I received in the past two months.  - "sigh"

After working at the Library of Congress temporarily, I "re-confirm" my feeling about Kindle books. I love to walking between the book shelves. I enjoy reading at the Main Reading Room at the Jefferson Building. I love to "climb up" the stairs to get the reference books I need .... I do NOT like Kindle. I love to read with an ACTUAL book - the touch of the pages with my fingers, the enjoyment of reading with imagination ... I cannot see myself to READ with my fingers on a machine!

I am OLD-FASHION librarian.