Daughter of the Yellow River

Book Description

"Daughter of the Yellow River is a testament to perseverance, determination, courage, and success." - Deepak Chopra, best-selling author of Peace Is the Way

"Diana Lu's memoir effectively weaves autobiography, advice, cultural insights, and career journey to reveal what many women already know: work is intensely personal. Her self-reflection is contagious, and hopefully her perseverance will be as well." - Joanne Gordon, former Forbes staff writer and author of Career Bliss: Secrets from 100 Women Who Love Their Work

"Daughter of the Yellow River is an inspiring story of a remarkable woman. From the deprivation of the Chinese Cultural Revolution to success in the Western world, it depicts the victory of determination and pluck over personal and business adversity." - James Pammenter, former director, KPMG Management Consulting

"This book vividly proves the power of `You will never know until you try.' Diana Lu provides a simple, compelling approach to building the life of our dreams. This is an authentic road map for anyone pursuing lasting and transformational change in their lives." - Darryl Quan, chief financial officer, Image Global Impact.

"Diana's beauty masks a dynamic entrepreneur who knows what she wants to do and does it. Her life story takes her from the struggles of an impoverished childhood in China to success in a highly competitive global industry to a commitment to helping people forge their own paths to fulfillment. She shares her challenges and disappointments, triumphs and achievements, and the lessons she has learned about business and about life." - John Edward, former divisional director, Corning Incorporated.

"Inspirational, motivational, and stimulating are words that describe this book. Diana Lu's `can do, can achieve' attitude makes this book a must for those who want to get more out of life. She is proof that if you are an intelligent woman dealing in a male-dominated industry, you can be successful while maintaining an air of sophistication and femininity." - Mike Yell, general manager, Fujitsu Australia & New Zealand

When Diana Lu was three years old, her family was forced to leave their comfortable middle-class life in the city to live an impoverished coal-mining village at the edge of the Gobi Desert for China's culture revolution "re-education."

Life in that remote place was a constant struggle against hunger and fear. Passionate & determined, Diana resolved to create a better life based on her own talents and dreams; she turned down prestigious job after medical school. Overcoming parental & societal objections, she explored university teaching, real estate, and other fields before finding her niche as a top executive in the optical fiber industry. In 1997 Diana moved to the United States, and launched her own international enterprise, melding the Western & Chinese business cultures to work with clients globally.

Operating in a competitive, male-dominated high-tech field, she achieved astounding success -- from earning $30 a month in 1993 to in ten years making sales worth hundreds of millions of dollars. This inspirational book -- part memoir, part guidebook to personal and business success -- illustrates her remarkable journey.

* I am a daughter of the Yellow River. Its waters flow within me like the blood in my veins.

* I didn't need to define or limit myself by the circumstances I came from -- what counted was where I was heading.

* I realized that our lives will be what we choose to make them… That can be a daunting challenge, but the rewards are immeasurable.

Customer Reviews:

Three valuable themes.......2007-06-01

I met the author at an entrepreneurship conference in San Francisco and found the meeting interesting enough to order the book. I found the book to be a mixture of biography, history, and motivational parables. While the biography was perhaps a bit too long, it provided a stage for discussing three very important issues. The first was the potentially destructive impact of dogmatic national policies (The Chinese Cultural Revolution) on a family at the very personal level. The second theme presented the difficulties inherent in and evolution of the relationship between Asia-born parents and their westernized children. The final theme presented the riskiness of small businesses doing business with big companies in China.

Bizarre Revenge Fantasy.......2007-05-27

Buy this book--if you want to read a bizarre, narcissistic revenge fantasy. Otherwise, save your money.

Grabbed Me!.......2007-05-15

The book just grabbed me ...

Being a fan of Eastern Phylosophies and Worlds, thsi was just my best ride. China from a point of view that is heartmoving. A distinctive culture, on stage for the world.

Reading this book feels like Diana Lu is telling it live to you. It's not and easy ride since it might change the way you experience a couple of things in your life. Escpcially if your are western like me.

Enjoyment and understanding of global human life at large.

Incredible! Must Read! Delicate prose.

Creat chance for yourself!.......2007-01-12

No pay no gain? No, no pain no gain. For this generation (born 1970's even 1980's) how to chase dream, complete dream, could find some clues from "Daughter of the Yellow River". For western, through Diana Lu' story to know her growing background and understand china.

Height of narcissism!.......2006-12-30

Albeit it started well and gave some insight into an average family's life in China under the Gang of Four, it quickly derailed and became self-adulatory, patronizing and boring. I could not stand her own praise of her smartness, insights about life and prettiness. What's up with all those self portraits of her in different cities? As another reviewer suggested a visit to a shrink might help. To summarize, ended up being a waste of time; Don't waste your money on this book.

Average customer rating:

Why have people so many secrets?
A Chinese coming of age story.
Amazing book
If you must read it, borrow it from the library.
This is the second book that I've been unable to finish

Daughter of the River: An Autobiography
Hong Ying
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0802136605

Book Description

Daughter of the River is a memoir of China unlike any other. Born during the Great Famine of the early 1960s and raised in the slums of Chongqing, Hong Ying was constantly aware of hunger and the sacrifices required to survive. As she neared her eighteenth birthday, she became determined to unravel the secrets that left her an outsider in her own family. At the same time, a history teacher at her school began to awaken her sense of justice and her emerging womanhood. Hong Ying's wrenching coming-of-age would teach her the price of taking a stand and show her the toll of totalitarianism, poverty, and estrangement on her family. With raw intensity and fearless honesty, Daughter of the River follows China's trajectory through one woman's life, from the Great Famine through the Cultural Revolution to Tiananmen Square.

Customer Reviews:

Why have people so many secrets?.......2005-10-11

Hong Ying's autobiographical novel gives an in depth picture of `normal' life in China after World War II with its `hypocrite socialism' and its terrible famines.
It is a story of a harsh struggle for survival: unabated hunger, nerve-racking promiscuity, lack of privacy, bitter loneliness, lies and denunciations.
It is also a tale about growing up in a `strange' family, becoming an adult, discovering sexuality and about the search for one's own roots.

This book shows poignantly the real and direct impact of governmental political and social decisions on people's daily life. It is not less than a `personal' historical sketch with a genuine human touch.

This magisterial novel is bathed in a magical subdued atmosphere. It is written like most `Schubertian' music in a minor key-note.
A must read, not only for Chinese scholars.

A Chinese coming of age story........2005-09-22

I found this book to be somewhat interesting for its time and place; the slums of Chongqing at the end of the Cultural Revoloution. The authors family situation is also somewhat interesting, but a bit too predictable. I also read one of the author's novels, that I picked up off the sale table in Hong Kong and found it also just okay.

Amazing book.......2005-06-22

I read this book to see if I could use it in a college class I teach on young women and coming of age. After reading the split reviews on amazon.com, I decided to read the book for myself.

In short: I loved this book! It has a variety of issues that pertain to coming of age including the intersections between and among gender, race, culture, class, family, education, and politics.

The book is categorized as "Autobiography" but it could easily be categorized as "Autobiography/Women's Studies" for the range of women's issues it covers.

I will teach this book in the future. I would just advise my students, or any reader really, to pay attention to the dates as the book jumps around a lot and it helps to have a frame of reference (e.g. Hong Ying was born in 1962 so if she's talking about 1968 she is obviously 6 years old, but usually doesn't mention that fact) in which to view each segment of the story.

Highly recommended. The end of the book made my heart soar.

If you must read it, borrow it from the library........2003-11-18

I just had a hard time reading/understanding/finishing this book. I did finally finish it because I wanted to know the mystery behind the author's father, but in the end the whole book was disappointing. I guess it's a matter of the book's structure. The author jumps from one time setting to another so often, it gets totally confusing! Also she intertwines different stories of different family members and other people in her life, that it's easy to confuse the characters. Some of the language sounds awkward, the curse words seem...forced. Also after a while, the author's unceasing bitterness towards life tended to grate on my nerves.

This is the second book that I've been unable to finish.......2001-10-21

Rarely have I been unable to finish a book, even when it's quite terrible. However, this book was unreadable to me.

There is no rhyme or reason to this book. There's no linear progression. It's more of a "This happened when I was 5. This happened when I was 15. This happened when I was 12. This happened when I was 5." The book goes nowhere and there is no plot to follow.

Customer Reviews:

purple prose, weak melodrama.......2004-01-15

Whats annoying is that the author passes this all off as autobigraphical and historically true, when it is NOT. YH was/is from a very elite background, and like other expats making bucks off of US readers in search of melodramas of oppressed Chinese, this works poorly as history or politics. MOreover, the prose is labored and purple, though this might be the translation's fault.

How do you fit so much pain into beautiful words?.......2000-01-24

It is true that this autobiography is bleak. It is dark, but it is a reflection of the poverty and oppression experienced by the peasant class in China, now and all during the rule of the Communist regime. How Hong Ying is able to evoke absolute beauty from this seemingly unending ugliness is beyond me. But she expertly does just that. Without thought or pretense, Hong Ying's writing sings immaculately from the page. Amazing prose. This book's importance lies in that it is the story of someone from the peasant class, and since it is always good to hear all different perspectives of the same or similar events in order to get a good all around picture of the times, Hong Ying's book is a must read. In commenting on the book to a friend, I said that perhaps Hong Ying and her family's saving grace was that they were already at the bottom of the totem pole. Because of this they didn't have to experience the worst of what the Cultural Revolution had to offer eventhough it touched their lives daily. The peasant class of China is what Mao Zedong strived to make all the people of China in the name of proletarianism. The fact that Hong Ying and her family were already of this class meant that many of the dynamics of the time that were sweeping through all classes above them settled into their class as normalcy somewhat. It's like a line from Joan Chen's movie "Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl;" at one point when Xiu Xiu is questioning where she is being sent, she is told that it doesn't matter because it's the same everywhere; a simple statement but poignant in just how dead on right it is. Therefore, you must appreciate even moreso when we are allowed to read of these events by all those who were a part of them be it peasant or merchant. If it's done well, it is the most captivating of things to read because it means they made it out and are able to share it with us now. Before, any scraps of paper containing this type of writing would have been confiscated and burned, a black mark put in your file, or perhaps you'd be arrested. Hong Ying has done a brilliant job telling of her coming into womanhood in those times and of the exuberant curiosity she had about her family and herself, always having been treated as the outsider.

Agonising.......2000-01-01

I cannot say that I enjoyed reading this book ... it was too raw to bring pleasure. But it did keep me captivated until the end. I felt that I wanted to reach out to Hong Ying and comfort her in some way as she lived through such excruciating poverty and endured the even greater agony of not feeling loved. I hope that she has found love and is at peace now. I also wonder about the fate of her family. Did they ever find release from such grinding poverty?

Hong Ying obviously has a great talent and I look forward to reading more of her writings.

I had no problem putting it down.......1999-11-29

The non linar approach kept me thinking there would be some big supprizing reward at the end of the book. To my disappointment there was no such revolation. Not an awfully written story but certinally no prize winner in my book!

A Letter to the Author: .. Touches my heart deeply.........1999-06-11

Dear Hong Ying

Thank you so much for sending me your book. I was totally gripped by your narrative and when I finished it I found myself weeping uncontrollably. There is so much in your story which strikes my raw emotion and which touches my heart deeply.This is not just because I feel instinctively tuned into the underworld you depicted so vividly due to similar experiences in my life in Chongqing. More importantly, it embodies almost exactly the literary project which has long been fermenting in my mind. I have always longed to read something or even write something which could show that big words such as freedom, democracy and human rights are not just some high-sounding principles; that they affect millions of ordinary people's lives in many concrete ways.

In my discipline of political science, the rise of East Asia in the 1980s spawned a huge industry of academic research on the relathionship between political system and economic development. For quite a while, Western scholars who were critical of their own democratic system joined the chorus of East Asian dictators such as Suharto, Lee Kuan Yew and Dr Mahathir (of Malaysia) to defend the "necessity" of authoritarianism for the sake of economic development and political stability. I think your book would be an ideal antidote to this typical "arm-chair" scholarship devoid of any sense of reality. To me, your book serves as a powerful warning that development without democracy simply

creates another privileged class standing above the law and everyone else. I am often angered and depressed by the world I live in. It seems to me so many human injustices stem ultimately from the fact that too many human beings are greedy and cruel.

Average customer rating:

Review of Copper King's Daughter

The Copper King's Daughter; From Cape Cod to Crooked River.
Dorothy Lawson McCall
Manufacturer: Binford & Mort Pubs
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
North America | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0832302031

Customer Reviews:

Review of Copper King's Daughter.......2002-02-22

This is an informational type book-not a very emotional look at life. It is an interesting account of the life of Oregon's former Gov. Tom McCall's mother and grandfather. They were quite wealthy during an interesting time period in Boston and Central Oregon. They briefly dealt with folks like Mark Twain and the Kennedys. It's a quick read, but worth it.

Average customer rating:

a virtually unknown classic of American letters
A TRUE AMERICAN DAUGHTER!

American Daughter (Borealis Books)
Erabelle Thompson
Manufacturer: Minnesota Historical Society Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0873512014

Book Description

Black North Dakotans were indeed something of a rarity in 1914, when young Erabelle Thompson and her family moved to a farm near the small community of Driscoll. In fact, when the Thompsons traveled thrity miles to join two other black families for Christmas dinner, "there were fifteen of us, four percent of the state's entire Negro population."

In this lively autobiography, Thompson describes the experiences of her North Dakota girlhood: busting broncos with her brothers; making friends with Norwegian and German neighbors; meeting Governor Lynn J. Frazier, for whom her father worked as a personal messenger; running footraces at picnics (and knowing that people were betting on her to win); selling used furniture in Mandan; working her way through college in Grand Forks; and facing prejudice without the support of a large black community. She also discusses the impact of her North Dakota background on her later adventures in St. Paul and Chicago.

Customer Reviews:

a virtually unknown classic of American letters.......2005-04-30

Someone gave me this book, and I am lucky, for I never would have read it otherwise. But it seems that almost no one has ever read "American Daughter"(originally published in 1967), though it should be listed as of the greats of American letters. Thompson is quoted in the preface as saying, "Usually an autobiography is written near the end of a long and distinguished career, but not taking any chances, I wrote mine first, then began to live." That's tongue-in-cheek, and characteristically self-effacing. Very much so. After writing "American Daughter", Thompson went on to be associate editor of the newly established EBONY magazine, as just the start of a distinguished publishing and writing career. But it is this memoir, which should be reissued for mainstream attention--that is her great triumph--a touching, beautifully written book that enriches the lives of all who read it.

A TRUE AMERICAN DAUGHTER!.......2002-11-26

Miss Thompson has done an incredible job here. Her autobiography is so personal and touching. In reading her story, I watched her grow up in North Dakota and saw how the family struggled when they first started farming. From the early morning sunrise to the bitter cold weather, Era Bell Thompson is a master of description. She paints a beautiful picture of life, and likewise how hard the death of her mother and father were on her.
Her early 1900 work ethic makes us pale in comparison. Her friendships blossom on the pages. Her sorrows, pains, joys, love, and strength of spirit are poignant and enduring.
She is brave and hard working. She wants to share her soul with us, the readers, and has done a trememdous job!
Please purchase this book and read it. I promise it will be hard to put down and you will have been blessed by reading it.
Come share with me what I experienced by learning about a true american daughter, Era Bell Thompson.

Daughter of the Yellow River: Special Edition (color photo insert)

Average customer rating:

Narcissistic Drivel
An American-Chinese Dream Come True

Daughter of the Yellow River: Special Edition (color photo insert)
Diana Lu
Manufacturer: Image Global Impact
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Business | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1933726008

Book Description

* I am a daughter of the Yellow River. Its waters flow within me like the blood in my veins.

* I didn't need to define or limit myself by the circumstances I came from -- what counted was where I was heading.

* I realized that our lives will be what we choose to make them… That can be a daunting challenge, but the rewards are immeasurable.

* This is a limited special edition, with a color photo insert.

Customer Reviews:

Narcissistic Drivel.......2006-10-18

I very much enjoy books about China, but I could not stomach Ms. Lu's stunning narcissism. This woman needs to see a psychiatrist before she inflicts herself on anyone else. Do not encourage her self-obsession by buying her book.

An American-Chinese Dream Come True.......2006-04-05

Diana Lu's book has it all: Rough-and-tough beginnings, flickerings of hope, dashed dreams, overcoming obstacles and stereotypes, and ultimately, success beyond her wildest imagination - and through it all, Diana's voice can be heard loud and clear: Keep trying! Do your best! If you want to succeed, you will!

Her book will touch you. It will inspire you. It will make you want to be more like her.

Diana's story is a modern-day fairy tale. Pick up a copy for yourself and enjoy the adventure.

Forever Down the River: Memoirs of a Share Croppers Daughter

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Forever Down the River: Memoirs of a Share Croppers Daughter
N. Ruth Phillips Heath
Manufacturer: BookSurge Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Entertainers | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1419642928
Release Date: 2006-12-14

Book Description

Forever Down The River: Memoirs of a Sharecropper's Daughter is the poignant story of a young girl's coming of age in the Upper Cumberlands of Tennessee during the early 1900's. Poverty, disappointment, hope, faith, and love come together throughout the memoir, weaving a rich tapestry showing what life was like as a southern tenant farmer's daughter.

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Daughter of the River
Ying Hong
Manufacturer: Grove Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Literature & Fiction | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

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ASIN: B000VYLZG8

Book Description

The Labour of Loss explores how mothers, fathers, widows, relatives and friends dealt with their experiences of grief and loss during and after the First and Second World Wars. Based on an examination of private loss through letters and diaries, this study makes a significant contribution to understanding how people came to terms with the deaths of friends and family. Unlike other studies in this area, The Labour of Loss considers how mourning affected men and women in different ways, and analyzes the gendered dimensions of grief.

The Labour of Loss: Mourning, Memory and Wartime Bereavement in Australia. (Book Reviews). (book review): An article from: The Australian Journal of Politics and History

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The Labour of Loss: Mourning, Memory and Wartime Bereavement in Australia. (Book Reviews). (book review): An article from: The Australian Journal of Politics and History
Kay Saunders
Manufacturer: University of Queensland Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Australia | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Australian Journal of Politics and History, published by University of Queensland Press on March 1, 2002. The length of the article is 586 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Labour of Loss: Mourning, Memory and Wartime Bereavement in Australia. (Book Reviews). (book review)
Author: Kay Saunders
Publication: The Australian Journal of Politics and History (Refereed)
Date: March 1, 2002
Publisher: University of Queensland Press
Volume: 48 Issue: 1 Page: 114(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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