New York: Random House, 1999. First Edition. First printing Fine in dark brown paper covered boards with gilt text stamping on the spine. Laid-in is a 4" x 6" color photograph of the author. In a fine jacket with the price in tact on the flap. The author's memoirs of his early life in China during Mao's "Cultural Revolution". Signed by the author on the first free end paper with his signature and "good health" in Chinese characters and with the author's chop in red ink. The author's first book which has won strong praise and glowing reviews.

Synopsis

"I was born in southern China in 1962, in the tiny town of Yellow Stone. They called it the Year of Great Starvation."In 1962, as millions of Chinese citizens were gripped by Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution and the Red Guards enforced a brutal regime of communism, a boy was born to a poor family in southern China. This family--the Chens--had once been respected landlords in the village of Yellow Stone, but now they were among the least fortunate families in the country, despised for their "capitalist" past. Grandpa Chen couldn't leave the house for fear of being beaten to death; the children were spit upon in the street; and their father was regularly hauled off to labor camps, leaving the family of eight without a breadwinner. Da Chen, the youngest child, seemed destined for a life of poverty, shame, and hunger.But winning humor and an indomitable spirit can be found in the most unexpected places. Colors of the Mountain is a story of triumph, a memoir of a boyhood full of spunk, mischief, and love. The young Da Chen is part Horatio Alger, part Holden Caul-field; he befriends a gang of young hoodlums as well as the elegant, elderly Chinese Baptist woman who teaches him English and opens the door to a new life. Chen's remarkable story is full of unforgettable scenes of rural Chinese life: feasting on oysters and fried peanuts on New Year's Day, studying alongside classmates who wear red armbands and quote Mao, and playing and working in the peaceful rice fields near his village.Da Chen's story is both captivating and endearing, filled with the universal human quality that distinguishes the very best memoirs. It proves once again that the concerns of childhood transcend time and place.From the Hardcover edition.

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Details

Bookseller: Town's End Books (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #: TB10502
Title: Colors of the Mountain
Author: Chen, Da
Book Condition: Used
Edition: First Edition
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Random House
Place of Publication: New York
Date Published: 1999

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Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Gilt: The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
Jacket: Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
First Edition: In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
Spine: The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
Fine: A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
Laid-in: "Laid In" indicates that there is something which is included with, but not attached to the book, such as a sheet of paper. The...