Snow Falling in Spring: Coming of Age in China During the Cultural Revolution

Snow Falling in Spring: Coming of Age in China During the Cultural Revolution

Written by: Moying Li

"Moying Li is twelve years old when the Cultural Revolution sweeps across China. Studying at a prestigious language school in Beijing, she seems destined for a promising future. But everything changes when student Red Guards orchestrate brutal assaults, violent public humiliations, and forced confessions throughout the country. After watching her headmasters beaten in public, Moying flees school for the safety of home, only to witness her beloved grandmother denounced, her home ransacked, and her father taken away—along with this precious books. Struggling to make sense of her crumbling world, she finds sanctuary in literature. But with many schools shut down and most books forbidden, how can she keep her passion for learning alive?"

Publishers Description

**This would be a great book to pair with Red Scarf Girl written by Ji-li Jiang **

Online Resources:
http://www.moyingli.com/
http://us.macmillan.com/snowfallinginspring

Mao's Last Dancer

Mao's Last Dancer

Written by: Li Cunxin

"At the age of eleven, Li Cunxin was one of the privileged few selected to serve in Chairman Mao’s Cultural Revolution by studying at the Beijing Dance Academy. Having known bitter poverty in his rural China home, ballet would be his family’s best chance for a better future. From one hardship to another, Cunxin demonstrated perseverance and an appetite for success that led him to be chosen as one of the first two people to leave Mao’s China and go to American to dance on a special cultural exchange. But life in the U.S. was nothing like his communist indoctrination had led him to believe. Ultimately, he defected to the west in a dramatic media storm, and went on to dance with the Houston Ballet for sixteen years.

This inspiring story of passion, resilience, and a family’s love captures the harsh reality of life in Mao’s communist China and the exciting world of professional dance. This compelling memoir includes photos documenting Li’s extraordinary life."

Publishers Synopsis

Online Resources:
http://www.licunxin.com/