Mao's Last Dancer

1283 Words3 Pages

Mao's Last Dancer

Staggeringly vast and a land of great diversity, China, the world's

most populous and third largest nation is more like a continent in

itself than a country. With that huge population and a long history,

China has made itself become a glorious and controversial country

during one hundred years, especially from 1949 when China was finally

at peace after decades of war, a China under China Communist Party

(CCP) and Mao Zedong. There was actually a lot of changing in society

as well as in particular people’s lives. Li Cunxin, a dancer and the

author of the book Mao’s last dancer - a huge bestseller in Australia

and the thirty-fourth book of “Australia’s 100 favourite books” of the

year, has his life changed clearly and dramatically which is explained

emotionally in his book. Mao's last dancer touches every reader’s

hearts by its beauty, its honesty and exhilaration. Through this book,

we are able to learn more about China from a different side and

obviously about Li Cunxin’s life – a life within a burning desire for

higher achievements.

Li Cunxin was born into an extreme poor peasant family in Qingdoa in

1961, Northern China. He is the sixth son in the family of seven sons,

living in a small house with relatives. 1961 is the third year of

Mao’s Great Leap Forward “which had left rural China suffering

terribly from disease and deprivation”. But when he was eleven years

old, Madame Mao decided to revive the Perking Dance Academy and sent

her men into the countryside to find suitable children. And Li, thanks

to his teacher pointing out, without any former experience, was chosen

to become a dancer - one of the best dancers in the world. After seven

years of hard training at Beijing Dance Ac...

... middle of paper ...

...s and

aspirations. His delivery was powerful and effective and he certainly

had the audience with him all the way, conquered, inspired and

enriched.

Reference:

[1] Mao's last dancer by Li Cunxin – Book Summary and Book Reviews,

http://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/index.cfm?book_number=1388, 17/08/05

[2] Li Cunxin – An interview with author,

http://www.bookbrowse.com/author_interviews/full/index.cfm?author_number=995,

17/08/05

[3] Li Cunxin, Dancer Magnificent,

http://www.anovelview.com/li_cunxin_dancer_magnifique.htm, 17/08/05

[4] Li Cunxin – An interview with author,

http://www.bookbrowse.com/author_interviews/full/index.cfm?author_number=995,

17/08/05

[5] Li Cunxin, Dancer Magnificent,

http://www.anovelview.com/li_cunxin_dancer_magnifique.htm, 17/08/05

* Li Cunxin, Mao’s Last Dancer, New York : Putnam, 2003.

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