Ruthanne Lum McCunn

The extraordinary biographical novel about a Chinese-American woman who fought for independence and dignity in the American West A limited Beacon Classics edition, with a gorgeous spot gloss cover and retro, classic palette "Fast-paced and entertaining-packed with adventure, drama, and inspiration." --San Francisco Chronicle Lalu Nathoy's father called his thirteen-year-old daughter his treasure, his "thousand pieces of gold"--yet when famine strikes northern China in 1871, he is forced to sell her. Polly, as Lalu is later called, is sold to a brothel, sold again to a slave merchant bound for America, auctioned to a saloonkeeper, and offered as a prize in a poker game. Celebrated author Ruthanne Lum McCunn traces the gripping narrative of Lalu's courageous attempts to escape captivity and then enslavement, and her unflagging efforts to live free in the American West as Polly, despite devastating losses. With over a quarter of a million copies sold, Thousand Pieces of Gold remains an enduring classic of biographical historical fiction, starring an unforgettable Chinese-American heroine whose struggles put a human face on the anti-immigration policies of the past and present.

Lalu Nathoy's father called his thirteen-year-old daughter his treasure, his "thousand pieces of gold," yet when famine strikes northern China in 1871, he is forced to sell her. Polly, as Lalu is later called, is sold to a brothel, sold again to a slave merchant bound for America, auctioned to a saloonkeeper, and offered as a prize in a poker game. This biographical novel is the extraordinary story of one woman's fight for independence and dignity in the American West.

" Held me captive right from the start."--Alan Cheuse, NPR, "All Things Considered" "Her clear voice and simple but elegant style easily turns this work into a real page-turner."--"Library Journal" "A vivid tale of a faraway time."--"Asian Week" "Beautifully combines the hardships and brutality of the kidnapping of a Chinese man, conditions on the slave ships, and the bitterness of backbreaking labor in a foreign land with the sadness and determination of a wife and family back home. . . . A story of emotional depth and truth."--Lisa See, author of "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" "Will keep readers spellbound and cheering to the final page."--Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, author of "Farewell to Manzanar" "I love "God of Luck.""--Da Chen, author of "Brothers" Ah Lung and his beloved wife, Bo See, are separated by cruel fate when, like thousands of other Chinese men in the nineteenth century, he is kidnapped, enslaved, and shipped to the deadly guano mines off the coast of Peru. Praying to the God of Luck and using their own wits, they never lose hope of someday being reunited. Ruthanne Lum McCunn, of Scottish and Chinese ancestry, is the author of the classic "Thousand Pieces of Gold," "The Moon Pearl," and "Wooden Fish Songs." "God of Luck" was a Book Sense Pick. She lives in San Francisco.

"Wooden fish songs" were the laments sung by Chinese women left behind by husbands, sons, and brothers who, in the nineteenth century, sailed to America in quest of the good life – and found instead years of indentured servitude and racial discrimination. This novel focuses on Lue Gim Gong, a real-life Chinese pioneer, who seized the opportunity to go to America's "Gold Mountain." The story of his attempt to assimilate the new culture, his few successes and his frequent setbacks, is told not by himself but by the women who cared most about him: his mother in China, a New England spinster who loved him, and a friend and coworker who was the daughter of slaves. Ruthanne Lum McCunn brings her characters to life against a backdrop that ranges from China, with its deep roots in tradition, to the stern imperatives of a New England mill town and to 1870s Florida, where Lue developed the new species of frost-hardy oranges for which he is today remembered. First published in 1995, this new edition includes an introduction by King-Kok Cheung, University of California, Los Angeles, and an afterword by the author. For more information about the author go to http://www.mccunn.com/

In the tradition of "Thousand Pieces of Gold" comes "The Moon Pearl, " the story of Rooster, Shadow, and Mei Ju, who become fast friends while members of a girls' house, where young daughters are taught to become daughters-in-law. These girls, however, want neither to marry nor become nuns (the only options open to them at this time). They choose instead to support themselves through their skills in embroidery and silk production. Though ostracized by their families, attacked, and barely able to find sustenance and shelter, these sze saw, or self-combers as they will come to be called, manage to create lives that they alone control. An amazing true-life story, "The Moon Pearl" offers an empowering vision of womanhood in China.