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Summary: Tibet--Not just the land of monks, nomads and Austrians!
Review: Finally a book that treats Tibet as a nation and a people in history and not just a land of changeless Buddhism and nomads! The book was dropped quietly from the publisher/distributor Snow Lion after initial fan-fare when it was discovered that this Tibetan author, though fervently pro-Tibet, was equally fervent against the rule of the Dge-lugspa (the Dalai Lama's sect), and he describes in detail what he had to suffer as a member of the Dalai Lama's personal dance troup. Kudos to Tashi Tsering for telling his incredible story!
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Summary: Riveting
Review: I finished reading this book in 3 consecutive nights. Fascinating account of a 10-year-old boy becoming a member of the Dalai Lama's personal dance troupe as a tax obligation; how the boy grew up, worked for the exiled noble Tibetan leadership, and eventually became a Red Guard--this is the first time I've learned that there are many Tibetan red guards during the Cultural Revolution, the reasons why these Tibetans try to better their old serf-noble society, and why they joined the misguided Cultural Revolution. At the end I can't help but feel utmost respect for Mr. Tsering. Even though he's made mistakes, he freely admits to them. The amount of trauma he has gone through in his life is beyond what many people can take, yet he perseveres. Now I fully support his goal: establishing schools in Tibet for the Tibetan children. Bravo, Mr. Tsering. I hope someday this life story will be made into a movie. It will be much more intelligent than 7 Years In Tibet. Instead! of a fluff story about the "dumb natives", here is one intelligent, complex Tibetan.
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Summary: The real story.
Review: Tashi Tsering was born a Tibetan peasant but realized early in life that he wanted an education and was able to attain this in India and America. As a young Tibetan patriot and idealist he went to China in the l960s believing that Communism could actually be a help to his country. Instead he spent many years of suffering and deprivation in Chinese jails and internal exile. Ultimately he was set free to open schools in Tibet. Fascinating to read, this book's broader lesson is about the interplay of power between the communists, the Tibetan peasants, and the Tibetan aristochracy (who want all power for themselves) and the Buddhist church hierarchy.
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Summary: The real story.
Review: There's not "one" story about Tibet, of course. Like any other human drama, especially one which has proven so emotional for those involved, there are a thousand stories from a thousand people.But Tashi Tsering's story is an important one. He brings voice to a perspective that has been silenced for far too long in the West. I would recommend this book strongly to anyone who feels they already "know" all there is to know about Tibet; odds are, you're wrong. Instead of using my own words... let me quote a few paragraphs from the book: "He responded unequivocally that his decision [to return to Tibet from the University of Washington in 1963] had nothing to do with money. Instead he saw himself as a representative of the common people who wanted to help create a new, modern Tibet. The atmosphere became somewhat tense, since the other Tibetans, who were aristocrats, hated the communists and China and were committed to freeing Tibet forom Chinese control." ... [Many years later, after 1985, on one of Melvyn Goldstein's trips to China] "On one of my trips, Tashi surprised me by asking if I could help him publish a book about his life. He thought foreigners needed to know about common Tibetans - that is, Tibetans who were not aristocrats or monastic prelates or incarnate lamas. He felt his story could play a useful role in assisting both Westerners and young Tibetans born in exile to understand the real - non-Shangrila - Tibet."
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