Rating: 
Summary: First noble truth
Review: It took a while to get into this book, and not until after finishing did I begin to "get it". There are many characters, and not being a mystery devotee, I did not "figure it out" (I guess the book worked!) This book is about a part of the world that a lot of us "care about" but few have visited, or penetrated the local culture. Moving west from the locale of The Skull Mantra, Water Touching Stone is set mostly in far western Tibet and Xinjiang. For afficiandos of unreachable central Asia its a real treasure. As an aside, I wonder if the glimpses of cooperation between oppressed Tibetans and oppresed Mulsim minorities are real...or made up by the author?There seem to be two plots: 1) will Shan and colleagues find the killer(s)? and 2) how will the spiritual lives of Shan, the other "good guys", and those wavering on the edge hold up? At times, the mystery theme seems less important than the religious one. After finishing the book, my central impression was a reminder/teaching of the first Noble Truth of Buddhist teaching...all life is suffering. I would encourage people to read this book and try to understand how Shan and the other characters persevere.
Rating:
Summary: First noble truth
Review: It took a while to get into this book, and not until after finishing did I begin to "get it". There are many characters, and not being a mystery devotee, I did not "figure it out" (I guess the book worked!) This book is about a part of the world that a lot of us "care about" but few have visited, or penetrated the local culture. Moving west from the locale of The Skull Mantra, Water Touching Stone is set mostly in far western Tibet and Xinjiang. For afficiandos of unreachable central Asia its a real treasure. As an aside, I wonder if the glimpses of cooperation between oppressed Tibetans and oppresed Mulsim minorities are real...or made up by the author? There seem to be two plots: 1) will Shan and colleagues find the killer(s)? and 2) how will the spiritual lives of Shan, the other "good guys", and those wavering on the edge hold up? At times, the mystery theme seems less important than the religious one. After finishing the book, my central impression was a reminder/teaching of the first Noble Truth of Buddhist teaching...all life is suffering. I would encourage people to read this book and try to understand how Shan and the other characters persevere.
Rating:
Summary: Even better than Skull Mantra
Review: This book is thoroughly satisfying on many different levels; a rare thing in todays, pump them out, formula novels. There is mystery and intrigue. A chinese teacher is killed. Her orphan students, 9 and 10 year olds, are being murdered. A tibetan lama asks our hero, Shan, the protagonist of `Skull Mantra`, to investigate. There is the harsh cruelty of the chinese political programs designed to eradicate etnic ties and cultures of the nomad tribes in Xinjiang as they have done so devastatingly in Tibet. There is political intrigue between various factions in the governing bodies of the area. There are grand vistas with the stark beauty of the desert, the magnificent mountains and, last but definately not least, the sensitivity and gentleness of Tibetan buddhism which so touched Shans spirit and seeped into ours as well.
I did not find the cast of characters hard to follow. They were developed well enough to add to the rich texture of this book.
This is such a wonderful read that I would like to buy this book for each one of you. I very highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Even better than Skull Mantra
Review: This book is thoroughly satisfying on many different levels; a rare thing in todays, pump them out, formula novels. There is mystery and intrigue. A chinese teacher is killed. Her orphan students, 9 and 10 year olds, are being murdered. A tibetan lama asks our hero, Shan, the protagonist of `Skull Mantra`, to investigate. There is the harsh cruelty of the chinese political programs designed to eradicate etnic ties and cultures of the nomad tribes in Xinjiang as they have done so devastatingly in Tibet. There is political intrigue between various factions in the governing bodies of the area. There are grand vistas with the stark beauty of the desert, the magnificent mountains and, last but definately not least, the sensitivity and gentleness of Tibetan buddhism which so touched Shans spirit and seeped into ours as well.
I did not find the cast of characters hard to follow. They were developed well enough to add to the rich texture of this book.
This is such a wonderful read that I would like to buy this book for each one of you. I very highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing story
Review: This book is truly a great book. The interesting setting and the unusual hero would be enough, but Pattison manages to take you on a ride through the current situation i Tibet, the mystique of the mountains and the wonderful people that live there. As the mystery unravels (slowly!), you actually feel the frustration of the hero, Chinese inspector Chan, as he has to battle with his loyalties and emotions. The plot is satisfyingly complex, and requires both an attentive and reflecting reader if you are to keep on top of things. Pattison avoids the trap of delivering finished solutions and encourages the reader to think for himself - something that is quite uncommon for best-sellers these days. The ending is both sad and beautiful and I actually felt my eyes become wet as I finished the book on the bus to work. When was the last time a paperback move you to tears? Keep up the good work, Pattison!
Rating:
Summary: A glimpse of contemporary Tibet
Review: This is a marvelous book, one that exposes the reader to an unfamiliar part of the world. The author informs without lecturing, tying together Tibetan Buddhist traditions and practices with contemporary Chinese attempts to stamp out "minority" cultures while at the same time proclaiming all that they are doing to improve the lives of those minorities. In the story, the Chinese implement a "Poverty Eradication" plan which involves the elimination of the nomadic way of life, and of course the only way such a plan could be implemented is with force. At the same time, the protagonist is trying to discover who or what has been killing young boys while protecting the naive and otherworldly Tibetan monks who have accompanied him on his journey. There are smugglers, archaeologists, talking mountains and discerning camels--not exactly your typical read, but completely engrossing. If you've not read Pattison's first book, "The Skull Mantra," you might want to start with it, but I urge you make sure that you read this series.
Rating:
Summary: A glimpse of contemporary Tibet
Review: This is a marvelous book, one that exposes the reader to an unfamiliar part of the world. The author informs without lecturing, tying together Tibetan Buddhist traditions and practices with contemporary Chinese attempts to stamp out "minority" cultures while at the same time proclaiming all that they are doing to improve the lives of those minorities. In the story, the Chinese implement a "Poverty Eradication" plan which involves the elimination of the nomadic way of life, and of course the only way such a plan could be implemented is with force. At the same time, the protagonist is trying to discover who or what has been killing young boys while protecting the naive and otherworldly Tibetan monks who have accompanied him on his journey. There are smugglers, archaeologists, talking mountains and discerning camels--not exactly your typical read, but completely engrossing. If you've not read Pattison's first book, "The Skull Mantra," you might want to start with it, but I urge you make sure that you read this series.
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