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Summary: WISE, WITTY, WONDERFUL, WELL WRITTEN...BUY IMMEDIATELY
Review: As a 60 year old who was sent to summer camp when I was 4 years old, went to public school in New York City until high school and then wound up commuting to Columbia College on the #4 bus because my parents considered me too young to live away from home; as the husband of an art collector who has never been encumbered by anyone's opinion of right or wrong; as a parent, as a son......it was pure delight to read this book.Yes, we've known Bennett Bean for 20 years. We have collected his work, commissioned him to make a multi-media painting for our home and we have been working with him for four years on a carpet project......we understand and celebrate his sense of joy and adventure in making art.......and we did know his wife, Cathy, but not the way we know her now. Cathy Bao Bean writes with style, grace, wit, relevance. I have sent her book to our children to read so they can see down the road of child-rearing. I have sent her book to friends my age so the see that they are not alone in their feelings. This book confirms the notion that gems exist outside the normal publishing distribution channels......and how major businesses miss great opportunities every day. WARNING, CAUTION: This book may cause you a problem. You will want to read it very quickly.....please do not do this. Savor it, read it very slowly. DOUG ANDERSON
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Summary: She's an awesome lady!
Review: Cathy came to speak at my college class today and I have to say she is an awesome lady with great insight on life. She's also very funny. She read some exerpt from her book and it really got the class laughing. Her concept of the fork and chopstick is ingenius, I loved it. Her writing style is also very descriptive and witty. If you like to laugh, you'll love this book. I am very excited about reading this book. HAPPY READING!
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Summary: The Chopsticks/Fork Principle
Review: I have already read @ 85 words, and can't put it down for more than a few minutes at a time. It's everything the jacket promises and and more. As a parent I love her insights about parenting. As a daughter, I love her insights into her heritage. And I have already laughed out loud more than once.
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Summary: Mindful amalgamation
Review: I have already read @ 85 words, and can't put it down for more than a few minutes at a time. It's everything the jacket promises and and more. As a parent I love her insights about parenting. As a daughter, I love her insights into her heritage. And I have already laughed out loud more than once.
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Summary: The Chopsticks/Fork Principle
Review: Not a traditional memoir, The Chopsticks/Fork Principle is more of a love-letter to the author?s family, friends and to life in general. But it is never sentimental or maudlin. Ms. Bean has taken her Eastern heritage and blended it (not without some lumps and bumps) with her Western lifestyle, to create something greater than the sum of its parts. Her delight in what her life has brought her will sweep the reader into a special world that is, indeed, a very nice place to visit. Her wry, dry and sly humor, her sharp wit, her genuine wisdom and her slightly off-center philosophy of life and living, make this a rare treat - a truly charming book.
Cathy Bao Bean deliberately chooses to see the best side of people and, whenever possible, events. To do this, she has allowed time to mellow hurts and humor to cushion memories.
As someone who grew up in New York at about the same time as the author, I confess to being unaware of the discrimination against Chinese Americans, especially following World War II when many Chinese were mistaken for Japanese. Ms. Bean tells her stories with humor and subtlety, which gives them a resonance they might not have had in less skillful, or kindly, hands.
One of the author?s childhood stories really surprised me. At about the age of ten, her parents sent her to summer camp. ... Her tales of camp were a trip down memory lane for me, and a reminder of how shared experiences - especially good ones - create bonds between people, no matter what their origins or differences.
As a ?manual,? The Chopsticks/Fork Principle has much to teach about relationships with people, nature and community.
If you are looking for a meaningful gift for Valentine?s Day or Mother?s Day, this is a good one!
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Summary: sweet & sour memories
Review: Rebeccasreads highly recommends THE CHOPSTICKS-FORK PRINCIPLE for anyone interested in hybrid childhoods & bicultural lifestyles.
Cathy Bao Bean, an immigrant from China (circa 1950s), recounts how she figured out how to be herself while attempting to satisfy disparate cultural norms. Through her ebullient & articulate voice, we discover some slightly warped wisdom & a mess of good cheer.
THE CHOPSTICKS-FORK PRINCIPLE is a memoir about how to reconcile the expectations of families & society at large, & how to raise a child in a respectful context while also choosing the "path less traveled". Race, class, & gender issues interweave seamlessly in her wry & sly narrative, all spiced with the sweet & sour, the serious & hilarious.
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Summary: wonderful stories and terrific use of language
Review: This is a wonderful book, with great stories and intriguing perspectives. Anyone who is a parent would benefit from reading it. It provides an excellent window to education/learning, intergenerational harmony, and cross-cultural communication.
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