River town two years on the yangtze book

Hessler, who spent two years as a peace corps volunteer in a city called fuling, a yangtze river town in southwestern china, taught. Jan 01, 2001 this book name is river town by peter hessler talk about the two years of peter came to china to teach. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Oracle bones, which was a finalist for the national book award. In the heart of chinas sichuan province, amid the terraced hills of the yangtze river valley, lies the remote town of fuling. Two years on the yangtze is a 2001 book by peter hessler. I cant be certain why it took me so long to pick up hesslers seminal work, but i think it was due to the weight of it. Peter hessler moved to fuling, a small city in the sichuan province, situated along the yangtze river, in 1996. Peter hessler records the authors experiences as a peace corps english teacher in the small chinese city of fuling, during which time he witnessed such events as the death of deng xiaoping, the return of hong. Like many other small cities in this everevolving country, fuling is heading down a new path of change and growth, which came.

Jun 12, 2008 this book progresses through two years spent in fuling, and from peters personal experiences, is able to address many of the political, cultural, and social issues prevalent in current chinese life. Two years on the yangtze, peter hessler points us to the nub of his experience in china. Two years on the yangtze, but it was only recently that i finally took the time to read it. Published in 2001, river town is the first book by peter hessler, currently a reporter for the new yorker. Its position at the crossroads came into sharp focus when. While working on the book, he continued to write travel stories for the new york times and other newspapers. River town, two years on the yangtze peter hessler, 2001 harper collins. Peter hessler was a peace corp volunteer when he spent two years teaching english in fuling, a yangtze river town in sichuan province. This book name is river town by peter hessler talk about the two years of peter came to china to teach. I had never had any idealistic illusions about my peace corps service in china. River town by peter hessler, 9780060855024, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook. Naturally enough this book is one of my favourites but having visited the town both for the adoption and again last year, it certainly in no longer the quiet little back water it was in this book it is a town on fast forward. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Two years on the yangtze by peter hessler harpercollins, 2001.

Fuling becomes his home for the next two years and here we are treated to a feast of chinese life in a town where they are very unused to waiguorn foreigners. In march of 1999, hessler decided to return to china independently and try to establish himself as a freelance writer. He won the 2008 national magazine award for excellence in reporting, and he was named a macarthur fellow in 2011. But what he experienced the natural beauty, cultural tension, and complex process of understanding that takes place when one is thrust into a radically different society surpassed. Like many other small cities in this everevolving country, fuling is heading down a new path of.

Simon winchester, author of the professor and the madman tender, intelligent, and insightful, this is the work of a writer of rare talent. At the beginning of the story, peter came to fuling, china to teach the student that is in college english. This is his wellwritten and interesting account of the time he spent in the city and traveling around china. Like many other small cities in this everevolving country. Two years on the yangtze, but it was only recently that i finally took the time to read it i cant be certain why it took me so long to pick up hesslers seminal work, but i. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading river town. First, i read peter hesslers articles in the new yorker then, i encountered the author last month on one of his periodic visits to his alma mater finally, i got around to reading his first book and discovered what id been missing all this time. It documents his peace corps teaching assignment at fuling teachers college in fuling, sichuan, which started in 1996 and lasted for two years. Buy this book in china, the year 1997 was marked by two momentous events. Much has already been buried by the rising tides of the past century, and much more stands to be lost. In 1996, 26yearold peter hessler arrived in fuling, a town on chinas yangtze river, to begin a twoyear peace corps stint as a teacher at. The town is old and dirty, the road is steep and there is no way to get around except by boat.

Hessler described his experiences as a peace corps volunteer in the city of fuling, in chinas sichuan province. Have you ever read a book about something youve done that was by someone who did the same or close to it but better and that bothers you. Like many other small cities in this everevolving country, fuling is heading down a new path of change and growth, which came into remarkably sharp focus when peter hessler arrived as. In china, the year 1997 was marked by two momentous events. Jul 16, 2007 in 1996, 26yearold peter hessler arrived in fuling, a town on chinas yangtze river, to begin a two year peace corps stint as a teacher at the local college. Following that trip, he returned to missouri and wrote river town. When peter hessler went to china in the late 1990s, he expected to spend a couple of peaceful years teaching english in the town of fuling on the yangtze river. The china that hessler portrays in river town, his finely drawn memoir of two years in fuling, is a place on the knifeedge between stasis and change, where centuriesold certainties can vanish in a single revolutionary instant. The author spent two years in fuling, a city near the junction of the wu river and the yangtze part of which has since been flooded by the three gorges dam as a peace corps volunteer in 19968, teaching english to university students.

Free shipping and pickup in store on eligible orders. Two years on the yangtze, 2001 book by peter hessler. Peter hessler is a staff writer at the new yorker, where he served as the beijing correspondent from 2000 to 2007, and is also a contributing writer for national geographic. This book progresses through two years spent in fuling, and from peters personal experiences, is able to address many of the political, cultural, and social issues prevalent in current chinese life. I wasnt there to save anybody or leave an indelible mark on the town. A new york times notable bookwinner of the kiriyama book prizein the heart of chinas sichuan province, amid the terraced hills of the yangtze river valley, lies the remote town of fuling. In the heart of chinas sichuan province, tucked away amid the terraced hills of the yangtze river valley, lies the remote town of fuling. Two years on the yangtze new ed by hessler, peter isbn. Id taught in china for a year a decade before hessler taught there for two years. Thats a little how i felt about peter hesslers river town. Its position at the crossroads came into sharp focus when peter.

Expecting a calm couple of years, hessler at first does not realize the social, cultural, and personal implications of being thrust into a such radically different society. As a peace corps volunteer, he spent two years teaching english and american literature to the students at the local teachers college. A young american who spent two years teaching english literature in a small town on the yangtze, hessler observed these events through two sets of eyes. Two years on the yangtze by peter hessler at indigo. River town is memoir, travelogue, and astute anthropological writing woven into a book that is difficult to put down. This book would be an excellent addition to the ap world history course curriculum.

Two years on the yangtze, 2001 book by peter hessler river town 1999 book, book written by bonnie geisert and illustrated by arthur geisert see also edit. Jan 23, 2001 he is the author of river town, which won the kiriyama prize. This is the story of peter hessler, an american student, who takes up an english teaching post in a remote town called fuling where the river wu meets the yangtze. Like many other small cities in this everevolving country, fuling is heading down a new path of change and growth, which came into remarkably sharp focus when peter hessler arrived as a peace. River town, book written by bonnie geisert and illustrated by arthur geisert. River town recounts hesslers stay in the mid1990s in this town on the yangtze river, where he and his friend adam meier taught english language and literature to students at the local teachers college. Two years on the yangtze, hessler tells of his experience with the citizens of fuling, the political and historical climate, and the feel of the city itself. Two years on the yangtze, published by harper collins, mr. Surrounded by the terraced hills of the yangtze river valley, fuling has long been a place of continuity, far from the bustling political centers of beijing and shanghai.