The Last Thursday Reading Group has talked about ‘Mao’s last dancer‘ by Cunxin Li. Although with some difficulties of understanding the particular period of China, most of members enjoyed their reading immensely.

Mao’s last dancer has bee  published few years ago and getting popular again due to the film that launched not long times ago. It’s a biography of Cunxin Li, a son from a peasent family and a ballet dancer during Mao’s period in China. He struggled to work hard to achieve high. During his visit to US he defacted and couldn’t return to China until after the cultural revolution.

Some members said it is an extraordinary story of courage and sheer resilience. They simply couldn’t put the book down until the last page.

Author: Alain de Botton

Title: A week at the airport: a Heathrow diary

Despite all the developments in aviation and the convenience of being able to travel from one side of the world to the other, the usual traveller is probably not often inspired by airports. The buildings are usually very artificial, and the custom areas severe. Alain de Botton is not a usual traveller. He is a writer and a philosopher.  I’m often amused by those who can come up with big ideas when considering some very ordinary things. De Botton is certainly one of these people.

Starting with the first chapter; ‘Approach’, where De Botton devises the premise for the book after being given the opportunity by an airport owner to stay at the new Heathrow airport hotel for a week. De Botton, sets out his chapters as a traveller would move through an airport – from Departure to Airside to Arrival. He writes what he sees, what he thinks and philosophises on what it all means.  

Exploring ‘everyday’ experiences such as the fear of flying, dealing with security, receiving special treatment in Concorde Room – with ‘Leather chairs, marble bathrooms, a spa, a restaurant, a concierge, a manicurist and a hairdresser’, de Botton also covers the rare scenes that a traveller doesn’t usually see, such as preparing meals for eighty thousand or processing twelve thousand pieces of luggage.  And after the author provides his insight, the idea of airport no longer makes one feel irrelevant, temporary or harsh. After all, these stories – fear of death, sadness of departure, a need for self assuredness, frustration at being monitored and joy of reunion on arrival… all these airport experiences are essentially human experiences. The book has some interesting photographs to go with the stories; however one criticism is the size of the text which did make my eyes soar.

Overall though it is a thin, easy read… perfect for the airport.

Director Miles Roston is a filmmaker who has filmed around the world from Vietnam to Australia to Sierra Leone. His film, 14 Million Dreams, about five orphans of AIDS in Kenya and Malawi debuted on World Aids Day on the Sundance Channel, at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, and around the world. His other films have also won him various awards and an Emmy nomination. In addition to documentaries, he co-created, and wrote and directed over 20 episodes of Aliens Among Us, a 65 part children’s series blending animation, drama and documentary for Five in the UK, and airing internationally including on the ABC. His dramatic feature film, also set against the background of the AIDS epidemic, is in pre-production with producers Graham Bradstreet, Marten Rabarts and Xoliswa Sithole.

In his inspirational and daring book ‘Making a world of difference’, Miles Roston tells the tales of people from around the world who, despite unlikely backgrounds, have used their skills and energy to change the lives of those less fortunate than themselves.

These are the stories of people who dared to live their dreams, many against all the odds. When bad luck, misfortune, or tragedy struck them, they changed their lives, and those around them – thousands of lives.

This book will be published in March 1st. Parramatta City Library is going to purchase this book as soon as it’s available. Miles Roston will be coming to the library in March 3rd for the Lunch Hour Author Talk.