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Reviews tagging 'Self harm'
Eat the Buddha: Life and Death in a Tibetan Town by Barbara Demick
2 reviews
katja24's review
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Self harm
Moderate: War
krista_lm's review
informative
sad
medium-paced
5.0
"I have everything I might possibly want in life, but my freedom." [[a Tibetan businessman]]
Demick authored my favorite nonfiction book about North Korea, so when I realized she authored a book about Tibet, I immediately checked it out from my library.
She focuses her journalism on the town of Ngaba, which in more recent years became known for a series of self-immolations by Tibetans protesting Chinese rule and government. She traces the history of the town from 1958 to present day in an attempt to understand how Tibetans live day-to-day, what they believe, and how they truly feel about being absorbed into China.
The book was engaging and "easy" to read; I have a feeling that Demick's books usually are. The content was thoroughly informative and heartbreaking. I've read some history of Chinese people who lived through various Mao initiatives, including the Cultural Revolution, but this is the first I've read from Tibetan perspectives. This book is an excellent window into "the roof of the world," and I'd recommend it for anyone who wants to understand the Tibetan people more.
Demick authored my favorite nonfiction book about North Korea, so when I realized she authored a book about Tibet, I immediately checked it out from my library.
She focuses her journalism on the town of Ngaba, which in more recent years became known for a series of self-immolations by Tibetans protesting Chinese rule and government. She traces the history of the town from 1958 to present day in an attempt to understand how Tibetans live day-to-day, what they believe, and how they truly feel about being absorbed into China.
The book was engaging and "easy" to read; I have a feeling that Demick's books usually are. The content was thoroughly informative and heartbreaking. I've read some history of Chinese people who lived through various Mao initiatives, including the Cultural Revolution, but this is the first I've read from Tibetan perspectives. This book is an excellent window into "the roof of the world," and I'd recommend it for anyone who wants to understand the Tibetan people more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Self harm
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