Ruthanne Lum McCunn

A reissue of the classic biographical novel that has sold more than 200,000 copies Lalu Nathoy’s father calls his thirteen-year-old daughter his treasure, his “thousand pieces of gold,” yet when famine strikes northern China in 1871, he is forced to sell her. She is sold first to a brothel, then to a slave merchant bound for America. In a new country, she is given the name Polly and eventually auctioned to a saloonkeeper. When admirer Charlie Bemis wins her in a poker game, he frees her from her enslavement and eventually proposes marriage. The two live out their days on a bountiful farm, a homestead called Polly’s Place in Salmon Canyon, Idaho. This masterfully told biographical novel is the true story of an extraordinary woman’s successful fight for independence and respect in the early American West. “Lalu comes to life and transfixes the reader with her story of struggle and survival . . . Lalu/Polly was a remarkable pioneer woman—a new heroine of the American West—and we can thank McCunn for bringing her to life in such a moving and inspirational way.” —Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, San Francisco Chronicle “A valuable book that gives Chinese Americans another true heroine.” —Maxine Hong Kingston “Lalu Nathoy’s courageous journey is an important contribution to the history of pioneer women.” —Ms. Magazine

Thousand Pieces of Gold

In the tradition of Thousand Pieces of Gold comes The Moon Pearl, the story of Rooster, Shadow, and Mei Ju, who become fast friends while members of a girls’ house, where young daughters are taught to become daughters-in-law. These girls, however, want neither to marry nor become nuns (the only options open to them at this time). They choose instead to support themselves through their skills in embroidery and silk production. Though ostracized by their families, attacked, and barely able to find sustenance and shelter, these sze saw, or self-combers as they will come to be called, manage to create lives that they alone control. An amazing true-life story, The Moon Pearl offers an empowering vision of womanhood in China.

The Moon Pearl

Lalu Nathoy's father called his thirteen-year-old daughter his treasure, his "thousand pieces of gold," yet when famine strikes northern China in 1871, he is forced to sell her. Polly, as Lalu is later called, is sold to a brothel, sold again to a slave merchant bound for America, auctioned to a saloonkeeper, and offered as a prize in a poker game. This biographical novel is the extraordinary story of one woman's fight for independence and dignity in the American West.

In the nineteenth century, a young Chinese comes to the United States to work on the railroad and develops a fondness for pies that becomes legendary.

派王阿海

Chinese Yankee by Ruthanne Lum McCunn tells the true story of Hong Kong born Thomas Sylvanus (Ah Yee Way), an orphan brought to America for schooling in the mid-1850s, but enslaved in Baltimore. Only sixteen at the outbreak of war, Thomas ran north, joined the Freedom Army, and was blinded in the first major campaign. He failed to fully recover his sight and, deemed incapable of performing the duties of a soldier, was discharged. Yet he reenlisted twice, saved his regiment's colors during the bloodbath of Spotsylvania, was lamed at Cold Harbor, and survived 9 months imprisonment in the dreaded Andersonville stockade. His health broken, but his spirit intact, he battled for survival and justice for his family and himself until his death in 1891. He was, as the New York Times noted, "singular." "[Chinese Yankee] is an extraordinary story that still resonates 150 years later. With her empathy for the central character and her engaging and accessible prose, McCunn is ideally qualified to tell the tale." -- Stuart Heaver, Hong Kong South China Morning Post, November 1, 2014. Advance Praise "A true Civil War story that brings to life a uniquely American hero, Chinese Yankee gives the reader history that speaks to the heart with the aches of struggle, the challenges of identity, and the search for love against all odds." -- Gus Lee, China Boy; Courage: The Backbone of Leadership; and With Schwarzkopf. "Riveting. Couldn't put it down! Couldn't turn the pages fast enough. It's one thing to see a faded black and white picture, quite another to read it in living color, flesh and bone, joy and sorrow." -- Carol Shively, editor, Asians and Pacific Islanders and the Civil War "Uncovering remarkable documentary evidence, Ruthanne Lum McCunn skillfully details the life of Union soldier Thomas Sylvanus (Ah Yee Way). A fascinating read that helps us better understand American society during this critical period in our history. Read it." -- Franklin Odo, Project Director for Theme Study on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, NPS

Chinese Yankee

On November 23, 1942, German U-Boats torpedoed the British ship Benlomond and it sank in the Atlantic in two minutes. The sole survivor was a second steward named Poon Lim, who, with no knowledge of the sea, managed to stay alive for 133 days on a small wooden raft. Finally rescued at the mouth of the Amazon River, Poon was hailed as the "World's Champion Survivor." He still holds the Guinness World Record for survival at sea.

Ruthanne Lum McCunn

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