March Reading Group: "Lost On Planet China: One Man's Attempt to Understand the World's Most Mystifying Nation" by J. Maarten Troost

Start: 03/06/2012 6:30 pm

Tuesday, March 6, 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Everyone is welcome!

Sarah B. leads the discussion of Lost on Planet China, an account of J. Maarten Troost’s adventures in China for her first Reading Group.

Lost on Planet China finds Troost dodging deadly drivers in Shanghai; eating Yak in Tibet; deciphering restaurant menus (offering local favorites such as Cattle Penis with Garlic); visiting with Chairman Mao (still dead, very orange); and hiking (with 80,000 other people) up Tai Shan, China's most revered mountain. But in addition to his trademark gonzo adventures, the book also delivers a telling look at a vast and complex country on the brink of transformation that will soon shape the way we all work, live, and think. As Troost shows, while we may be familiar with Yao Ming or dim sum or the cheap, plastic products that line the shelves of every store, the real China remains a world--indeed, a planet--unto itself.

The book is 15% off through March 6.

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