I am not Chinese. I am an American who has been living in China for the past 9 and a half years now. So what qualifies me to write a book about China and Chinese people?
When I see someone who is outside a culture or people group trying to write about that culture or people group, I am skeptical about their writing. Why should I believe it? What gives them the right to write about something that is not their own? If you have these questions for me, I can understand that. That’s why I have invited some of my Chinese friends to share their thoughts about my book.
John is one of the first people I met in China. He was my student my very first year teaching, and he can probably remember some of those classes that I butchered my way through because I had no idea what I was doing. But over the years, John has also become one of my very good friends. He now lives in a nearby city, so I can’t see him very often, but we try to meet up at least once a year for our annual Christmas party. We exchange gifts and share about our life experiences over the past year as we catch up.
My understanding of China and Chinese people comes from friends like John—people who are willing to open up about their lives and their struggles to someone like me. I wrote one of my characters specifically about John. I can’t remember if he asked me to or if we were talking about the book, and I just decided to write a story about him, but I’ll let you see what he has to share about that character.
When I asked John about what he thought about the book, these are some of his responses.
1. Were there any characters that you related to in the book?
Paul was me, and I believe Samantha and Anne from the chapter “Wedding, Dresses and Eggs” must be Alison and Megan.
2. Were there any characters who gave you a deeper understanding of your own culture or customs? Could you give some examples?
The girl in “Where Family Comes Alive” reminded me of my family activities. What the author wrote is quite positive, but some details revealed the real situation that people in China insist on spending time together, but they just spend time in the same room without real conversation. They are family or relatives but they don’t really want to be close to each other.
3. Did you learn anything specific from the stories or the characters?
I wouldn’t say I learned something from the book, but I did enjoy reading the stories from this book, cuz it’s not a textbook anyway, haha. Especially in the chapters about me (Paul, “Life Meets Work” and “Where’s the Path?”), I could tell that the author spent a lot of time to feel the people around her and tried to get as many details as she could, which is impressive and dedicated.
4. You were one of the people that I based the character of Paul off of (especially in his first story at the training center). Could you relate to his struggles and joys from your own time at the training center?
POSITIVE
It was definitely my life in the training center where I used to work.
I love the picture the author described, especially the silence and loneliness after those parties. Working in a big city is hard to get the balance between work and life—there is probably no balance.
5. Did you have a favorite story or character in Snapshots of China?
Paul, myself.
6. Are there any misconceptions or stereotypes about China that you don’t think are true and wish people understood more (this can be something you saw in the book or anything else that you know about)?
The author is a detective, and I think everything she wrote was true.