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Growing up a ninety-pound weakling tormented by bullies, Matthew Polly dreamed of one day journeying to the Shaolin Temple in China to become a fighter like in his favorite 1970s TV series, Kung Fu. Later, Matthew decided to pursue this quixotic dream: he dropped out of Princeton to spend two years training with the legendary sect of monks who invented kung fu and Zen Buddhism. Expecting to find an isolated citadel of supernatural ascetics, he instead discovered a tacky tourist trap run by Communist party hacks--but the dedicated monks still trained in the rigorous age-old fighting forms. As Matthew grew in his knowledge of China and kung fu skill, he would come to represent the Temple in challenge matches and international competitions, and ultimately the monks would accept their new American initiate as close to one of their own as any Westerner had ever become.--From publisher description.… (more)
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What he found in China was not what he expected but he was determined and willing to 'eat bitter' so he gained the respect of the monks. By the end of his journey his 'things that are wrong with Matt' list was significantly smaller and through his memoir you experience both his pitfalls and achievements. When reading this book I realized how much I didn't know about China and the cultural differences that exist, I found this very interesting especially learning how China has evolved since then. You don't have to be into martial arts and Buddhism to enjoy this book, it is well written and sometimes comical, definitely not boring. It has certainly encouraged me to read more of these kind of books and proves that non-fiction can be enjoyable too.
I discovered this book while perusing past Alex Award winners and nominees, the American Library Association's award for books written for adults that also have a crossover appeal to young adult audiences. I was not disappointed. It's full of action-packed fight scenes, a sneak peek into the mysterious world of iron kung fu (especially the spectacle of iron crotch kung fu, in all its horror and fascination), mastering Chinese drinking games, and loads of sometimes gallant, sometimes quirky, sometimes downright insane, but always vibrant characters. I really felt connected to Polly's experience and appreciated his honesty. He's certainly a lot more sensitive to Chinese culture than other laowai (Chinese for "foreigner" or, more specifically, "caucasian"), but he still had a long way to go. He chose this locale due to his deep respect for its tradition, but he still grapples with his own feelings of inadequacy while further complicating things because he sticks out like a sore thumb. He is an imperfect person, but his imperfections were totally human. Only rarely did they get to me--on occasion I resented that this was all possible due to his disapproving but still overindulgent parents (it costed him/them $1400 each month to live in the village, which he later bargained down to around $600) and his questionable conduct with women (he tries to adhere to all other aspects of Chinese culture besides the stigma of Chinese women having relations with laowai). In spite of this, however, the memoir holds up and will stick in my memory for some time to come. It stands as an entertaining look into a country and people that is so often only portrayed for its stoicism and tragedy.