Status
Call number
Publication
DDC/MDS
394.2 |
Description
Good Luck Life is the first book to explain the meanings of Chinese rituals and to offer advice on when and how to plan for Chinese holidays and special occasions such as Chinese weddings, the Red Egg and Ginger party to welcome a new baby, significant birthdays, and the inevitable funeral. Packed with practical information, Good Luck Life contains an abundance of facts, legends, foods, old-village recipes, and quick planning guides for Chinese New Year, Clear Brightness, Dragon Boat, Mid-Autumn, and many other festivals. Written with warmth and wit, Good Luck Life is beautifully designed as an easily accessible cultural guide that includes an explanation of the Lunar Calendar, tips on Chinese table etiquette for dining with confidence, and dos and don'ts from wise Auntie Lao, who recounts ancient Chinese beliefs and superstitions. This is your map for celebrating a good luck life.… (more)
User reviews
The Chapters are:
Chinese New Year
Qing Ming – Clear Brightness Festival (this is a literal translation that few people use)
Dragon Boat Festival
Double Seventh Day (interesting, but not much of a thing for most folks)
Hungry Ghosts Festival (interesting, but varies widely across China and Asia)
Weddings
Red Egg and Ginger Party to Celebrate New Babies
Big Birthdays (meaning significant birthdays for elders)
Funerals
Table Etiquette and Other Delicacies (meh chapter, limited info and not memorable)
The author also evades the tricky topics of minor culture clashes: Only if a neat solution already exists (such as the bride marrying in a Western white dress before changing into a Chinese red dress), is it mentioned. How does the distinct practice of giving Western first names to children compute with the naming schemes described in the book? Should one celebrate one's Western 30th or the equivalent Chinese 31st birthday? On the day itself or during the Chinese New Year? A glimpse at the author's necessarily arbitrary custom in practice would have been more interesting to me than the general vagueness of the book. With its practical focus on family relations and food, it nicely complements Vivien Sung's Five-fold happiness.