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A sharply observed, hilarious account of Troost's adventures in China- a complex, fascinating country with enough dangers and delicacies to keep him, and readers, endlessly entertained.
This is a travelogue of the unique kind. It's random, weird, and chaotic. I have no better understanding of China as a country. My understanding of Chinese culture, however, has made large strides. I'm intrigued, fearfully anticipating Chinese domination, and itching to go see the Middle Kingdom for myself. If nothing else, this book is just highly entertaining and funny. ( )
Adult nonfiction. Travel/humor. The author takes a critical look at modern China as it would appear to an uninformed traveler (himself). There is also a bit of Bush-bashing, which is reason enough for some to read it. Another entertaining and quick read by Troost. ( )
There are two kinds of people roaming the far fringes of the world: Morman missionaries and Chinese businessmen.
Quotations
I had assumed that China maintained a relatively repressed attitude toward sex, but in this, too, I was wrong. True the government holds a prudish disposition and keeps an careful eye on the lyrical content of pop songs and the skin content on films, but Chinese society, at least in its urban variation [...]. You can't buy Playboy in China, but should your sexual needs involve battery-operated devices, just head down to your friendly neighborhood sex toy emporium [...] (Chap. 9)
But as I peered a little more closely at these crudely rendered porcelain depictions of intimate acts, I gathered that these images were not meant to arouse but inform, and I can only say that if I were an ancient Chinese lass on her wedding day, spending a few minutes with Mom, who was informing her daughter of what exactly was expected of her on her wedding night, I'd flee. Though I did note that the evening would end with cuddling. (Chap. 9)
A sharply observed, hilarious account of Troost's adventures in China- a complex, fascinating country with enough dangers and delicacies to keep him, and readers, endlessly entertained.