The author of this book, Su Xiaokang, was a principle author of a six-part TV series in China in late 1980s, River Elegy, which "galvanized" the country due to its sweeping "indictment" of Chinese beliefs and values. The TV series won endorsement of then Communist Party Secretary, Zhao Ziyang. The ensuing intellectual debate was covered by prominent Chinese news media at that time.

The author had been living in Princeton after 1991, among a small circle of exiled Chinese "elites" (some of whom had been nominated for the Nobel Prize for Peace or Literature). The author's observations of the lives of these exiles, who could barely speak English, are candid, succinct and insightful.

The book is best in its chronicle of the exiles' lives, especially the tragedy of his own family, which is touching and personal. However, the author's reflections on life in China and America often suffer from sweeping generalizations (like his earlier TV series in China) with dubious connection to realities. Some of his observations on events outside of his immediate environment are factually wrong. For example, in discussing Chinese on the Net, Su mentioned (page 272): "During the bloodthirsty spring of Beijing 1989, several students in the California area who had never personally met managed to launch a Chinese news website." In fact, the Chinese News Digest (CND) was not founded by "several students from California"; websites (as we know today) did not come into existence until the 1990s.

For people who would want to explore modern Chinese intellectual history, this book might be helpful. But it is hard to use due to absence of an index, and the book's disorganized narrative style.

Ok, I must be honest, Zhu Hong (translator) was my Professor for my Chinese Womens Literature class and I might not have read this book otherwise. That being said, as individual and beautiful as the human mind, Memoir of Misfortune truly is a work of art. The book is written as an interior monologue by Su XiaoKang as he attempts to deal with the traumatic aftermath of a car accident in New York state. Blaming himself for the accident and the pain and suffering he has caused his wife, Xiao Kang expands the scope of his questioning to his involvement in the events leading up to Tiananmen Square and his whole life in general. This book is a testament to one mans spirit that struggles to move on from one hardship to another.

This book I found shortly before undergoing an operation and during a year of suffering esophagael hemmoraging and many severe health difficulties. I was so stuck by the way the author relates his wife's tragic accident, his feelings for his wife and I suppose was most involved with the testimonial he makes concerning his involvement in the circumstances leading to her accident. I wish my husband would read this memoir, it is so tender. I think the author is searingly honest in his account of these years. The text is healing, so close to how we learn from tragedy. It causes me to relate to how I am finding my previous life struggles to be reordered within my thoughts against the background of the loss of health. He yearns to live in the ordinary life, to have known it for the gift it was. This book is a quiet call to the living. I hope it will be read and appreciated for the beautiful book it is.