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Title details for Big in China by Alan Paul - Available

Big in China

by Alan Paul
Alan Paul
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available

"What a romp....Alan Paul walked the walk, preaching the blues in China. Anyone who doubts that music is bigger than words needs to read this great tale." —Gregg Allman

"An absolute love story. In his embrace of family, friends, music and the new culture he's discovering, Alan Paul leaves us contemplating the love in our own lives, and rethinking the concept of home." —Jeffrey Zaslow, coauthor, with Randy Pausch, of The Last Lecture

Alan Paul, award–winning author of the Wall Street Journal's online column "The Expat Life," gives his engaging, inspiring, and unforgettable memoir of blues and new beginnings in Beijing. Paul's three-and-a-half-year journey reinventing himself as an American expat—while raising a family and starting the revolutionary blues band Woodie Alan, voted Beijing Band of the Year in the 2008—is a must-read adventure for anyone who has lived abroad, and for everyone who dreams of rewriting the story of their own future.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    March 1, 2011

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780062061607
      • File size: 191714 KB
      • Duration: 06:39:24

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      After his wife accepts a three-year work assignment in Beijing as China bureau chief for the WALL STREET JOURNAL, American music journalist Alan Paul and his family begin their expat life. In an unlikely turn of events, Paul forms a blues band called Woodie Alan with a Chinese partner. The band begins touring, ultimately gaining the title of "Best Band in Beijing" and releasing a CD. Paul narrates his memoir in a laid-back tone, with a sense of curiosity and wonder at both the challenges and pleasures of living in a foreign culture and achieving fame in the music world. The audio recording also features samples of music from Woodie Alan. S.E.G. (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      January 3, 2011
      In this entertaining memoir, Paul recounts an unanticipated life-changing experience that began when his wife accepted a three-year work assignment in Beijing. After resettling their three young children from suburban New Jersey to China, Paul, a music and basketball journalist who played guitar only as a hobby, embarked on an exploration of local culture and music. The search prompted his transition from writing about music to being a bona fide rock star in the band Woodie Alan, a cross-cultural blues group named after Alan and his Chinese band member, Woodie Wu, a guitarist with a Stevie Ray Vaughn tattoo. Paul blogged about his Chinese experience and also wrote a column on it for the Wall Street Journal's Web site. His story, however, is much more than a musical and journalistic victory dance. It's equal parts family memoir, travelogue, personal analysis of globalization and expatriate communities, and a view of the world's most populous nation through American eyes.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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