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Lin's memoir, 'Breathing Rice,'is a true love story
By Mary Ann Cook
LOVE STORY: Jean Lin's memoir called Breathing Rice, An East-West Love Story, is just out. Here's how the author describes this cross-cultural hookup: "Peter and I met at the University of Florida when I was trying to find a Chinese boyfriend for a good friend of mine. Sadly, she didn't, but happily, I did."
The book is a humorous and poignant take on cross-cultural marriage--laughing over differences and managing to overcome all the built-in challenges of differing family outlooks and first-generation immigrant expectations.
Here's a sampling: "Once, on a charter boat in Yellowstone, the guide addresses me while nine of the Lins gaze at the mountains. 'OK,' he says, 'now you can translate for your tour group.' 'No,' I say proudly. 'This is my family, can't you tell?' " The book is written in narrative verse form with several lyrical poems included.
The Lins have two grown children--Jeremy, a designer who lives in London and works at Marc Jacobs; and Jenny, who is working on her doctorate in art history at UCLA with a focus on contemporary Chinese art. Jeremy and his partner designed the front cover for Breathing Rice; Peter took the author photo on the back cover.
Jean is a member of Peerless Poets and found her publisher, Fithian Press, through fellow Saratoga Peerless poet, Ariel Smart, who has published two volumes of short stories with that press. Breathing Rice is available through Jean at linkingwords@yahoo.com. The website is www.breathingrice.com-a.googlepages.com/home.
PURPOSE, PASSION: The authors of Awakening Social Responsibility: A Call to Action will speak at Borders Books in Los Gatos on Jan. 10, 6:30-8 p.m. The book is designed to help corporate leaders weave social responsibility into their organizations.
Rossella Derickson and Krista Henley of Los Gatos are the authors. They run Corporate-Wisdom, which deals with executive development, management training and incorporating social responsibility into the workplace. The talk title is "The Awakened Leader: Creating Purpose and Passion at Work."
The two recently returned from Taipei, where they taught leadership skills to the Taiwan office of Phoenix Technologies of Milpitas. They also run www.SBODN.com, a network of professionals dedicated to making positive changes in the corporate culture.
Three other women contributed chapters to the book--Heather Connors, Cindy Campbell and Almaz Negash. Connors and Campbell are veterans of corporate organizational development, too. They recently formed the Human Connexus Foundation, a one-on-one charitable donation program.
AUTHORS' LUNCHEON: Millie Kalish, Ann Parker and Belle Yang are the featured authors at the AAUW Authors' Luncheon Jan. 23 at Rinconada Country Club, Los Gatos. Doors open at 11 a.m.
Kalish is the author of Little Heathens, a story of growing up in Iowa during the Depression years; Parker's book is Silver Lies, a mystery set in 1879 in Leadville, Colo., a rollicking Rocky Mountain town infected with silver fever; and Yang is the author of Hannah Is My Name, a children's book.
Hannah is the story of a Chinese immigrant family's new life in San Francisco, and is illustrated with paintings suitable for framing. The luncheon benefits the AAUW Educational Foundation. Cost is $49; $20 is tax deductible. Checks due by Jan. 14 to Ethel Worn, 95 Wadsworth Ave., Los Gatos, CA 95030. Phone is 408.354.2944.
CLICK, CLICK: Husband and wife photographers Ronnie and Mel Rabedeau will present a program about capturing successful images on Jan. 19, 10 a.m., at the Saratoga Contemporary Artists meeting at the Saratoga Fire Station. Both Rabedeaus turned to serious photography after earlier careers elsewhere.
Mel retired as an optical engineer with IBM, and Ronnie studied with expert photographers after her children were grown. Lately Mel has moved from darkroom techniques to digital printing. The two Saratogans are members of Aegis Gallery, the Photographic Society of America and the Los Gatos-Saratoga Camera Club.
ARCTIC TALES: The Guadalupe Regional Group of the Sierra Club will present the film, Arctic Tales, at the Saratoga Library community room on Jan. 10, 7:30 p.m. The movie follows the lives of a polar bear cub and a walrus pup from birth to maturity, growing up in one of the coldest place on earth. Contact is 408.867.6126.
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