Washington University Books

This is a collection of poetry salvaged from the walls of the barracks on Angel Island, where Chinese immigrants were detained between 1910 and 1940. Poems are in both English and Chinese. In addition to the poems, the editors provide an introduction to early Chinese immigration, and there are several pages of quotes from various immigrants, on various subjects such as the voyage to America and their impressions of Westerners. The poetry speaks for itself -- poems of desperation, despair, homesickness, and anger. This is a wonderful collection.

No immigrant population has ever been treated as shabbily and violently as the Chinese, who began arriving in large numbers during the California Gold Rush and who were recruited in even larger numbers to build transcontinental railroads, build levees in California, and to supplant African-American cotton pickers in Mississippi. The Chinese were brutalized, excluded, mocked, and TAXED! In 1852, a Foreign Miner's Tax, which accounted for more than half of the tax revenue collected in California between 1850 and 1870, was imposed on Chinese miners. Parallel fears fueled the antagonism against the Chinese: first, that they were unassimilable; second, that they would pollute the bloodlines of the Great Race, the Anglo-Saxon stock, which would seem to imply a measure of assimilation, or else outbreed "us". Laws were passed to exclude Chinese women, and then, in 1882, to exclude all immigration from China. Laws continued to severely curtail Chinese immigration until the 1960s, but exclusion was never 100% effective. The principal loohole was the acknowledged human right of Chinese-Americans to bring their wives and children to "Gold Mountain." The officials charged with overseeing this trickle of migration were invariably convinced that most of it was fraudulent; they were fierce and self-righteous in ferreting out the "paper sons," those illegal immigrants of yesteryear.

From 1910 to 1940, all immigrants arriving in California from China - including many who were en route to Mexico or Cuba - were quarantined in wooden barracks on the hidden side of Angel Island in San Francisco Bay, north of Alcatraz. About 175,000 Chinese, men, women and children, spent from three days to three years in detention on Angel Island, and quite a few of them ended up being shipped home. This book tells the story of that immigration in thirty pages of general history and through interviews with thirty-nine elderly survivors of the Island experience. Pictures of the detention station and its operations are also included, and suggest the bleak, crowded, disrespectful conditions that prevailed.

In 1940, the barracks on Angel Island were closed and abandoned. The buildings remained in disrepair until 1970, by which time Angel Island was a state park. Then the buildings were slated for demolition, but during an inspection, a park ranger, Alexander Weiss, noticed that the walls of the wooden buildings were covered with Chinese characters, carved or inscribed. He notified scholars at San Francisco State University, the inscriptions were photographed and translated, it was confirmed that they were chiefly poems composed in inmates during detention, and the Asian American community of San Francisco bagan to lobby for preservation of the historical site, equivalent to Ellis Island in the memory of European American immigrant descendents.

The station is now a major tourist attraction of the Bay Area, and easily one of the most interesting, to which thousands of visitors travel by ferry. The calligraphic inscriptions are visible, and translations are readily available. Unlike the stereoptype of "coolie" immigrants, the Chinese who cut these characters in the walls were literate representatives of a great civilization, however penniless and friendless they may have been when they arrived in the Land of the Free, only to be imprisoned.

The bulk of this touching book is composed of selected poems, in Chinese and in English translation, from the walls of the Island. Some express desolation:

"Living on Island, away from home elicits a hundred feelings.
My chest is filled with a sadness I cannot bear to explain.
Night and day, I sit passively and listlessly.
Fortunately, I have a novel as my companion."

Some are angry:

"Sadly, I listen to insects and angry surf.
The laws pile layer upon layer; how can I dissipate my hatred?
Drifting in as a traveler, I met with thsi calamity.
It's more miserable than owning only a flute
in the marketplace of Wu."

A few are vengeful:

"I have 10,000 hopes that the revolutionary armies
will complete their victory,
And help make the mining enterprises successful
in the ancestral land.
They will build many battleships and come
to the U.S. territory,
Vowing never to stop till the white men
are completely annihilated."

Of course the battleships never came. Instead there were waves of industrious and civil immigrants, and then further waves of industrial wares which we in America have come to depend on. Have the Chinese terrorized America? Stolen American jobs? Degraded American racial purity? Here in San Francisco, it seems obvious that the Chinese have been among the most valuable and assimilable immigrant populations ever. Their crime rate and public assistance rate are extremely low, and their employment rate is unmatched by any European American group. They've excelled in our public schools, raising the standards of performance for "white" students by their example of seriousness. They exceed the averages of European Americans in education, income, and marital stability. Their consumption of illegal drugs is far lower than that of white suburbanites. They are a major component of the thriving multi-culturalism that makes San Francisco the most desirable place to live in all the United States, as proven by housing prices.

America was built by immigrants, and then rebuilt again and again by later waves of immigrants, each time a richer and stronger culture. Those who blame problems on recent immigrants are wrong; they themselves are the problem.

James Lavadour's collection of Landscape pieces in this book are, well just tremendous, the finish of the paper complements the works upon it. I had never seen his work prior to coming across a series landscape at the Heard Museum in Phoenix,Arizona. It stopped me in my tracks, rather knocked the wind out of me so to speak. The light the expanse, the sanctity of The Land just grabs you by the throat in his pieces. The Book pretty much captures that in this collection as best as may be in the smaller scale of things.
Yeah I ought to read this book as well, and I will as well, as for the present i am still looking, and looking. Wow.

A long time ago in Pendleton, I saw James Lavadour drag boxes and boxes of REALLY crappy paintings into my high school class. Yet his face was alight with enthusiam for the work he was doing and I can see now that his vision was providing him with the momentum he needed to reach the point he has. He spoke of sitting in the foothills all day long painting. A couple years later I saw a painting of his, it was dark and mysterious and a tiny trickle of water in it appeared to actually move. I still long for that painting today. His work now is so luminous and beautiful that you find yourself transfixed and caught in the emotional content. I have always looked up to him as an artist, that this is what you can do with your talent if you are willing to work hard and seriously involve yourself with the subject.

In this gripping and controversial biography, Anne-Maree Whitaker uncovers the role of Joseph Foveaux, a neglected and sometimes unfairly criticised key figure in the colony's development.

The vivid prose plunges the reader into the worlds in which Foveaux moved: the elaborate milieu of parliamentary politics and patronage in London, and the rough and tumble of the colonies of Norfolk Island and New South Wales where he was lieutenant governor.

We meet the irascible William Bligh, the visionary Lachlan Macquarie, leading colonists including John Macarthur and D'Arcy Wentworth and an enormous cast of supporting characters in Britain and the colonies.

"I have never yet met with any Officer...that is more eminently qualified for forming and conducting to maturity and perfection any infant colony committed to his charge," wrote Governor Macquarie in 1810, praising Joseph Foveaux, the man who had presided over the colony of New South Wales since the controversial Governor Bligh was relieved of his duties two years before.

If you saw any of the Sydney during the Olympics, you are sure to find this account of its early years a fascinating revelation. Based on the life of Lieutenant Governor Joseph Foveaux, demonised in Robert Hughes' The Fatal Shore, this book reveals the links and patronage networks which held the British empire together. I liked the way the author in each chapter flung the reader into a physical description of the place where the action happens. And I even found myself caring about Foveaux's successes and setbacks. This is a warm, elegantly written and compelling new departure in Australian historical writing.

The fact that Early was able to make this raid is in itself a miracle. This is by far the most entertaining and best researched book on this subject. It offers great fun and deep understanding of this most important Civil War action. Early is a complex figure and Vandiver shows us the person under the facade.

Many works about Jubal Early's 1864 Valley Campaign have been produced, but none come close to this one. Frank Vandiver's JUBAL'S RAID stands out as, by far, the most lively and insightful of all the 1864 Valley histories, keeping the reader riveted throughout. This is a superb book that should be on every Civil War library shelf.

Vous passerez des heures à ficeler les figures proposées. Ce gros livre est le "must" des jeux de ficelle. Ce livre a environ 110 jeux de ficelle et 10 tours de ficelle. Les explications et les illustrations sont très claires. C'est un livre pour intermédiaires et avancés.

You'll spend hours to make the figures offered.
This big book is a must for all string figures's lovers.
This book have about 110 string games and 10 tricks.
The explanations and illustrations are clears.
The book is for intermediates and advanced.
Enjoy!

I really enjoyed reading this wonderful writing. Check it out

Every time I happen upon a magazine article written by Lyons I read it, no matter the subject. He is one of my favorite freelancer/contributers around. Always a keen, insightful and oftentimes happily cynical view on things. A writer I can trust, or buy a used car from. His writing in this book is just as good, and the subject - a single father, his daughter, the land the nurtures them both - is very relevant to me - also a father with young children to whom I hope to pass on a love of the land. Great job, Stephen!

This book teaches the value of teamwork and the results that can come from it. Great for all kids, not just Husky fans.

A fun book to read to and with kids...especially if you want them to grow up to be a Husky fan!

OK, so the title is a cheap rip-off of the "Must-See TV" mantra that we've been inundated by those purveyors of the electronic medium.

But as someone who has lived outside the box for more than a decade, I appreciate the thoroughness, clarity and thoughtfulness with which Brock writes in "Living Outside The Box."

She doesn't condemn TV, nor does she condemn those of us who watch it so much---and let's face it, a whole bunch of us do that, or have done that for long stretches of our lives. Instead, Brock focuses more on the up-side of turning off the TV---the doors it opens in our lives for other activities, deeper involvement with others in our family and community, and a more independent way of looking at the world.

Brock is a gracious, insightful woman whose book truly is a "must" for anyone seeking to look at how the other 1/1000th (or whatever the minuscule fraction is) live. New parents (even old parents :-) should seriously consider the benefits that can come into your life when TV is out of your life (or at least used sparingly). Every "no" inherently means "yes" to one or more other things (including writing reviews on Amazon).

When you say "no" to TV, you say "yes" to so many other beneficial things, and Brock does a terrific job of laying that out in an engaging, thought-provoking manner.

I should note that I was not among those whom Brock surveyed, though I have been in touch with her via email since the book came out (after I wrote a piece about the decision that my wife and I made to pull the plug on our TV).

Written by recreation management professor Barbara Brock, Living Outside the Box: TV-Free Families Share Their Secrets is a thoughtful analysis and outgrowth of the author's landmark study of hundreds of TV-free families. Living Outside the Box does not focus upon what is wrong with too much TV, but rather the positive benefits of entirely eliminating TV from one's daily life. Chapters offer personal testimony from parents who choose to go TV-free, and how they help their children adjust as well as finding other means to spend their time. A one-of-a-kind look at a draconian yet effective antidote to the intrusively advertisement-saturated aspects of our passive media culture, highly recommended.

...for this fund of invaluable information. I highly recommend this book along with Meyer's other stellar gem, "Views From Our Shoes," which addresses the needs siblings of people with special needs have.

This book lends the voice of hope, confidence and clarity to the experiences many people whose siblings with special needs have. It not only sheds light on many questions that often crop up, it also provides a safe forum to explore any and all sibling related issues.

I like the way Meyer respects his readers' intelligence. It is so critical, in fact paramount for people to be informed about the special needs their siblings have. That is a good way to foster honest relationships and inclusion within the family. That also promotes acceptance of the members who have special needs.


Meyer's book serves as a medical, legal and educational advocate. It provides much needed information about services in these areas. I especially liked the part where people are strongly encouraged and rightfully so to make provisions for their children with special needs and to keep the other children without special needs informed of these decisions. People with special needs are vital members of their respective families and each person impacts upon the lives of others. That is still another reason why it is so crucial to have frank, open discussions with all the family members so as to keep the lines of communication open and to prevent secrets and fear. The fear of the unknown and the lack of communication causes problems and helps no one.

I wish this book had existed a generation ago! I can't recommend it highly enough and it is a book for everybody, parents; all children; educators; medical professionals and the world at large. I love this book!

I am a Japanese and I am a "sibling."

I encountered this book and Don Meyer's Sibling Support Project in October of 1997. At that time, I was struggling to persuade the staff of a (sibling) group that support for siblings was as important as support for people with special needs. In my view this book gave me confidence and shed light on my road to start a new sibling support group.

Some uncommon feelings, opportunities and concerns that siblings might have are described in Chapter 1. Medical knowledge of various disabilities are written about in Chapters 2-6. Since siblings are not often informed about their siblings' disabilities by anyone, it could cause more concern; this book's objective is very important. You can also get basic knowledge of laws, programs, and services for persons with disabilities and their families in the U.S., in Chapter 7. In Chapter 8, an uncommon concern is discussed: where will my sister (brother) live when she (he) grows up. The authors continues by stressing the fact that parents should tell their plans for their disabled children to their "normal" children, and offers suggestions for doing this.

Since this book is intended for young siblings, it is easy for me to read it as a foreigner. Reading Chapter 1, tears welled up in my eyes. I could relate to many things: friends, unselfishness, accepting differences, guilt, overinvolvement, understanding, embarrassment, loss, maturity, worry and loneliness. I wish I could have read it in Japanese when I was a child ! I strongly recommend young and adult siblings, parents and service providers to read this book all over the world, because siblings need peer support and information in a straightforward manner.

This is one of the most fascinating stories I have ever read. Politically correct academics have succeeded in erasing Longfellow from the American canon, replacing him and his contemporaries with names you've never heard and will never know how to pronounce. Perhaps this bit of exotica if not to say erotica will give life back to this former pillar of American culture. It is the son, not the sage of Cambridge whom Professor Guth has chosen as her subject. But what a character he is. Longfellow Jr. had very little going for himself besides boredom and a nearly limitless bank account, so he went on an extended grand tour of the Orient, setting himself up in a Japanese harem, stocked like a koi pond which nubile Japanese maidens. Besides an addiction to Asian flesh, young Longfellow seems to have keyed into that great American pastime known as shopping with the result that he brought a warehouse full of souvenires back to fill Boston's museums and the mansions of his father's aristocratic friends. Any way you look at it, this story has legs. It's a miracle Hollywood hasn't grabbed hold of it. Stay tuned.

Charles Longfellow was the son of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Charles visited Japan in the 1870s intending a brief visit, and stayed for two years, returning to Boston with photos and elaborate tattoos he had 'collected' on his body. But Christine M.E. Guth's Longfellow's Tattoos: Tourism, Collecting, And Japan is not so much a survey of collectible items nor even tattoo history, as a cultural expose of Japan in the 19th century travel world. Chapters survey the state and nature of Japanese culture in the world of the times, using art and curios as a focal point.