Small incidents transform human lives.
In a remote Chinese village called Zhangjiashu, French journalist Pierre Haski came across a 13-year-old girl’s diary diligently penciled in three notebooks. It stressed how deeply she respected her parents and yearned to study to reward their sacrifices and to elevate them from poverty. Edited by Haski, The Diary of Ma Yan (2004, Virago Press, London, 208 pages) later appeared in bookstores around the world.
Full of the details, duties and worries that pre-occupy a village girl, the book sparked interest among readers of all ages. For older Westerners, Ma Yan ignited memories of their own long-ago educations, complete with treks to ill-equipped rural schools. For youngsters, the diary inspired them and stirred sympathy.
Ma Yan’s thirst for knowledge dominated as she wrote of skimping, even skipping meals to buy necessities like a pen. Once the diary’s literary success eased her money worries, she diverted the income stream to benefit other village children too.
Although impressive and uplifting, the diary falls slightly short. Earlier, some entries vanished because Ma Yan’s father tore out pages for use in rolling his cigarettes. So the diary teaches yet another lesson: that smoking is a destructive habit.
Approval rating: 70 per cent.
For more information: www.virago.co.uk.
(October 16, 2006)
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