Burden of Ashes [Paperback]

Justin Chin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2002

A literary dreamscape in which the landscapes of childhood, homelands, bodies, lovers, and desires succumb to whimsy, revision, and denial. With wild grace, Chin bounds through actual events and imagined outcomes-in a place where killing snakes, stern discipline, family pets, and childhood vacations share equal time with unrequited love, the mournful specters of ex-lovers, imagined passions, and the enigmatic power of a good kiss-reconciling what is lost, taken away, denied, outgrown, left behind, survived, remembered, and reclaimed.

Marketing Plans:
Advance Reader Copies
Author Appearances in San Francisco and New York

Justin Chin is the author of Mongrel: Essays, Diatribes and Pranks and Bite Hard. His writings have appeared in American Poetry: The Next Generation, The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry, and Chick for a Day. He has created eight full-length solo performance works and several shorter works that have been presented nationally and abroad. Born in Malaysia and raised in Singapore, he currently lives in San Francisco.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

A career as a writer was not what Chin's parents had in mind for him. Like many parents, they wanted their son to be a doctor or lawyer, but instead their insistence encouraged a rebellion that has affected much of his life. These 21 prose pieces go far beyond memoir, blending fiction and memory into essays on such diverse topics as harsh childhood discipline, a family visit to China, problems with lovers, and a man being pushed off a subway platform. In one essay, foreshadowing the September 11 disaster, he tells of being uncomfortable in tall buildings after recalling two incidents of planes flying into New York skyscrapers, in 1945 and 1977. Chin, a gay performance artist and the author of Bite Hard, a collection of poetry and performance pieces, and Mongrel: Essays, Diatribes, and Pranks, was born in Malaysia and grew up in Singapore before moving to San Francisco. His strong yet sensitive prose explores the effect his family has had on him, coming to terms with his sexuality, and being an Asian American. This book will challenge, offend, and delight readers. Recommended for large public libraries. Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Justin Chin is a writer and perfomance artist. He is the author of Mongrel: Essays, Diatribes and Pranks and Bite Hard. His writings have appeared in American Poetry: The Next Generation, The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry, The World in Us: Lesbian and Gay Poetry of the Next Wave, and Chick for a Day. He has created eight full-length solo performance works and several shorter works that have been presented nationally and abroad. Born in Malaysia and raised in Singapore, he currently lives in San Francisco.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Alyson Books; 1 edition (May 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555836429
• ISBN-13: 978-1555836429
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,971,249 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, Non-Traditional Book left me wanting, June 19, 2002

By 

A Reader (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Burden of Ashes (Paperback)

I'm still trying to figure out exactly what I feel about this book. It does contain some of the most beautiful images I've ever read; yet the over-all sensation I am left with is disappointment. That, however, may have been the point, as the author uses some wonderful imagery when talking about loss, emptiness, love, family. The book is really not so much a novel as an observation of various incidents in the author's life (fictional or real, I'm not quite sure). It is in these "snippets" that the author is at his best: drawing incredible detail into small events and eliciting a sigh, a memory, or an "I know that feeling" reaction from the reader. But when viewed as a whole, the book appears to have no direction. When I closed the cover, I wondered what I was supposed to take away from this mish-mash of writings other than melancholy. Now, the author is a performance artist and at times passages of this book can take on the pretentiousness I despise in most performance arts pieces. (The section "26 Acts" falls into this category for me.) Luckily, those moments are rare. All-in-all, I would love to read a more traditional novel -- not necessarily A to Z plot, but closer to that -- because I think this man has a wonderful way with words.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Read, May 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Burden of Ashes (Paperback)

What can I say? I found this book from a review in the British Gay Times. A glowing review which called the authour 'a real writer'. They were right.