Customer Reviews

Double Luck: Memoirs of a Chinese Orphan

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I loved Double Luck: Memoirs of a Chinese Orphan because the boy, Chi Fa, was so brave and he never stopped believing in his lifelong dream. Chi Fa and all the people in the book were so real I felt I knew them well. After his parents died, Chi Fa's life was one hard adventure after another. He endured being cold and nearly starving, having to move every time he found a place to sleep, and risking his life to flee the Communist takeover of China. Through everything, he remained a kind person who remembered the people who had loved him. When Chi Fa wished on the Orphan Star in the sky, I very much wanted his dream to come true. It was exciting for me to read from one chapter to the next and I didn't want to put the book down. I intend to lend the book to my teacher and I hope she will ask our librarian to get a copy for my school.

I just finished reading this book. I could not put it down. As a former teacher, I would have definitely read this to my class with a discussion to follow each reading. Hopefully, the children would get the message of perserverance, hope, hardship and injustice which was overcome to accomplish a dream. My only disappointment was that I want to know more about Chi Fa's life when he arrived in America. What kinds of things he did to succeed, how his past impacted his foundation of success and something more of his family life as it is today. Sadly, the book only covered his pre-America days. I am hoping for another book by this author.

Every day we hear about the countless children of the world who have no parents, no homes and who suffer the pain of constant hunger. Lu Chi Fa and Becky White have brought one of those children vividly to life in Double Luck: Memoirs of a Chinese Orphan.

The orphan boy, Chi Fa, is anything BUT a tragic character. His optimism, his love of life and the joy he derives from simple things, such as tasting a peach for the first time, light up every page. He shows maturity and courage far beyond his years as he faces many life-threatening situations. Along with the story of a remarkably courageous boy, we are given descriptions of a beautiful country and an insight into the customs of the Chinese people.

I read the book aloud to my 8 and 10-year-old granddaughters in just two days because they kept insisting on "just one more chapter". All of us enjoyed a truly exciting book with memorable characters. It would be almost impossible to read Double Luck, Memoirs of a Chinese Orphan without being personally uplifted.

This book is a real eye opener, especially to a generation of children in the United States who do not appreciate being born in a country that is prosperous and has opportunities afforded to all. My husband read this book one night and his remarks were "this is a MUST READ for the kids". I think about the abundance in our society and how our communities consider this a "given". I will always look at a bowl of rice differently, and be grateful to have a full stomach. I say a prayer of gratitude in the evenings as I cover up under a down comforter and am thankful for warmth and safety. I have met Gordon and he is a true gentleman and someone we are all fortunate to be touched by in this book. Thank you for the opportunity to be reminded of how blessed we are.

DOUBLE LUCK is an exciting story for teens and preteens. It is the true tale of a child who had to find his own way in a hostile world and who made his dream come true. Little LuChiFa was born in Eastern China in the Kangsu Province in 1941, the Year of the Snake. After his parents died, he was shuffled among relatives and friends until he became one mouth too many to feed and he was sold for 500 pounds of rice to a Communist Chief as a slave. LuChiFa was five years old.
Among the tortures he bore was being hung upside down by his pigtail. The pain was excruciating. Ironically it was the Communist Chief who gave him his nickname of Double Luck. The
cruel man was not to know that one day his jest would truly become Double Luck and the little Chinese boy's dream of coming to America where he could live an independent life would come true.
The preparation of this book was a three-way undertaking.
A literary agent, Karen Grencik, and Rebecca White, an established author of children's books and editor of the
magazine A NEW DAY, collaborated with LuChiFa and the result is
this true story of double luck.

collaborated with LuChiFa

Lu Chi Fa and Becky White have collaborated on an incredible piece of juvenile literature that will bring hope and inspiration to any child who has ever felt victimized by a cruel adult world. In this biographical saga that takes the reader from the turbulent times of the Communist takeover in the China of the 1940's to the present day, Double Luck, as the author is known throughout his childhood, tells his simple, honest story through the eyes of a starving orphan. This work is replete with lush imagery laced with a love of nature and oriental culture and tradition. Lu Chi Fa's eyes seem to be focused ever upward in a world where he is surrounded by those who want him to be invisible, enslaved, or suppressed; and as he looks skyward, he finds cloud dragons of hope that take him away to a future full of dreams, starlit skies of night that comfort him with his ancestors, and radiant colors of every hue that paint a canvas of a bright and hopeful future he knows one day will come to pass. The language is simple, yet rich in texture and imagery, filled with allegorical lessons on character virtues that come to Chi Fa as he faces each new challenge or crisis. This format lends itself well to oral reading to primary age children as well as being thoroughly enjoyable reading for older juvenile readers. Although some of the imagery is at times repetitive (e.g. "dragon clouds" and "sliver of moon"), the frequent use of such images underscores the importance of nature in oriental thinking and culture, and consequently will not be lost on the young reader. Chi Fa's indomitable spirit, as so tenderly and skillfully portrayed in this moving story, will serve as an inspiration to anyone who has ever felt victimized, regardless of circumstance or situation. I highly recommend this book to juvenile and adult reader alike.

This book really makes you acknowledge how fortunate you are.If you have ever thought you had life bad, then when you read it you feel as you are..... LUCKY! I recomend this book to anyone who has ever felt needy. Read it ASAP!!!!

Double Luck is the best book I've ever read. I loved Chi Fa. He was so brave. I want all my friends to read this book.

"Double Luck" is inspiring, informing, and most definitley enlightening! My 6th graders and I truely enjoyed Lu Chi Fa's voice and the writing style of Becky White. The journey back to Communist China was something my students knew very little about. Reading time was very sacred while we were reading this novel.

Lu Chi Fa's feelings of constant rejection were something that humbled us all. This book is a must read. It truly allows us to realize the hardships and tragedies of this Chinese Orphan. My students are at the very age Lu Chi is when he begins to support his entire family. The courage and perserverance Lu Chi demonstrates throughout the novel is inspiring. Kids and aduts of all ages will truly grow as human beings with this story.

It was most fortuante the way we found this story. Thank you for sharing and may "good luck" continue to be with you! Always!

Wendy Ragusa and the 6th grade class at Charlotte Wood Middle School in Danville, CA.

As I re-read this book I again realized what pain and hurt this poor child endured. He always remembered what his sister said, and never ever thought differently. It showed me how lucky you are as long as you have someone to beleive in you. Stick to your goals and live life to its fullest, because you are very fortunate!!! It was well written and edited...