On Gold Mountain: The 100-Year Odyssey of a Chinese-American Family [Hardcover]

Lisa See (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1995

Documenting the history of her own Chinese-American family, a journalist shares the results of five years of research, including interviews with nearly one hundred Chinese and Caucasian relatives, in a story of acceptance and discrimination. 85,000 first printing. $85,000 ad/promo. Tour.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Lisa See, daughter of novelist Carolyn See, brings a novelist's skill to this sprawling ancestral history. Books tracing the roots of overseas Chinese writers are not uncommon these days, but See uncovered in her family tree a capsule history of the Sino-American diaspora: her great-grandfather, Fong See, founded a California business, married a Caucasian woman and fathered many offspring, and returned periodically to China to redistribute some of his wealth and launch another family. See, a Publishers Weekly writer, has conducted extensive interviews and drawn on family lore for an enthralling saga of ambition, prejudice, love, loyalty, and sorrow--social history at its best.

From Publishers Weekly

The See family history is becoming public property. First mother Carolyn with Dreaming (Nonfiction Forecasts, Jan. 2) and now daughter Lisa?but with something far different in mind. Always aware of her part-Chinese roots, she set out five years ago to learn about her far-flung and, as it turns out, famous paternal family. Her great-grandfather Fong See was an extraordinary figure. He established a business in Sacramento, Calif., and later in Los Angeles, when it was an unheard-of thing for a Chinese to do; married a Caucasian and fathered a large brood; returned to China on and off, spreading his wealth around in his tiny native village and creating another extensive family there too. Drawing on family legends and dredging up intimate history through countless interviews with uncles, aunts and cousins both in California and in China, See, PW's West Coast correspondent, has created a matchless portrait not only of a remarkable family but of a century's changing attitudes. The early anti-Chinese racism was horrific, and even 40 years ago it was hard for a Chinese to emigrate here, let alone become a citizen. The ambitions, fears, loves and sorrows of See's huge cast are set forth with the storytelling skills of a novelist?and a great, sprawling novel is what her book often resembles. There are times when it flags and the constant new names become tiresome, and a heartfelt but superfluous chapter on actress Anna May Wong disrupts the flow; but the book is a striking piece of social history made immediate and gripping. Photos. 60,000 first printing; Literary Guild alternate.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 394 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (August 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312119976
• ISBN-13: 978-0312119973
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (66 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #92,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #6 in Books > Education & Reference > Genealogy > United States
  • #26 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Ethnic & National > Chinese
  • #95 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Regional U.S. > West

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

136 of 137 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly honest and well presented, unusually good read, March 9, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family (Paperback)

I must admit that I was a little (all right, very) skeptical when I first saw this book several years ago. I resisted buying or reading it only because I didn't believe that a part-Chinese (1/8 to be precise)American could do a good job in telling the story of "the" Chinese-American experience. In many ways, I was stereotyping the idea of what Chinese-American is. I was thinking of a Chinese-American as one who is ethnically 100% Chinese but is culturally American and that would preclude someone like See. Well, I was wrong. This author, Lisa See, convinced me that her family story is truly a Chinese-American one. No, let me rephrase, her story is an "American" one.

Now that I've read and enjoyed the book, I am especially surprised, pleasantly, at how honest and real her portrayal of the characters are. I know these are real people and the stories are real but to me their stories read like fairy tales an so they become characters. Their stories are so unusual that had See not done such a good job in writing it, they would have been unbelievable.

One of the reasons that it is a really good book is the way the author presented the facts -- with stories and photographs. It is a well documented, well researched, and well written book.

I could also attest to the veracities of the historical events and personal dramas that were described in the book because my own family's history had very many of the same events, trials and tribulations are similar to hers. And since I do read and speak Chinese and I am knowledgable about the customs of the Southern China district where her great-grandfather came from, I can also say that her description of the cultures (including family practices, language, etc...) are extremely accurate. And they are accurate not to the point of patronizing or insulting, but straight forward in the way it happened. This style of writing I admired enormously.

I think Ms. See did a great service not only to her own family, but to the Chinese-American experience as well. This book really does serve as a documentary to all of the Chinese American immigrants who had come to the country in the last 100 years or more. It is a record of history. It can probably be used as text book for a history class.

The book is well written in many ways. One of the way is that is very personal and yet readable, even for people not from her family. It is about people, culture, history, family, love, triumph, politics, business, relations, and much more. I highly recommend it.

160 of 164 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling family history of the See family, September 10, 2002

By 

Janice M. Hansen (California United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family (Paperback)

Born into a predominately Cantonese family, Lisa See is surprised when as a young girl, her chinese uncles point at her and describe "white ghosts, like you". Surprised, she realized she appeared white, but felt chinese. Surrounded by her older relatives, she listened to their stories and became determined to capture their memories. Approached by her elder female aunties, they expressed a desire to document the family history. As the primary family members became aged, Lisa took up the rewarding challenge to pen the history of the incredible See family.

This is truly a beautiful book. Ms. See has an obvious talent for research and her efforts were rather astonishing when one reads the history of her ancestors. Not only does she historically account for chinese immigration to the states, but details the events and cultures of life in China. Tracing back to the time of her grandfather See-Bok's early years, Ms See writes about her family that turns out to be more than a page turner.

The family is entertaining, intelligent, strong and industrious. Her grandmother is the star of the novel. A pioneer white christian woman, she is abused by her own family and escapes a life of servitude forced on her by them. In a central californian town, she talks herself into a job at a chinese underwear factory that caters to prostitutes. The chinese owner eventually proposes to her despite significant social complications. This is the beginning of one of the most important chinese families in America and their contributions to the art world and their personal tales of challenge and love in the early Los Angeles years.

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well written biography, complex story, well researched, June 20, 2000

By 

L. Troy Beals (Las Vegas, NV USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family (Paperback)

This biography of the author's family history back to China is enjoyable and complex. She traces her large family from one of her ancestors who came to America during the 1860's. She handles the numerous story lines well and the pedigree chart at the beginning is very valuable in helping the reader keep track of her family. The author also does a good job of incorporating her family into the times they lived in. We see her family not in isolation from the world, but as part of world and local events. This adds humaness and closeness to the people in her story. She is non-judgemental and attempts to handle "family skeletons" with tact, although you get the feeling that her version of some events isn't what some family members believe, And she seems to have the "I'm grandpa's favorite grandchild" attitude which doesn't neccesarily hurt the book, but you wonder how her relatives felt about the book. Although the book is long, the story keeps you interested. Defintley a must read.