Customer Reviews

Kundun: A Biography of the Family of the Dalai Lama

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The Dalai Lama is leading the greatest David and Goliath struggle in world history and he doesn't even own a sling shot. His weapons of choice against China, the most brutal government on the planet, are words and truth. This book is worth a read as is Tears of Blood by Mary Craig. Forget trying to pit one religion against another or saying your god is better than my god. That is all foolishness. This book and Tears of Blood are stories of trying to save the human soul...And the human spirit and neither have a religion.

I've read 5 books on Tibet recently, and this one was perhaps the best. It is full of factual history of life before, during and after the Chinese occupation of Tibet, but it also includes personal recollections of the Dalai Lama and his family members, and anecdotes from other key individuals. The story itself is fascinating. If you're interested in finding out what happened to the Tibetan people, you will be well-informed by reading "Kundun." By the way, it is not the same as the movie "Kundun," which was based very closely on the Dalai Lama's autobiography. Very enjoyable to read. Thanks, Mary!

Mary Craig has done a wonderful job in depicting the family struggles of the present Dalai Lama. How DOES a peasant family resolve the situation of having an enlightened being born into their simple abode? In any culture this would be a great honor, but in Tibet this was honor beyond belief - a pressure which the family do not appear to have fared well from. While Mary Craig depicts the already known information in an efficient and succinct manner, she does avoid the controversial issues surrounding the Dalai Lama's brothers and their present artificially 'elevated' positions. Craig would have done well to read the wonderful and recently published "The Autobiography of Jesus of Nazareth and the Missing Years" by Richard G. Patton. In this, she would have seen how another great writer deals with a parallel situation, yet instead of avoiding the controversies, Patton meets the bull head on and delivers! If only you had gone that extra mile Mary? It is great to see how Hollywood has finally woken up to the people's need for material beyond mere bubble-gum for the eyes. I hope all those writers keep these exceptional books coming. In the meantime, I'm off to see how they work out on screen!