The Autobiography of Li Cunxin
Book Review of Mao’s Last Dancer and The Peasant Prince
The life of Chinese ballet dancer Li Cunxin has been published in three different formats – his original autobiography, a young adult adaptation and a beautiful picture book for young children.
Li Cunxin’s Life Story
Born in rural China in 1961, Li is the sixth of Li Tingfang and Fang Reiqing’s seven sons. The family lived in poverty in a small house in a large family commune. Food was scarce and life was hard. When Li was 11 years old, representatives of Madame Mao’s Dance Academy arrived at his school looking for dancers.
By a combination of chance and his own determination, Li was selected to attend the academy in Beijing, where he spent his teenage years learning ballet. Although his living conditions were greatly improved, at first Li missed the contact with his family, particularly his mother. He soon adjusted to the academy’s Spartan way of life, and began to enjoy success as a dancer.
In 1978, he was chosen to participate in a cultural exchange program with the United States and spent 12 months with the Houston Ballet. Li was greatly affected by his experiences in America, particularly as life in the West was in such stark contrast to his poor childhood. At the end of his stay, Li successfully defected after a dramatic stand-off in the Chinese Consulate and remained with the Houston Ballet, becoming one of the world’s leading dancers.
Mao’s Last Dancer
Li’s best-selling autobiography Mao’s Last Dancer (Penguin, 2003) received the Book of the Year award in Australia where Li currently lives, as well as the Christopher Award in the U.S. Li tells the story of his extraordinary life with humour and honesty.
His love for his family and theirs for him remains central to his recollections, and although he is candid about the hardships his family faced in communist China, there is no bitterness in his words. It is merely a tale of hope and triumph over adversity. Mao’s Last Dancer has also been released as a Young Readers Edition aimed at children aged 12 to 15 years.
The Peasant Prince
Written by Li and illustrated by Anne Spudvilas, The Peasant Prince (Penguin, 2007) is the picture book adaptation of Mao’s Last Dancer. The book focuses on two stories from Li’s childhood that hold a particular appeal to young children – tying wishes to a kite and a fable told to a young Li by his father of a frog in a well.
Both stories illustrate how as a child Li longed for a life away from the hardship of his village. Although The Peasant Prince is reminiscent of a fairy tale, Li doesn’t gloss over the realities of his harsh childhood and still makes his story accessible to young children. Spudvilas’s illustrations are beautiful ink and watercolour paintings, depicting both Li’s life in China and his move to the West. The Peasant Prince will be released in the U.S. in July 2008 under the title Dancing to Freedom.
Film Adaptation of Mao’s Last Dancer
Jane Scott and Jan Sardi, respectively the producer and screenwriter responsible for 1998’s Shine, are currently adapting Li’s story for the screen. Bruce Beresford (Driving Miss Daisy) has signed on to direct and the film is scheduled for release in 2010.
In all its forms, Li Cunxin’s inspirational life story shows how love, family and optimism can help one person achieve the impossible.
Li Cunxin Grew Up in Mao's China
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