Some books about foreign travel provide the reader with a basic list of what to do and where to go when visiting an unfamiliar country. In Memoirs of China, however, readers get to see what daily life in China, and Beijing in particular, is really like. From his thoughts about leaving home alone and arriving in Beijing for the first time, to his daily experiences in teaching and interacting with students and faculty at China Youth University for Political Sciences, the author provides personal reminiscences that give readers an almost-palpable sense of life in modern China.

In this book you will read about the author's experiences at some well-known sites, such as the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. But you will mostly discover the real China. You will learn about the "English corner," a spot at People's University where every Friday night hundreds of people gather to speak and listen to English. You will learn what it would be like to attend the Beijing Auto Show, visit a kindergarten class at a Montessori school, get lost in a women's dormitory, and take a four-hour pedicab trip operated by an unlicensed guide. And, most important, you will learn about the friendships that can develop when one person travels alone to a foreign country. As the author points out, even though he went to China to teach, he probably learned as much, if not more, than his students. Readers of this book will likely feel the same way.