The Blind Palmist: Being an Often Humorous Account of an American Teacher's Year in China

The beauty of this book is that its premise is changeless: Chinese culture is unchanging. Fifteen years later and almost twenty years after Tyler taught in China almost everything he experienced is still largely accurate. It is also, as advertised, an often humorous account. Tyler taught during the 1986-87 school year and speaks of the experiences of teaching and of everyday life in China. Some will criticise him for not being more culturally tolerant but he speaks from his experience and that is enough. If you want to know what a typical American will experience in China read this book.

This book documents the year-long teaching sojourn of Lawrence Tyler and his wife Mary. The Tylers both had extensive university teaching careers before the travel bug bit and they decided to take off for an adventure in China. They were offered teaching positions in the foreign languages department of Guangxi University in Nanning, a large city in southern China. In this book, Tyler describes some of their experiences in China, including their initial arrival in Nanning, the classroom environment, their responsibilities as teachers and `foreign guests', and dealing with the Chinese medical system. For others who might dare to follow in their footsteps, Tyler adds an appendix filled with a list of very useful tips-everything from what to pack to how to deal with Chinese bureaucrats. While one year is hardly long enough to become experts on Chinese civilization, the Tylers still manage to learn quite a bit about the local culture during their stay. They made valiant efforts at learning the language, and managed to achieve some degree of fluency during their stay. Tyler's writing style is light rather than academic, and he is a skilled humorist, able to make some of the more dire circumstances seem hilarious in retrospect. Because of the extensive information about the working conditions and expectations from students and employers, I would recommend this book to anyone considering a teaching post in China.