China Through My Window

Woronov spent two years in China teaching American language and culture to scientists and other professionals embarking to the U.S. for further training. The diaries she kept and letters she wrote to her friends are the basis for this delightful book, a personal reflection on the nature of China and its people. Most of Woronov's contacts, both on and off the job, were with intellectuals, survivors of the societal inversions and brutality of the Cultural Revolution, and it is these people the reader gets to know as individuals. Through their stories it becomes clear that despite recent upheavals, advances in technology and the flirtation with capitalism, the government and traditional valuesreverence for ancestors and the importance of ``saving face,'' for exampleremain strong forces in the shaping of Chinese lifestyles. These conclusions, however, are secondary to Woronov's descriptions of events and placeswhether depicting a discussion of American versus Chinese dating practices, a bicycle accident or her cultural faux pas , she shows herself to be a thoughtful observer. (Mar.)