Jin Xing

This arrived in a bookbox a couple of years ago.

This is a very unusual memoir, this is the memoir of Jin Xing, one of China's top dancers, her professional journey from humble beginnings to reaching the top of her profession, as well as her personal journey from being boy to woman.

Jing Xin joins a military dance troupe, moving through the ranks, not without difficulty, before getting his big break with a student visa for the U.S. As his career is on the up, Jing Xin is still not content in his homelife, there is something not quite right. He takes the brave step to go for gender reassignment, something which even now is unusual in China.

This is an amazing story, both professionally and personally, but I wish that I could have read more about the wider Chinese context. We only get glimpses, which is a real shame. On the other hand, Jin Xing's determination is something to behold, never giving up on her dreams until she attains her work goal and is finally the person she knew she was.… (mehr)