"Walking on solid ground” is about Philadelphia's Chinatown, as seen through the eyes of three people. Mr. Shu Pui Cheung is the community's teacher of lion dance and kung fu, a man who has provided essential knowledge (and necessary performance) for hundreds of significany community events. Ms. Shuyuan Li is a fourth generation Beijing opera artist and a recent immigrant to Chinatown. Aaron Jin Chau is the 13-year-old student of both of these cultural workers. Interview excerpts from all three people form the core of the book, which also includes background and context on the history and struggles of Philadelphia's Chinatown community. The book shows folk arts as containers for a set of values that help build and sustain this urban community.