Thousand Pieces of Gold

Ruthanne Lum McCunn

Beacon Press, 1981 - Fiction - 349 pages

A reissue of the classic biographical novel that has sold more than 200,000 copies

Lalu Nathoy’s father calls his thirteen-year-old daughter his treasure, his “thousand pieces of gold,” yet when famine strikes northern China in 1871, he is forced to sell her. She is sold first to a brothel, then to a slave merchant bound for America. In a new country, she is given the name Polly and eventually auctioned to a saloonkeeper. When admirer Charlie Bemis wins her in a poker game, he frees her from her enslavement and eventually proposes marriage. The two live out their days on a bountiful farm, a homestead called Polly’s Place in Salmon Canyon, Idaho.

This masterfully told biographical novel is the true story of an extraordinary woman’s successful fight for independence and respect in the early American West.

“Lalu comes to life and transfixes the reader with her story of struggle and survival . . . Lalu/Polly was a remarkable pioneer woman—a new heroine of the American West—and we can thank McCunn for bringing her to life in such a moving and inspirational way.” —Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, San Francisco Chronicle

“A valuable book that gives Chinese Americans another true heroine.” —Maxine Hong Kingston

“Lalu Nathoy’s courageous journey is an important contribution to the history of pioneer women.” —Ms. Magazine

What people are saying

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - NancyNo5 - LibraryThing

I won this book from Librarything in exchange for an honest review. This is the story of Polly Bemis aka Lalu Nathoy who was sold into slavery by her father in 1871 China. The biography is written in ...

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - jovemako - LibraryThing

I read this early last month (completely forgetting to write the review. oops!) and found it to be a quicker read than I initially thought it would be. It was a good story. The font was large and ...

Contents

• I: 13
• II: 21
• III: 28
• IV: 36
• V: 43
• VI: 51
• VII: 59
• VIII: 69
• IX: 78
• X: 91
• XI: 104
• XII: 113
• XIII: 119
• XIV: 128
• XV: 137
• XVI: 146
• XVII: 151
• XVIII: 158
• XIX: 167
• XX: 180
• XXI: 186
• XXII: 194
• XXIII: 201
• XXIV: 207
• XXV: 214
• XXVI: 223
• XXVII: 229
• XXVIII: 236
• XXIX: 242
• XXX: 248
• XXXI: 255
• XXXII: 264
• XXXIII: 270
• XXXIV: 279
• XXXV: 286
• XXXVI: 292
• XXXVII: 297
• XXXVIII: 303
• XXXIX: 308

About the author

Ruthanne Lum McCunn writes about the Chinese on both sides of the Pacific. Her award-winning books include The Moon Pearl and, most recently, Chinese Yankee. McCunn's work has been translated into thirteen languages, published in twenty-two countries, and adapted for stage and screen. She lives in San Francisco.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Thousand Pieces of Gold; Asian voices; Bluestreak Series
• Author: Ruthanne Lum McCunn
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Beacon Press, 1981
• ISBN: 080708381X, 9780807083819
• Length: 349 pages
• Subjects: Fiction / General