{"product_id":"9781914484377","title":"The Mountains Are High : a year of escape and discovery in rural China","description":"\u003cp\u003e Author(s): Ash, Alec \u003cbr\u003e Binding: Other, \u003cbr\u003e Date of Publication: 08\/02\/2024,\u003cbr\u003e Pagination: 272 pages,\u003cbr\u003e ISBN13\\EAN\\SKU: 9781914484377,\u003cbr\u003e Description: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat is it like to radically change your life? Writer Alec Ash meets the Chinese who are doing just this, ‘reverse migrating’ from the cities to the remote countryside of southwest China — and joins them himself, in an extraordinary and inspiring journey of self-discovery.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 2020, Alec Ash left behind his old life as a journalist in buzzy Beijing, and moved to Dali, a rural valley in China’s Yunnan province, centred around a great lake shaped like an ear and overlooked by the Cang mountain range. Here, he hoped to find the space and perspective to mend heartbreak, and escape the trappings of fast-paced, high-pressured city life.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOriginally home to the Bai people, Dali has become a richly diverse community of people of all ages and backgrounds, with one shared goal: to reject the worst parts of modernity and live more simply, in tune with the natural world and away from the nexus of authoritarian power. It is into this community that Alec embeds himself, charting his first year of life in Dali among these fascinating neighbours, from political dissidents to bohemian hippies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Mountains Are High is a beautifully written, candid memoir about how reevaluating what is really important and taking a leap of faith to reach it can genuinely transform your life. As one of the ‘new migrants’ tells Alec when he arrives: it is easy to change your environment, far more difficult to change your mind.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Griffin Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42576683106348,"sku":"9781914484377","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0379\/1365\/7388\/products\/9781914484377.jpg?v=1707298462","url":"https:\/\/www.griffinbooksonline.co.uk\/products\/9781914484377","provider":"Griffin Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}