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My Land and My People: The Original Autobiography of His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet | 
 enlarge | Author: The Dalai Lama
Publisher: Warner Books
Category: Book
List Price: $13.95
Buy New: $8.34
You Save: $5.61 (40%)
New (7) Used (11) from $6.57
Avg. Customer Rating:  11 reviews
Sales Rank: 603131
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.7
Dewey Decimal Number: 294.3923092
ASIN: B000LP66Y8
Publication Date: December 1, 1997
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Written by the Dalai Lama as a young man in exile, this dignified testament re-creates the miraculous search that identified him as the reincarnated leader of his country. It paints a rare, intimate portrait of Tibetan Buddhisma way of life that would end with a terrifying foreign invasion surpassing sanity and reason. And it reveals the evolution of a man from gentle monk to a world leader, one struggling to this day to free his country one able to touch our hearts with the goodness that makes him one of the most beloved men of our time.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 6 more reviews...
A Simple and Informative Read September 27, 2006
11 out of 13 found this review helpful
This book is a wonderful, simple, and quick read. Of course the subject matter does get unpleasant, but it's good to know the facts from the perspective of His Holiness at the time that he wrote it in 1962.
The book tells the story which everyone knows: how the Chinese invaded Tibet and the Dalai Lama was forced to feel to India. But this book goes in to detail and as a reader, it was great to finally get the "real" details of that story, again from his perspective. Prior to reading this, I only knew the story based on films and summaries in guide books, etc.
I highly recommend this book, and I would suggest reading this one prior to reading his second autobiography, "Freedom in Exile" from the early 1990's.
Inspiring June 29, 2006
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
Even if you already know the life story of His Holiness, this is a great read. Written in the Dalai Lama's usual clear and forthright style, the story is deeply moving. Recommended for students of both Buddhism and history.
An Amazing Story March 18, 2006
15 out of 18 found this review helpful
Having long been a fan of the Dalai Lama and his other books, I was anxious to read his autobiography. It is an amazing story that he has to tell. We should hope that our world had evolved beyond invasions after World War II, but that proved not to be true when China invaded Tibet and eventually ousted the ruling party in 1959.
Having been previously familiar with the story of the exile of the Dalai Lama to some degree, I was anxious to learn about it in more detail. Truly the people of Tibet are and continue to be victims of China. China crept into Tibet saying only that it would help to modernize the "backwards" people of Tibet. After numerous broken promises the Dalai Lama exited just ahead of the first morter blasts that rocked his palace. China's only real goal was to take possession of the land at any cost.
Few religions place a greater emphasis on peace than the Tibetan form of Buddism. While the author gives readers some of the basic principles of the faith, the language should not be confusing to those not familiar with Buddism. This amazing story, though it ends with the Dalai Lama's arrival in India, is still fresh and eye-opening today.
Tibet never belonged to China November 29, 2004
11 out of 15 found this review helpful
I enjoyed this narrative, my first experience with the writing of H.H. Dalai Lama. He writes so well. It's clear, descriptive, and engaging from the first sentence to the last. Suitable for all ages, the earlier the better. It has really sparked my interest in this country,, or at least how it once was. It has been almost two generations since this tragedy and I doubt things will ever be the same. Well, at least the chinese have thier railroad at the expense of an entire nation. Oh, but the writing isn't bitter at all. Just me.
 A little disappointed, but still a good and important read March 4, 2002
16 out of 46 found this review helpful
I am a college student who has studied China extensively in school. I can speak Chinese and have traveled to China several times and to Tibet once. While I have never agreed with many of the Chinese governments policies in the areas of religion, personal freedom, Tibet, and Taiwan, I think this book could have done more for its cause.I decided to read this book after I spent 2.5 weeks in Tibet last year while studying in China. Tibet was one of the most fascinating places I have been to and I really wanted to know more about what happened there after China invaded. This book tells the Dalai Lama's story very well. Up until the last 15 pages or so, I really loved the book. However, before closing, the Dalai Lama makes several accusations about Chinese human rights abuses in Tibet (beatings, child abductions and the like) but provides no evidence of their existence. While I personally feel Tibet was and still is a sovereign country and what China has done is wrong in many ways, the charges made in the last few pages don't belong in this book. While the Dalai Lama's story of his life and last days in Tibet are very powerful, I really think it would have been even better had the those last parting shots been omitted. Charges of human rights abuses such as these are very important and would be better served in a book of their own. I think most Americans will enjoy this book but not share the same reaction I had to the last few pages. I have studied China for several years now and have heard accusations from both China and the world on countless occasions on a wide range of issues. Maybe this is why I get turned off when I don't see concrete evidence included when someone makes a charge such as the Dalai Lama does at the end of his book. I still think the Dalai Lama is a wonderful man and has an important story to tell, but feel this one could have come across a little better.
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