Mindpieces

This is book embodies a collection ofpersonal tales that have bedeviledTongs mind for years. The storiesof two strong women who nevermet each other but who becamethe ancestors of the author andher husband, are presented at thebeginning and the ending of thebook. Between the tale of the ChineseNg Shee, who established her familyin San Francisco and the tale of theGerman Maria Korzelius, who keptonly two of her seven children aliveduring epidemics, we find the storiesof other strong women.

Into the familiar histories of WorldWar One, World War Two, the 1906San Francisco Earthquake, and severalother current events, Tong has wovenmany stories that relate delightfully tothe readers own experiences.