American Shaolin by Matthew Polly

Hesitantly, I picked up American Shaolin by Matthew Polly and put it down at least three times before finally deciding to buy it. To be honest, it was the cover shot that attracted and repelled me at the same time. < p>

The kung fu part of my brain cannot process the thought of a Shaolin monk walking around with a fast food bag. I resisted the thought that Shaolin moved forward in time like the rest of us. To me, the temple, the wushu (Chinese martial arts), the rigors of practice...they are beyond the zeitgeist and immortalized in vintage film clips such as Jet Li in the awesome Shaolin Temple series:

But along comes Polly, an American determined to study Shaolin wushu for a couple of years and find his courage and inner strength while training in its classical forms.

Polly took his funds earmarked for college, dropped out and flew to China. No apologies are given for his flight to fight and no concessions are made for the sometimes bumbling American culture trying to settle in to temple life.

This is where the plot settles in and starts to quickly unfold. Polly divides his story in to five books that help the reader accompany him on his journey: Wanderer, Novice, Initiate, Apprentice and Disciple. These books are timeless divisions in journeys of self-discovery but seem to take on a special meaning when applied to Shaolin and when applied to Polly and his spiritual and physical development.

Polly excels in describing life at Shaolin and his interaction with the Chinese on their scenic home turf. Beyond a fish out of water story, Polly moves the reader to believe in a fish seeking different waters (of enlightenment) in which to swim. Who hasn't wanted at some point or another to question and then shake up their vie quotidienne?

And this is Polly's main pull...he actually lived it out. Readers can't help but let Polly win the struggle. The spiritual struggle within himself, the physical struggle of the rigid training regimen and the social struggle of culture shock.

I think it helps to be a martial arts fan when reading the book as Polly describes forms and movements that are difficult (but not impossible) to follow unless you are somewhat familiar with wushu. Or, the choreography is just intriguing enough to the non-wushu person to give it a try him or herself. Yep, I think I'll put it on my unique list of things to do...let's see:

1. Re-rent Jet Li's Shaolin Temple Trilogy.
2. Reread Polly's American Shaolin.
3. Bookmark favorite wushu clips from youtube.

Well, I admit that it's not as exhaustive as Polly's quest, but it's a start for this older working mom of two - minus the Burger King bag.

American Shaolin was published in 2007 by Gotham Books/Penguin in New York. It's subtitle reads: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New China.