Witnessing History (Jennifer Zeng, Allen & Unwin, $29.95 tpb, ISBN 1741144000, March) *****

There is an air of mystery and ignorance about Falun Gong that has caused many people to turn a blind eye to the plight of its practitioners. This is the story of one practitioner’s struggle and persecution at the hands of the Chinese government. Although Zeng’s writing style is quite raw, it is exactly this that brings life and sincerity to her story. She is a typical, average Jane Chinese citizen, who fell upon Falun Gong in an attempt to overcome a debilitating form of hepatitis. Needless to say within months of her beginning practicing, her illness subsided and she became a dedicated practitioner. Estranged from her seven-year-old daughter and husband, Zeng endured 12 months of physical and emotional torture at the hands of the Chinese Government. She was subjected to electric prods, sleep and hunger deprivation, and gruelling manual labour, not to mention the psychological games and brainwashing that went on amongst inmates and guards. By telling her story Zeng hopes to increase awareness of the plight of Falun Gong practitioners in her home country, a promise she made to herself while imprisoned. This is an amazing, heartfelt journey that has left a peaceful spirit in exile yearning for the loved ones she has left behind.Tony O’Loughlin is a bookseller at Melbourne’s Avenue Bookstore

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2005, Thorpe-Bowker