The Fifth Book Of Peace

Divided into four sections - "Fire", "Paper", "Water" and "Earth", this title is neither fiction, nor autobiography nor memoir, but a unique form of Chinese "talk-story" in which real and imagined worlds intrude upon and enrich each other, built upon stories of war.

From the anti-war protests in Hawaii to Kingston's own conversations with Vietnam veterans, the author takes us inside the hearts and minds of a host of characters, not least of whom is her own Mama, the veteran woman warrior Brave Orchid, who watches over her in the seminal years of rebuilding following the fire and her father's death.