Far Beyond the Garden Gate: Alexandra David-Neel's Journey to Lhasa

by Don Brown

Overview

In her time, Alexandra David-Neel was the most famous woman in France. She had traveled extensively in China and Tibet and, in 1924, was the first Western woman ever to enter Tibet's forbidden capital, Lhasa. Alexandra was a self-taught Buddhist scholar and spoke Tibetan flawlessly. And she did it all as a mature woman—she was in her mid-fifties when she arrived in Lhasa.

Not only is Alexandra David-Neel's story one of high adventure, of trekking through snow-choked mountain passes and wild encounters on the Tibetan tablelands, but it is also about a prolific writer and passionate advocate of Tibetan culture. Far Beyond the Garden Gate reveals an unforgettable life's journey with vibrant, graceful prose and stunning illustrations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780547349336
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	09/30/2002
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	35 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Don Brown is the award-winning author and illustrator of many picture book biographies. He has been widely praised for his resonant storytelling and his delicate watercolor paintings that evoke the excitement, humor, pain, and joy of lives lived with passion. School Library Journal has called him “a current pacesetter who has put the finishing touches on the standards for storyographies.” He lives in New York with his family.

Editorial Reviews

Like his Alice Ramsey's Grand Adventure and Ruth Law Thrills a Nation, Don Brown's Far Beyond the Garden Gate: Alexandra David-Neel's Journey to Lhasa charts another innovative woman in a concise picture-book biography. Here, the focus is Parisian-born Alexandra David-Neel's determination to enter the Tibetan capital. A spread of David-Neel crossing a gorge by cable illustrates the lengths to which she goes to become the first Western woman to enter Lhasa, in 1924.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 3-5-David-Neel was one of a small group of intrepid women who defied convention to become bold travelers in remote areas of the world. In fact, even as a child, she looked for adventure beyond the confines of her Victorian household. As an opera singer, she traveled to many far-off places, but she eventually married and settled down in Tunis. Her true adventures began in 1911 when, with her husband's blessings, she set out for Asia and was gone for 14 years. Those journeys are the focus of this picture book, which describes her wanderings and her eventual trek to Lhasa, a city never before visited by a European woman. Though the book starts abruptly, it tells a fascinating tale of a person willing to leave her comfortable world behind to pursue her interest in Buddhism, much of the time accompanied by a young servant whom she eventually adopted. David-Neel's vivid quotes are interspersed throughout the story. Although the author's note does not provide sources for them, the bibliography does list two of her books. The beiges, grays, and whites of Brown's palette capture the feeling of the unfamiliar world into which the woman and her companion ventured, but the rag-doll figures are less appealing. Little has been written about this intriguing woman for this audience, so this book will be a welcome addition to most collections.-Barbara Scotto, Michael Driscoll School, Brookline, MA

School Library Journal

"Brown combines succinct language, dramatic storytelling, and beautiful, spare watercolor art to describe his subject’s remarkable life… Brown perfectly balances his atmospheric words and pictures in an exciting account." Booklist, ALA, Boxed Review

"Even now, children mostly seem to hear about wild adventure as the purview of men and boys: to have Don Brown's series is a bracing antidote to that misconception. Brown's signature watercolors are impressionistic, almost calligraphic. Heady, powerful stuff." Kirkus Reviews

"Brown's present-tense narrative uses simple but riveting language, and, as in his previous biographies, he interjects the subject's own words to further dramatize the story... What encouragement to readers to find their own way 'beyond the garden gate.'" Horn Book

“[Brown’s] work appears regularly in the biography section of elementary-school libraries because of his apt choice of subject matter and his eye for telling detail…Open the book to see why Brown is popular in schools.” The New York Times Book Review

“A welcome edition to most collections.” School Library Journal

From the Publisher