Home is a Roof Over a Pig: An American Family's Journey to China

“[A] down-to-earth memoir chronicling her family’s stint in the Chinese province of Shandong on the eve of the Beijing Olympics” ( Publishers Weekly ). When Aminta Arrington moves with her husband and three young children (including a daughter adopted from China) from suburban Georgia to Tai’an, a city where donkeys share the road with cars, the family is bewildered by seemingly endless cultural differences large and small. But with the help of new friends, they soon find their way. Full of humor and unexpectedly moving moments, Home Is a Roof Over a Pig recounts a transformative quest with a freshness that will delight. “A brutally honest and fascinating peek at life for an American family living in a foreign country. I was engrossed in the story as Arrington used her humor, and ultimately understanding and flexibility to survive, realize, and eventually love the contradictory land of China.” —Kay Bratt, bestselling author of Silent Tears: A Journey of Hope in a Chinese Orphanage “The power of Aminta Arrington’s Home Is a Roof Over a Pig is you can see both sides of the ‘China coin’ from it—something most people won’t get just by traveling through, or only by hearing about China in Western languages. Read it, it will help you dip into the real China.” —Xinran, author of The Good Women of China “A military wife turned ESL instructor’s sharp-eyed account of how the adoption of a Chinese baby girl led to her family’s life-changing decision to live and work in rural China . . . Candid and heartfelt.” — Kirkus Reviews Copyright Dedication Contents CHAPTER 1 Gate CHAPTER 2 Home CHAPTER 3 Teach CHAPTER 4 Population CHAPTER 5 Learn CHAPTER 6 The Exam CHAPTER 7 Winter CHAPTER 8 Mountains, Water CHAPTER 9 Foreign CHAPTER 10 Independence CHAPTER 11 Mount Tai CHAPTER 12 Words CHAPTER 13 God CHAPTER 14 Countryside CHAPTER 15 Return CHAPTER 16 Familiar CHAPTER 17 Same CHAPTER 18 Tired CHAPTER 19 Contradiction CHAPTER 20 Identity CHAPTER 21 Cold CHAPTER 22 Christmas CHAPTER 23 Unique CHAPTER 24 The Kitchen God CHAPTER 25 Silk CHAPTER 26 Hong Kong CHAPTER 27 Egg CHAPTER 28 Language CHAPTER 29 The West CHAPTER 30 Woman CHAPTER 31 Sports CHAPTER 32 Freedom CHAPTER 33 Relationships Epilogue A Note on Sources Acknowledgments A 2012 Indie Next pick, Home is a Roof Over a Pig is the charming account of one all-American family's new life in a small town in China. When Aminta Arrington moves with her husband and three young children (including a daughter adopted from China) from suburban Georgia to Tai'an, a city where donkeys share the road with cars, the family is bewildered by seemingly endless cultural differences large and small. But with the help of new friends, they soon find their way. Full of humor and unexpectedly moving moments, Home is a Roof Over a Pig recounts a transformative quest with a freshness that will delight. A military wife, university instructor, and mother of three children including an adopted Chinese daughter recounts her experiences while stationed in a small town in China, where her efforts to adapt are challenged by propaganda-related belief systems and her family's decidedly American perspectives