Apologies To My Censor"

Mitch Moxley's first (and I think only book so far) is "Apologies to My Censor - The High and Low Adventures of a Foreigner in China."  It is well written as well as fun and quick to read.

Mitch is a journalist who was tired of his life in Canada and not sure where his journalistic career was headed so he decided to accept a job as a writer and editor for the state owned "China Daily" -- China's only English-language national newspaper.  His timing was good becaue the Chinese economy was booming with the coming Olympics and Beijing was being turned into a world class city overnight.  There was only one slight hitch -- nothing could be published without the okay of the  Chinese government so, for example, when the German Prime Minister had a meeting with the Dalai Lama, her name couldn't be mentioned in "China Daily" for some period of time.

Originally, Mitch went on a year contract to "China Daily" but, when that contract ended, he managed to stay on to help cover the Olympics.  All in all he stayed in Beijing for six years as a freelance writer.  This book is about the expat life in China and his adventures including being hired to pose as a fake businessman.  He also investigated and wrote articles on the sex trade and importation of young women from Mongolia who had no idea what they'd really be doing in China and too ashamed to go home afterwards.  He also looks at China's rascist issues -- Although many Chinese live and thrive in Africa, after the Olympics China began to persecute African businessmen who had been successfully exporting Chinese goods to Africa while living in China.

Mitch has a way of bringing his stories to life and he makes his life in China interesting -- although not always easy.  I thoroughly enjoyed his book and hope it won't be his last.  It was the first I read of several books that I took on holiday with me this past week.  pazt