New Books
A priest with Juan Batista de Anza’s expedition in 1776 named a wild creek where the group camped after St. Joseph of Cupertino, Italy. A village known as Westside adopted the name in 1904 as it grew up by that stream, now Stevens Creek, near the road that is now De Anza Boulevard. Like its Italian namesake, Cupertino once had wineries, and vineyards striped its foothills and flatlands. Later vast orchards created an annual blizzard of spring blossoms, earning it the name Valley of Heart’s Delight. The railroad came to carry those crops to market, and the electric trolley extended to connect Cupertino’s first housing tract, Monte Vista. When the postwar building boom came, Cupertino preserved its independence through incorporation, but that bold move would not stop the wave of modernization that would soon roll over the valley.
CHSA’s book Voices from the Railroad: Stories by descendants of Chinese railroad workers reveals the stories of Chinese railroad workers and their descendants. These stories have never been told outside of their families: until now. Learn about Chin Lin Sou, Hung Lai Woh, Jim King, Lim Lip Hong, Lee Ling & Lee Yik-Gim, Lee Wong Sang, Lum Ah Chew, Mock Chuck, & Moy Jin Mun, workers of the Central Pacific Railroad. No longer nameless, faceless workers lost to history, their stories will shatter misconceptions about the Chinese who helped build America.
This 100-page book features first-hand narratives by railroad worker descendants Gene O. Chan, Montgomery Hom, Carolyn Kuhn, Paulette Liang, Russell N. Low, Sandra K. Lee, Andrea Yee, Vicki Tong Young, and Connie Young Yu.
Excerpt from Preface
Chinese began immigrating to the territory of California during the Gold Rush era. What brought the Chinese here was the same thing that brought scores of people from many nations – opportunities not available to them back home. In the midst of many obstacles and injustices, the Chinese who stayed and endured during that first century realized some of their dreams. Many more simply gave up and returned to China, or died in pursuit of their dreams.
The story of the Santa Clara Valley in the larger picture of California history is about the enduring work of many people over a period of some 147 years. This includes the story of Chinese Americans who immigrated here or were born here, making the Valley their home. They worked hard along side others to make the Valley a better place. These pioneers have long since died, but they left behind evidence of their lives: Chinatowns; an established agricultural base; fishing companies; canneries; mines; industries of all kinds – this is California – this is the Valley. But it doesn’t stop here because the story of the Chinese Americans in the Santa Clara Valley is hardly a dead one. It is as alive and vibrant as the Chinese Americans who make this place their home today.
The City of Cupertino was formally established in 1955 and one of its goals was to establish a high school in its own name. Three years later, that “dream was fulfilled.” Trusted to the hands of a young and charismatic principal, the school strove to become “#1” through achievement, community engagement, and innovation.
The history of any school is the history of those people that populate it. This book looks back at the achievements of the students, staff, and community members that have all made the school what it was and is today. The book also looks at the issues that affected those Pioneers at different points in history.
For most students they remember their four years very intimately, but if you were to look at your school’s history from a broader view? What would you learn?
Poetry is the most concise and precise expression of a culture. A Poetic Portal to Chinese Culture is therefore your smartest start to learn everything deep down inside of the world’s most populated country with the longest continuous history on earth.
Each chapter of the book features four or five classical Chinese poems along with elegant English translations to portray a particular theme of Chinese culture. With 12 chapters named after the months of the year, this book takes the reader through an imaginary calendar year to experience one Chinese festival after another. It will familiarize the reader with all the Chinese holidays and seasonal customs through the year while presenting breathtaking photos as illustrations. It’s definitely a delightful and insightful read!
Not long before the Santa Clara Valley of California was known for silicon, the Valley was largely covered with orchards.
There were orchards of pears, apricots, cherries, walnuts and the king of them all—prunes. Most of the orchards were part of small family farms, and there were thousands of them. This is the story of what preceded those farms, how they came into being, and how they thrived. It is also the story of one of the last of those farms, of the farmer, and of some of the young boys and girls who had the privilege of working for him.
We were among the last of the prune pickers.
“POVERTY OF AFFLUENCE” is nonfiction family history in Silicon Valley. The family’s agrarian roots and perspective give the reader a view of Silicon Valley from the inside looking out rather stories about Silicon Valley from outside looking in.
From its origins as risk-takers along the Mediterranean trade routes at the time of Homer through its settling in the Santa Clara Valley, California and establishment of internationally successful fruit growing and real estate enterprises, the Mariani family’s story is emblematic of the American success story. Specifically, it is the story of the origins and fulfillment of the entrepreneurial spirit that defined Silicon Valley and continues to nurture its growth.
It is also a deeply personal story addressing the challenges of losing a patriarch, sibling rivalry, sexual abuse, pain and forgiveness, fortunes gained and lost all woven in a series of life lessons between a roller coaster of adventures behind the Iron Curtain, working in leper colonies, three-legged horses, giant earthworm, beheadings, and revolutions.
In POVERTY OF AFFLUENCE, I follow the immigrant journeys of my distant and immediate ancestors as well as my journey all the while shedding light on the major trends and movements in the growth of the world around us. It’s a story peopled not only by my family but by the major influencers such as David Packard, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Wozniak, Andy Grove, Gene Amdahl with whom we crossed paths. Embedded in these stories are different meanings behind poverty and the meaning behind affluence whether entertaining royalty, heads of state, celebrities or the gardeners and janitors. It is a universal story of the discovery of oneself through life lessons. In this way, the book provides a detailed fabric of Silicon Valley’s culture and a rare, inside, panoramic view of a place that continues to enthrall in popular media and the imagination.
Excerpt of Summary
The author recounts her father’s dramatic flight from his native village in Manchuria during China’s civil war, fighting his way amid a wave of suspicion, paranoia, and greed that arose with the imminent Communist takeover.
D.E. Perushek,
Northwestern Univ. Lib., Evanston, Ill.