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*Starred Review* China's Cultural Revolution when teachers were considered enemies of the state brought about the displacement of thousands of children of merchants, bankers, college professors, and others. In 1966, Ping Fu was seized from wealthy relatives at age eight and suffered savage treatment and deprivation for years. As this fragile young girl comes of age in a communist work camp, a great mind emerges. Later, while attending college, she interviews mothers about the killing of thousands of female babies and creates what is considered subversive literature. For this she is eventually deported from her native land. Fu arrives in America with only a few dollars and a strong will to survive. These experiences cause her to reckon with both the cruelty and kindness of strangers and to foster amazing resilience. Fu's later adult life reads like a fascinating Forrest Gump-style adventure as she encounters giants in the world of computer and Internet technology. As founder and CEO of Geomagic, a 3-D digital reality solution company, Fu speaks to the need for humanity to practice love in business relations in order to avoid inflicting pain on future generations. This well-written tale of courage, compassion, and undaunted curiosity reveals the life of a genuine hero who remains committed to making the world a better place.--DeGrane, Susan Copyright 2010 Booklist

Publishers Weekly
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In this outstanding testament to the resilience of the human spirit, Ping takes readers on a journey both heartbreaking and inspiring. Eight-year-old Ping is living a privileged life in Shanghai with her intellectual father and loving mother when her world explodes during the Cultural Revolution. With her family seen as an enemy of the state, they are forcibly split up, and Ping is placed in a meager camp with her four-year-old sister. After years of torture as a child, including a brutal gang rape at age 10, Ping is briefly detained after her college thesis on infanticide ends up in the hands of politicians. An exiled Ping immigrates to the U.S. in 1984 with just $80 in her pocket. In 1988, she graduated with a degree in computer science from the University of California at San Diego and worked on the team that created NCSA Mosaic, later known as the Netscape Web browser. Next, Ping and her husband founded Geomagic, a 3D software company, which has counted Mattel and Boeing as its clients. Ping's eloquent prose and remarkable attitude shine through in every word-and her compelling story will remind more than one reader to be thankful for what they have. Agent: Laura Yorke, Carol Mann Agency. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

A Chinese-American businesswoman's memoir of exile, torture, immigration and, ultimately, astounding success. With the assistance of Huffington Post blogger Fox (Fortytude: Making the Next Decades the Best Years of Your Life, 2011, etc.), Ping Fu, founder of Geomagic, a 3D digital-reality solution company, reveals the inspiring story of her life. Until age 8, Ping and her intellectual, doting parents lived comfortably in Shanghai. That existence was blown apart by the Cultural Revolution, during which her family was regarded as an enemy of the state. During the 1960s and '70s, Ping and her younger sister were confined to a camp where she endured years of vicious torture that included being gang-raped when she was 10. Despite receiving no formal education between the ages of 8 and 18, she went on to attend college, but her thesis, on infanticide, landed her in hot water with politicians. Exiled, she arrived in the United States with less than $100 and English so limited she could only say, "hello," "help" and "thank you." Ping's early years in America were peppered with encounters that ran the gamut from surreal (she was kidnapped at the airport upon her arrival) to quotidian (she studied relentlessly). In 1988, she earned a degree in computer science and joined the team that created NCSA Mosaic, later known as Netscape. She and her husband subsequently founded Geomagic. Ping advises women aspiring to be in a position similar to hers to "[t]hink about moving forward to make personal or social progress, rather than moving higher to gain a superior position." The book reflects the tone of its author: clear, honest and unassuming.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.