Book Review: The Barefoot Lawyer

Chen Guangcheng

The Barefoot Lawyer is a memoir of a Chinese man born blind into a debilitatingly poor family commanded by a crushingly corrupt government. Chen Guangcheng had all of the cards stacked against him.

I expected The Barefoot Lawyer to be a story of his triumph. Of an afflicted David standing up to the monolithic Goliath and winning. But instead I left with a sense of deep injustice with little redemption. Even after defying all the odds, Guancheng has no option but to flee to the US and leave his family and friends at the mercy of a communistic regine that’s well known for making meddlesome people dissapear.

Recommended if you want to:

• learn about life as a disabled person in China
• experience the horrors of Chinese communism
• read about one man’s iron resolution versus an endless barrage of abuse, hatred and malice.

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