The Spirit Catches you and you Fall Down : : a Hmong Child, her American Doctors, and the Collision of two Cultures

Locations
Call Number: Adult Book / Nonfiction / Social Science / General / Fadiman, Anne
On Shelf At: Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Social Science / General / Fadiman, Anne	4-week checkout	On Shelf

A study in the collision between Western medicine and the beliefs of a traditional culture focuses on a hospitalized child of Laotian immigrants whose belief that illness is a spiritual matter comes into conflict with doctors' methods.

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

A very important book! submitted by alarkin on June 22, 2014, 4:48pm This book does an amazing job of describing the challenges in communication and demonstrates how assumptions we make can completely break down communication all together. It is a really important book - if it could be required reading for all people it would make the world a better place.

A book about how cultures intersect submitted by Susan4Pax -prev. sueij- on August 27, 2016, 4:32pm This was an excellent story (at an individual level) plus cultural perspective (at a historical level) about the Hmong people from Laos. The author gained the trust of the family, the community, and the American doctors and was able to tell a complete and compelling story of what happened to darling Lia Lee, a girl who Western medicine would diagnose with epilepsy. Her community understood what happened to her as well: a dab (spirit) caught her, and now she falls down. This makes her special, and she was destined to become a spiritual leader. The clash of the two cultures, the history of the independence of the Hmong people, and the historical interactions between American and Hmong communities all played a role in determining Lia's fate.

Although the cultural community is smaller, this book reminds me of _The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks_ in the way it dives into all the factors that play into medical decisions. The Westernized, White world especially does not do a good job of recognizing the way that history and culture affect everyday decisions. This book is a powerful look into the dynamics that mattered, and teaches us important lessons, even if some of us may never encounter the Hmong community ourselves.

Highly recommended.

One of the best on culture clash in America submitted by EJZ on July 23, 2018, 8:26pm Stacks up with "What is the What" by Eggers as one of the best insights into what it is like to come to America as a foreigner, and try to make a life and a community. Books like this call for more understanding and compromise, and less of America as a great melting pot. It helps that Fadiman is an incredible writer.

Excellent submitted by ellec on July 13, 2022, 5:43pm I read this book for a class and thought it was excellent. It really lays out how difficult cross cultural interactions can be, especially within the context of medicine. It was upsetting but important to see how these difficulties resulted in compromised care for a young girl.

So interesting submitted by majean on July 22, 2022, 3:56pm I had vaguely heard of this community before, but I had no idea why they had come to the US or that we were waging a shadow war in their home country. Really appreciated the updates near the end.

Great read submitted by liaowrightfam on July 28, 2022, 10:50pm This was a great book. It's informative and eye-opening. I think everyone can benefit from reading this book and learn something new.

eye-opening submitted by cdfine on August 1, 2022, 10:19pm Incredibly interesting story that showcases the strengths and shortcomings of Western and indigenous medicines and the relationship between religion/science and every other sector of daily life. Global public health exploration at its best and written without an ethnocentric bias.