Whispers from the Valley of the Yak

Summary

Awarded a 2024 Independent Press Distinguished Favorite in Memoir, Whispers from the Valley of the Yak weaves an intergenerational story about the power of forgiveness and being true to oneself. When Jackie returns to her Chinese birthplace with her aging American parents (former medical missionaries), profound questions arise about love and family. These questions set her on a quest to understand her troubled childhood and what she wants from life. Living in Alaska for five years, Jackie discovers her soul-place and an affinity for mountains and begins three decades of environmental work. Several solo visits to China help her forge a bridge of understanding and forgiveness with her mother. After her parents’ deaths, Jackie takes her adult children to China to retrace her parents’ 1932 trek into eastern Tibet. In so doing, she realizes she has come full circle to the authentic life she has craved.