{"product_id":"a-chant-to-soothe-wild-elephants-paperback","title":"A Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSix years ago at the age of twenty-one, Jaed Muncharoen Coffin, a half-Thai American man, left New England's privileged Middlebury College to be ordained as a Buddhist monk in his mother's native village of Panomsarakram--thus fulfilling a familial obligation. While addressing the notions of displacement, ethnic identity, and cultural belonging, \u003cem\u003eA Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants\u003c\/em\u003echronicles his time at the temple that rain season--receiving alms in the streets in saffron robes; bathing in the canals; learning to meditate in a mountaintop hut; and falling in love with Lek, a beautiful Thai woman who comes to represent the life he can have if he stays. Part armchair travel, part coming-of-age story, this debut work transcends the memoir genre and ushers in a brave new voice in American nonfiction.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51433703637215,"sku":"9780306815263","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/Mn-5ROQwu69780306815263.webp?v=1790016987","url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/products\/a-chant-to-soothe-wild-elephants-paperback","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}