The raucously funny story of one young American’s quest to become the baddest dude on the planet (and possibly find inner peace along the way)

Growing up a ninety-eight-pound weakling tormented by bullies in the schoolyards of Kansas, Matthew Polly dreamed of one day journeying to the Shaolin Temple in China to become the toughest fighter in the world, like Caine in his favorite 1970s TV series Kung Fu.

American Shaolin is the story of the two years Matthew spent in China living, studying, and performing with the Shaolin monks. The Chinese term for tough training is chi ku (“eating bitter”), and Matthew quickly learned to appreciate the phrase.

This is both the gripping story of Matthew’s journey and an intimate portrait of the real lives of the Shaolin monks, who struggle to overcome rampant corruption and the restrictions of an authoritarian government. Laced with humor and illuminated by cultural insight, American Shaolin is an unforgettable coming-of- age story of one man’s journey into the ancient art of kungfu—and a poignant portrait of a rapidly changing China.

馬修·波利 (Matthew Polly)，美國旅行作傢。1992年，21歲的馬修前往中國，在河南少林寺學藝兩年，拜釋永信為師，是少林寺第一位正式的美國弟子。2003年，他應邀在著名的在綫雜誌Slate.com上撰寫一係列有關中國的旅行文章。2007年，馬修的迴憶錄 American Shaolin 在美國齣版。2011年，他齣版瞭另一部非虛構作品Tapped Out，記錄瞭他受訓兩年並最終成為一位綜閤格鬥師（MMA）的經曆。目前，他正在撰寫一部關於李小龍的書。