The Mountains Are High

A Year of Escape and Discovery in Rural China

By: Alec Ash

Narrated by: Alec Ash

What is it like to radically change your life? Writer Alec Ash meets the Chinese who are doing just this, ‘reverse migrating' from the cities to the remote countryside of southwest China—and joins them himself, in an extraordinary and inspiring journey of self-discovery.

In 2020, Alec Ash left behind his old life as a journalist in buzzy Beijing, and moved to Dali, a rural valley in China's Yunnan province, centred around a great lake shaped like an ear and overlooked by the Cang mountain range. Here, he hoped to find the space and perspective to mend heartbreak and escape the trappings of fast-paced, high-pressured city life.

Originally home to the Bai people, Dali has become a richly diverse community of people of all ages and backgrounds, with one shared goal: to reject the worst parts of modernity and live more simply, in tune with the natural world and away from the nexus of authoritarian power. It is into this community that Alec embeds himself, charting his first year of life in Dali among these fascinating neighbours, from political dissidents to bohemian hippies.

The Mountains Are High is a beautifully written, candid memoir about how reevaluating what is really important and taking a leap of faith to reach it can genuinely transform your life. As one of the ‘new migrants' tells Alec when he arrives: it is easy to change your environment, far more difficult to change your mind.

©2024 Alec Ash (P)2024 W.F. Howes Ltd

Incredibly well-written account of life in a far-flung corner of western China

Ash lays out a vision of China that would shock and surprise most readers who have never had the chance to visit the country. Through masterful writing, while sharing his own poignant personal growth, Ash tells the stories of an underground culture and alternative way of life in the faraway lands of Dali, Yunnan. The Mountains are High leaves the reader captivated, questioning what the nuance of living freely actually means.

A transformative journey

A cathartic journey of growth and healing, a rare window into the alternative communities of Yunnan, a brilliantly told story of a pandemic year.

A slow, but enjoyable story

Though the author/reader is not very dynamic in the audio, the story is absolutely beautiful. As someone who currently is considering the nomad life, and aware of the political problems facing the world, it was eye opening to hear that changing your location won’t fix your problem, unless you are also willing to change.