{"product_id":"9780306815263","title":"A Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants","description":"\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, \u003ci\u003eA Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants\u003c\/i\u003e chronicles 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":"Da Capo Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50076415197424,"sku":"9780306815263","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780306815263_p0.jpg?v=1784728677","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780306815263","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}