An Asian Destiny, Gwendolyn Chabrier

Sabrina, a precocious and headstrong child, born in the fifties to a socialite mother and an alcoholic father, struggles within the confines of her very wealthy but dysfunctional family. Her only confidantes are her stuffed animals and pets, until Didi, her aristocratic British stepfather, enters her life. A year with Didi in Burma is a revelation for Sabrina, who is introduced to Buddhism and thrives in Rangoon's spiritual culture, a stark contrast to her mundane and lonely life in America. The idyll ends far too quickly. Later, Sabrina briefly returns to another region of Asia as a young mother, which will have tragic and bitter consequences. However, remaining faithful to a prediction made during her first stay in Burma, her determination to remember and help the Burmese people - by extension, to help her childhood friend Aung San Suu Kyi, who has become the threatened leader of Burma's democratic movement - remains unshakeable. A fascinating juxtaposition of East and West cultures, written with the authenticity of someone who has seen the best and worst of both.