Leaving Mother Lake: A Childhood At The Edge Of The World

'Leaving Mother Lake' is the extraordinary story of Yang Erche Namu - a girl growing up in the borderlands between Tibet and China, who left her remarkable childhood behind for the bright lights of Shanghai and singing stardom.

Namu's home is in an area so primitive that during the Cultural Revolution the Red Guards arrived and left because there was nothing to destroy.

When Namu was a small child, her mother tried to give her away three times because she would not stop crying. Each time she was returned. As she grew up, she clashed repeatedly with her equally fierce mother until the arrival of a Chinese official, looking for talented singers.

Namu was selected for a singing competition in the nearest city - eight hours away - which, to her astonishment, she won. She realised she had a taste for the outside world and, despite her mother's protestations, she decided to run away.

'Leaving Mother Lake' is the lyrical story of the girl who grew out of her rural beginnings, battling against the odds to achieve extraordinary success.