Book excerpt: Complementing the author's moving film Li Manshan: Portrait of a Folk Daoist, this engaging and original book describes a hereditary family of household Daoist priests based in a poor village in north China. It traces the vicissitudes of their lives--and ritual practices--over the turbulent last century through the experiences of two main characters: Li Manshan (b.1946), and his grandfather Li Qing (1926-99).