Blog - Page 2 of 17 - Blacksmith Books

20 February 2020

Video: “Spatial Cemetery” is a visual journey beneath the surface of hidden Hong Kong

Pete @ Blacksmith2020-02-19T23:10:33+08:00February 20th, 2020|hong kong, media attention, new books|0 Comments

"Urbex" is shorthand for "urban exploration", and HK Urbex are a group of anonymous, adrenaline-fuelled explorers who investigate the hidden, abandoned and forgotten corners of Hong Kong. Their first book is out now. "HK Urbex is an underground collective that documents deserted, off-limits spaces, its photographers protecting their identities with hats, hoods, masks and pseudonyms," says the South China Morning [...]

21 October 2019

Join us at Kai-Yin Lo’s book launch on Saturday, Oct 26

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-10-22T00:06:52+08:00October 21st, 2019|events, hong kong, new books|0 Comments

Designing a Life tells the inspiring story of Kai-Yin Lo, a determined Hong Kong woman born to a wealthy family who had to build her own future following an abrupt change in the family’s fortunes. “Kai-Yin is a polymath and a phenomenon, having seamlessly juggled an analytical career as a scholar, historian, teacher and editor, with the artistic and imaginative [...]

16 October 2019

Meet Gill Shaddick, author of The Hong Kong Letters, on October 19

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-10-16T21:44:42+08:00October 16th, 2019|authors, events, hong kong|0 Comments

Gill Shaddick is the author of The Hong Kong Letters, her memoir of an eventful two years working at an ad agency in Hong Kong in the late 1960s. Among other things, her yacht was seized by Chinese militia, and she was held incommunicado, after she unwittingly strayed into PRC waters at the height of China's Cultural Revolution. Drop by [...]

15 October 2019

Barbara Anslow’s letters from 1946

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-10-14T23:34:54+08:00October 15th, 2019|authors, hong kong|0 Comments

Barbara Anslow, author of the wartime diary Tin Hats and Rice, wrote many letters from Hong Kong in the 1940s, and she has sent some of them to David Bellis at the Gwulo Hong Kong history website. David says: The second half of the 1940s saw Hong Kong make a rapid recovery from the dark days of wartime. It's a [...]

11 October 2019

Have you seen a tiger in Hong Kong? A call for information

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-10-11T15:59:48+08:00October 11th, 2019|hong kong|0 Comments

Author John Saeki writes… Hey, Hong Kong friends, do you have a tiger story in your family? Maybe a grandparent saw a pair of shining eyes staring through the dark forest? Maybe your mum or dad saw one stalking a muntjac? Maybe an uncle lost a pig in the night? Maybe you heard a thunderous roar? If you are a [...]

29 September 2019

Book launch and talk: Kai-Yin Lo at the Fine Art Asia fair, October 5

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-09-29T22:59:25+08:00September 29th, 2019|events, hong kong, new books|0 Comments

You are invited to the launch of Kai-Yin Lo's autobiography at Fine Art Asia 2019 in Hong Kong. To launch Designing a Life: A Cross-Cultural Journey, Kai-Yin Lo will be in dialogue with Ms Suhanya Raffel, Executive Director of M+ Museum, and Dr Edmund Lee, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Design Centre. The talk will be moderated by Ms [...]

24 September 2019

Fourteen: an excerpt from Hong Kong Noir

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-09-24T21:39:51+08:00September 24th, 2019|book excerpt, hong kong|0 Comments

Here we present an excerpt from Hong Kong Noir, an anthology of noir stories set in Hong Kong and written by a dozen authors. Each story takes place in a different district of the city. This one, by Carmen Suen, is set in Wah Fu, a housing estate on the southwest coast of Hong Kong Island. Co-editor Susan Blumberg-Kason says: [...]

16 September 2019

Read these in-depth reviews for the Mercenary Mandarin

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-09-16T21:30:06+08:00September 16th, 2019|publishing|0 Comments

Any reviews of our books on Amazon are most welcome, but especially when they are as detailed as these ones. The Mercenary Mandarin (Amazon link here) tells the story of William Mesny, a Jersey boy who ran off to sea and arrived in Shanghai in 1860 when he was just 18. Amid the chaos of civil war in 19th-century China, [...]

25 June 2019

Suzie and the Tiger Hunters

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-06-24T22:57:12+08:00June 25th, 2019|hong kong|0 Comments

We were pleased to see The Tiger Hunters of Tai O next to The World of Suzie Wong on the shelves at Bookazine in IFC, Hong Kong. Fact fans (or, er, fiction fans) might not know that Suzie's boyfriend, Robert Lomax, makes a cameo appearance in Tiger Hunters! "When the action in Tiger Hunters led to a late-night drinking episode [...]

6 June 2019

Podcast with Paul Letters and Lindsay Varty: Did the Chinese have the best jobs in history?

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-06-06T15:58:21+08:00June 6th, 2019|authors|0 Comments

For the "Dad and me love history" podcast, Paul Letters and son James invited Lindsay Varty to talk about the traditional tradespeople of Hong Kong. "Pirates, poo collectors and toymakers: did the Chinese have the best jobs in history?" is the question. Click here to listen to the answer!

4 April 2019

Book talk at Bookazine, Hong Kong: Paul French, April 10

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-04-04T23:14:16+08:00April 4th, 2019|authors, events|0 Comments

Join us for a book talk & signing with Paul French for his latest book Destination Shanghai: a collection of 18 biographical vignettes of the famous and infamous who travelled to Shanghai during the city's golden age. Wednesday 10th April 2019 6.30pm–7.30pm Bookazine Prince's Building, Shop 326-328, Landmark Prince's, Central, Hong Kong Free event – RSVP or enquiries: enquiries@bookazine.com.hk / [...]

4 April 2019

Book talk on Lantau Island: Paul French, April 7

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-04-04T23:05:49+08:00April 4th, 2019|authors, events|0 Comments

Paul French is a well known British author whose work focuses on China's 20th-century history. One of his most successful books, Midnight in Peking, has won several awards, including both the CWA Gold Dagger and the MWA Edgar Award. His latest book is Destination Shanghai. He'll be at Vibe Bookshop in Mui Wo, Lantau Island, on Sunday 7th April at [...]

5 March 2019

Paul French on his new book: Destination Shanghai

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-03-04T20:54:35+08:00March 5th, 2019|authors, book excerpt, china, media attention|0 Comments

Ahead of his appearance at the Shanghai International Literary Festival this month, Paul French shares a snippet of his new book, Destination Shanghai. He'll be presenting a session on March 23 at 4pm. How well do you know your old Shanghai sojourners? Over the decades so many foreigners – rich, poor; famous, infamous; European, American; dodgy, legit – came to Shanghai. It’s hard to [...]

22 January 2019

Meeting up with Barbara Anslow

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-01-22T07:18:30+08:00January 22nd, 2019|authors|3 Comments

I was in England for the new year, and I took the chance to visit Barbara Anslow, author of Tin Hats and Rice which was published five months ago. Barbara lives in a tiny village on the borders of Essex and Suffolk, with stocks on the green and a doll's-house shop next door to her timbered 17th-century house. Although she [...]

21 January 2019

The makings of a civil service mandarin: a review of “Hong Kong Confidential”

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-01-21T18:48:26+08:00January 21st, 2019|media attention|0 Comments

Malaysia-based journalist Terence Netto has reviewed the third volume of David T. K. Wong's family memoir. Sometimes the arrival of a book dovetails nicely with an issue that's sparking in the public arena. Such is Hong Kong Confidential: Life as a Subversive by David TK Wong, a Hong Kong-born author living out his sunset years in Kuala Lumpur. Wong served 21 [...]

20 January 2019

Meet the Authors #8 at Bookazine, January 23

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-01-22T07:29:55+08:00January 20th, 2019|events, hong kong|0 Comments

Join us on Wednesday, 23rd January from 6:30pm onwards at Bookazine Prince’s Building for the 8th edition of our “Meet the Authors” event to celebrate the past, the present and the future! Don’t miss the chance to meet and talk to great writers: Michele Koh Morollo, author of Without, an evocative book of short stories about lack and longing, Lindsay [...]

17 January 2019

A Hong Kong book giveaway for the new year

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-01-17T20:18:17+08:00January 17th, 2019|book giveaway|0 Comments

We published 12 new books in 2018. Now, to celebrate the new year, we are giving away one copy of each! Go to Facebook to take part in the prize draw. It ends on January 24, and we will mail the books anywhere. Good luck, and happy new year!

14 January 2019

Sunset Survivors: Author talk at the Asia Society, January 22

Pete @ Blacksmith2019-01-14T22:16:58+08:00January 14th, 2019|authors, events|0 Comments

Join author Lindsay Varty as she shares the stories of the people keeping Hong Kong’s traditional industries alive, accompanied with photographs by Gary Jones. Evening presentation, Tuesday January 22nd, 2019 Asia Society, 9 Justice Drive, Central, Hong Kong Drinks reception 6:30pm Presentation 7:00pm Close 8:00pm Sunset Survivors tells the stories of Hong Kong’s traditional tradesmen and women through stunning [...]

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