China’s treaty ports were cities along its coast and on major rivers which were forcibly opened to foreign trade by the Western powers, starting from the early 19th century. The treaty port era extended from then until 1943, and during this time foreigners had a significant presence in China. This new book contains more than 700 photographs of many buildings [...]
Confessions of a Hong Kong Naturalist is a natural history memoir, tracing the journey from novice to expert of aspiring naturalist Graham Reels as he follows a trail of discovery into the miraculously fascinating and diverse world of Hong Kong’s wildlife. Read this excerpt from his book. It is taken from Chapter 9, Far-flung Shores. Graham says: “The background is [...]
David Wong started his working life as a dishwasher in a Chinese restaurant before becoming a teacher, colonial bureaucrat, businessman, and a writer of short stories and novels. In the wake of the Hong Kong protests, memories of the colonial past are fading. This new edition of David T. K. Wong’s sweeping historical novel brings the past vividly [...]
"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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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: [...]
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, [...]
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 [...]
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!
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 / [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]