Timothy Mo’s deft portrayal of London’s Chinatown in the 1960s, where a thriving community lives by its own precise and violent rules.

At the centre of 1960s London, the Chinese community flourishes like a spiky, brilliant crystal garden in the murky waters of Soho. Pitched into an alien city, which is neither hostile nor friendly but very strange and very foreign, the Chen family prospers by skilfully, and sometimes incongruously, blending tradition and opportunity. But no private family lives beyond the reach of the largest and most powerful Chinese ‘family’ - the Triad.

Shortlisted
The Booker Prize 1982
Published by
André Deutsch
Publication date

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Timothy Mo

Timothy Mo

About the Author

Timothy Peter Mo was born in Hong Kong. Three of his novels have been shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
More about Timothy Mo

Other nominated books by Timothy Mo

The Redundancy of Courage
An Insular Possession