Category: Hong Kong Books
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Kit Fanβs Goodbye Chinatown and the Politics of Taste” by Jonathan Han Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon Goodbye Chinatown. Kit Fan, Goodbye Chinatown, World Editions, 2026. 268…
![[REVIEW] “Kit Fanβs πΊπππππ¦π πΆβππππ‘ππ€π and the Politics of Taste” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/goodbye-chinatown-kit-fan-cha.jpg?w=938)
-
[REVIEW] “A City in Panorama: Hong Kong Through Keith Macgregorβs Lens” by Simon Patton Keith Macgregor. An Eye on Hong Kong, Odyssey Publications, 1999. 196 pgs. It was Martin Booth who once observed that the view of Victoria Harbour regularly…
![[REVIEW] “A City in Panorama: Hong Kong Through Keith Macgregorβs Lens” by Simon Patton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/an-eye-on-hong-kong-keith-macgregor.jpeg?w=582)
-
Editor’s note: In this feature, we present an interview with Jennifer Wong on her new collection Light Year, conducted by Chaβs staff reviewer Michael Tsang. Wongβs work is widely recognised for its attentiveness to memory, language, and the complexities of…
![[CONVERSATION] “Writing Through Loss, Language, and Home: On πΏππβπ‘ ππππ” by Michael Tsang and Jennifer Wong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/light-year-paperback-e28093-19-feb.-2026-english-edition-by-jennifer-wong-author.jpg?w=322)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βBearing Witness in Gigi L. Leungβs Everyday Movementβ by Rebekah Chan ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Everyday Movement. Gigi L. Leung (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Everyday Movement, Riverhead Books. 2026.…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Bearing Witness in Gigi L. Leungβs πΈπ£πππ¦πππ¦ πππ£πππππ‘” by Rebekah Chan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/everyday-movement-by-gigi-l.-leung-translated-by-jennifer-feeley-.jpg?w=993)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Poetry as Archive: Creativity, Political Commitment, and the Everyday in Tammy Lai-Ming Ho’s If I Do Not Reply” by Hannah Steurer Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on If I Do Not Reply.…
![[ESSAY] “Poetry as Archive: Creativity, Political Commitment, and the Everyday in Tammy Lai-Ming Ho’s πΌπ πΌ π·π πππ‘ π
πππ𦔠by Hannah Steurer](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/if-i-do-not-reply_tammy-ho.jpg?w=907)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS Editor’s note: Jason S Polley opens his review essay by recounting his fond and fervent championing of Kit Fanβs first novel, Diamond Hill (2021), whose Cantonese-inflected language enabled rare intergenerational and…
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between Moonlight and Market Prices: Reading Yam Gong” by Jonathan Han Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon Moving a Stone. Yam Gong (author), James Shea and Dorothy Tse (translators), Moving a…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between Moonlight and Market Prices: Reading Yam Gong” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/moving-a-stone.webp?w=900)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “King of the Hong Kong Kids: Martin HΓΌrlimann’s Hong Kong” by Simon Patton Martin HΓΌrlimann. Hong Kong, Thames and Hudson, 1962. 139 pgs. From Martin HΓΌrlimann’s Hong Kong My sense…
![[REVIEW] “King of the Hong Kong Kids: Martin HΓΌrlimann’s π»πππ πΎπππ” by Simon Patton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/martin-hurlimann-reader-image.jpg?w=651)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Inheritance and Reinvention in Kit Fanβs Goodbye Chinatown” by Jennifer Eagleton Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon Goodbye Chinatown. Kit Fan, Goodbye Chinatown, World Editions, 2026. 268 pgs.…
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] βThe Three Teachings in Action: Wayne Wongβs Martial Arts Ecologyβ by Mario Rustan Wayne Wong. Martial Arts Ecology: Aesthetics, Philosophy and Cinematic Mediation, Edinburgh University Press, 2026. 304 pgs. After…
![[ESSAY] βThe Three Teachings in Action: Wayne Wongβs ππππ‘πππ π΄ππ‘π πΈππππππ¦β by Mario Rustan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/wayne-wong.-martial-arts-ecology-aesthetics-philosophy-and-cinematic-mediation-edinburgh-university-press.jpg?w=750)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Gods, Ghosts, and the Lunar Year: Reading Joan Law and Barbara E. Ward’s Chinese Festivals” by Simon Patton Joan Mee Nar Law and Barbara E. Ward. Chinese Festivals: Hong Kong,…
![[REVIEW] “Gods, Ghosts, and the Lunar Year: Reading Joan Mee Nar Law and Barbara E. Ward’s πΆβππππ π πΉππ π‘ππ£πππ ” by Simon Patton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/41leivsiyil.jpg?w=500)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Metamorphosis and Memory in Dorothy Tse’s City Like Water” by Jonathan Han Dorothy Tse (author), Natascha Bruce (translator). City Like Water, Graywolf Press, 2026. 112 pgs. Dorothy Tseβs City…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Metamorphosis and Memory in Dorothy Tse’s πΆππ‘π¦ πΏπππ πππ‘ππ” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/city-like-water-dorothy-tse-cha-an-asian-literary-journal.jpg?w=1000)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βWhen Goodbyes Are Not Permanent: Kit Fan’s Goodbye Chinatownβ by Susan Blumberg-Kason Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon Goodbye Chinatown. Kit Fan, Goodbye Chinatown, World Editions, 2026. 268…
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Bittersweet Fusion: Taste, Pain, and Fate in Kit Fan’s Goodbye Chinatown” by Angus Stewart Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon Goodbye Chinatown. Kit Fan, Goodbye Chinatown, World Editions,…
-
θΆ FIθΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Gigi L. Leungβs Everyday Movement and the Human Texture of Protest” by Jennifer Eagleton Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Everyday Movement. Gigi L. Leung (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Everyday Movement,…
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βEveryday Movement: Gigi L. Leungβs Love Letter to Hong Kongβ by Susan Blumberg-Kason ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Everyday Movement. Gigi L. Leung (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Everyday Movement, Riverhead…
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “On the Verge with Claire Lee: Where Objects Become Literature” by Susan Blumberg-Kason ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaonΒ On the Verge. Claire Lee, On the Verge, Independently published, 2025. 120…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “ππ π‘βπ πππππ with Claire Lee: Where Objects Become Literature” by Susan Blumberg-Kason](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/on-the-verge_claire-lee.png?w=1024)
-
π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ Cha on Vigil.Β Jeffrey Wasserstrom, Vigil: The Struggle for Hong Kong, Brixton Ink, 2025. 176 pgs. Jeffrey Wasserstromβs Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink was…
![[REVIEW] βHong Kong Remembered and Rewritten: Jeffrey Wasserstromβs πππππβ by Wayne Wong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/vigil.jpg?w=977)
-
πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Ming-sho Ho, Challenging Beijingβs Mandate of Heaven: Taiwanβs Sunflower Movement and Hong Kongβs Umbrella Movement, Temple University Press, 2018. 270 pgs. Ming-sho Hoβs Challenging Beijingβs Mandate of Heaven compares…
![[REVIEW] βRadicals, Realists, and RevolutionsβA Tale of Two Movements: Ming-sho Hoβs πΆβπππππππππ π΅ππππππβπ ππππππ‘π ππ π»πππ£ππβ by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/this-is-just-the-begining.jpg?w=720)
-
πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Ming-sho Ho, Be Water: Collective Improvisation in Hong Kongβs Anti-Extradition Protests, Temple University Press, 2025. 258 pgs. The Hong Kong protests of 2019, which erupted in opposition to the…
![[REVIEW] “Improvising Revolution: Hong Kongβs Protests Through the Lens of Ming-sho Ho” by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/the-flowers-of-democracy-are-everywhere.jpg?w=1024)
-
πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Mending Bodies. Hon Lai Chu (author), Jacqueline Leung (translator), Mending Bodies, Two Lines Press, 2025. 240 pgs. For those who haven’t read the original Chinese…
![[REVIEW] “Walking in Unison?: On Hon Lai Chu’s πππππππ π΅πππππ ” by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/hon-lai-chu-author-jacqueline-leung-translator-mending-bodies-two-lines-press-2025.-240-pgs.jpg?w=938)
-
π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Social Room. Andrew Barker, Social Room: Modern Shakespearean Sonnets (Book Three, Sonnets 204β305), Mycroft Publishers, 2025. 186 pgs. Named after the bar where the…
![[REVIEW] βWord-Kissed Truths: The Earned Simplicity of Andrew Barkerβs Sonnets” by Jason Eng Hun Lee](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/andrew-barker-cha-an-asian-literary-journal.png?w=1024)
-
π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Derek Currie, When βJesusβ Came to Hong Kong: The Remarkable Story of the First European Football Star in Asia, Blacksmith Books, 2023. 404 pgs. This is my second…
![[REVIEW] βJesusβ Pub Tales: Derek Currieβs πβππ βπ½ππ π’π β πΆπππ π‘π π»πππ πΎπππβ by Mario Rustan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/when-jesus-came-to-hong-kong.jpg?w=962)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βThe Legacy and Brilliance of Hong Kong Crime Novels: Charles Philipp Martinβs Rented Graveβ by Susan Blumberg-Kason Charles Philipp Martin, Rented Grave: An Inspector Lok Novel, Level Best Books,…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βThe Legacy and Brilliance of Hong Kong Crime Novels: Charles Philipp Martinβs π
πππ‘ππ πΊπππ£πβ by Susan Blumberg-Kason](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/rentedgrave-1.jpg?w=992)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Order in the City: Tammy Lai-Ming Ho’sIf I Do Not Reply” by Luca Griseri Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on If I Do Not Reply. Tammy Lai-Ming Ho, If I Do Not…
![[ESSAY] “Order in the City: Tammy Lai-Ming Ho’s πΌπ πΌ π·π πππ‘ π
πππ𦔠by Luca Griseri](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/if-i-do-not-reply_tammy-ho-1.jpg?w=907)
-
π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on The Milk Tea Alliance. Jeffrey Wasserstrom, The Milk Tea Alliance: Inside Asiaβs Struggle against Autocracy and Beijing, Columbia Global Reports, 2025. 104 pgs. The…
![[REVIEW] “Boba, Grass Jelly, Light Ice, Democracy: On Jeffrey Wasserstrom’s πβπ ππππ πππ π΄πππππππ” by Nick Zeller](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/the-milk-tea-alliance-inside-asias-struggle-against-autocracy-and-beijing.jpg?w=1000)
-
πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Mending Bodies. Hon Lai Chu (author), Jacqueline Leung (translator), Mending Bodies, Two Lines Press, 2025. 240 pgs. For those who haven’t read the original Chinese…
-
β On Becoming a Hong Kongese Writerβ Sunset at Lion Rock: An Excerpt Matthew Wong Foreman, Sunset at Lion Rock, Proverse Press, 2024. 288 pgs. {Read Jason S Polley’s review.} In my Hong Kong, the Hong Kong of our hearts, we greet each…
![[FEATURE] “ππ’ππ ππ‘ ππ‘ πΏπππ π
πππ: An Excerpt” by Matthew Wong Foreman](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/matthew-wong-foreman-sunset-at-lion-rock-1.webp?w=663)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Tale of A Material City: Lau Yee-wa’s Tongueless” by Luca Griseri ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Tongueless. Lau Yee-Wa (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Tongueless, The Feminist Press, 2024. 280 pgs. The…
![[REVIEW] “The Tale of A Material City: Lau Yee-wa’s πππππ’ππππ π ” by Luca GriseriΒ](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/tongueless_cha.jpg?w=938)
-
θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βLiving On: Xi Xiβs Mourning a Breastβ by Susan Blumberg-Kason Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Mourning a Breast. Xi Xi (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Mourning a Breast, New York Review Books, 2024.…
![[REVIEW] βLiving On: Xi Xiβs πππ’πππππ π π΅ππππ π‘β by Susan Blumberg-Kason](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/mourning-a-breast_xi-xi_jennifer-feeley.jpg?w=938)
Cha 