Gweilo is an autobiography by the man himself Martin Booth who died soon after this book was published in 2004.
In this novel Booth takes us on a journey into the life he had as a child in Hong Kong when his father was based there in the early 1950’s. As a young boy, filled with curiosity and adventure the author takes his new life in his stride and gets himself exposed to the Chinese way of life. We discover what his relationship was like with his parents and how that had a mental strain on his life and how this connection effected his life outside the family environment. How him and his mother were more willing and broad minded to embrace the Chinese life and showed interest to adopt a new culture; including the language and divulging into delicacies. Throughout we read about his struggle with his connection with his father and the ‘old school’ traditional manner in which his father had disciplined.
I found this book rather moving and a wonderful journey to be taken on. I always find it interesting to read about different cultures and the different ways of living from one country to another. Definitely worth a read.
Happy Reading,
Nina x
Nina James 