Money Dragon
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
In this stunning work, Pam Chun brings a new and powerful voice to the traditions of Chinese-American fiction. The Money Dragon brings to life the saga of L. Ah Leong, the Money Dragon, one of the legends of Hawai`i and the founder of Honolulu's Chinatown. At the turn of the twentieth century, Ah Leong rules over his Hawai`ian home, a legendary man so proficient in the martial arts he has brought himself back to life; a man who beguiles many wives, sires dozens of children and is driven by money and greed. He builds a financial empire, establishing himself as a leader both on the exotic islands and in his Chinese homeland. But when Phoenix, the wife of his first son Tat-Tung, arrives in Hawai`i, she becomes witness to how the values Ah Leong holds dear begin to tear him and his family apart.
The Money Dragon is a fascinating and important first novel, a tale of a family struggling between love, greed, jealousy and loyalty. Pam Chun reaches into her family history to deliver a story that shows the tumult and opportunity that occurs when the deep-rooted traditions of the Chinese people meet the sweeping advance of the Western world.
Customer Reviews
The Money Dragon
Excellent book. Both my parents read it, my mother twice and they are in their eighties. As a young boy attending Chinese language school, my father remembered L. Ah Leong and Phoenix. He also remembered L. Ah Leong’s funeral procession in Honolulu. All the school children had to line the streets to pay respects as the procession passed by. My father also remembered seeing this “Popo” sitting in her familiar chair in her family store. He said she always sat in that chair. That lady was Phoenix. Even for my self as a third generation Chinese, I could understand and relate to the culture, customs, and names of places mentioned in the book as they exist and practiced today. This book is well worth reading.