Items related to Fragrant Harbour
'It's Hong Kong,' she said. 'Heung gong. Fragrant harbour.'
Fragrant Harbour is the story of four people whose intertwined lives span Asia's last seventy years. Tom Stewart leaves England to seek his fortune, and finds it in running Hong Kong's best hotel. Sister Maria is a beautiful and uncompromising Chinese nun whom Stewart meets on the boat. Dawn Stone is an English journalist who becomes the public face of money and power and big business. Matthew Ho is a young Chinese entrepreneur whose life has been shaped by painful choices made long before his birth.
The complacency of colonial life in the 1930s; the horrors of the Japanese occupation during the Second World War; the post-war boom and the handover of the city to the Chinese - all these are present in Fragrant Harbour, an epic novel of one of the world's great cities.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review:
In his new novel Fragrant Harbour John Lanchester, as in his previous books, shows an impressionist's gift for adopting different voices for his narrator. The moral hedonist Tarquin Winot who tells his story in The Debt to Pleasure and the downsized suburbanite whose inner monologues provide the material for Mr Phillips could hardly be more contrasting characters, yet Lanchester makes both equally convincing.
Review:
In Fragrant Harbour much of the story is told in the words of Tom Stewart, a young Englishman who sails to Hong Kong in the 1930s and ends up spending the rest of his long life there. The voice of Stewart--reserved, humane and understated--is as finely achieved as those in the earlier novels. Through his eyes we see Hong Kong's 20th-century history. The class-ridden and racially divided society of the 1930s is given the brutal awakening of the Japanese occupation. After the war, the old Hong Kong disappears and the city is transformed by economic boom and entrepreneurial energy. The approaching return of the city to mainland China brings its own problems, anxieties and upheavals.
Against this backdrop, Stewart's life, and particularly his relationship with Maria, a Chinese nun he first meets as he is travelling out from England in 1935, unfolds. Lanchester intertwines personal histories and the city's history with great skill, showing how the past lives on, even in a city as resolutely modern as Hong Kong. The narrator of the book's last section, a young businessman called Matthew Ho, may be the embodiment of the new Hong Kong but, as he knows himself, his life has been decisively marked by the old. --Nick Rennison
'There's a depth and emotional candour here that, long after you have finished the book, is hard to forget... Fragrant Harbour is really a love letter to Hong Kong, redolent with the bright shine of romance and nostalgia for the indefinable essence of a place.' Observer 'Provides both the detail and panorama of a fascinating city... it has a cracking emotional thrust.' Financial Times
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherFaber and Faber
- Publication date2003
- ISBN 10 057121469X
- ISBN 13 9780571214693
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages320
- Rating
Other Popular Editions of the Same Title
Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber & Faber Ltd
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Softcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Very Good. Very Good condition. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain light spine creasing or a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp. Bundled media such as CDs, DVDs, floppy disks or access codes may not be included. Seller Inventory # S13R-00343
Buy Used
£ 4.61
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber & Faber, Limited
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Softcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Good. New Ed. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # 42527733-6
Buy Used
£ 4.99
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber & Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description paperback. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!. Seller Inventory # S_380254282
Buy Used
£ 2.10
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour. John Lanchester
Published by
Faber & Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.52. Seller Inventory # G057121469XI3N00
Buy Used
£ 5.10
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber & Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 2
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR002651646
Buy Used
£ 1.68
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber & Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Fair. A readable copy of the book which may include some defects such as highlighting and notes. Cover and pages may be creased and show discolouration. Seller Inventory # GOR003080997
Buy Used
£ 1.68
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber and Faber 05/06/2003
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Softcover
Quantity: 3
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Very Good. This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. . Seller Inventory # 7719-9780571214693
Buy Used
£ 2.54
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber and Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. All orders are dispatched the following working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we have over 500,000 books in stock. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied. Seller Inventory # mon0002227196
Buy Used
£ 2.44
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber and Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Used; Good. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Grubby book may have mild dirt or some staining, mostly on the edges of pages. Seller Inventory # CHL7414677
Buy Used
£ 1.91
Convert currency
Stock Image
Fragrant Harbour
Published by
Faber and Faber
(2003)
ISBN 10: 057121469X
ISBN 13: 9780571214693
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Used; Good. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Grubby book may have mild dirt or some staining, mostly on the edges of pages. Aged book. Tanned pages and age spots, however, this will not interfere with reading. Seller Inventory # CHL9725952
Buy Used
£ 1.91
Convert currency