Pao
As seen:
By Kerry Young
avg rating
2 reviews
‘A pacy but absorbing saga of domestic struggle and gangland manoeuvring set against the violent backdrop of postwar Jamaican politics’ – Independent on Sunday
‘A blindingly good read … both for its mesmeric story-telling and the quality of its prose’ – Observer
‘Young’s heartfelt, sparky and affecting debut novel is a chronicle of multicultural Jamaica … The complexity of Jamaican society in Pao is fascinating and bewildering’ – Guardian
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SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD
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A richly imagined, wholly engrossing and utterly captivating novel that tells the remarkable history of twentieth century Jamaica
I was just a boy when I come to Jamaica.
Kingston, 1938. Fourteen-year-old Yang Pao steps off the ship from China with his mother and brother, after his father has died fighting for the revolution. They are to live with Zhang, the ‘godfather’ of Chinatown, who mesmerises Pao with stories of glorious Chinese socialism on one hand, and the reality of his protection business on the other.
When Pao takes over the family’s affairs he becomes a powerful man. He sets his sights on marrying well, but when Gloria Campbell, a black prostitute, comes to him for help he is drawn to her beauty and strength. They begin a relationship that continues even after Pao marries Fay Wong, the ‘acceptable’ but headstrong daughter of a wealthy Chinese merchant.
As the political violence escalates in the 1960s the lines between Pao’s socialist ideals and private ambitions become blurred. Jamaica is transforming, the tides of change are rising, and the one-time boss of Chinatown finds himself cast adrift. Richly imagined and utterly captivating, Pao is a dazzling tale of race, class and colour, love and ambition, and a country at a historical crossroads.
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‘With grace, authenticity and humour, Young lets Jamaica’s political history shine through the life story of her charming yet fallible hero. Brilliant’ – Daily Mail
TweetReviews
I liked it a lot. The author, Kerry Young, has written three novels from the perspective of three different characters, namely Pao, his wife and his lover. I had read the novel from his lover's point of view, 'Gloria' a few years ago, and had wanted to read 'Pao' ever since. It has fulfilled, if not exceeded my expectations. Told from the point of view of a Chinese man who came to Jamaica as a boy it is a novel intertwined with the history of Jamaica. Like, 'Great Small Things', there is a sort of educational purpose, but this time relating to history and politics. However, there is no preaching nor are there stock characters. Some years ago I attended a reading event with the author, and the language came to life. The story is told well, and the Jamaican Creole lets the characters speak for themselves. They live through turbulent and violent times. The main character is anything but a standard 'good' person, but a complex person full of contradictory traits who makes some wrong decisions which he is able to reflect upon later. There is a more positive ending which leaves the reader with hope, but not a traditional 'happy ever after'. You could say that Kerry Young uses some traditional building blocks of novels but uniquely transforms them. She creates a new form of novel in what she calls 'true Taoist style'. The relationship between the privileged white people and the Chinese, Indian and Black communities of Jamaica is part of this story.
This is a gentle tale of a young Chinese boy who is brought up in Jamaica following the death of his father. I struggled with the writing style to begin with but then found I could read it easily without 'translating' into more conventional text. From youth to old age Pao finds his own solutions to the difficulties life throws at him.
