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140th out of 243 books
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Golden Boy: Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood
by
Martin Booth
At seven years old, Martin Booth found himself with all of Hong Kong at his feet when his father was posted there in 1952. This is his memoir of that youth, a time when he had access to corners of the colony normally closed to a gweilo, a "pale fellow" like him. From the plink plonk man with his dancing monkey to Nagasaki Jim, and from a drunken child molest...more
Paperback, 352 pages
Published
November 14th 2006
by Picador
(first published August 2nd 2004)
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Ed
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone with an interest in Hong Kong
Recommended to Ed by:
Pam
This book grabbed me "big time" and will stay with me "long time". I have lived in Hong Kong for 16+ years and have always wondered what it was really like before WW II and in the immediate post war years before it exploded.
How Booth remembered everything is beyond me but he manages to recall names and places with startling accuracy.
It is also the story of a boy taking advantage of an opportunity to explore a different culture and growing up quickl...more
How Booth remembered everything is beyond me but he manages to recall names and places with startling accuracy.
It is also the story of a boy taking advantage of an opportunity to explore a different culture and growing up quickl...more
Autobiography of an English boy of aged 7 - 9 growing up in Hong Kong in the 50s. Exploring on his own (infamous Kowloon walled city; wild bits of The Peak etc), and also the contrast in the way his parents adapted to the life of expats, and their new "home". His father was a mean-spirited man with chips on his shoulder and a drink problem, but in describing all his mother's little asides to him (Martin) about his father, it actually makes her look vindictive and underhand - probably t...more
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Vivian
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone who has lived in Hong Kong, anyone who has lived in a country as a minority
Recommended to Vivian by:
Husband bought it for me
I love this book, but probably because I spent 10 years of my life living in Hong Kong. While in Hong Kong, I lived between the world of white, colonial "expat", and Chinese local. This book is about a rich, white, expat, European, colonial boy that crosses over to the mysterious side of the local (often poor) Chinese. He can cross over and experience the other side of his world because he is a little boy and can make friends with Chinese children and Chinese servants. I loved rea...more
Hong Kong in the 1950s is a magical place for 9-year-old Martin Booth. His memoir rekindles that magic with wide-eyed wonder.
Fresh off the boat from Britain, Martin has an insatiable desire to see and discover everything. The city recognizes and feeds his joy, and reveals its secrets. He befriends a triad gangster and is ushered into the group’s hideout. He listens to stories of escaped anti-communists from mainland China, wizened monks, and expat sailors on R&R. And he makes a vow ...more
Fresh off the boat from Britain, Martin has an insatiable desire to see and discover everything. The city recognizes and feeds his joy, and reveals its secrets. He befriends a triad gangster and is ushered into the group’s hideout. He listens to stories of escaped anti-communists from mainland China, wizened monks, and expat sailors on R&R. And he makes a vow ...more
Superb memoir of growing up in Hong Kong.I lived in Hong Kong for seven years and this very successfully captures the excitement ,noise,smells and thrills of the far east.Great characters leap from the pages and propel you back to the days of "empire"
I recall that Martin Booth wrote the book to provide his grandchildren with an understanding of what it was like to grow up in a different era in an exotic location-he succeeded
I recall that Martin Booth wrote the book to provide his grandchildren with an understanding of what it was like to grow up in a different era in an exotic location-he succeeded
Booth's autobiographical memoir of his growing up in Hong Kong is one of the most engaging accounts I've read in years. I've long been interested in Asia, even studied Chinese, and spent some time in a few Asian countries with side-trips to Hong Kong; I found this account a delightful recreation of that unique crossroads. If you've enjoyed fictional forays into Hong Kong, like Clavell's Tai-pan and Noble House, you'll likely enjoy this immersion in HK's garden of delights.
Note: It was orig...more
Note: It was orig...more
This was my first book by Martin Booth and I got it because I was interested in the subject matter. I fully expected it to be written as a boring journal, but the story actually flowed very well and read more like a fictional adventure story than a memoir. It was neat to see young Martin Booth become aware of his own maturation as he spent his formative years roaming Hong Kong in the 1950s. This book is a very interesting and intimate peek into a completely different world.
I like Marti...more
I like Marti...more
Having lived in HK for about 15 years i really enjoyed reading this. Martin Booths experiences as a young boy exploring Hong Kong and its culture in the 1950's is a great read. His mum was open minded about everything and threw herself into the culture, where his Dad remained quite an aloof Colonial. Thankfully Booth's mother encouraged her son to immerse himself into the culture and people. A great read for those who know HK and want to enlarge there understandings of some of the cultural aspe...more
A vivid account of growing up in colonial Hong Kong. As a young boy, Booth was allowed the freedom to go wherever he wanted on his own in this fascinating city. If you have ever been to Hong Kong, this book will evoke memories of myriad sights, sounds, and smells of that experience. It makes one wish to have seen it while it was still the "fragrant harbor" and before it became the densely-packed monument to modern architecture and commerce that it is today.
I picked up this book at the recommendation of the Lonely Planet's guide to China, and read it during a trip to Hong Kong with 24 other family members from around the world... over the course of the trip it got passed around between us, and everyone who read it enjoyed this book. As the Lonely Planet review says, it's hard to believe that the author could possibly have been present to witness firsthand so many of the key historical events of the time, but that doesn't matter to me; he tells a go...more
I actually read this book in hardcover, not paperback. This book I really liked. The author has since died and this was his last book - a memoir of three years that he spent as a child (up to age 10)growing up in the Hong Kong of the 1950s. He has written other books as well, which I will now go on to read since I really liked his writing.
He was allowed a great deal of freedom to wander the city and he obviously loved both the culture and the city itself. He made the most of his...more
He was allowed a great deal of freedom to wander the city and he obviously loved both the culture and the city itself. He made the most of his...more
Loved this book - read it when I first came to Hong Kong and it helped to get a sense of what this place was like back in the 1950's. Enjoyed reading about their day trips out to Tung Chung - which then had to be reached by boat and how it was just a remote fishing village. Day trips out to Tung Chung was generally to visit the monks and the monastery - which is still here.
This is a fantastic memoir about a British boy growing up in Hong Kong. It paints a beautiful picture of Hong Kong in the 1950's. Booth is a fantastic writer. His mother and he as well as some of the other characters in the book are so alive and complex. I really enjoyed it, and perhaps more than others since I am learning about my current home city.
Critics agree that Booth vividly captures the sounds, sights, and tastes of Hong Kong__from Kowloon's chaotic alleys to the stunning countryside. Simultaneously a portrait of a place, a childhood, and a marriage, Golden Boy should be savored for its wonderful prose and nostalgic, wise recollections. Booth, who died last year, wrote this book for his two children. Although he recounts his story from a young boy's perspective, most reviewers were touched by the authenticity of his voice. Despite t
...more
Loved this biography of a childhood spent in Hong Kong in the 1950s. Booth's writing is excellent, his memories are sharp and he avoids easy nostalgia. I loved his vivid portrayal of Hong Kong. So much is still here to be experienced, but sadly, not the beloved Russian cake shop.
I read this while getting ready for Christmas in Hong Kong. Knowing the place a fair amount, I thoroughly enjoyed this book; it's a colourful account of the place in the 1950s, with some touching moments and some good characters. Recommended if you have ever visited.
rich descriptions that implant the reader to 1950s Hong Kong in this memoir by British writer Martin Booth. The book spans over the first 3 years he lived their in early childhood so we experience all the idiosyncrasies of and tales British HK thru his youthful eyes.
Martin Booth wrote this book as he was dying from brain cancer so that his children would know of his life and his past. That alone is enough to tug at anyone's heartstrings, but to top it off, this book is a masterpiece.
Although I question some of his adventures (how does a boy, even such a precocious boy, get himself into all these places), the book paints a beautiful picture of a time and place that no longer exist. I wanted to tag along with him as he explored the streets and m...more
Although I question some of his adventures (how does a boy, even such a precocious boy, get himself into all these places), the book paints a beautiful picture of a time and place that no longer exist. I wanted to tag along with him as he explored the streets and m...more
ok, obviously i'm biased because i'm from hong kong. the stories of his adventures as a kid running around in the streets of hong kong in 50s are fantastic. whether you're from hong kong or not.
Wonderful colourful memories of Hong Kong in the early 1950s. Appreciated the greatly especially after going back to Hong Kong for my 25th wedding anniversary. Highly recommended.
I read this because I was taking a trip to Hong Kong. It was interesting to be able to picture some of the streets he talked about, but the book wasn't terribly exciting.
I enjoyed this book, beacuase it reminded me of all the things I loved in Hong Kong. I would be interested in thoughts about the book from someone without this connection.
Martin was 7 when his father was posted to Hong Kong and he found a whole new world of discovery in the hotel they first stayed in and on the streets of the city.He talks frankly about his parents arguments,his father's pretentions at being more important than he was,and all the people he met during his years there growing up.
It was a decent read and it was interesting to see what Hong Kong was like in the 1950's.
It was a decent read and it was interesting to see what Hong Kong was like in the 1950's.
I would have to say that this is one of my favorite books! In the US it was sold under the name "Golden Boy". It's so descriptive of 1950s Hong Kong. Even though he was just a young child of 7 or 8 years old, with a controlling and workaholic father and a mother who delved into the lives of her less well-off Chinese friends, Martin explored the city alone--and often wandered into seedy and semi-dangerous opium dens and refugee slums. I read it twice in one week and will probably read i...more
Amazing, just amazing book, I wish i was in his place having the same experience, this book no doubt one of his best, currently reading Golden Boy.
This is one of my favorite books! And while it helps to be familiar with HK to appreciate many of the stories, I think anyone would enjoy it.
A fantastic book about a British boy's formative years in Hong Kong. A must read for anyone who has spent time or lived on HK-side.
Fascinating memoirs of a boy growing up in Hong Kong. He had little parental supervision so he learned many interesting things.
How Brits can become integrated in another culture as opposed to his father who stays a foreigner/colonialist.
Very true about many parts of Hong Kong. It has a lot of interesting unknown facts about Hong Kong too.
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| A 2012 Challenge:...: Suzanne recommends: Golden Boy: Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood | 1 | 6 | Oct 26, 2011 05:15am |
Martin Booth writes strong, pacy adventures with compelling storylines. His work is dramatic, cinematic and well-researched. If you're looking for a gripping read (with guaranteed boy appeal), you're in the right hands!
THE BASICS
Born: Lancashire, 1944
Jobs: Screenwriter, Novelist
Lives: Somerset
First Book for Children: War Dog, 1996
More about Martin Booth...
THE BASICS
Born: Lancashire, 1944
Jobs: Screenwriter, Novelist
Lives: Somerset
First Book for Children: War Dog, 1996
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