Isham Cook's Blog: Isham Cook, page 10
March 9, 2016
The Kitchens of Canton. Ch. 2: Xinluoma
“E tu chi sei?” the man whispered to Malmquist in the darkness. “Sei lo schiavo nuovo?” “I don’t understand. Do you speak English?” “Inglese? No, non parlo Inglese.” “Are you Italian? Where am I? What […]
The Kitchens of Canton, a novel. Ch. 2: Xinluoma
“E tu chi sei?” the man whispered to Malmquist in the darkness. “Sei lo schiavo nuovo?” “I don’t understand. Do you speak English?” “Inglese? No, non parlo Inglese.” “Are you Italian? Where am I? What […]
December 19, 2015
In praise of concubines: Interview with Lloyd Lofthouse
A distinction must be made before I get off on the wrong footing with many readers (which I inevitably will) between the system of domestic sexual slavery in China that lasted up to the mid-20th century known as […]
November 27, 2015
Why Airbnb ain’t my cup of tea
Airbnb has of late been getting unfavorable news coverage. Clever property owners have discovered that by turning over their residential units to Airbnb guests, they can take in more cash than renting them out […][image error]
October 15, 2015
The Kitchens of Canton, a novel. Ch. 1: New Gary, IN
Jeff Malmquist is unaccountably flung into the near future to Gary, Indiana, now New Gary, a labor camp of a million Chicagoans. Their identities have been hacked and falsely incriminated as sex offenders and […]
New Gary, IN (The Kitchens of Canton, a novel, ch. 1)
“What the…?” said the stranger who had just emerged from a secondhand clothing shop onto Broadway. Concrete-block housing stretched northward toward the lake and southward as far as the eye could see, lining both sides of the street and the rows of streets beyond to the east and west. “Can you tell me what city we’re […]
August 8, 2015
Macau and the writer: A photo essay
Thanks to Ricardo […]
Macau and the writer: A photo-essay
Thanks to Ricardo […]
August 2, 2015
American Rococo
There is a highly sensuous quality to the American retail experience, whether easing a toasty warm Potbellian sandwich or a Culver’s fudge pecan frozen custard sundae into your mouth, navigating the wide aisles of a Walmart (designed for people hooked up to oxygen canisters in their mobility carts), or perusing the apparel and guns at an outdoor […]
July 22, 2015
The question of breeding (why foreign men get the “ugly” Chinese girls)
A recent article in the The Nanfang (“Answering the age old question: Why do foreigners marry ugly Chinese girls?“) gives me occasion to address a conundrum I too have long pondered – particularly as the author, Charles Liu, devotes a scant 375 words to the topic, excluding his quotations of Xu Xiliang, the Chinese female […]
