Diamond Hill: Memories of growing up in a Hong Kong squatter village

by Feng Chi-Shun

"Diamond Hill was one of the poorest and most backward of villages in Hong Kong at a time when Hong Kong itself was poor and backward. We moved there in 1956 when I was almost 10. I left in 1966 when I was 19. Those were the formative years of my life. It’s a time that I remember well and cherish."

This memoir of a native son of a Kowloon-side squatter village – the first book ever on Diamond Hill, in either Chinese or English – presents the early days of a life shaped by a now-extinct community. Penned by a high-achieving Hong Kong professional, Feng Chi-shun’s sharp recollections of his humble upbringing contain warmth, humour, and an abundance of insights into a low-income Hong Kong neighbourhood that no longer exists – but remains close to the hearts of many who lived there.

Diamond Hill will invite comparisons with Martin Booth's 2004 hit Gweilo. If you enjoyed the latter, you will likely find the former similarly absorbing, because the young Feng was, for many a “gweilo”, the inaccessible yet intriguing face of an altogether edgier Hong Kong.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography

196 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Feng Chi-shun is a naturalized US citizen, but considers Hong Kong — where he grew up and attended medical school — his home. His formative years were spent in Kowloon’s Diamond Hill district, where people were poor but life was rich.

Trained as a pathologist, he has published close to 100 scientific articles on his medical research. He has also been a columnist for the South China Morning Post, the leading English-language newspaper in Hong Kong.

Feeling deprived as a child, he is making up for lost time by living life to its fullest. He is an aficionado of wine and cigars, and a part-time punter attracted to roulette, poker, mahjong and horse racing. In his spare time, he plays golf and tennis, and shoots a mean game of pool. He intends to live in Hong Kong for the rest of his life.

Reviews

[Chris Azure]

A fascinating account of a man from a Chinese refugee family growing up in Diamond Hill in Hong Kong in the '50s & '60s. Before I continue, I should mention that this was written by the father of one of my high school friends, but while that got me interested in the book in the first place, I don't think it colours my overall opinion.

The book covers many places in Hong Kong that I'm quite familiar with, and it's interesting to hear about how they were back before I was even born... there's a certain similarity in some of the places and situations depicted, yet a few are also quite different from the places I knew myself. Diamond Hill itself, for example. I remember back when there used to be a squatter village in the middle of this area, before it was dug up for development, but this memoir goes back further to when the whole area was made up of squatter villages, made up mostly of refugees from various parts of China, yet still being touched by Hong Kong history and development in a significant way.

It's also interesting to see how in many ways, the lifestyle he lived back then is similar to that of the lifestyle many people in Vietnam, including Saigon, are living to this day. The Diamond Hill villagers, as depicted in the book, were mostly refugees from various parts of China, ultimately looking to get out and create their lives outside this community, and of course they were the ones who'd ran away from communism, both of which make for a slightly different angle here, yet there is a lot that still resonates.

I also like the way Feng touches on many aspects of Hong Kong that would now be considered cliche - triads, gambling, kung fu, eating dog, the walled city - and removes the mysticism, often deflating the myths, but giving us something far more worthwhile and real instead.

This is helped by the remarkably straightforward and frank writing throughout the book. However, he'll often end these frank depictions with a disarming and hilarious turn of phrase - this itself the very thing that occasionally deflates the myths.

If there's any flaw, it's that Feng sometimes perhaps rushes from one thing to the next, eager to tell us the next thing on his mind, while I often felt I could have dwelled a little bit longer elsewhere before going there.

Finally, I just like the fact that it takes place entirely within Kowloon - so much HK stuff focuses in HK Island that I, a Kowloon/NT boy, really appreciate that :)

Ultimately, a great read, and a great insight into a Hong Kong that once was...

[Susan]

Diamond Hill is a fascinating, eduacational, and amazing coming of age memoir about growing up in an underdeveloped area of Hong Kong. After some early tragedies, Feng could have easily ended up in a life of crime, what with the prevalence of triads lurking around every street corner in his neighborhood. Instead, with luck and a lot of hard work, Feng sets off on another path, one that brings suucess later in life. At the end of the book, Feng tells where his childhood friends ended up decades after their school days. Feng's story is a testament to how individuals from southern China and other parts of China overcame hardships that most people cannot fathom and developed Hong Kong into one of the most industrious cities in the world.

[Paul]

An excellent book. Short but a good recollection of Hong Kong in the past.

[Allison Piehl]

This book is the type of memoir that would be most interesting to those who shared the experience of growing up in Hong Kong as the same time as Feng Chi-shun. Not all sections of the book strive to place the events of his youth within a local historical or political context, so in a way it feels like they could be the story of a childhood almost anywhere. There's certainly nothing wrong with that as the focus of the book, but it does narrow the audience a bit.

The most interesting sections for a reader looking to understand more about Hong Kong's past are the descriptions of Diamond Hill and the chapter on the Walled City. There are also some interesting bits about the glory days of the Hong Kong movie industry and what it was like to ride with KMB (Kowloon Motor Bus) at the time. Though I enjoyed it overall, I would not necessarily recommend this book to someone who hasn't spent a significant amount of time in Hong Kong - it just wasn't written with them in mind.

[Ccdemaio]

This book intrigued me... I wanted to get a picture of what like in HK in that area would have been like. The author has separated him thoughts about life then into categories and I found that structure somewhat unsatisfying as a reader. It was simply a framework on which to collect his thoughts so it felt more like easing a series of loosely related essays rather than a tale of sorts. Overall I am glad I read it, but found it a bit wanting.

[William Leonard]

Good opening chapter, and some interesting individual stories, but not enough depth on the more interesting parts of the book. Very light autobiography.

[Sugandh Wafai]

Excellent book. very well written.

[Anjum Haz]

Diamond Hill is a memoir of the author’s childhood spent in Hong Kong’s Diamond Hill in the 60’s. Another nice recommendation from Barbara.

I was not very familiar with Hong Kong and its culture, even though I heard of this place so many times. It’s always great to know a different place and culture through a book. Diamond Hill served my curiosity nicely.

I noticed the similarity of 60’s Hong Kong with my own Bangladeshi childhood. That’s the thing you notice in books. You pick up more similarities than you would pick up from watching a video. Their meal routine seemed similar, more carb to fill the stomach and less protein to save the pocket. And the education system reminded me of our own! Better school means a better life.

There were many dissimilarities too. The author mentioned a lot of names in the book. It would have been easier to mention the relations rather than the names, so that readers can remember easily. The writing style was pretty straightforward, making the book very readable.

An open, simple depiction of 60’s Hong Kong. Though the place is now replaced with skyscrapers, I believe the culture isn’t replaced in a glimpse of the eye. It seemed very related to me. Pick this book to dive into knowing a vivid culture and foreign life and enjoy!

[Philia]

Finished my second reading this year. I admire the vivid images of places and people that Feng Chi Shun remembers from his youth. But it's probably a book that De La Salle boys would appreciate more!

[Mark]

I enjoyed the chapter about the movies, was kind of taken aback how women were treated when he was young. Having never been to Hong Kong the writing did not evoke strong images into my mind, but a lot of his stories were entertaining and humorous.

[Jackie]

The stories are fascinating but the prose somewhat deadpan.