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More reviews by Diana McPartlin
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The Drink and Dream Teahouse by Justin Hill
JUSTIN HILL arrived in China "by accident", he claims, at age 21. He had been working in Eritrea when the war with Ethiopia broke out and in the evacuation plane he was suddenly faced with the choice of a return to Britain or a new job in China.
Hill made his decision, spent two-and-a-half years from 1993 to 1996 teaching English in Hunan Province and his first book, Bend in the Yellow River, is an account of his experiences there.
In his second book and first novel, THE DRINK AND DREAM TEAHOUSE, recently released in paperback, he takes the unusual step of breaking away from his expat-traveller role and telling a straightforward tale about a Chinese village.
It sounds like a book that shouldn't work -- an Englishman presuming to know China from the inside. But any unease about JUSTIN HILL's qualifications is swept away as he presents a vivid tale about places and individuals who will be instantly recognizable to anyone who has first-hand experience of the country. Even the Taipei Times called THE DRINK AND DREAM TEAHOUSE "a minor masterpiece" and "a beautiful book" and suggested it should be translated into Chinese.
The story is set in modern China. The central character, Da Shan, recently divorced, arrives back in his home village, Shaoyang, for reasons which are unclear. The story unfolds like a mystery as his motivations are revealed.
Shaoyang's core industry, the state-run Number Two Space Rocket Factory, has just closed down, forcing the workers and their families to deal with the realities of capitalist China. The local party secretary commits suicide in the first chapter, but not before he hangs banners from his window protesting that "Our Leaders are Drunk on the Taste of Corruption" and "The Immortals are Jealous of the Lifestyle of Our Officials."
Although the subject can be grim, it's not a depressing book: the wonderful thing about JUSTIN HILL's writing is that he presents the Chinese as neither exotic nor quirky, but as fully rounded people. One of the most amusing passages concerns Da Shan experiencing the irritation of a grown-up child who returns to his parents' home only to find his mother still treats him like a child.
"I'm cleaning today" she told him, "and you're in my way." He picked up his feet but she refused to give in. "You're young. Go out," she told him, and continued banging cupboard doors and clearing her throat till at last he got up and went out. If he stayed at home she drove him out, and when he came back she was waiting for him with a rebuke.
His descriptions of China are video-like. One feels lifted up and transported to the village of Shaoyang:
Untouched by the passage of feet and years, the steps were as rough as the day they were chiselled out of the mountainside. Da Shan's feet left no mark as they carried him up and away from the desperate chaos of the streets.
As Da Shan surveys his village, he notices: So many buildings had been knocked down, rebuilt and knocked down again over the years that each street started to look and feel the same.Although JUSTIN HILL's plotting lets him down, which is perhaps why he was left off the Booker Prize list, this is a bold picture of post-Tiananmen China, and his ability to absorb this complex culture is impressive. It's not the easiest novel to read, but it's the kind of book that will stay with you for years.
Editor's note: Justin Hill is slated to appear at the Standard Chartered Literary Festival in Hong Kong, the week of 15 April 2002. For details, please see www.festival.org.hk.
Diana McPartlin
09/02/2002
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Diana McPartlin is a freelance writer based in Hong Kong. |
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