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The Money Dragon [Hardcover]

Chun (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)


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Book Description

March 1, 2002
In this stunning work, Pam Chun brings a new and powerful voice to the traditions of Chinese-American fiction. The Money Dragon brings to life the saga of L. Ah Leong, the Money Dragon, one of the legends of Hawai`i and the founder of Honolulu’s Chinatown. At the turn of the twentieth century, Ah Leong rules over his Hawai`ian home, a legendary man so proficient in the martial arts he has brought himself back to life; a man who beguiles many wives, sires dozens of children and is driven by money and greed. He builds a financial empire, establishing himself as a leader both on the exotic islands and in his Chinese homeland. But when Phoenix, the wife of his first son Tat-Tung, arrives in Hawai`i, she becomes witness to how the values Ah Leong holds dear begin to tear him and his family apart.

The Money Dragon is a fascinating and important first novel, a tale of a family struggling between love, greed, jealousy and loyalty. Pam Chun reaches into her family history to deliver a story that shows the tumult and opportunity that occurs when the deep-rooted traditions of the Chinese people meet the sweeping advance of the Western world.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Pam Chun is a novelist who first learned about Ah Leong and her family relationship to him from former US Senator Hiram L. Fong. Born and raised in Hawaii, Pam Chun attended Punahou Academy and the University of Hawaii and graduated with honors form the University of California at Berkeley. She lives in Alameda County, California.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark; First Edition. 1 in number line edition (March 1, 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1570718660
  • ISBN-13: 978-1570718663
  • Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,495,008 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.3 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A rare and precious picture., November 6, 2002
By 
Hingson M. Chun (Sunnyvale, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Money Dragon (Hardcover)
Pam Chun writes an engrossing book about a prominent Chinese family in 19th-20th century Honolulu and provides readers with a rare glimpse into a lost past. If you've ever stared at stark, black and white photos of old Chinese families and wondered what they were really like, Pam Chun brings them to life as if they were your own family and leaves you with a quiet, settled, intimacy that only honest, careful writing can bring.

Set in pre-war Hawaii, the tale pulls together historic fact and fiction in a seamless, involving way, resisting the postcard or magazine style of popular history. She focuses on the intimate and personal details of her characters and families and renders them breathing, sweating, and lifelike. My only disappointment was that the book ended so quickly.

Hawaii and history enthusiasts will find fine detail in her tale that fill in the gaps of Western accounts. Asian Americans will feel and smell the painful and yet matter of fact pressures on the lives of their parents and grandparents. You will marvel at the strength of character of the early Chinese women and the entrenched families that were the rule of the day. And because her writing resists the sterotype, the polemic, and the popular, it transcends the usual place and era pieces.

This is not Michener. This is Hawaii. I hope she keeps writing.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating and compelling story, June 22, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: The Money Dragon (Hardcover)
I could not put this book down until I had finished it. Pam Chun is a master storyteller and captivates the reader from the first page. L. Ah Leong is a poor Chinese immigrant who comes to Hawaii seeking a better life. Through hard work and diligence he amasses a fortune to declare to himself and those around him that he is a great man. The money, however, brings with it greed, a lust for power and destruction of the family. Set in territorial Hawaii one also gain insight into the injustice brought against the Hawaiian and Chinese population by the United States government and those who claimed to represent it.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A pleasure to read and informative, April 17, 2009
Ms. Chun's book the Money Dragon is a well written and informative book. I feel the story is the subject that many families can relate to, no matter what cultural background. For those readers who are not of Chinese decent have the pleasure of a glossary that describes some of the Chinese terms used in the book. Thank you to Ms. Chun, for sharing her family's history with us and for the photos that have captured our interest in your story of pride and honor.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
The first time I heard L. Ah Leong's name, I was swinging upside down from the lychee tree. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
unlawful cohabitation, store cook, jade bracelets, largest estate
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Tat Tung, Chung Shee, Wong Shee, Wong Pin, Circle Lane, Hong Kong, Kew Boy, Ming Yang Tong, United States, Fung Dai-Kam, Lau Ah Leong, Beretania Street, King Street, Honolulu Harbor, King Kalakaua, Kwan Yin, Auntie Ho Shee, District Attorney, Hee Sou Hoy, Louis College, Matchmaker Tsay, San Francisco, Attorney General, Inspector Farmer, Lau Fat Leong
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