Pao

To learn Jamaican history through the fictional life story of a Chinese gangster is novel; that it is written in the vernacular somehow gives it even more appeal. Pao, a teenage immigrant from China in the days before Jamaica's independence, becomes a sort of godfather. Many Chinese were escaping the horrors of the Chinese Civil War. Their growing numbers in Jamaica reduced the few jobs that were available, creating a need for protection. This is not a topic or time that is covered often in historical fiction and Kerry Young has done an excellent job of creating a tale that is interesting and entertaining.

Decades slip by in a flash in this delightfully crafted novel about a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica and his life, labors, and loves. Author Kerry Young does a great service to her home country and to her own ancestral history by bringing the world's attention to the often unknown world of the Chinese immigrant in Jamaica.

Young Pao is introduced to his new life in his new country by Zhang, the man who has paid for Pao's mother's passage to the West Indies after the death of Pao's father. Zhang is a combination godfather and wise man in the underworld of Jamaica's Chinatown. He raises Pao to follow his footsteps and Pao, who has little formal schooling, learns his lessons of life on the city streets.

As Pao narrates, the reader sees him as show more a rather serious, contemplative man for whom toughness does not seem to come naturally, but rather as a symptom of circumstance. Like all of Young's characters, Pao is strong, memorable, and easy for the reader to relate to. In just 270 pages, we follow most of Pao's life. We see him as a child, as a teenager, a young man, a middle-aged man, and as an elder. Although multigenerational novels are hard to do in short manuscripts, Young seems to succeed, and what we end up seeing in Pao is a totally "round" character, one who transforms and changes in many ways through the pages of the book.

Kerry Young creates memorable characters: Zhang as the wise man, Pao as the always musing good "bad" boy, Cecily, the African Jamaican married to a Chinese man who rules over her privileged household and holds insecurities to herself, and Gloria, the bright, loving, practical, and very vital prostitute who creates a balance in Pao's life.

For those interested in British Colonialism and West Indian history, particularly around the issues of independence in former British colonies, Pao offers interesting insights. With a flavor of historical fiction, Young brings her characters' lives in line with the years of British colonialsim through independence, taking us on a ride through the administrations of Bustamante, Manley, and Seaga. She does not burden the reader with too much information; there's just enough to set the stage and get the reader to thinking about the political scene going on around Pao's personal narrative.

Pao is an excellent book about a little-written-about group - the Jamaican Chinese, a group that some readers may be discovering for the first time. Young left her homeland of Jamaica when she was just ten years old, but she is able to conjure up the flavor and feel of the country and give us not only wonderful characters that we will hold in our mind for a long time but also a real view and sense of the country that is Jamaica. For both lovers of West Indian literature and those who have never been exposed to it, this book is highly recommended. show less

Pao traces the history of 20th century Jamaica from British rule to independence and the economic imperialism which keeps profits funneling out of the country into British and American pockets. Pao comes to Jamaica as a boy, in the wake of the Chinese Civil War, and his family is taken in by a friend of his late father's, the godfather of Kingston's Chinatown. As Pao adapts to his new life, he makes friends in all social strata, marries the wrong woman, and struggles with his feelings for his children, his true love, and the people and culture of the island which has become his true home.

Pao's speech patterns are distinctive, and Young uses them to give a sense of place and culture. His Jamaica is multicultural, poverty-stricken, and show more subject to the whims of neocolonialist economic powers, but his story is engaging, complicated, and very real. Highly recommended. show less

I snagged this book last year as a LTER. I attempted to read it when I first got it, but wasn't engaged and had to put it down. This attempt was successful, however. I found the dynamic between cultures interesting: Jamaican vs Chinese, arranged marriage vs brothel mistress, tradition vs politics, hard work vs power. At times the novel seemed to drag with mob-like activities and historical information. Overall, I thought it was an okay book, but at times I did enjoy the reading experience.

This novel is narrated by Pao, who fled at the age of 14 from Guangzhou, along with his mother and brother, to Jamaica in 1938, after his father was killed during the second Sino-Japanese War. Uncle Zhang, a friend of Pao's father who is the godfather of Kingston's Chinese community, provides for the family and takes Pao under his wing. Pao quickly learns the business, and acquires more power and status as he provides protection for businesses and individuals in Chinatown and becomes an influential racketeer and businessman in his own right. He marries Fay Wong, the beautiful but self-absorbed daughter of another powerful businessman, which allows him to accrue more power but leads to personal grief and tragedy. Through Pao's narrative show more the reader learns about multicultural Kingston, the relationship between the races and different segments of the local community, and the history of Jamaica as a British colony and an independent though not completely free nation, where the majority struggle to overcome poverty and increasing violence while a select few profit handsomely and leave the island with their ill gotten gains.

Pao is an engaging narrator, whose Jamaican patois, frequent quotes from Sun Tzu's "The Art of War", and personal conflicts and successes make this an enjoyable and educational novel. However, the reader learns about the other characters through Pao's not entirely reliable eyes, and they are more inscrutable and less interesting as a result.

Th author was born in Kingston and emigrated to England in 1965 along with her Chinese father and Chinese-African mother, and her personal knowledge and experiences add flavor and integrity to this compelling debut novel. show less

This was another serendipitous find - having finished the book I was reading and not having my Kindle to hand i needed something to read on the journey home, and picked this up by chance as it was on special offer in Waterston'es at Trafalgar Square.
It proved to be an intriguing debut novel from Kerry Young following the life of Philip "Pao" Yang who at the age of 14 flees from China in 1938 following his father's death. He and his mother come to live with his "uncle" Zhang who has already established a robust protection network within the burgeoning Chinese community in Kingston, Jamaica. Zhang is a committed adherent of Mao Zedong, and brings the young Pao up to believe in the necessity to display social responsibility, though this show more guidance is bolstered with immersion in the teachings of Sun Tzu.
Pao grows up learning the ropes of protection, benefiting from the steady source of income but never forgetting the responsibility to help his "clients" when necessary. He falls in love with Gloria, a beautiful prostitute, though he marries Fay Wong, daughter of another senior figure within the Chinese community.
The novel gives an interesting insight into Jamaican history (a subject about which I knew precisely nothing). Pao, despite his criminal activities, is essentially a very sympathetic character, and he takes great care of all of the people with whom he has any extended dealings.
Very different to my normal reading material, but very enjoyable, too. show less

Pao depicts life in a time and place that’s unusual for historical fiction: Jamaica, from pre-independence through to the present day. The narrator’s perspective is also unique. Yang Pao immigrated to Jamaica from revolutionary China as a boy of fourteen. He gradually built himself up into a benign gangster based in Chinatown, providing protection to Chinese merchants, running brothels and a gambling enterprise, and distributing stolen goods.

The story Pao tells covers his entire life, a long span of time that sees many changes in his adopted homeland. Pao relates the events of his life as a series of vignettes. Known as “Uncle,” he solves problems for the people under his purview, such as when a young Chinese girl becomes show more pregnant by an older white man, or a waitress witnesses a murder involving a powerful resident. He experiences some personal turmoil, battling with his estranged wife over their children, but for the most part, Pao’s life is peaceful and prosperous. His story, while interesting for its historical detail and different point of view, lacks vital conflict.

At its heart, Pao is a political novel, but here it falls somewhat short. Pao loves Jamaica and holds strong views about how the country can become more self-sufficient, especially during its turbulent post-Independence days. But Pao remains a passive observer, never involving himself in politics. As a narrator, he only glosses over the important events in Jamaica’s history and the political life of the country. He even refers to the country’s leaders mostly by their nicknames. For a reader who doesn’t know much about Jamaica but would like to learn more, this scanty summary can be frustrating. I was left wanting more: more detail, more politics, more involvement by Pao in the events he watches unfold.

Pao is narrated by its title character, and the entire book is written in dialect, a pidgin English in which words are dropped, verb tenses don’t agree, and the language mimics spoken speech. Because Kerry Young is Chinese-Jamaican herself, I assume the dialect is authentic. It’s not easy to write an entire book in dialect and keep it readable, but the author mostly succeeds. I found the broken English a little tiresome at times, but mostly it was very readable. What bothered me more is that I didn’t understand the roots of the dialect. Does Pao speak that way because he is Chinese or because he is mimicking Jamaican speech, or is it a combination of both? I wish Young had provided more context to help readers understand the language as well as the history of her setting and characters.

Pao is a first novel, and it is primarily an enjoyable, light read, especially for fans of historical fiction who are looking for something new. My main criticisms of the book are not of what is there, but of what is missing, mainly more historical detail, more conflict, and a deeper understanding of the characters and their home country. When an author leaves you wanting more, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I look forward to future writing from Kerry Young.

Early Reviewers' win. Article first published as Book Review: Pao by Kerry Young on Blogcritics. I wrote this review and retain the right to republish it. (2011) show less