Illustrated by Catherine Choi
Pickle the Porcupine lives high in the hills of Hong Kong, where he loves to nibble on tree trunks. But one day he finds himself lost in the busy streets of the city. How can he find his way home to the forest?
This poetic and fun tale of a loveable local creature will introduce you to all sorts of Hong Kong transport: ferries, buses, trams and more. See how many kinds of transport you have travelled on!
The classic, the comical, and plenty of rude ones too
By Lindsay Varty and Iris Yim, illustrated by Amber Tsang
Ever feel like a chicken talking to a duck? Ever ask a girl out, only to be forced to eat lemons? Maybe you've been told that you're a peanut guy? Or perhaps someone has warned you that you're wearing a green hat?
No need to be confused! This little dictionary of Cantonese slang will supply you with all the appropriate knowledge to get by in Hong Kong and make you cool at office parties. With illustrations and translations, as well as English slang alternatives, both Cantonese and English speakers can learn and laugh at the joys (and vulgarities) of Hong Kong slang in a celebration of local culture.
Everyone loves dinosaurs, but so many other groups of wonderfully weird (and often giant) animals used to roam the Earth too – they just never had as good a publicist. The planet has seen tons of bizarre-looking mammals, which were closer to us both in biology and in time.
What if they took a holiday from being extinct?
Take a trip around the globe with these outlandish “time tourists” as they visit the modern-day places each species once called home. Colour your way through space and time and help make their travels brilliant!
Part of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Studies Series
The Peak is Hong Kong’s top residential district, where property prices are as high as the altitude. How did it become an exclusive enclave in the bustling business centre of 19th-century Asia?
The British wanted relief from summer heat and the Peak was the obvious place to escape it. When the Governor adopted Mountain Lodge as a summer getaway, development accelerated and the opening of the Peak Tram in 1888 made access easier. Gradually a community developed and a church, a club and a school were established.
This fully illustrated book describes how the now-popular tourist area developed over time and adapted as needs changed.
In 2020 a large album of “paper horses” – prayer prints of Chinese gods – appeared for sale. How had these fragile things, cheaply printed in the 1940s and meant to be ritually burned soon after purchase, survived intact for so long? And how come there were at least three other identical sets in collections around the world?
In answering this mystery, author David Leffman explores the history and techniques behind traditional Chinese woodblock printing, which dates back to at least the Tang dynasty (618-907). All 93 “paper horses” in the original album are reproduced alongside biographies of the gods, spirits and demons depicted, providing an illustrated introduction to the complex and fascinating world of Chinese folk religion.
LOOK INSIDE THIS BOOK
Click the following links to read excerpts from the book.
with a foreword by John Blofeld
Chinese gods: Who are they? Where did they come from? What do they do?
Chinese folk religion is the underlying belief system of more than a billion Chinese people. Go into any Chinese home, office or restaurant and you will see altars, statues or paper ‘good luck’ images. And wherever there is a Chinese community there are temples and Earth God shrines. But what is the religion that makes sense of all these expressions of belief? How do these beliefs connect to Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism?
Chinese Gods helps us understand the building blocks of this religion for which even the Chinese have no name – because the beliefs are so intertwined with language and culture they have no independent existence – and provides an in-depth analysis of 19 of the major gods of the Chinese pantheon.
Look inside this book
Click on the links to view sample pages from Chinese Gods.
With sensitivity and tenderness, Starkie Mak has captured a tale of the immigrant experience, from the eyes of a child. Masterfully rendered with careful homage paid to the children’s books that have touched the hearts of so many, Mak’s brush strokes and calligraphy evoke the turbulent emotions and difficulties a child must surely experience when having their little world upended, only to have a much larger and foreign world unfold before them.
In a heartbreaking parting, a child says goodbye to her family and is left with her imagination as guide. In search of a new life in a new land, a child retreats into the realm of fantasy. Through the devastating pain of childhood loss emerges the joy of a child’s triumph.
Illustrated by Catherine Choi
Welly the wild boar loves nothing better than eating fluffy egg puffs! He roams his home city of Hong Kong in search of his favourite snack, but he finds many other tasty foods to try along the way.
This poetic and fun tale of a loveable local creature will introduce you to traditional Hong Kong snacks and persuade you to go out and try some for yourself. See how many of these hometown street foods you can find!
Illustrated by Jane Tanner
Shortlisted for the 2018 Australian Prime Minister's Literary Award, Children's Fiction
A captivating and beautifully illustrated story about three sisters who find a stranded whale on a windswept beach and try to save it.
"A story of the sea and the possibilities of interactions between humans and other creatures… a story of human kindness and hope" - Magpies
Ages 4 to 8
Illustrated by Lucy Parris
Returning to Hong Kong in 1947 after the Japanese occupation, seven-year-old Mark Isaac-Williams had the whole of Kowloon as his playground. Billeted with his family in the once-grand but now dilapidated Peninsula hotel, his life was full of adventure – from the rooftop to the basement, he knew the hotel's every inch.
Roller-skating and horseback riding in Kowloon's streets and paddling in the hotel's fountain were a child's dream after the privations of war. From rickshaws to firecrackers and ladies with bound feet to the ever-present rat problem and smelly beancurd vendors, the mystique of Hong Kong in the 1940s and 50s is brought colourfully to life by Mark's captivating and richly illustrated story.
“The Hong Kong I Knew captures all the glory and quirkiness of a burgeoning east-meets-west colony at mid-century. Fizzing firecrackers, rickshaws in the rain, balusters of bamboo scaffolding – the charming illustrations and commentary are sure to inspire fond nostalgia for a bygone time.” — Claire Chao, author of Remembering Shanghai
Curated by Benjamin Salmon
Imagine an illegally built mini-city formed of multiple 12-storey blocks, taking up only the area of a sports stadium but home to 60,000 people. What was it like living in the most densely populated place on Earth?
Intrepid 22-year-old artist Fiona Hawthorne spent three months inside the notorious Walled City of Kowloon, an apparent no-go area right in the heart of bustling Hong Kong. This book reveals the sensitive and extraordinary artworks she created there. It is a unique record of a time and place that no longer exists.
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
Meet Oswald Ox, bone idle on the farm, just chewing his cud and rolling in the mud while all the other animals are hard at work. No wonder he’s in trouble! Then the winter stores go missing, and Oswald is firmly in the frame. Will wisdom and dignity triumph over meanness and greed? A tale for our times…
Features Chinese farming practices including the use of oxen, rice paddies and farm animals.
Ages 7 to 10
French artist Zabo arrived in Hong Kong in 1967, and condensed his year-long stay into a book of cartoons which has come to be known as an emblem of the era.
Hong Kong’s street scenes, people and fashions are humorously illustrated with sharp satire, covering popular pastimes, social etiquette, age-old traditions and the customs of local people as well as foreign residents.
Even half a century later, Zabo’s portrayal of Hong Kong still rings true, and his take on local life will resonate with everyone who lived through the Swinging Sixties – or wishes they had.
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
It’s 1420, and the mighty Yongle Emperor loves every inch of the brand new Forbidden City… but most of all he loves PORK! Enter Ping Pong Pig, a plump, pretty and altogether delicious pig, and her nemesis, the Minister of Most Important Things. Will Ping Pong achieve her life’s ambitions, or will they be cut short on a Ming Dynasty platter? Find out in this crackling tale of trickery, camouflage and porcine pursuit!
Features Zhu Di, the Yongle Emperor; the Forbidden City; Admiral Zheng He’s giraffe; the quest of Chinese emperors for the Elixir of Life; and the characteristics of people born in the Year of the Pig.
Age range: 6 to 12
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
Everybody adores Sybil Snake – she’s beautiful, clever and extremely charming. But all is not as it seems in the Emperor’s menagerie, and Sybil is more of an enchantress than meets the eye! A tale of mystery, missing treasure and the extraordinary magic of love. Ssss… sss… ss… s… s… s…
Features the Legend of Lady White Snake, the true story of Wu Zetian (China’s only female Emperor) and Kublai Khan’s famous menagerie.
Age range: 7 to 12
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
It's 135BC and Emperor Han Wudi is desperate for a horse… but not just any horse. The horse he wants is tall, dark and handsome, fleet as a bird and free as a gipsy. But will it ever be pinned down? A tale of mystery, history and the fabulous Silk Road!
Highlights the “heavenly horses” of the Ferghana Valley, Han Wudi and his conquest to the West, and the Silk Road.
Age range: 7 to 12
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
Rickshaw is a proud, vain and extremely noisy rooster living in the backstreets of 1920s Shanghai. When the Annual Race along the famous Bund is announced, winning is a matter of national pride for the contestants representing Shanghai’s international Concessions. But Rickshaw Rooster has other ideas! Will the foreigners win again, or will a local hero carry the day? Find out in this tale of loyalty, ruffled feathers and cocky determination!
Highlights 1920s Shanghai, its famous Bund, the international concessions, the end of empire and the rise of nationalism in China, and the special characteristics of people born in the Year of the Rooster.
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
Desmond Dog is noble, honest and brave… but he’d also make an excellent pirate!
Will the hero of the fishing village of Hong Kong be lured into a life of crime by infamous pirate queen Ching Shih? Find out in this exciting tale of trickery, temptation… and treasure!
Ages 6 to 12
In this joyful travel sketchbook, Hong Kong is captured through the hearts of a writer and an artist.
From the winding, incense-filled streets of Sheung Wan to the pandemonium of a wet market in North Point to the sleepy island backwater of Tai O, Lena Sin and Nicholas Tay take you on a wonder-filled journey that shines a light on the softer, more romantic side of this chaotic city.
Filled with tales of growing up in Hong Kong, Lena weaves personal anecdotes and conversations with locals with richly-illustrated watercolours and photographs by herself and artist husband Nicholas. The result is an intimate portrait of a city that is at once vibrant and energetic as well as charming and nostalgic.
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
Ming Kee is the cheekiest monkey in Yunnan, and her jungle friends are getting REALLY annoyed! Then one day she offends the Emperor Taizong of Tang! Ming Kee flees the jungle… but where has she gone, and will she ever return? And will she ever mend her mischievous ways? A tale of mayhem, monkey business… and the getting of wisdom!
Highlights the famous Legend of the Monkey King, the extraordinary 7th-century Buddhist explorer Xuanzang, and the exceptional biodiversity of Yunnan Province.
with John Peters and Lizzie Sharp-Eliazar
Did you leave your fishing rods at home before relocating to Hong Kong, unaware that such a densely populated place could support recreational fishing?
Mike Sharp and John Peters walk you through the local angling spots and describe key tactics normally known only by Hong Kong anglers. Carp fishing, pier fishing, and trolling for game fish are just some of the topics covered in a warm, descriptive text beautifully illustrated by Lizzie Sharp-Eliazar.
Whether you live in a skyscraper or a village, this book will encourage you to get out onto the territory's beautiful waters or rocky shore and cast a line―in the hope that the next one will be the one that didn't get away.
Look inside this book
Click on the images on the left to view sample pages from Fishing in Hong Kong.
Illustrated by Harry Harrison
Rodney Ram is gorgeous, from his ear-tips to his toes. But there’s just one problem – he doesn’t want to lead his flock! Then famine grips Guangdong Province, and the sheep are in mortal danger. Will Rodney rise to the challenge, and save their woolly hides? Find out in this shaggy tale of shyness, sheep and an awful lot of luck!
Features the Legend of the Five Rams of Guangzhou, the city of Guangzhou and the history of rice cultivation in China. Shortlisted for the Golden Dragon Book Awards 2016.
Age range: 6 to 12
