Mr Polly's Bonfire Party

Augustus John Polly is a restless academic uncomfortable in the colonial environment of 1950s Hong Kong. Prompted by sexual fantasies he is drawn into a conspiracy that unfolds disastrously. Amidst the decline of empire a restless colonialist in Hong Kong debates the meaning of history. By turns funny and philosophical this story of one man's whimsy - but also courage - in taking a side challenges our own complacencies with political notions of right and wrong as well as the inequalities of our own time. - Cyril Wong poet and fictionalist. Mr. Polly's world is a rich tapestry. The reader is transported to a world already gone but not forgotten. It's a cornucopia of themes impressions and moods. Like preparing a magical potion in a sorcerer's cauldron Malcolm Jack's prose effectively uses a number of fascinating ingredients: The blend is sensuous lascivious delicious funny witty ironic intellectual philosophical political historical and human - a true cornucopia of life. - João Mendonça translator and author. Malcolm Jack's latest is a page-turner a taut political thriller that never loses its momentum. The text has a cinematic quality the protagonist a quiet Briton who contemplates the end of history and the fragility of empire. Hong Kong is lovingly and nostalgically depicted in glorious Technicolour as a city on the brink of change at once beguiling and inscrutable. - Kennie Ting historian and curator.