Excellent novel - well worth the time, 12 Feb 2004
Many themes are in the novel, the most obvious being the trials of immigrants/emigrants but the deeper theme is Mukherjee's concern with identity and the adaptability of people. The protagonist has a name for each persona: Jyoti, Jasmine, Kali, Jase, Jane indicating her psychological passage, tempting to say Anglicisation, but adaptation is really the point I think.

An engaging tale is backed up by a sparse and excellent first person narrative. In terms of the obvious temptation of being judgemental about either or both East and West, Mukherjee refrains and lets the reader decide. What isn't there is perhaps most significant and this makes it a very mature book. Compare that, say, to another immigration book, The Grapes of Wrath which, whilst good, over-labours the point (in my opinion, anyway!) The language here is simple and unpretentious and punctuated by the occasional very visual metaphor: "The trees were stooped and gnarled, as though the ghosts of old women had taken root." There's no posing or experimentalism and the author lets the story tell the story.

The only possible issue is my partner's (a Sikh Punjaban) criticism that her move to the US seems unlikely (young widow persuading her brothers to help her make the trip.) Having had the pleasure of staying myself in some Punjaban villages close to Jullander last year I have an inkling for what she's saying (coupled with an extra interest in the book) but still remain ignorant enough for this not to bother me in my assessment of it!

A great book that's undoubtedly not got the respect it deserves.

Wondefully written, 09 Jul 2000
This is a superbly written tale of the immense spiritual and cultural difficulties that immigrants to the US face, particularly when they have to give up so much of their previous lives, as is the case with the protagonist in this novel. Mukherjee is never judgmental and illustrates through the eyes of an Indian immigrant woman (and the theme of femininity is an essential aspect of this book) the struggle to conform and be comfortably middle class, even in a nation founded on immigration.

Mukherjee's language is spare, neat and at times beautifully poetic. Even the most terrifying episodes are written serenely and with an immense control that only the very best authors of fiction can achieve. I urge you to buy this book both for its quality and its cultural significance, given the wealth of asian immigration into the US at the moment in time.

Excellent novel - well worth the time, 12 Feb 2004
Many themes are in the novel, the most obvious being the trials of immigrants/emigrants but the deeper theme is Mukherjee's concern with identity and the adaptability of people. The protagonist has a name for each persona: Jyoti, Jasmine, Kali, Jase, Jane indicating her psychological passage, tempting to say Anglicisation, but adaptation is really the point I think.

An engaging tale is backed up by a sparse and excellent first person narrative. In terms of the obvious temptation of being judgemental about either or both East and West, Mukherjee refrains and lets the reader decide. What isn't there is perhaps most significant and this makes it a very mature book. Compare that, say, to another immigration book, The Grapes of Wrath which, whilst good, over-labours the point (in my opinion, anyway!) The language here is simple and unpretentious and punctuated by the occasional very visual metaphor: "The trees were stooped and gnarled, as though the ghosts of old women had taken root." There's no posing or experimentalism and the author lets the story tell the story.

The only possible issue is my partner's (a Sikh Punjaban) criticism that her move to the US seems unlikely (young widow persuading her brothers to help her make the trip.) Having had the pleasure of staying myself in some Punjaban villages close to Jullander last year I have an inkling for what she's saying (coupled with an extra interest in the book) but still remain ignorant enough for this not to bother me in my assessment of it!

A great book that's undoubtedly not got the respect it deserves.

Wondefully written, 09 Jul 2000
This is a superbly written tale of the immense spiritual and cultural difficulties that immigrants to the US face, particularly when they have to give up so much of their previous lives, as is the case with the protagonist in this novel. Mukherjee is never judgmental and illustrates through the eyes of an Indian immigrant woman (and the theme of femininity is an essential aspect of this book) the struggle to conform and be comfortably middle class, even in a nation founded on immigration.

Mukherjee's language is spare, neat and at times beautifully poetic. Even the most terrifying episodes are written serenely and with an immense control that only the very best authors of fiction can achieve. I urge you to buy this book both for its quality and its cultural significance, given the wealth of asian immigration into the US at the moment in time.

Well plotted exploration of Modern Bengali Society, 11 Aug 2006
This book was a breath of fresh air to me. (Fed up of reading about white characters all the time whose lives & aspirations in no way reflect the facts of our own - as if ours do not merit a look in).

The author has cleverly twisted a plot involving very real elements of intrigue and immigration with details about what it actually is like now to live across continents and be a part of the new "diaspora". Written a bit pulpily - probably to give Indians a streetwiseness away from the usual grandoise/ self-important pomposity that they (get?) branded with - or brand themselves with?

The only thing that did not seem to tie in well was the extended plot regarding the ancestor who married a tree... Unless I missed some hidden parable?

Early promise not fulfilled, 21 Jun 2004
At the beginning of the book, the author seems to have all the elements of a fascinating story. By the end, it seems as if she couldn't quite decide what she wanted to write about and just finished off the novel as quickly as she could. The book's main theme is Bengali family tradition but it also touches on illegitimate birth, criminals preying on family loyalties, the East/West cultural conflict and resistance to the Raj. Worth reading? Yes, for a few really enlightening moments, but don't expect the book's early promise to be fulfilled.

An absorbing novel of stunning contrasts., 25 Dec 2002
With one of the all-time great opening chapters, a traditional Hindu marriage of a five-year-old girl, Mukherjee establishes her themes, conflicts, and contrasts. Amidst the lyrical, atmospheric details of flickering oil lamps, the impenetrable jungle, banks of fog, and smoke from cooking fires, she inserts the singular detail of retching coughs from tuberculosis, suddenly shocking the reader and abruptly signaling that this is not a novel which will sugarcoat reality. And when the bride's and groom's families differ in interpreting the events which occur on the way to the ceremony and the bride ends up married to a tree, "It seems all the sorrow of history, all that is unjust in society and cruel in religion has settled on her."

Tara Chatterjee, the main character and a descendant of the tree bride, is an orthodox Bengali Brahmin from a well-known Hindu family, someone who accepted without question the groom her father chose for her and who settled in the U.S. when he established a business in California. Now a woman in her mid-thirties residing in Atherton, California, she is divorced, raising her son alone, living with a red-haired biker, and teaching kindergarten. When a stranger, Christopher Dey, arrives at her house claiming to be the illegitimate son of one of her older sisters, she is shocked and forced to contend with the issues he raises, while facing possible dangers, as she tries to check out his story.

The contrasts between life in Calcutta and Atherton, between her ex-husband and her lover, and between her traditional, protected life in India and her free and independent life in the U.S. are very obvious throughout, but as Tara deals with the complexities of Christopher Dey's appearance, we also see how tradition and family stories also guide her inner world, shape her responses, and affect both her views of the external world and her behavior within it--even after she has "changed worlds."

At times the contrasts in Tara's life seem exaggerated and perhaps less realistic than they could be, with the dramatic plot and its violence somewhat at odds with the more subtle (and, to me, more interesting) internal conflicts she faces. The shocking climax, which causes Tara to reevaluate her connections to the past and plan for the future, brings the themes full circle, while leaving some of the details unresolved, perhaps appropriate to a novel about cultural differences. Mary Whipple

Excellent novel - well worth the time, 12 Feb 2004
Many themes are in the novel, the most obvious being the trials of immigrants/emigrants but the deeper theme is Mukherjee's concern with identity and the adaptability of people. The protagonist has a name for each persona: Jyoti, Jasmine, Kali, Jase, Jane indicating her psychological passage, tempting to say Anglicisation, but adaptation is really the point I think.

An engaging tale is backed up by a sparse and excellent first person narrative. In terms of the obvious temptation of being judgemental about either or both East and West, Mukherjee refrains and lets the reader decide. What isn't there is perhaps most significant and this makes it a very mature book. Compare that, say, to another immigration book, The Grapes of Wrath which, whilst good, over-labours the point (in my opinion, anyway!) The language here is simple and unpretentious and punctuated by the occasional very visual metaphor: "The trees were stooped and gnarled, as though the ghosts of old women had taken root." There's no posing or experimentalism and the author lets the story tell the story.

The only possible issue is my partner's (a Sikh Punjaban) criticism that her move to the US seems unlikely (young widow persuading her brothers to help her make the trip.) Having had the pleasure of staying myself in some Punjaban villages close to Jullander last year I have an inkling for what she's saying (coupled with an extra interest in the book) but still remain ignorant enough for this not to bother me in my assessment of it!

A great book that's undoubtedly not got the respect it deserves.

Wondefully written, 09 Jul 2000
This is a superbly written tale of the immense spiritual and cultural difficulties that immigrants to the US face, particularly when they have to give up so much of their previous lives, as is the case with the protagonist in this novel. Mukherjee is never judgmental and illustrates through the eyes of an Indian immigrant woman (and the theme of femininity is an essential aspect of this book) the struggle to conform and be comfortably middle class, even in a nation founded on immigration.

Mukherjee's language is spare, neat and at times beautifully poetic. Even the most terrifying episodes are written serenely and with an immense control that only the very best authors of fiction can achieve. I urge you to buy this book both for its quality and its cultural significance, given the wealth of asian immigration into the US at the moment in time.

Well plotted exploration of Modern Bengali Society, 11 Aug 2006
This book was a breath of fresh air to me. (Fed up of reading about white characters all the time whose lives & aspirations in no way reflect the facts of our own - as if ours do not merit a look in).

The author has cleverly twisted a plot involving very real elements of intrigue and immigration with details about what it actually is like now to live across continents and be a part of the new "diaspora". Written a bit pulpily - probably to give Indians a streetwiseness away from the usual grandoise/ self-important pomposity that they (get?) branded with - or brand themselves with?

The only thing that did not seem to tie in well was the extended plot regarding the ancestor who married a tree... Unless I missed some hidden parable?

Early promise not fulfilled, 21 Jun 2004
At the beginning of the book, the author seems to have all the elements of a fascinating story. By the end, it seems as if she couldn't quite decide what she wanted to write about and just finished off the novel as quickly as she could. The book's main theme is Bengali family tradition but it also touches on illegitimate birth, criminals preying on family loyalties, the East/West cultural conflict and resistance to the Raj. Worth reading? Yes, for a few really enlightening moments, but don't expect the book's early promise to be fulfilled.

An absorbing novel of stunning contrasts., 25 Dec 2002
With one of the all-time great opening chapters, a traditional Hindu marriage of a five-year-old girl, Mukherjee establishes her themes, conflicts, and contrasts. Amidst the lyrical, atmospheric details of flickering oil lamps, the impenetrable jungle, banks of fog, and smoke from cooking fires, she inserts the singular detail of retching coughs from tuberculosis, suddenly shocking the reader and abruptly signaling that this is not a novel which will sugarcoat reality. And when the bride's and groom's families differ in interpreting the events which occur on the way to the ceremony and the bride ends up married to a tree, "It seems all the sorrow of history, all that is unjust in society and cruel in religion has settled on her."

Tara Chatterjee, the main character and a descendant of the tree bride, is an orthodox Bengali Brahmin from a well-known Hindu family, someone who accepted without question the groom her father chose for her and who settled in the U.S. when he established a business in California. Now a woman in her mid-thirties residing in Atherton, California, she is divorced, raising her son alone, living with a red-haired biker, and teaching kindergarten. When a stranger, Christopher Dey, arrives at her house claiming to be the illegitimate son of one of her older sisters, she is shocked and forced to contend with the issues he raises, while facing possible dangers, as she tries to check out his story.

The contrasts between life in Calcutta and Atherton, between her ex-husband and her lover, and between her traditional, protected life in India and her free and independent life in the U.S. are very obvious throughout, but as Tara deals with the complexities of Christopher Dey's appearance, we also see how tradition and family stories also guide her inner world, shape her responses, and affect both her views of the external world and her behavior within it--even after she has "changed worlds."

At times the contrasts in Tara's life seem exaggerated and perhaps less realistic than they could be, with the dramatic plot and its violence somewhat at odds with the more subtle (and, to me, more interesting) internal conflicts she faces. The shocking climax, which causes Tara to reevaluate her connections to the past and plan for the future, brings the themes full circle, while leaving some of the details unresolved, perhaps appropriate to a novel about cultural differences. Mary Whipple

Well plotted exploration of Modern Bengali Society, 11 Aug 2006
This book was a breath of fresh air to me. (Fed up of reading about white characters all the time whose lives & aspirations in no way reflect the facts of our own - as if ours do not merit a look in).

The author has cleverly twisted a plot involving very real elements of intrigue and immigration with details about what it actually is like now to live across continents and be a part of the new "diaspora". Written a bit pulpily - probably to give Indians a streetwiseness away from the usual grandoise/ self-important pomposity that they (get?) branded with - or brand themselves with?

The only thing that did not seem to tie in well was the extended plot regarding the ancestor who married a tree... Unless I missed some hidden parable?

Early promise not fulfilled, 21 Jun 2004
At the beginning of the book, the author seems to have all the elements of a fascinating story. By the end, it seems as if she couldn't quite decide what she wanted to write about and just finished off the novel as quickly as she could. The book's main theme is Bengali family tradition but it also touches on illegitimate birth, criminals preying on family loyalties, the East/West cultural conflict and resistance to the Raj. Worth reading? Yes, for a few really enlightening moments, but don't expect the book's early promise to be fulfilled.

An absorbing novel of stunning contrasts., 25 Dec 2002
With one of the all-time great opening chapters, a traditional Hindu marriage of a five-year-old girl, Mukherjee establishes her themes, conflicts, and contrasts. Amidst the lyrical, atmospheric details of flickering oil lamps, the impenetrable jungle, banks of fog, and smoke from cooking fires, she inserts the singular detail of retching coughs from tuberculosis, suddenly shocking the reader and abruptly signaling that this is not a novel which will sugarcoat reality. And when the bride's and groom's families differ in interpreting the events which occur on the way to the ceremony and the bride ends up married to a tree, "It seems all the sorrow of history, all that is unjust in society and cruel in religion has settled on her."

Tara Chatterjee, the main character and a descendant of the tree bride, is an orthodox Bengali Brahmin from a well-known Hindu family, someone who accepted without question the groom her father chose for her and who settled in the U.S. when he established a business in California. Now a woman in her mid-thirties residing in Atherton, California, she is divorced, raising her son alone, living with a red-haired biker, and teaching kindergarten. When a stranger, Christopher Dey, arrives at her house claiming to be the illegitimate son of one of her older sisters, she is shocked and forced to contend with the issues he raises, while facing possible dangers, as she tries to check out his story.

The contrasts between life in Calcutta and Atherton, between her ex-husband and her lover, and between her traditional, protected life in India and her free and independent life in the U.S. are very obvious throughout, but as Tara deals with the complexities of Christopher Dey's appearance, we also see how tradition and family stories also guide her inner world, shape her responses, and affect both her views of the external world and her behavior within it--even after she has "changed worlds."

At times the contrasts in Tara's life seem exaggerated and perhaps less realistic than they could be, with the dramatic plot and its violence somewhat at odds with the more subtle (and, to me, more interesting) internal conflicts she faces. The shocking climax, which causes Tara to reevaluate her connections to the past and plan for the future, brings the themes full circle, while leaving some of the details unresolved, perhaps appropriate to a novel about cultural differences. Mary Whipple

Excellent novel - well worth the time, 12 Feb 2004
Many themes are in the novel, the most obvious being the trials of immigrants/emigrants but the deeper theme is Mukherjee's concern with identity and the adaptability of people. The protagonist has a name for each persona: Jyoti, Jasmine, Kali, Jase, Jane indicating her psychological passage, tempting to say Anglicisation, but adaptation is really the point I think.

An engaging tale is backed up by a sparse and excellent first person narrative. In terms of the obvious temptation of being judgemental about either or both East and West, Mukherjee refrains and lets the reader decide. What isn't there is perhaps most significant and this makes it a very mature book. Compare that, say, to another immigration book, The Grapes of Wrath which, whilst good, over-labours the point (in my opinion, anyway!) The language here is simple and unpretentious and punctuated by the occasional very visual metaphor: "The trees were stooped and gnarled, as though the ghosts of old women had taken root." There's no posing or experimentalism and the author lets the story tell the story.

The only possible issue is my partner's (a Sikh Punjaban) criticism that her move to the US seems unlikely (young widow persuading her brothers to help her make the trip.) Having had the pleasure of staying myself in some Punjaban villages close to Jullander last year I have an inkling for what she's saying (coupled with an extra interest in the book) but still remain ignorant enough for this not to bother me in my assessment of it!

A great book that's undoubtedly not got the respect it deserves.

Wondefully written, 09 Jul 2000
This is a superbly written tale of the immense spiritual and cultural difficulties that immigrants to the US face, particularly when they have to give up so much of their previous lives, as is the case with the protagonist in this novel. Mukherjee is never judgmental and illustrates through the eyes of an Indian immigrant woman (and the theme of femininity is an essential aspect of this book) the struggle to conform and be comfortably middle class, even in a nation founded on immigration.

Mukherjee's language is spare, neat and at times beautifully poetic. Even the most terrifying episodes are written serenely and with an immense control that only the very best authors of fiction can achieve. I urge you to buy this book both for its quality and its cultural significance, given the wealth of asian immigration into the US at the moment in time.

Well plotted exploration of Modern Bengali Society, 11 Aug 2006
This book was a breath of fresh air to me. (Fed up of reading about white characters all the time whose lives & aspirations in no way reflect the facts of our own - as if ours do not merit a look in).

The author has cleverly twisted a plot involving very real elements of intrigue and immigration with details about what it actually is like now to live across continents and be a part of the new "diaspora". Written a bit pulpily - probably to give Indians a streetwiseness away from the usual grandoise/ self-important pomposity that they (get?) branded with - or brand themselves with?

The only thing that did not seem to tie in well was the extended plot regarding the ancestor who married a tree... Unless I missed some hidden parable?

Early promise not fulfilled, 21 Jun 2004
At the beginning of the book, the author seems to have all the elements of a fascinating story. By the end, it seems as if she couldn't quite decide what she wanted to write about and just finished off the novel as quickly as she could. The book's main theme is Bengali family tradition but it also touches on illegitimate birth, criminals preying on family loyalties, the East/West cultural conflict and resistance to the Raj. Worth reading? Yes, for a few really enlightening moments, but don't expect the book's early promise to be fulfilled.

An absorbing novel of stunning contrasts., 25 Dec 2002
With one of the all-time great opening chapters, a traditional Hindu marriage of a five-year-old girl, Mukherjee establishes her themes, conflicts, and contrasts. Amidst the lyrical, atmospheric details of flickering oil lamps, the impenetrable jungle, banks of fog, and smoke from cooking fires, she inserts the singular detail of retching coughs from tuberculosis, suddenly shocking the reader and abruptly signaling that this is not a novel which will sugarcoat reality. And when the bride's and groom's families differ in interpreting the events which occur on the way to the ceremony and the bride ends up married to a tree, "It seems all the sorrow of history, all that is unjust in society and cruel in religion has settled on her."

Tara Chatterjee, the main character and a descendant of the tree bride, is an orthodox Bengali Brahmin from a well-known Hindu family, someone who accepted without question the groom her father chose for her and who settled in the U.S. when he established a business in California. Now a woman in her mid-thirties residing in Atherton, California, she is divorced, raising her son alone, living with a red-haired biker, and teaching kindergarten. When a stranger, Christopher Dey, arrives at her house claiming to be the illegitimate son of one of her older sisters, she is shocked and forced to contend with the issues he raises, while facing possible dangers, as she tries to check out his story.

The contrasts between life in Calcutta and Atherton, between her ex-husband and her lover, and between her traditional, protected life in India and her free and independent life in the U.S. are very obvious throughout, but as Tara deals with the complexities of Christopher Dey's appearance, we also see how tradition and family stories also guide her inner world, shape her responses, and affect both her views of the external world and her behavior within it--even after she has "changed worlds."

At times the contrasts in Tara's life seem exaggerated and perhaps less realistic than they could be, with the dramatic plot and its violence somewhat at odds with the more subtle (and, to me, more interesting) internal conflicts she faces. The shocking climax, which causes Tara to reevaluate her connections to the past and plan for the future, brings the themes full circle, while leaving some of the details unresolved, perhaps appropriate to a novel about cultural differences. Mary Whipple

Well plotted exploration of Modern Bengali Society, 11 Aug 2006
This book was a breath of fresh air to me. (Fed up of reading about white characters all the time whose lives & aspirations in no way reflect the facts of our own - as if ours do not merit a look in).

The author has cleverly twisted a plot involving very real elements of intrigue and immigration with details about what it actually is like now to live across continents and be a part of the new "diaspora". Written a bit pulpily - probably to give Indians a streetwiseness away from the usual grandoise/ self-important pomposity that they (get?) branded with - or brand themselves with?

The only thing that did not seem to tie in well was the extended plot regarding the ancestor who married a tree... Unless I missed some hidden parable?

Early promise not fulfilled, 21 Jun 2004
At the beginning of the book, the author seems to have all the elements of a fascinating story. By the end, it seems as if she couldn't quite decide what she wanted to write about and just finished off the novel as quickly as she could. The book's main theme is Bengali family tradition but it also touches on illegitimate birth, criminals preying on family loyalties, the East/West cultural conflict and resistance to the Raj. Worth reading? Yes, for a few really enlightening moments, but don't expect the book's early promise to be fulfilled.

An absorbing novel of stunning contrasts., 25 Dec 2002
With one of the all-time great opening chapters, a traditional Hindu marriage of a five-year-old girl, Mukherjee establishes her themes, conflicts, and contrasts. Amidst the lyrical, atmospheric details of flickering oil lamps, the impenetrable jungle, banks of fog, and smoke from cooking fires, she inserts the singular detail of retching coughs from tuberculosis, suddenly shocking the reader and abruptly signaling that this is not a novel which will sugarcoat reality. And when the bride's and groom's families differ in interpreting the events which occur on the way to the ceremony and the bride ends up married to a tree, "It seems all the sorrow of history, all that is unjust in society and cruel in religion has settled on her."

Tara Chatterjee, the main character and a descendant of the tree bride, is an orthodox Bengali Brahmin from a well-known Hindu family, someone who accepted without question the groom her father chose for her and who settled in the U.S. when he established a business in California. Now a woman in her mid-thirties residing in Atherton, California, she is divorced, raising her son alone, living with a red-haired biker, and teaching kindergarten. When a stranger, Christopher Dey, arrives at her house claiming to be the illegitimate son of one of her older sisters, she is shocked and forced to contend with the issues he raises, while facing possible dangers, as she tries to check out his story.

The contrasts between life in Calcutta and Atherton, between her ex-husband and her lover, and between her traditional, protected life in India and her free and independent life in the U.S. are very obvious throughout, but as Tara deals with the complexities of Christopher Dey's appearance, we also see how tradition and family stories also guide her inner world, shape her responses, and affect both her views of the external world and her behavior within it--even after she has "changed worlds."

At times the contrasts in Tara's life seem exaggerated and perhaps less realistic than they could be, with the dramatic plot and its violence somewhat at odds with the more subtle (and, to me, more interesting) internal conflicts she faces. The shocking climax, which causes Tara to reevaluate her connections to the past and plan for the future, brings the themes full circle, while leaving some of the details unresolved, perhaps appropriate to a novel about cultural differences. Mary Whipple

Pretentious racialist trash, 23 Aug 1999
The colonizer here is a Malaysian-born New Yorker pursuing the inscrutable orientalized (Thai) hustler and taking out some of his aggressions on a European (Danish) tourist. Of course, the unnamed narrator considers himself a victim--not how most Malaysians regard families like his.

Wine turned blood, fantasy made real in brown flesh., 01 Jul 1999
"Its those vines. They always bring you back to the forest" (59). This book is the wine turned blood, fantasy made real in flesh. Vulgar. Hard. My ever-shifting diasporan world contextualized through Lawrence's haunting precision of an eye: Plaridel, Nueva York, Daly City, Maui. Violent Empowerment. Colonial Violence. History's infinite expanse recycled into stolen tongues, brownlands, coca leaves. Queens, prostitues and manlovers are humanized. Borderless maps drawn with history's desires. Lawrence constructs a blueprint for my kind's existence by narrating our real encounters. He is an architect of souls. I too am in love with his badboy, Thong. Thong can devour my dreams anytime. Lawrence is my twin. The only difference is he writes in pages, i live in them. The language of the book has got this beat. It brings me back to the ghetto lifestyle, WUTANG slicing their tracks and Nas verse-writing. Utang means debt where am from. Props. My newyorkcity summer feels like home as I pull the book away from my face. Browner!

I was left on the beach while Lawrence splashed in the deep, 08 Apr 1999
I recently read Lawrence Chua's rendering of a young man's experience of returning to Thailand to confront himself. I was on vacation in Bangkok/Pattaya at the time and the images he drew were all too real for me. Unfortunately the spell was broken from time to time when Lawrence seemed to go a little too deep or symbolic. It seemed as though he was writing for himself and not the reader. I felt that I needed a little more clarity before he went spinning off into all of the little word-game images.

The parts that were "right on" were the narrative and the description of the environment, whether it was the inside of a toilet, the coast line, or a hotel room. I felt the abandoned feeling from the drugs and the not-belonging of the protagonist. I felt him searching and trying to connect as I have done, although in a much different way. I could not ignore my own desperation when reading Gold by the Inch. Lawrence esposed several different relationships and kept a relentless pressure in regards to confronting oneself. The culmination of which, for me, was how to determine the value of ourself and other people and then extract every ounce of it before discarding the human being.

Lawrence Chua has written a very believable novel and I am anxious to order another and see if he can raise the same feelings and discover the same hiding places he found with Gold by the Inch. And, by the way, what a great title.

The most Forward Looking Book of the Year, 07 Dec 1998
Chua's novel has garnared mixed critical reception in large part because he succeeds so boldly in inventing a new literary language. The novel's experience hinges on the interplay between it's artfully wrought chapters, the space between words as important as the words themselves. Like Toni Morrison did with Beloved, Chua not only challenges the legitimacy of master narratives, his stylistic choices also find a way to write past them. A challenging and unsettling read that remains fully engaging. Chua is a writer to watch closely.

Too many subplots and not enough reflection, 23 Nov 1998
I think the NYT Book Review summarized it best... "too diffused and stylized to provide a deeper reflection." It's a pity that the writer succumbed to stylizing his prose because he has a keen eye for observation which is unfortunately lost in trying to be too cute.