These ten original ghost stories dramatize the history of Chinese immigration to North America — from the poor village men who first came searching for gold in the late 1850s to the new immigrants who arrived from Hong Kong in the wake of the Cultural Revolution. These stories describe the resilience and struggle of people trying to make new lives for themselves in a strange land. But these are also ghost stories, a popular narrative form in China. Though men and women seek their fortune in the New World, the links to China are strong.

Wherever they go, the Chinese immigrants are reminded of their home country — the curse of a friend betrayed, the ghost of a faithful spouse, the spirit of a dead parent. The tales describe the plights and dreams of men and women, rich and poor, greedy and good, young and old. Together, they tell the tumultuous story of 140 years of Chinese immigration to North America, creating a New World mythology of immigrant stories.