'Jana Chan has produced a wonderfully lush and atmospheric odyssey of survival against all odds' Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other

'A strong picaresque element powers this saga' Daily Mail

'Michelle Jana Chan brings a world of equal peril and possibility to life with her rich, radiant prose' Tatler

'A beautifully told tale with fascinating historical insight' Vanity Fair

Song is just a boy when he sets out from Lishui village in China. Brimming with courage and ambition, he leaves behind his impoverished broken family, hoping he'll make his fortune and return home. Chasing tales of sugarcane, rubber and gold, Song embarks upon a perilous voyage across the oceans to the British colony of Guiana, but once there he discovers riches are not so easy to come by and he is forced into labouring as an indentured plantation worker.

This is only the beginning of Song's remarkable life, but as he finds himself between places and between peoples, and increasingly aware that the circumstances of birth carry more weight than accomplishments or good deeds, Song fears he may live as an outsider forever.
This beautifully written and evocative story spans nearly half a century and half the globe, and though it is set in another century, Song's story of emigration and the quest for an opportunity to improve his life is timeless.