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"Hong Kong: Epilogue to an Empire", Jan Morris
Penguin, 2000

The 1997 edition of Jan Morris' well-loved, and re-issued Hong Kong book was updated just before the handover of the former British colony to the Chinese government. The new section attempts to deal with the emotions of the residents of this anomalous state on the eve of their migration to another government. The 2000 edition has a new introduction.

The majority of the book presents a remarkable picture of Hong Kong past and present as Morris weaves the views and street scenes of today into the colony's history. From ignominious beginnings as an opium port, Hong Kong has been based on one thing: money. Entrepreneurialism has always been rife, yet interlaced as it is with more traditional Chinese cultural concepts such as feng shui, capitalism Hong Kong-style has always been slightly different.

Morris' descriptions are, as ever, lucid. Some like her prose style, others find it ingratiating at times, and certain passages in this book are a little cloying. But overall, the quality of her research, observation and empathy for Hong Kongers comes across. Governor after Governor come under her writer's knife, and few emerge unscathed by the process. Yet all the while that she elaborates on how Hong Kong has survived and prospered under its colonial rulers, she never lets us forget that from its earliest days, this is a Chinese city, with a Chinese population dwarfing all others.

As a work of historical reference on Hong Kong, this has to be one of the more pleasurable to read. As a work of contemporary comment on a state in transition, it has to be one of the most grounded and apolitical. JT

Overall verdict: Insightful and colourful take on what makes Hong Kong special.
Also by Jan Morris: Destinations & Journeys
Also see Historical
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Originally published in 1977, this is the first of Theroux's travel books and it remains one of the best. This is a book about transport as much as travel: the train is the inspiration, the destinations almost an inconvenience.

Theroux takes a circular ride from London via Iran, India, south-east Asia, Japan and Russia. The passages by air or road are glossed over, and this is one of the more infuriating aspects of the book. Theroux's interest in trains means that entire passages are missed. He ends one chapter in Calcutta and starts the next in Rangoon, with little description of what happened between the two.

The places visited are sometimes hardly granted a mention. If you're looking for a thorough description of the places Theroux visits, try one of the many Silk Road travel tomes (Danziger's Travels by Nick Danziger and In Xanadu by William Dalrymple are particularly worthwhile). Theroux is unimpressed by many of the destinations: the tombs of Cain and Abel in India are almost accused of being fakes, Teheran has "little interest" and Afghanistan is "a nuisance".

But this inconvenience is made up for by the romance of the trains. It starts with the names: "The Khyber Mail to Lahore Junction", "The Mandalay Express", "The Ozora Big Sky Limited Express to Sapporo", and, of course "The Trans-Siberian Express".

Theroux enthuses about the look and feel of the trains, although avoids train-spotter detail. He's most at home watching the scenery go by, smoking, drinking, reading, and chatting to fellow passengers. The human contact is one of the most appealing aspects of the book. Where other travel writers indulge in historical or geographical detail, Theroux enthuses about his fellow passengers. Thus we meet Duffill, who is abandoned (without luggage) in Italy, we meet tycoons and drug addicts, we meet the US military in Vietnam, and Chinese dentists in Sri Lanka.

Indeed, it's the people who really make the book. Although in places the book is starting to look dated (travelling through Afghanistan would be more difficult these days), the people to be met at today's railway bazaar are probably similar to those Theroux meets. The reader has Theroux to thank for plucking up the courage to speak to them all. OR

Overall verdict: An all-time travel writing classic. Definitely worth a read, and probably a re-read too.

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