The Monkey and the Dragon

Memoir, biography and travel book, The Monkey and the Dragon is a story about China like nothing you've ever read.

This is a book about friendship, music, politics and life on the edge. Linda Jaivin first met Taiwan pop star Hou Dejian in 1981 when she was a journalist in Hong Kong, and his song 'Heirs of the Dragon' had made him a superstar. They became great friends.

In 1983 Hou defected to communist China, a stunning and bizarre move which shocked his friends and fans. In 1989 he was one of the last hunger-strikers on Tiananmen Square. When the tanks rolled in he helped saved thousands of lives, and afterwards he wouldn't be silenced. In 1990, the authorities forced him back to Taiwan, where he became a celebrity fengshui master...

From lighthearted absurdity to movingly rendered tragedy, and through the finely drawn character of Hou, bestselling author Linda Jaivin brilliantly reveals the personal and political tumult of a transforming China.

'Jaivin's writings on the '89 massacre rank amongst the fine pieces of reconstructive journalism.' John Birmingham