Paper Tigress

by Rachel Cartland

[Lianne]

I received a copy of this novel through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers programme in exchange for an honest review. This review in its entirety was originally posted at eclectictales.com: http://www.eclectictales.com/blog/2015/08/10/review-paper-tigress/

Suffice to say Paper Tigress was an interesting look into life and work in colonial Hong Kong in the twentieth century right up to its return to China in 1997 but also includes incidents that happened afterwards right up to Ms. Cartland’ retirement. I’m not wholly familiar with Hong Kong history or politics other than its place in British history and society of the time and the general happenings in the region in the twentieth century. So reading up about its infastructure, the obstacles it faced, and its customs was quite interesting. It can be dense at times, especially as this memoir looks at the administrative side of the work, but nonetheless very informative.

This book was also prettty great in following Ms. Cartland’s life and career. The reader reads as she rose up the ranks from her humble beginnings in England to gaining such a prominent position in the Hong Kong government, not to mention she was only one of two women who held such positions. Reading her experiences were very interesting–she had witnessed so much in her life and career–and quite inspirational in what’s she’s done and what she’s achieved.

Paper Tigress was overall a very interesting read. I learned a lot about what was going on at Hong Kong at the time as well as its unique relationships to China and the United Kingdom. It can be a bit dry at times if you’re not especially interested in politics and current events of the 20th century, but students of history and political science may be interested in checking out this title.