An entertaining, expansive, and eye-opening novel that captures the vibrance of China today, by a writer whose previous work has been called “mesmerizing,” “haunting,” “breathtaking,” “mercilessly gripping,” “seductive,” and “luminous.” Phoebe is a factory girl who has come to Shanghai with the promise of a job - but when she arrives she discovers that the job doesn't exist. Gary is a country boy turned pop star who is spinning out of control. Justin is in Shanghai to expand his family's real-estate empire, only to find that he might not be up to the task. He has long harboured a crush on Yinghui, who has reinvented herself from a poetry-loving, left-wing activist to a successful Shanghai businesswoman. She is about to make a deal with the shadowy figure of Walter Chao, the five-star billionaire of the novel, who - with his secrets and his schemes - has a hand in the lives of each of the characters. All bring their dreams and hopes to Shanghai, the shining symbol of the New China, which, like the novel's characters, is constantly in flux and which plays its own fateful role in the lives of its inhabitants. Five Star Billionaire, the dazzling kaleidoscopic new novel by the award-winning writer Tash Aw, offers rare insight into China today, with its constant transformations and its promise of possibility.
Publication Year: 2013
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I'm not sure if it says more about me, or about Aw's own biases, that when reading this book I was much more interested in the female characters than the male. The guys are both suffering from too much success while the women are both trying to work their way up to it.
Phoebe presents a very interesting character to diagnose. Is she delusional? Is she narcissistic? Is she getting what she deserves when she sets out to use but instead ends up being used? I truly admired her drive and her guts to make something of herself. I thought the book would end with her rich but miserable but instead the narrative almost punishes her for her ambitions. It ends quite strangely, this girl- who has given everything she has to get to where she is -gives up. And it's honestly not very clear why.
My mind is still trying to pick away at that ending. The only person who truly had a 'happy ending' was the pop star. The one who is revealed to be a violent and deeply traumatised person. Yinghui, the other female character is punished for being too naive and trusting. Wouldn't she be able to sue him? There are laws about this surely? And Justin never reveals what is his new work and how is it fulfilling him. Too many loose ends and questions.
Nevertheless I enjoyed most of this book. The setting, the callbacks to rural Malaysia, the way the characters briefly touch upon each other's lives. I guess it's quite smart that the five star billionaire in the end kills two birds with one stone. He brings down the Lim family's business and makes a ton of money scamming a hapless woman with one proposal.
I just wish it had ended better. If asked to describe what this book is about, I would say it's a warning to other aspiring capitalists out there. Don't assume you'll be happy. Success is business often rings hollow.
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