Gold by the Inch: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: One of the two best of 1999!
Review: An extraordinary and compelling novel, especially in its bold and simple language, its force; GOLD BY THE INCH is one of the two best books I've read this year, along with Colm Toibin's THE STORY OF THE NIGHT!

Rating:
Summary: Petulant tale of sex tourism and racial vengeance
Review: Even the self-hatred in this narrative is self-indulgent. The narrator (/author?) loathes white gay men who find him attractive and enters into the very hackneyed attempt to have a meaningful, loving relationship with a prostitute. The narrator/author recognizes that to some extent he is a privileged American, but does not notice that in Malaysia (and, to a lesser extent, in Thailand) he is part of a quasi-colonial privileged Chinese elite.

Rating:
Summary: Petulant tale of sex tourism and racial vengeance
Review: Mr. Chua's novel is both compelling and jarring. One thread of the narrative is a coy, enticing peek into the underbelly of Thailand's sexual trade that invites as it sickens. Simultaneously, another thread accusingly points out the rape of the country and its people by both Western invasion and internal greed. The narrator's native land is not what he wants it to be, nor can it ever be. As he bitterly discovers -- aiming his distaste at his prostituted homeland and, through manipulations of narrative structure, his prostituted self -- one can never go home. One can, however, discover some rather ugly truths about oneself on the trip. Written in an clipped, disturbing style, Chua's vivid images of the world the narrator finds abroad are haunting and beautiful, falling easily across the pages like shiny marbles one wants to gather together but finds recklessly spilling onto the floor. Some reviewers have complained that the novel is not satisfying enough in reaching its ambitions, leaving readers wanting more. But I feel being intentionally deprived in this sense only underlines Chua's point: the culture of purchased sex and plentiful drugs is only a limited, temporary satisfaction for a person/nation being lead into self-destruction while searching in vain for lost foundations.

Rating:
Summary: Mesmerizing Flights of Prose
Review: One thing that Chua does exceedingly well is stylizing. Nevermind the story (if it were a bit more connected, I'd give him 5 stars). He is brassy, he is vulnerable. He is vulgar, he is tender. This is the sort of book that requires much of its readers. Those who take it at face value will hate it (as some of the reviewers above have). The narrator may not be likeable, but then again there is a reason why the author made him that way. Those who prefer to be spoonfed should turn to Stephen King or Higgins or Danielle Steel.

I like this book because it has guts. It'll make you wince and gag and chew your lips to shred. Chua has the power of a very keen poet. Highly recommended to writers or those with a deep appreciation for prose.