ducchan326's review against another edition
4.0
Not every story has a happy ending, and Tash showed this with three of the five people (at least from my perspective). Tash was able to have the reader look through five different perspectives from different wealth statuses and have them link together in some sense, whether it was by a random event in the past or present.
Even though reading this took longer than normal (for my pace), it was needed to see the different backgrounds of all five characters, whether it be physically told as part of the story or having the character "reminisce" the good ol' days. And yet, one doesn't know that one person, Walter Chao, is technically controlling the four in some sort of plot. Phoebe, reading his pseudo book on how to manifest rich and happen to have a random fling with before deciding that she's abandoning her "dream" of fining a rich husband; Gary, with his lost stardom due to his unruly behavior and slowly finding his way back by jumping back on stage for a "charity event; Justin (and his Sixth Uncle), who royalty screwed Walter and his father's plot of the land decided to screw him over by outbidding him on a piece of property AND buying his family's (now bankruptcy) company; and Yinghiu, who's father was killed by some unknown person, who is the Minister of Housing and also royalty screwed over him and his father, suckered her into putting all her businesses on collateral for this amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, only to see the funds randomly drew out and him dropping off the face of the Earth.
For someone who has never traveled to Shanghai or Malaysia, the author tries to paint a picture of both places with his words (but for me who's never really dove into Malaysian culture too much, it was kind of difficult to understand some of the terms).
Overall, not a bad novel to read, especially picking it up at a random thrift store because the title of the book looked interesting (and apparently, the same book Phoebe read).
Even though reading this took longer than normal (for my pace), it was needed to see the different backgrounds of all five characters, whether it be physically told as part of the story or having the character "reminisce" the good ol' days. And yet, one doesn't know that one person, Walter Chao, is technically controlling the four in some sort of plot. Phoebe, reading his pseudo book on how to manifest rich and happen to have a random fling with before deciding that she's abandoning her "dream" of fining a rich husband; Gary, with his lost stardom due to his unruly behavior and slowly finding his way back by jumping back on stage for a "charity event; Justin (and his Sixth Uncle), who royalty screwed Walter and his father's plot of the land decided to screw him over by outbidding him on a piece of property AND buying his family's (now bankruptcy) company; and Yinghiu, who's father was killed by some unknown person, who is the Minister of Housing and also royalty screwed over him and his father, suckered her into putting all her businesses on collateral for this amazing once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, only to see the funds randomly drew out and him dropping off the face of the Earth.
For someone who has never traveled to Shanghai or Malaysia, the author tries to paint a picture of both places with his words (but for me who's never really dove into Malaysian culture too much, it was kind of difficult to understand some of the terms).
Overall, not a bad novel to read, especially picking it up at a random thrift store because the title of the book looked interesting (and apparently, the same book Phoebe read).
faraiylia's review against another edition
2.0
Promising start, but the plot never quite hits the spot for me. I also found it hard to resonate with the characters. The male characters were emotionally devoid and dull and the female characters were just kind of..irritating.
misspalah's review against another edition
4.0
“Discussion of these men seemed innocent enough at first; Yinghui tried to shrug it off as merely catching up on gossip. But after a while she could no longer ignore the fact that her (securely married) friends were taking pity on her, particularly as the men in question were almost exclusively Western - for everyone knew that once a woman was past thirty-five, there was little point in even trying to hook up with a local guy: Westerners were so much more accepting of age. 'Are you trying to matchmake me?' she challenged them jokingly one day as the double-chilli fish head arrived. She expected them to be embarrassed by the exposure of their scheming ways, but instead they were upfront about it. 'Let's face it, one of them said, beginning to pluck the meat from the fish cheeks with her chopsticks, you can't be happy in a place like Shanghai if you're single. We're all feminists, blah blah blah, but this is not London or New York, you know, this is China. Without a husband, you won't be successful in your work. You can't expect to work the hours you do and come back to an empty apartment. Besides, if you want children, you have to get moving. We know it sounds cruel, but ... get real.?
- (Forget the past, look only the future) : 5 Star Billionaire by Tash Aw
.
.
Tash Aw’s writing is clear and very detailed. The flow is natural hence why his books is readable. Unfortunately, having 5 stories and 5 characters in a way linked to each other despite some of them barely knew one another is a laborious reading process. It took me about 4 days to finish this book and pondered on the said ending. Dont get me wrong, i did enjoy the book after passing 100 pages - I was rooting for both ladies, Phoebe and Yinghui as i always gravitated towards women characters. I really wanted Phoebe to succeed despite her shallowness and Yinghui to make her name respectable despite her blindness for love. Major plot happened in Shanghai but occasionally, these characters will catch a glimpse of their past in Malaysia - grew up in the rural area wither in Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Johor. One thing i noticed that none of them actually missed their birthplace (probably because of dark past they have while growing up). They also dont seem to want to return once they truly made it in Shanghai, China (at the end, some of them did return). While they did achieve what they wanted to do ; ambition and career wise, we can see how miserable these characters are. They craved affection and connection but was denied by harsh circumstances. I think what Tash Aw wanted to highlight here that the grass is not always greener on the other sides. Aside from that, materialism seems to be highlighted as well. Status, Names , Money and Class is the motivation of shifting to a bustling city like Shanghai. Everyone wanted to make it even Yanyan who’ve become a recluse woman after being laid off. Funny how the fifth character (some sort of narrator in a way) which is Walter in the book seems so familiar to me. His style, the way he reliving the past via stories / lessons and describing it in the chapter forcing me to remember that i have read this kind of style before. Indeed, I was right as i sense familiarity with Mohsin Hamid’s book - how to get filthy rich in rising Asia (which i already read but didnt really enjoy it). I would say this book does it a bit better. When it comes to migrant stories - capitalism has been the tool to why urban migration / migration is so famous. Everybody is seeking a better employment, better opportunities, better life somewhere else and fell in the trap of false promises. But it is not without flaws. Via Gary story, we are shown how Shanghai is ruthless , competitive and waits for no one. We have seen Gary at the peak of his career and also at the lowest of his career trying to survive when his popularity is fading. What made it more tragic, Gary has ventured from Malaysia to China just so he dont end up like his own mother , a mediocre musician / music teacher stuck in a rural town. As i remembered many points about Phoebe and her career progress in a spa centre, Yinghui and her tendency to seek validation either from her father and walter, Walter trying to force connection with phoebe that they both essentially the same - came from rural area and try to make it in the city, Gary and his late night online chatting with strangers - i couldnt for the life of me connect to Justin character and story. Maybe my brain already maxed out on 4 characters at a time or i felt that Justin chracter could have fleshed out more for me to care about him. Overall, it was 3.5 read for me but to give it 3 is unfair as the story did come full circle no matter how unsatisfactory the ending is. I honestly enjoyed ‘We the survivors’ more but i think this came close to how well Tash Aw constructed the structure of his storyline and eventually offered readers lessons of seeing society faltered under the gripe of greed in the name of modernization and development. I would recommend this if you have time and wanted to savor your book in a slow pace with abundance of description and sort of morally grey characters.
- (Forget the past, look only the future) : 5 Star Billionaire by Tash Aw
.
.
Tash Aw’s writing is clear and very detailed. The flow is natural hence why his books is readable. Unfortunately, having 5 stories and 5 characters in a way linked to each other despite some of them barely knew one another is a laborious reading process. It took me about 4 days to finish this book and pondered on the said ending. Dont get me wrong, i did enjoy the book after passing 100 pages - I was rooting for both ladies, Phoebe and Yinghui as i always gravitated towards women characters. I really wanted Phoebe to succeed despite her shallowness and Yinghui to make her name respectable despite her blindness for love. Major plot happened in Shanghai but occasionally, these characters will catch a glimpse of their past in Malaysia - grew up in the rural area wither in Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Johor. One thing i noticed that none of them actually missed their birthplace (probably because of dark past they have while growing up). They also dont seem to want to return once they truly made it in Shanghai, China (at the end, some of them did return). While they did achieve what they wanted to do ; ambition and career wise, we can see how miserable these characters are. They craved affection and connection but was denied by harsh circumstances. I think what Tash Aw wanted to highlight here that the grass is not always greener on the other sides. Aside from that, materialism seems to be highlighted as well. Status, Names , Money and Class is the motivation of shifting to a bustling city like Shanghai. Everyone wanted to make it even Yanyan who’ve become a recluse woman after being laid off. Funny how the fifth character (some sort of narrator in a way) which is Walter in the book seems so familiar to me. His style, the way he reliving the past via stories / lessons and describing it in the chapter forcing me to remember that i have read this kind of style before. Indeed, I was right as i sense familiarity with Mohsin Hamid’s book - how to get filthy rich in rising Asia (which i already read but didnt really enjoy it). I would say this book does it a bit better. When it comes to migrant stories - capitalism has been the tool to why urban migration / migration is so famous. Everybody is seeking a better employment, better opportunities, better life somewhere else and fell in the trap of false promises. But it is not without flaws. Via Gary story, we are shown how Shanghai is ruthless , competitive and waits for no one. We have seen Gary at the peak of his career and also at the lowest of his career trying to survive when his popularity is fading. What made it more tragic, Gary has ventured from Malaysia to China just so he dont end up like his own mother , a mediocre musician / music teacher stuck in a rural town. As i remembered many points about Phoebe and her career progress in a spa centre, Yinghui and her tendency to seek validation either from her father and walter, Walter trying to force connection with phoebe that they both essentially the same - came from rural area and try to make it in the city, Gary and his late night online chatting with strangers - i couldnt for the life of me connect to Justin character and story. Maybe my brain already maxed out on 4 characters at a time or i felt that Justin chracter could have fleshed out more for me to care about him. Overall, it was 3.5 read for me but to give it 3 is unfair as the story did come full circle no matter how unsatisfactory the ending is. I honestly enjoyed ‘We the survivors’ more but i think this came close to how well Tash Aw constructed the structure of his storyline and eventually offered readers lessons of seeing society faltered under the gripe of greed in the name of modernization and development. I would recommend this if you have time and wanted to savor your book in a slow pace with abundance of description and sort of morally grey characters.
eskimonika's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
emkatec's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
diannagendron's review against another edition
4.0
I feel like had I read this in paper-book form, I would have flipped back through it once done, to try and better connect the dots that lead up to that ending. Alas I broke my nook the morning after finishing this novel, and I think I'm still chewing on it. It's staying with me, and I always appreciate that quality in a book. I'd love to give it another perusal, just to make sure I 'got' everything. I am so utterly fascinated with Shanghai right now, and thoroughly enjoyed spending time in modern China. Aw really brought the setting & characters alive for me (discounting the pointedly enigmatic Walter), and I was more than content to spend time with them then, and there.
fishface's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
3.5 stars
Spoiler
Plot points were fairly transparent, although the mysterious lack of character names for each perspective did help maintain the mystique. It could have been more suspenseful however- from the minute Walter proposes Yinghui takes out a loan it becomes apparent he is going to steal from her, so the revelation of his personal grudge wasn't impactful like it could have been. Justin was my favourite character: I too want to shut myself off from the world. He was thriving, in his own way, once the family business collapsed and I feel like that's an interesting take on a character.neen_mai's review against another edition
4.0
Depressing and sad. Stories of several Malaysian migrants in Shanghai seeking happiness, success and love. Relatable yet sometimes quite absurd.
chantellekitty's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5