Golden Boy Read online

  kumshaw alms (of Cantonese origin)

  kwai a ghost; more accurately a disembodied spirit

  Kwan Ti the god of war and literature, and the patron god of secret brotherhoods, the police and many others

  lai see packet a red paper envelope printed with gold lettering and containing money: usually given as a gift at Chinese New Year

  loh siu a rat (or mouse)

  mai dan the bill

  Mat yeh? What? (rudely implying What do you mant?)

  m’ho bad or no

  m’ho cheen Literally, no money

  m’koi thank you (for a service or act); also, on occasion by implication, please

  muntjak a small, indigenous deer, also known as a barking deer on account of its dog-like call

  Nei wui mui gong ying mun? Do you speak English?

  Nei giu mut ye meng? What is your name?

  Nei ho ma? How do you do?—a common greeting

  nga pin opium

  ng mun five dollars

  Ngo giu jo My name is …

  nullah an open drain, varying in size from two feet wide and three deep up to sixty feet wide and fifteen deep; usually built to cope with heavy rain or effluent

  pi lau a ceremonial archway

  praya a stone-fronted dock or esplanade

  pu-erh a variety of Chinese tea

  roorkee chair a folding camp chair used in India and rather like a film director’s chair

  sarong a Malay (usually Tamil) ankle-length cotton skirt worn by men

  saw hei combed or combed back (of hair)

  Sei Hoi Jau Dim Fourseas Hotel

  shadouf an ancient Egyptian crane-like irrigation mechanism for raising water

  sheh snake

  skink a common lizard

  suq an Arab market or bazaar

  taipan a wealthy businessman, traditionally the expatriate head of a major trading company or ‘noble house’

  ushabti a small ancient Egyptian funerary sculpture

  wan bay or inlet

  wei! hey! or, if used on the telephone, hello: the American equivalent would be Yoh!

  wok a type of cooking pot, used especially for shallow frying or searing

  won ton a deep fried dumpling of minced beef and pork, water chestnuts and onions

  yamen a building housing the home and office of a mandarin, magistrate or other regional administrator in dynastic times

  yat, yee, sam, sei, ng, lok … one, two, three, four, five, six …

  yum cha literally drink tea

  martin booth wrote the nonfiction histories Cannabis and Opium and the novel Hiroshima Joe, among many other books. He began this memoir of his childhood after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2002 and died shortly after completing the manuscript in 2004. An internationally known, Booker Prize – shortlisted novelist and writer, Booth was considered an authority on everything from the history of Chinese organized crime syndicates to the conservation of the African rhino. Opium: A History is regarded as the definitive book on the subject, and he is the author of eight other works of nonfiction, eleven novels, and five works of children’s fiction.

  JACKET DESIGN BY KAREN HORTON

  JACKET PHOTOGRAPH

  HONG KONG (CHINA: 1842-1997 BRIT. COLONY).

  VICTORIA (CENTRAL DISTRICT).

  “STREET SCENE WITH RICKSHAW AT A CROSSING”

  PHOTO, UND AT. (1950).

  CAKG-IMAGES/PAUL ALMASY

  GOLDEN BOY. Copyright © 2004 by Martin Booth. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied jn critical articles or reviews. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.

  THOMAS DUNNE BOOKS.

  An imprint of St. Martin’s Press.

  www.stmartins.com

  First published in Great Britain by Doubleday

  a division of Transworld Publishers

  eISBN 9781466818583

  First eBook Edition : April 2012