I was surprised at how much I loved this book and all the different aspects that brings it all together. I related to the character in many ways, while also learning a whole lot about Hong Kong that I never knew about. The ode to underground art and music scenes and millennial impulses was especially moving.

Cheung’s memoir gives me a much more realistic view of what Hong Kong was like before and after the return of the island to China. She shows us why Hong Kong residents choose to stay rathe than flee. Cheung was 4 years old when the British returned the city to China. Her coming-of-age story seems to be that of the city’s coming of age. Frustrated and coping with depression, Cheung paints a stark picture of life under communist rule. She continually confronts readers with the resistance to injustice. The underground places Cheung takes her readers shows a Hong Kong I knew nothing about.

I chose to read THE IMPOSSIBLE CITY (#gifted @penguinrandomhouse @netgalley | out Feb. 15) because I wanted to read more books that reflected my heritage. As the Canadian-born child of Hong Kong immigrants, I wanted to learn more about where my parents came from - THE IMPOSSIBLE CITY showed me that this is a lot more complicated than it seems.
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THE IMPOSSIBLE CITY is hard to categorize - part memoir, journalistic reporting, and political commentary, the main theme of the book is that there is no singular definition of what it means to be a Hong Konger. There are expats, international school kids, upper and middle class, and each of these groups has its own version of Hong Kong. Unfortunately, the rich diversity that makes Hong Kong so unique is disappearing as the Chinese government imposes more anti-democratic laws. Karen Cheung does a great job depicting the various contradictions that make up Hong Kong. She critiques the housing and mental healthcare systems while praising the city's indie music scene and quirky neighbourhoods. And of course, all of this exists under the shadow of impending Chinese rule, amidst protests and police brutality, adding an air of nostalgia, desperation, and sadness to the entire book.
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There were a few things I didn't love about the book. I found it a bit disjointed and disorganized, the verb tenses shifted between past and present randomly (a weird pet peeve of mine!), and there was a long section about indie music that didn't really interest me! However, this book is a great read if you are looking to learn more about Hong Kong from someone who is actually from there!

Hong Kong is one of my favorite cities but my Hong Kong is not Cheung's Hong Kong because, most importantly, she's a resident who grew up and experienced all the changes the city has experienced since handover in 1977. This is more memoir than travelogue (duh) and readers should know that at times, her mental health struggles are universal. That said, it's also a cogent and thoughtful look at young people living in the middle of a city that's in conflict with itself on so many levels- economic, social, and political. I appreciated the insight into the protests. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. An interesting read.

In "The Impossible City," Karen Cheung presents a narrative about the complex nature of Hong Kong as a result of its handover to China and how one develops a personal identity in a place that is rapidly changing. One way that the contents reflect the title of the book is the near impossibility of having a comfortable existence, or increasingly to even exist at all, in a city that promotes rapid development that is mostly accessible to its wealthiest citizens. The elements of Hong Kong that made it one of the world's most unique and exciting cities, such as the fishing villages, mom and pop stores, and glowing neon signs, have been and are being overtaken by luxury buildings and the communist need for uniformity. Also, Cheung highlights how the apparent promise to allow Hong Kong to maintain its independence was a total lie, and now all generations, especially that to which Cheung belongs, is struggling with the decision to stay in a place that is marked by the replacement of free elections and some democracy with the Chinese police state. Cheung's education in a mix of local and international skills highlights the city's global element, but it will be interesting to see how Hong Kong continues to change in the forthcoming months and years.

Part memoir, part protest reporting, and part cultural analysis, Karen Cheung weaves together a moving narrative about Hong Kong from the 1997 handover to 2021 through the lens of her own experiences. She talks about being a child during the handover and her lack of interest in politics growing up and the moment that interest shifted for her. And she talks about her family issues and her struggles with her mental health and her inability to fit in whether that be at the international primary school she attended or the "local" school where she finished her education and the lack of housing options and so much more.

Parts of the narrative felt disjointed. At the end, there is a note about how some of the pieces were adapted from essays she wrote for other publications and I'm not sure how successful the merge of those pieces was into a cohesive book.

That being said, I really liked enjoyed Cheung's writing. Whether she was writing about her personal struggles or the struggles of the city or the way she was trying to come to terms with her feelings on her home, the whole book was steeped in a sort of nostalgia that was very evocative.

I reviewed this book in the Asian Review of Books at https://asianreviewofbooks.com/content/the-impossible-city-a-hong-kong-memoir-by-karen-cheung/

I found this book to be overwhelming and almost cacophonous. It's a slightly confined stream of consciousness and the author's pain shines through. In a sense, the book itself seems much like Hong Kong, and for that I give the author credit. For me, it was just too much of everything, but I think I will circle back to it someday when life itself is more calm.

It's difficult to accurately describe this book--not only is it a memoir of Hong Kong's tumultuous recent years, but it's also a memoir about mental illness and the Hong Kong music scene. As Cheung writes in her memoir, this is not a book filled with colorful descriptions of Hong Kong life. Rather, it is a raw, honest, and revealing life at not only the encroachment of China on Hong Kong, but also the difficulties of making it as a professional in Hong Kong.

One of the most intriguing parts was her thoughts on her Hong Kong identity as an author, and how Hong Kong authors are sometimes mistakenly referred to as "Asian American" (!!) because they speak/write English.

Librarians/booksellers: This is a unique and extraordinary memoir from a region that is rarely heard from in literature.

Many thanks to Random House/PRH and NetGalley for a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Through her decision to use her own life as the narrative lens, plus her willingness to share her past with such raw and open honesty and introspection, Karen Cheung has created a work that seems to be the best intimate look into present day Hong Kong that any outsider like myself could possibly ask for. Whether she was describing the insecurities she experienced in school, or the hardship that she faced while trying to manage her own mental health, no matter what aspect of herself she was touching upon, she was able to put at least several of her city’s numerous contradictions and overlapping identities on clear and eye-opening display. It feels like the only way I could have gotten a better sense of the city was if I purchased a plane ticket and had Cheung personally guide me around. She does a magnificent job capturing Hong Kong in the last few decades as a city hopelessly caught in several simultaneous transitions, packed with stresses and uncertainties, and despite it all is still unambiguously and unmistakably home for her and millions of others.