Scan barcode
A review by yunsq
Among the Braves: Hope, Struggle, and Exile in the Battle for Hong Kong and the Future of Global Democracy by Timothy McLaughlin, Shibani Mahtani
5.0
A must-read that’s somehow fallen under the radar. I can’t emphasise this enough.
Throughout the book, I felt like I was reading stories of familiar strangers, names that rang a bell because they were reported in the media as passing headlines and news updates. I knew about the unrest in Hong Kong, that they were having a hard time, but never about the actual struggles they faced. I excused my ignorance.
There were many times throughout my reading where I was in tears, heart aching for the people — no different from you and me and only separated by fate — who decided that this was worth fighting for.
The authors did such a good job at reporting, recounting and presenting narratives untold and largely unheard of in mainstream media. I feel lucky to be able to read about the lives of people of Hong Kong who fought for the city’s dignity and freedom in exchange for their own. The writing, empathetic but factual, portrays these people as human, not all-stars, who struggle with depression and failure and rejection. This are stories of the braves, who are not few and far between in Hong Kong. It is also about how remembering and recording are also tools for resistance — when protests are banned and voices violently silenced — this is how we resist constructed amnesia.
My only hope is that this spirit of bravery still lives in the hearts of the people of Hong Kong, no matter how buried or beaten down it is.
Glory to Hong Kong
Throughout the book, I felt like I was reading stories of familiar strangers, names that rang a bell because they were reported in the media as passing headlines and news updates. I knew about the unrest in Hong Kong, that they were having a hard time, but never about the actual struggles they faced. I excused my ignorance.
There were many times throughout my reading where I was in tears, heart aching for the people — no different from you and me and only separated by fate — who decided that this was worth fighting for.
The authors did such a good job at reporting, recounting and presenting narratives untold and largely unheard of in mainstream media. I feel lucky to be able to read about the lives of people of Hong Kong who fought for the city’s dignity and freedom in exchange for their own. The writing, empathetic but factual, portrays these people as human, not all-stars, who struggle with depression and failure and rejection. This are stories of the braves, who are not few and far between in Hong Kong. It is also about how remembering and recording are also tools for resistance — when protests are banned and voices violently silenced — this is how we resist constructed amnesia.
My only hope is that this spirit of bravery still lives in the hearts of the people of Hong Kong, no matter how buried or beaten down it is.
Glory to Hong Kong