Timothy Mo, The Monkey King

Elaine Ho (University of Hong Kong)
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The Monkey King

(1978), tells the story of Wallace Nolasco, a Macanese of Portuguese descent. He becomes the son-in-law of Mr Poon, patriarch of the Poon family in Hong Kong, and is initially treated as an outsider to the family, manipulated and bamboozled by Mr Poon. Implicated in one of Mr Poon's dubious money-making schemes, Wallace and his wife have to take refuge outside the city, and away from the patriarch's immediate influence. Gradually, he becomes his own man, an entrepreneur and community organiser. Back in the Poon household, his status continues to rise until after Mr Poon's death and the disappearance of the eldest son, Ah Lung, he succeeds as patriarch, and becomes fully incorporated into the family and family culture.

As the first of Timothy Mo's novels, The Monkey King

1056 words

Citation: Ho, Elaine. "The Monkey King". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 November 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=138, accessed 28 March 2024.]

138 The Monkey King 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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