Being Chinese. Helene Wong  

Writer, director and actor Helene Wong visited Dunedin City Library in July to present a talk she had first given at the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival in May this year, following the publication of her book Being Chinese: A New Zealander's Story. Entitled Inside Outside, the talk addressed Helene’s sense of self, and how it feels to have been born in New Zealand to migrant parents. Helene’s talk was delivered with humour and grace, yet still managed to hold up a mirror to New Zealand that conveyed the sense that we should take a good look at ourselves as a nation.

Intrigued by her fascinating discourse, which led the audience on a journey through the history of New Zealanders’ attitudes towards Chinese, and the writer’s own experiences growing up in Lower Hutt, I picked up a copy of Being Chinese to add it to my growing pile of ‘to read’ books. By habit I flicked through the first couple of pages, intending to then park it for a while on the bedside table. However, I quickly discovered that Being Chinese is a book you can’t put down. From the opening lines I was captivated by Helene’s story, which swept along at a cracking pace from 1950’s New Zealand to 1980’s China in just the first few chapters, treating the reader to a culture shock similar to Helene’s own when travelling to her parents’ homeland for the first time.

Charming, witty, and written with delightful detail, Being Chinese puts the question of identity and belonging firmly under the spotlight. The glimpses the book gives into the Chinese traditions and culture observed by families in New Zealand are related with wry humour, and these are neatly contrasted with those more strictly observed in China.

Helene’s account of her experience as a New Zealander who does not always feel like one is genuine and open-hearted, without a hint of bitterness, despite the descriptions of the writer’s encounters with racial stereotyping and bigotry. This is both a moving memoir, and important social commentary, which I personally believe will open doors between cultures – something this world sorely needs.

Being Chinese: A New Zealander's Story is published by Bridget Williams Books.