Hollow Bamboo
with William Ping
Hosted by Lisa Moore
Podcast Memoir
By turns funny and infuriating, Hollow Bamboo immerses the reader in the lived experience of anti-Asian racism in Canada. A magical green creature, a millennial, and the author share a wry sensibility in this entertaining debut novel.
Writers Festival Radio is pleased to present this conversation between Lisa Moore and William Ping.
The hilarious and heartbreaking story of two William Pings in Newfoundland—the lost millennial and the grandfather he knows nothing about
William Ping’s millennial life revolves around eating at restaurants, posting online about eating at restaurants, then overanalyzing it. This changes unexpectedly when a dinner with his Chinese girlfriend’s family goes sideways and his insecurity about his biracial identity and his ignorance of his own Chinese heritage overflow. During a much-needed break from the dinner table, Will is visited in the men’s room by a sarcastic, bullying spirit named Mo. The spirit whisks him into the past to learn about the life of his grandfather, the first William Ping, who emigrated from China to Newfoundland in 1931 to work in a laundry.
Based on a true story, Hollow Bamboo recounts with humour and sympathy the often-brutal struggles, and occasional successes, faced by some of the first Chinese immigrants in Newfoundland. It is a journey of heartbreak, sacrifice, brotherhood and family ties. But most of all, it is about love and survival on the Rock.
Books are available from our friends at Perfect Books.
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