Kitchen Tiles: A Collection of Salty, Wet Stories from the Bar-Rooms of Hong Kong

by Feng Chi-Shun

The Cantonese call anyone lecherous, and anything salacious, harm sup literally salty and wet. And the code word for all things harm sup is "kitchen tiles." Anyone who has stepped into a Chinese kitchen knows it is like a war zone, with broth and condiments spilt all over the place; hence the tiles are deemed salty and wet. Kitchen Tiles looks at the lascivious aspects of Hong Kong society. All these stories are based on true experiences. Names and circumstances might have been changed, but the sentiment and spirit remain authentic."

196 pages, Paperback

First published February 7, 2016

About the author

Feng Chi-shun is a naturalized US citizen, but considers Hong Kong — where he grew up and attended medical school — his home. His formative years were spent in Kowloon’s Diamond Hill district, where people were poor but life was rich.

Trained as a pathologist, he has published close to 100 scientific articles on his medical research. He has also been a columnist for the South China Morning Post, the leading English-language newspaper in Hong Kong.

Feeling deprived as a child, he is making up for lost time by living life to its fullest. He is an aficionado of wine and cigars, and a part-time punter attracted to roulette, poker, mahjong and horse racing. In his spare time, he plays golf and tennis, and shoots a mean game of pool. He intends to live in Hong Kong for the rest of his life.

Reviews

[Brendon Desrochers · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read like a local newspaper columnist putting together his "best" clips. Kind of a Dave Barry without the wit. There were some interesting observations of culture, both in Hong Kong and elsewhere, and it was a quick read, which was its saving grace.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny quick read. Stories are quite short, two or three pages at most, easily read in a couple hours