We are honored to host a virtual reading and visit by Karen Cheung, author of THE IMPOSSIBLE CITY, in discussion with Ruby member, Vivien Sin, CEO and Co-founder of The Third Place.
Joining us from Hong Kong, Karen will read a section from her new book, a powerful blend of both memoir and reportage, on the post-1997 generation in Hong Kong. THE IMPOSSIBLE CITY reflects on Hong Kong as a place of intense contradictions and extremes through an intimate, unflinching personal narrative interwoven with interviews of musicians, protesters, and writers who have watched their hometown go through multiple transformations over the last three decades.
Karen will also join us for a Q&A and moderated discussion, hosted by Ruby member, Vivien Sin. We hope to include the audience in our discussion of the book, so encourage everyone to purchase a copy from one of our local bookstores, or borrow from a local library.
About THE IMPOSSIBLE CITY
The Impossible City paints a portrait of the generation of young people in Hong Kong who came of age after the 1997 handover, weaving memoir, reportage, and cultural criticism to examine the city's political history, the lack of mental healthcare and affordable housing, and its underground music scene. Drawing richly from her own experience, as well as interviews with musicians, protesters, and writers who have made Hong Kong their home, journalist Karen Cheung gives us a view of this remarkable city at a critical moment in history.
“Hums with the thrill of being lost in this massive, haunted, mythologized, neon city, yet finding oneself in the end.” —Hua Hsu, author of A Floating Chinaman
One of the most anticipated books of 2022 —Entertainment Weekly, PureWow
“With her radiant prose and incisive reporting, Karen Cheung renders modern-day Hong Kong with evocative detail in The Impossible City. There is an unmissable passion and intelligence in this story as Cheung weaves together cultural criticism and memoir.” —Kat Chow, author of Seeing Ghosts
About Karen Cheung
Karen Cheung is a writer and journalist from Hong Kong. Her essays, cultural criticism, and reported features have appeared on This American Life and in The New York Times, Foreign Policy, The Rumpus, and others. She was formerly a reporter at Hong Kong Free Press, and once ran an indie magazine about culture and music in Hong Kong.
About Vivien Sin
Vivien Sin is a San Francisco-based artist born and raised in Hong Kong. In June 2019, she was moving her installation piece, Recollection of Memories I Never Had, from Noyers sur Serein to Hong Kong when the anti-extradition protests broke out. She joined the first protest in lieu of planned exhibitions for the Tiananmen Massacre's 30th anniversary.