Where Strange Gods Call

As a young American, Harry Hervey dreamt of travelling to Asia. In 1923, he arrived to spend time in Hong Kong, Macao and Guangzhou. His impressions of southern China are lyrical and detailed, atmospheric and informative. From the basement dives of Kennedy Town to the private dining rooms of Queens Road, and Macaos Praia Grande to its fan-tan houses, Hervey is a fascinating flaneur. So too in Guangzhou, a city in tumult, where he encounters those fleeing warlord violence and is granted an audience with Dr Sun Yat-sen. Herveys impressions of China would stay with him for the rest of his life, not least in his treatment for the 1932 movie Shanghai Express. Describes a lost world: the Canton, Macao and Hong Kong of the 1920s. Written by a young American traveller who would later become a renowned screenwriter of the 1930s. Includes his interview with revolutionary leader Dr Sun Yat-sen which is perhaps the last interview Dr Sun gave to an American writer before his death less than a year later.