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Mr Ma and Son
Mr Ma and Son
Jan 12, 2026 9:58 PM

Author:Lao She,William Dolby

Mr Ma and Son

A deliciously funny and moving comedy-of-manners about a Chinese father and son's experiences at the height of London's Jazz Age

'He was in London - why be bothered looking at it? Wasn't it bad enough just being there?'

Newly arrived from China, Mr Ma and his son Ma Wei run an antiques shop nestled by St Paul's Cathedral, where they try to make a living amid the smog and bustle of 1920s London. As they struggle with money, misunderstandings and the ways of the English - from the overbearing patronage of missionary Reverend Ely to their well-meaning landlady Mrs Weddeburn and her carefree daughter - can understanding, even love, blossom? Both a moving story of the Chinese immigrant experience and a bitingly funny satire on the English, Mr Ma and Son delicately portrays the dreams and disappointments of those seeking a new life in a distant land.

Translated by William Dolby, with an introduction by Julia Lovell

Reviews

This honest, engaging memoir shares such gems . . . the perfect read for anyone who dreams big

—— The Times & The Sunday Times, Book of the Year

Raw and emotive . . . a powerful account of how Evaristo got to the top of her game - it's moving, but there's also much humour and joy

—— Independent

Manifesto combines the personal with the practical to powerful effect

—— The Guardian

Bernardine Evaristo is one of those writers who should be read by everyone, everywhere

—— Elif Shafak, author of the bestselling The Island of Missing Trees

A bold memoir. Prepare to be inspired

—— Psychologies

A meditation on personal transformation, cultural inequalities, activism, belonging, love and friendships - and above all, the power of creativity

—— New Statesman

Bernardine Evaristo is one of Britain's best writers, an iconic and unique voice, filled with warmth, subtlety and humanity. Exceptional

—— Nikesh Shukla, author of Brown Baby and The Good Immigrant

How I wish when I was 18, that someone - if not necessarily my school - had also thrust Manifesto into my hands

—— Evening Standard

Shimmers with unfailing self-belief and a strong vein of humility

—— The Spectator

This humorous and eye-opening memoir is fascinating . . . and beautifully told

—— Sunday Telegraph, Five Books That Will Make You See the World Differently

The autobiographical parts of the book serve as vivid lessons about the power of change, growth and self-confidence

—— The Daily Telegraph

The most striking feature of this moving and enjoyable book is her fearless openness. When the publishing world looked closed to her she prised it open with her daring fiction

—— The Sunday Times

Bernardine Evaristo is the most daring, imaginative and innovative of writers

—— Inua Ellams

Manifesto serves as not only a beautifully written, measured companion piece to the fictionalised lives of Girl, Woman, Other, but as a testament to Evaristo's own trailblazing commitment to creativity, education and activism

—— Buzzfeed

Here at last is the definitive social comedy of working motherhood

—— Washington Post

Funny, fast and full of nail-on-the-head observations

—— Daily Telegraph

The writing is sharp, funny and cleverly observant of the small details - funny, intelligent and insightful

—— Waterstone's Books Quarterly

Extremely funny

—— The Irish Times

Sparkling black comedy

—— Play

Pearson is a hilarious author who captures the guilt and the exhaustion of the working mother's life perfectly

—— Dublin Daily

It's the incisive details and Pearson's vivid writing that propel the story

—— New York Times Books

Smart book...great fun

—— New York Times

Pearson is insightful, witty and full of fun

—— Daily Telegraph

Wonderfully warm, witty and intelligent

—— Sunday independent

A Bible for the working woman

—— Oprah Winfrey

Her social observation is unerringly accurate...so beautifully written that it brought tears to my eyes, as well as a wry smile

—— Daily Telegraph

Pearson...to write a novel...that has already sold a gazillion copies and is going to become a film. Hats off to you, madam!

—— Ok Magazine

She will...make you laugh

—— Culture, Sunday Times

Pearson...has made it all fresh again

—— Time

Entertaining, compulsively readable, and brilliantly written

—— Daily Candy

Hilarious and...poignant

—— Publisher's Weekly

This terrific novel is alternately hilarious and sad

—— Upfront

It may change your life

—— The Observer

Pearson is a very witty and moving writer. Her prose is spare and skilful...waspish truisms and spot-on social observations

—— Daily Express

Intelligent, witty and of-the-moment, it mixes sassy, brittle perceptions with barefaced sentimentality

—— The Herald, Glasgow

Brilliantly captures and defines the mood of the moment...sparkling wit and razor sharp insights

—— XW Magazine

Sharply observed and frequently funny

—— Evening Standard

The success of the story - and a success it is - comes not from the ingenious scientific speculations, nor the shrewd literary connections (on the "emotional telepathy" of a work of art, or Daniel Keyes's Flowers for Algernon), but the human story between father and son, as Theo finds out 'how my brain learns to resemble what it loves

—— The Critic

Richard Powers's Booker Prize-shortlisted novel is both brutal and heartwarming, intimate and profound. A masterfully curated story of love, grief and loneliness, quietly building to an inevitable and devastating close

—— Press Association

He composes some of the most beautiful sentences I've ever read. I'm in awe of his talent

—— Oprah Winfrey

In Bewilderment, the Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist has crafted a story of great beauty and power

—— Business Post
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