by Nicole Chabot and Ira Chaplain
Blacksmith Books
4 stars
Jason Wordie
Recent years have witnessed a plethora of books on various aspects of Hong Kong. Interest in local history, heritage and culture has increased exponentially in the 16 years since the handover, and Kowloon: Unknown Territory adds to this collection.
A growing desire to document and record for posterity aspects of what makes Hong Kong unique and special plays a role in encouraging further research and publication, in the face of both real (and popularly perceived) challenges to local identity in recent years.
Large tracts of Kowloon are now under threat. Neighbourhoods that for many years were inadvertently protected by Kai Tak airport's height restrictions (such as parts of Sham Shui Po and Kowloon City) are now undergoing wholesale redevelopment. Many long-term residents are concerned about the galloping pace of change; this is especially pronounced when the change is driven by external circumstances beyond the power of local residents to either control or meaningfully influence.
Hong Kong's "invasion" by mainland tourists in recent years has seen long-established businesses replaced by visitor-orientated outlets selling cosmetics, watches, baby formula, or whatever the current consumer item may be. Local residents turn inwards, and seek to define and further document who and what they are against the external benchmark of what they do not wish to become. This book is a marker of that trend.