Ken’s Quest
by Cher Chidzey
Price: $29.95, Threekookaburras
Fiction | Paperback
- An honest and sensitive exploration of the clash of cultures within Australia.
- An insight into the trials of immigrants trying to make their way in another land.
- A terrific and unlikely love story between a fiery, outspoken Australian woman and a conservative Chinese man.
Ken’s Quest follows a Chinese man’s desperate bid to stay in Australia. He wants to reinvent his life and that of his family. As his lies unravel Ken finds his way through two very different cultures to discover the power of truth and love.
The migrant experience in Australia has been written about before. But Cher Chidzey’s book tackles the notion of ‘tribal voices’ with a rare honesty and courage. ‘Tribal voices’ are the attitudes we learn from the earliest years of childhood. These sources of collective experience can be strengths and they can be obstacles to understanding others who come from a different background. Ken’s Quest tells the story of a Chinese migrant’s ambition for wealth in Australia. But regulations thwart him, and while he struggles to deal with the present he sees his past in a new light. His life is transformed, first by friendship and then by love.
About Cher Chidzey:
Cher Chidzey migrated to Australia from Singapore in 1975 and has a Masters of Science from Melbourne University. She has worked as a teacher in secondary schools and TAFE colleges. She lives in the northern suburbs of Melbourne with her husband and has two adult daughters. Cher has previously published her memoir, The House of 99 Closed Doors.
