The synopsis of Ghost Cities, by monolingual Chinese-Australian author Siang Lu, reads like an inside joke. A Chinese-Australian character named Xiang Lu gets fired from his job at the Chinese consulate in Sydney after it’s discovered he doesn’t speak the language, and has been relying on Google Translate for his work. The incident goes viral under the hashtag #BadChinese and attracts the attention of a megalomaniacal film director called Baby Bao, who uses Lu to attract press for his latest film. Bao’s movie is based on an ancient text whose empirical story is to be filmed in one of China’s “ghost cities”: vast developments quickly built for the country’s booming population that stand mostly empty.
The joke remains, but it is artistry that really tells this accomplished story of duality set from Sydney to Port Man Tou, China. The story of Lu is entwined in the story of an ancient Imperial city, of a sentient earth, of symbolism, curses and cures. There is indeed a royal court, though its entertainment is performed by the sharpest of jesters.
