Music on the Bamboo Radio

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Music On the Bamboo Radio
Author	Martin Booth
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre(s)	Adventure novel
Publication date	1997
Published in English	1997
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)

Music on the Bamboo Radio is a novel written by Martin Booth that was first published in 1997. The story revolves around Nicholas Holford, the main character and minor relations can be made to Martin Booth's life during the Second World War.

1 Plot summary
2 Characters
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Plot summary

The story begins with the defeat of Hong Kong to the Japanese on December 25, 1941. Nicholas' parents have both left as part of the war effort, his father as a voluntary soldier and his mother as a part-time nurse. Yet as the Japanese come to do a home to home search, three loyal servants, Tang, his wife Ah Mee, and the gardener Ah Kwan. They help Nicholas escape towards Kowloon as Hong Kong Island is no longer safe. Upon reaching the shore of Kowloon, Tang and Ah Mee disguise Nicholas as a Chinese boy and the trip continues to Tang's home village, the village of Sek Wan.

Nicholas passes the years of the war here with Tang and his family. During this time, many events happen including Nicholas going back to Kowloon to find the cure to malaria as Tang has contracted it. He also helps the Communist resistant fighters and the British army of Hong Kong at the time to translate instructions and blow up a bridge. Yet his most dangerous job would have been to deliver a message into the prison of war camps (POW camps), this is nicknamed as 'playing music on the bamboo radio'. Nicholas does more than expected by entering the camp itself because the person who was supposed to receive the information had the fever. Exhausted and worried, Nicholas narrowly escapes the clutches of the Japanese with the help of the prisoners and finally reaches Ah Kwan who was told to supervise his mission.

As the war comes to an end, Nicholas returns to his home on Hong Kong Island, and when he returned, everything is ruined, his home can be described as destroyed, yet, as he walks on, he finds his mother within the home, Nicholas does not recognise her, but he knows it is his mother. The end of the story does not mention the whereabouts of his father.