The coral heart

"In 1911, impoverished Hakka Chinese immigrants arrive on the tropical island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. Among the newcomers, a hungry child. The hard-working boy helps his father, a shopkeeper and surrenders his earnings to him according to Chinese tradition. While he serves the islanders, the young man ingeniously builds the business, negotiates his way through racial divisiveness, and falls in love. But his trust in the old system is put to test ... This work of fiction unfolds during the overthrow of the Chinese Emperor, the rise of communism, the Japanese invasion of China, and the First and Second World Wars.