Tai-Pan (novel)

:This page is about the James Clavell novel. For other meanings of Tai-Pan, see Tai-Pan (disambiguation).

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Tai-Pan was James Clavell's second published novel (1966) and takes the reader to Hong Kong Island, a new British Crown Colony, in 1841 following the Treaty of Cheunpi. Tai-Pan is the second book in James Clavell's Asian Saga

Related Topics:
James Clavell - Novel - 1966 - Hong Kong Island - British Crown Colony - 1841 - Treaty of Cheunpi - Asian Saga

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Tai-Pan is a complex tale stretching over 700 pages in length, it introduces a vast array of characters, many of whom, and in quite a few cases the direct relatives, are referenced in later novels.

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Tai-Pan opens in the months following the British victory of the Opium Wars and the seizure of the island of Hong Kong. Dirk Struan the Tai-Pan, or CEO, of the most powerful shipping firm in Asia gambles on the importance of this seemingly worthless island by spending vast amounts of his gathered wealth on establishing his opium shipping operation's headquarters there. The novel Tai-Pan follows the exploits of Struan as he strives to keep his company on top in the Far East and to establish a dynasty that will continue to rule the Chinese seas. Struan's main foe can be found in the form of Tyler Brock, a former superior who beat Struan ruthlessly in their younger days, Brock now runs the second most powerful shipping firm in the Far East and will not stop until he has ruined Struan and himself become The Tai-Pan of all Asia.

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Tai-Pan is loosely based on the history of Jardine Matheson which can be read in greater depth in the books Thistle and the Jade by Maggie Keswick and Jardine Matheson by Robert Blake.

Related Topics:
Jardine Matheson - Thistle and the Jade - Maggie Keswick - Robert Blake

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The 1986 film Tai-Pan was based on the novel.

Related Topics:
1986 - Tai-Pan

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