BOOK REVIEW:
‘PEOPLE WITH MONEY’
By JESS HO
I wasn’t quite sure what to think about People with Money when first I picked it up. Was it going to be a snapshot on the haves and have nots of society, would it highlight the social, and class divides between queer people and non-queer people, or would it be something completely else? I’d say it was a bit of all the above and more.
The protagonist Amy Chan is fierce and chaotic. You’ll learn about Amy’s formative years and how that shaped their identity, sense of self and understanding of the world. The only label that fits Amy is being Amy. While Amy is also a Chinese Australian, incredibly intelligent, non-binary, an artist and works two jobs to make ends meet, these are part of Amy but does not make Amy, Amy.
Then there is Edward Smith. It is a bit easier to work him out. He is an Anglo-Australian, from wealth and privilege, and feels he is open and respectful of the diverse people which make Australia so wonderful. But he often misgenders Amy, even though he is married to them, and knew they were non-binary when they first met. Edward is also tired of always being wrong. Shouldn’t the fact he loves Amy be enough? By the way, Chinese and Cantonese are the same language, right? Edward is also caring, but clumsily.
If you’ve ever lived in Melbourne or visit regularly, you’ll certainly relate to some the descriptions of its localities and people in this novel. From the hippies in the north, the affluent types south of the Yarra, and everyone else in between, People with Money is Melbourne.
I wasn’t quite prepared for how the book ended and was considering what alternative endings would have looked like and would that have changed anything from Amy and Edward’s journey? You’ll just have to read the book and let me know.
Review by Ali Khan
