Rated of 5
by Jerry P. (Santa Rosa, CA) The Transformation of a Self-centered Businessman
I enjoyed Vincent Lam's book and highly recommend it. His characters are complex people who are trying to survive in a hellish war-torn country where "man's inhumanity to man" is part of daily life. I should mention there were some violent scenes that were gut wrenching.
The main character- Percival Chen- is the Headmaster of a Chinese-run English school in Cholon, a suburb of Saigon, South Vietnam and is a wealthy businessman who is detached from Vietnamize culture and the conflict spreading between North and South Vietnam. He is very effective in obtaining favors from his political contacts through the skillful use of bribes. Additionally, he is a womanizer who is addicted to the thrill of gambling. His complacent life changes when his son angers officials by refusing to speak Vietnamize and is incarcerated. Chen's life then begins to change during his struggles to free his son.
Rated of 5
by Caryl L. (Williamsburg, VA) Headmasters wager
This book takes place during the period of 1966-1975 when American forces are leaving Vietnam and North Vietnam is attacking South Vietnam. How this effects the lives of the local people is the main storyline.
Chen Pie Sou now known as Percival is headmaster of the American Academy in the outskirts of Saigon. He is very proud of his heritage in China and his school in Vietnam. Too proud, in fact, as he refuses to admit all the signs of trouble around him.
The book is well written and is easy reading. The unfamiliar names in Chinese and Vietnam are bit daunting making it hard to keep track of at times.
Rated of 5
by Eileen P. (Pittsford, NY) Extraordinary debut
Vincent Lam’s masterful story about the Chinese experience in Vietnam from 1966 to 1975 is both an exploration of the dangers of nationalism and a testimony to the power of love. It captures how difficult it is to know how political/world events are going to end and what we can do to protect ourselves and those we love. I found it to be both captivating and heartbreaking. It would be an outstanding discussion book.
Rated of 5
by chetyarbrough.com Best Seller
Vincent Lam, the son of parents and grandparents that lived in an expatriate Chinese community in Vietnam, is especially suited to write “The Headmaster’s Wager”. Lam’s stories of a Chinese’ minority’s existence in Vietnam has bell ringing clarity and concrete believability in “The Headmaster’s Wager”.
Percival Chen is an entrepreneur who chooses to ignore political reality by following whatever political rules exist in the country in which he lives. Percival lives and prospers as a hedonistic owner of an English language company during the American occupation of Vietnam. He teaches in his own school and schemes to become a preferred language school at the time when Americans endeavor to win the hearts and minds of the indigenous population. (How similar that sounds to America’s efforts in Iraq.) Percival is also a problem gambler that risks everything for the thrill of winning. The main character of Lam’s novel makes anyone that has gambled recognize the thrill of wagering all one has--to change one’s luck. Percival copes with Vietnamese discrimination, Vietcong brutality, and American ineptitude to survive and prosper in his adopted county.
“The Headmaster’s Wager” is a journey of imagination, grounded by tales told to the author in his research of the Lam family’s fascinating history. This is a nicely written book that will entertain casual readers, gamblers, male chauvinists, war critics, and Maoist China haters; “The Headmaster’s Wager” should rise to the top of the “New York Times” best seller list.
Rated of 5
by Elizabeth W. (Newton, MA) Visit to another land . . .
The language of The Headmaster’s Wager is as intoxicating and seductive as the opium and morphine that trap the first father-and-son pair around whom the story centers. The plot is tight and fast-paced enough to make one tempted to read through the pages quickly, but it is worth taking time to savor Vincent Lam’s imagery and insights.
The book is set in Viet Nam during the time that United States military was fighting there. As a young adolescent at that time, I learned about the war through a limited perspective; this novel enlarges that view as much as the histories I’ve read since then. The Headmaster’s Wager not only tells a very personal story of love and loss but also reveals the intrusion of the Chinese and the French into the world of the Vietnamese and also the disparity between the excessive luxury enjoyed by the rich and the extreme deprivation of the poor.
Like protagonist Percival, I was surprised by the deception lurking at the core of his world and the extent to which political and philosophical connections trumped personal friendship. Lam presents moments of brutality that are all the more shocking because of their juxtaposition with serene domestic moments that Percival shares with his mistress and son.
Once I escaped the immediate pull of the story, my first thought was that there is no way a woman could have written this book. Even more than might have been dictated by the Chinese and Vietnamese cultures at its center, the book presents a man’s world. There are striking women, but they are important only as they are used by and affect the lives of the men; they seem to have no intrinsic value of their own. The deep emotional bonds are between son and father and between two male friends.
I enjoyed visiting the man’s world of The Headmaster’s Wager as I enjoy a trip to an unknown land—fascinating to see but very unfamiliar.
Rated of 5
by Linda G. (Walnut Creek, CA) Thrilled to have the chance to read this!
I absolutely LOVED Vincent Lam's novel "The Headmaster's Wager"! I can honestly say it is the best book I've read so far this year! In reading the synopsis of it, it sounded right up my alley, and it did not disappoint. The novel focuses mainly on a Chinese man living in Cholon, Vietnam during the 60's when he was headmaster of an English Academy. It also touches on the history of both China and Vietnam during that time period, in prose that is both vivid and exciting, giving the book a wonderful sense of place and culture. However, the thing that really pulled me into the story were its characters. So real, and so human, though somewhat flawed, I still found myself immensely involved in their worlds. Characters so well drawn that I missed them when away from the book. Headmaster Chen especially, since he learns so many difficult and life altering lessons, causing him to wager much over the course of his life. But it's the twist near the end of the story, where he is forced to learn what's most valuable to him, leading to the ultimate sacrifice that nearly took my breath away. There's several scenes in the book that, though disturbing, were so carefully wrought and beautifully portrayed that I had to read them over a second time, in spite of the gut punch feeling that left me breathless the first time! A gorgeously written epic of a fathers' love for his son that haunts me still. I can't wait to recommend this book to friends and family!
Fearless, gripping, at once darkly funny and tender, spanning three continents and numerous lives, Americanah is a richly told story set in today's globalized world.
The story of an American family, middle class in middle America, ordinary in every way but one. But that exception is the beating heart of this extraordinary novel.
First time novelist Vaddey Ratner captured my heart and senses in this novel based on her childhood in Cambodia. Her story transcends any news story...
read more
From the first page, I was drawn in by the lyrical writing of the author and mesmerized as the narrator, eight year old Raami, remembered the years...
read more
Trite but true, all good things must come to an end. I so wanted to keep reading the wonderful prose, the settings that let one think they are part...
read more
Amazon cuts off 5200 affiliates in Minnesota(Jun 19 2013) With Minnesota's online sales tax law due to take effect July 1, Amazon has played a familiar card by cutting ties with 5,200 members of its Associates...
Full Story
of 5
by Jerry P. (Santa Rosa, CA) 
of 5
by Caryl L. (Williamsburg, VA) 
of 5
by Elizabeth W. (Newton, MA) 
