That may have coloured his attitude to everything that followed. On the other hand that schooling in Switzerland also taught him that class wasn't everything, nor was rank, nor indeed the very privilege that got him there. It was – let's be honest – a very privileged upbringing. He had a year in Switzerland in his youth, then St George's and then, of course, he went to Oxford. He lived in a sizeable house, had a nurse and a governess, and a Montessori-style early education. Hogg was of that class of people that most of us only come across in period dramas. Hogg was both of those things to the Chinese people he came to know and love and work with. That middle name that they share derives, they think, from the Celtic Aaelfwine – usually translated as 'noble friend' or 'wise friend'. The author confesses his connection up-front: George Aylwin was his uncle. It is one that should be told – and reflected upon. It's a forgotten story, an unknown story to most people. Any book that convinces me that maybe there is still hope in the world – that for all the mistakes made thus far, still being made right now, there is a common humanity which ultimately, eventually, must do some good – that is worth the writing and the reading and the time. Any book that has me hoping it will end differently to the way I know it must is worth the reading. Written as a memorial to a family member it's so much more than that.Īny book that has me in tears at the end has been worth my time. Summary: A forgotten story of one adventurous young soul's foray into China during the late thirties, early forties, providing an insight into history and thoughts for consideration of the future.
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