Books

China Cuckoo: How I lost a fortune and found life in China By Mark Kitto

Pier 9, Sydney 2009

Reviewed by Paul Bartholomew

Aside from its song, the common cuckoo that arrives each English spring is known for laying its eggs in other birds' nests. Former army officer, metals trader and 'mini media mogul' Mark Kitto has built two nests of his own in one of the most testing environments for foreigners — China. The second of these, appropriately, is high up in a bamboo–clad mountain, about two hours' drive south-west of Shanghai, known as Moganshan.