Description

‘Absorbing’
GUARDIAN

‘Magical’
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

‘Suspenseful’
MAIL ON SUNDAY

‘Wildly inventive’ LIZ MOORE

A REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK

In this dazzling debut novel, a young reclusive coder unearths the story of a lost Shanghai pencil company and a legacy of magic, espionage and family secrets that will alter the path of her life forever.

Monica Tsai spends most days on her computer coding for a program that seeks to connect strangers online. A self-confessed recluse, she’s more comfortable navigating digital worlds than real-life friendships. The closest people in her life are her beloved grandparents who raised her.

Her grandmother Yun rarely speaks about her past. Now, in her nineties, her memory is fading and with it, the answers to Monica’s questions about their family’s history – about her grandmother’s long-lost cousin, Meng, and the years they spent working together at a mysterious pencil company back in Shanghai.

With the help of Louise, a young archivist, Monica decides to track down Meng and reconnect the cousins before it is too late. Her search unearths a legacy of magic, espionage and secrets that will alter the path of Monica’s life forever.

‘An intimate story of familial love and connection throughout the generations … you’ll be gripped’
INDEPENDENT

‘A suspenseful family epic fueled by love and espionage’
MAIL ON SUNDAY

‘A reminder of how family ties shape us’
WOMAN & HOME

‘Allison King is a talent to watch’ LIZ MOORE, author of The God of the Woods

‘A beautiful ode to the warmth of family connection’ RAY NAYLER, author of The Mountain in the Sea

‘A stunning debut … had me smiling through my tears’ FONDA LEE, author of The Green Bone Saga

Publisher Review

‘I loved this wildly inventive novel and its exploration of how technology and humanity can intersect in deeply meaningful ways. Allison King is a talent to watch’ Liz Moore, author of The God of the Woods

‘China, America, generations, and stories connect with literal magic in this suspenseful debut. Marvellous!’ Gish Jen, award-winning author of The Resisters

‘A beautiful ode to the warmth of family connection, the power of memory, and the magic of the written word’ Ray Nayler, award-winning author of The Mountain in the Sea

‘The Phoenix Pencil Company is a masterful blending of history, fantasy, and romance that sank into my heart the way the magic of its pencils sinks into veins. King has written a stunning debut that pulses with love and loss, regret and forgiveness, and above all, the undeniable, painful, joyful pull of human connection. This book had me smiling through my tears’ Fonda Lee, author of The Green Bone Saga

‘A rare novel that unpacks the integrity and modes of how we form connections, both through graphite and magic and through digital highways, ultimately asking the question of what really matters when it comes to the people we love’ Sequoia Nagamatsu, bestselling author of How High We Go in the Dark

‘Remarkable … Part speculative, part multigenerational family epic, part historical record, part coming-of-age romance, it is, like the mythical titular phoenix, all magic … King radiantly explores memory, storytelling, archiving, history, and the subjective unreliability of all that we think we know’ Booklist (starred review)

‘Powerful … a poignant magical realist tale that’s sure to find fans’ Publishers Weekly