In Sweet Li Jie, two distant worlds converge: Wuhan Province in China and British Guiana. Jia Yun, a traveling textile merchant, leaves Wuhan to join the exodus of migrants escaping poverty. Most of them to become indentured labourers in the canefields of Demerara.

Through heartfelt letters intended for his sweetheart, Li Jie, Jia Yun paints a vivid picture of life for Indians, Africans, and other ethnic groups under British rule during the twilight years of indentureship. Meanwhile, the novel’s sections set in China reveal the struggles of rural Wuhan under a crumbling feudal regime. “Sweet Li Jie” delves into complex interpersonal relations, from the landlord-servant dynamics in Wuhan to the bond between Jia Yun and his Afro-Guyanese guide, Harris.

Amid vulnerability and uncertainty, and the complexities of living in servitude, these characters grapple for personhood and interdependence.