The House Filler

A moving and powerful historical epic by critically acclaimed author, Tong Ge

Published by Ronsdale Press

Available in both print and e-book format worldwide

The House Filler is a moving and powerful portrayal of one family’s struggle to survive in the face of an historical upheaval and political oppression. 

A family saga set in China during the most tumultuous time of the twentieth century including the Japanese invasion, the civil war, and the Communist takeover. 

The House Filler is told through the experiences of Golden Phoenix, a woman who faces war, poverty, and political oppression as she fights for survival, freedom and happiness. After the untimely death of her husband, Golden Phoenix is determined to keep her family together. However, poverty forces her to make the heart-wrenching decision to give her teenage twins to the Red Army. During the upheaval of the Japanese invasion of her hometown, she is separated from her two young girls, and her remaining son leaves to fight with the Nationalist army. Golden Phoenix, along with her adopted son, remains to endure the horror and hardship of war. When the civil war ends with the Communists in power in 1949, one of her twins, who had joined the Communist Party, is wrongly accused of being a traitor and is sentenced to death. Golden Phoenix and her family must find a way to save her son’s life. 

Ronsdale Press » House Filler, The

The House Filler: Ge, Tong: 9781553806981: Books – Amazon.ca

“Golden Phoenix’s voice is strong. It feels that she is right there, sitting with the reader, telling her story”_Miramichi Reader

“When momentous events take the whole of China by storm, her family is buffeted as well: ‘Blessings do not come in pairs, and calamities never come alone.’ Quotidian struggles give way to horrendous tragedies with the Japanese invasion, the civil war between the Communists and the Nationalists, and the iron-fisted regime of modern China. Golden Phoenix and her family go through incredible pain. In simplistic works, the ones who inflict pain under an occupying power would face retribution when the regime changes. This is no such fairy tale. It is a testament to the power of spirit; a work reminiscent of Yu Hua’s To Live but also one with a unique, wry voice.” _ Historical Novel Society

“A debut novel of a proposed trilogy from Canadian writer Tong Ge promises more to come” _ The Epoch Times.

About Tong:

Born and raised in China, Tong Ge came to Canada in the late 80s as an international student. She has obtained a Master of Science degree from University of Saskatchewan in 1992. Since 2012, she has written under both her real name and the pen name Tong Ge, publishing poems, prose, and short stories in both English and Chinese across North America, England, and Taiwan. Her works can be found in publications such as PRISM International, Canadian Stories, Ricepaper, Academy of the Heart and Mind, FLOW magazine, Vineyard Poetry Quarterly, 渥水, 远方的诗, Polyglot Magazine, Aloka Magazine, Magnets and Ladders. With four literary prizes already received, she is also a finalist for four others. Her debut novel, “The House Filler,” was published in Canada in 2023 and is among the five finalists worldwide for the 2023 Eyelands Book Awards historical fiction + memoir category and is the winner of the 2024 Independent Press Award for new fiction. It is also a finalist for the 2024 Canadian Book Club Award.

To request additional review copies or an interview with Tong Ge, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com | 403.464.6925.

We look forward to the coverage!