ASEAN Literary Festival
A Conversation with Daryl Yeap bestselling author of As Equals: The Oei Women of Java
A candid conversation with bestselling author, Daryl Yeap, about her writing journey. Daryl’s work mainly focuses on late 19th century overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia. She shares what she knows about historical writing - the challenges of bridging the gap between empirical evidence and compelling storytelling - as she discusses her latest book As Equals: The Oei women of Java.
Hailed as the “Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace for Straits Chinese”, As Equals tells the
fascinating story of Oei Hui-lan (wife of Wellington Koo), Ida Oei and Lucy Ho, daughters and wife of Asia’s richest man at the turn of the 20th century - Oei Tiong-ham. The three women were independent and strong willed but lived during an age when Imperialism and Sinophobia were at their heights. The book exposes much of the drama that goes on in their lives as they navigate through these social pressures and racial tensions, and how they broke away from societal norms to be treated as equals. Collectively, they tell a powerful story of inequality.
Free admission. Seats are granted on a first-come-first-served basis.
Please pre-register online to secure your seat(s).
Registration Link: https://www.hktdc.com/event/hkbookfair/en/programme
The Organiser reserves the right to make any changes without prior notice.
Book Launch and Conversation
The Chinese translation of As Equals, published by Fudan University Press, will be launched on the 28th March 2026 at the Yangpu Library, Shanghai. The event will be broadcast live and can be viewed on WeChat or Xiaohongshu by scanning the QR code below.
Xiaohongshu
Grit and Enterprise: Tracing Roots and Mapping Journeys of the Chinese Diaspora in Southeast Asia
A panel discussion, led by esteemed scholars will delve into the broader context of the Straits Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia. Daryl Yeap, the great-granddaughter of Yeap Chor Ee, will share her insights on her research process for her two books, King's Chinese: From Barber to Banker, the Story of Yeap Chor Ee and the Straits Chinese and As Equals: the Oei Women of Java. In these works, she explores the journeys of her ancestors and the broader cultural and historical context of their lives.
Register here.
Book Talk at COEX, Hin Bus Depot, George Town, Penang
Book talk at COEX (Hin Bus Depot)
Badan Warisan, KL
Meet The Author: "As Equals: The Oei Women of Java" by Daryl Yeap at Badan Warisan Malaysia.
Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University, NY.
A book talk by Daryl Yeap. International Affairs Building Room 918 and via Zoom. Discussant: Lien-Hang Ngyuen (Dorothy Borg Chair in the History of the United States and East Asia; Director of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University. Moderator: Jim Cheng (Director, C.V. Starr East Asian Library, Columbia University)