North Carolina Books

Abstract

In God’s Fool Mark Slouka colorfully tells the story of Chang and Eng, the conjoined twins about whom the term “Siamese twins” was coined.Chang narrates the story of the twins’ journey from childhood povertyin Siam (now Thailand) to their adulthood in Wilkesboro and MountAiry, North Carolina. Unlike the other recent novelization of the twins’lives, Chang and Eng by Darin Strauss (Dutton, 2000) which is narrated by Eng, Slouka’s novel is a lyrical tale that is based less on fact than the emotions and frustrations of Chang’s life.