12 Apr 2013: Prescriptions of Faith October 30, 2014 – Posted in: Newsletters

These are moving and eloquent memoirs of two remarkable lives… Sir David Todd

Prescriptions of Faith is the tale of two renowned doctors’ war-torn journeys through Hong Kong to China and back, in pursuit of their medical degrees. In 1939, just before the start of World War Two, a young woman from Kuala Lumpur named Eleanor Eu sailed from Malaysia to pursue a medical degree at the prestigious University of Hong Kong. Two years later, her future husband left his home in Penang and arrived at the same university, just months before the war reached Asian shores. As yet unknown to each other, neither could stand living in the tense atmosphere of a war-torn Hong Kong. Eleanor left for Free China in August 1942; Peter left two years later. After the war, both gravitated back to Hong Kong to complete their studies where they had begun. Here, by serendipity, the two were finally brought together.

The memoirs of Dr. Peter Tan Ewe Aik and Dr Eleanor Eu Gaik Choo take the reader on a journey through memories of their childhood, offering a unique view of what growing up was like for two overseas Chinese in pre-war Malaya. The book provides an in-depth description of their trials and tribulations as they made the difficult decision to flee Hong Kong to find a safe haven in ‘Free’ China, before eventually gravitating back to the place their studies commenced. Also included are the touching details of Peter and Eleanor’s ensuing family life and return to Malaya after marriage.