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Lit Recap: Author session with Suffian Hakim

Suffian Hakim’s The Minorities is a fantastical supernatural tale of four very unlikely housemates embarking on a journey to help a lonely Pontianak return home to Melaka. It is a wacky, witty, cheeky and laugh-out-loud funny parody, but it is also layered and emotionally rich.

Together with the lovely ladies from Two Book Nerds Talking podcast, Diana Yeong and Honey Ahmad, we had the pleasure of hosting Suffian for a meet-and-greet at Lit Books on July 27. The full podcast will be aired soon, but here are some gems from the delightful hour-long conversation with Suffian.

On the protagonist opening up his house to immigrants of suspicious origins:
For me it was the idea of kindness derived from depression [the protagonist was mourning the death of his father]. If you want to pull yourself out of depression, you do that through kindness, through opening yourself up to other people.

On marring very real father-son issues on the one hand with an epic demon army battle on the other in one book:
As a person I believe you cannot experience the world just one way. When I was writing the book it was always clear in my mind that this person’s life, what the narrator and his friends are going through [with the Pontianak], is as important and as real to them as their own personal emotional journeys. You can’t exclude one from the other. We go through our lives — we get into relationships, we break up — but in the meantime, a war is going on in Iraq and all that. But we’re also having our own personal emotional journeys and I wanted to make sure that both arcs play out to their logical conclusions.

On the use of food puns as titles of chapters:
The idea with the chapter titles like ‘Diet Coke and Mentos’, ‘Chinese Century Egg’, ‘Gula Melaka Dreamsicle’, ‘The Long Arm of the Coleslaw’ was that I wanted to parody the fact that when most people consider a minority group by ethnicity, the only way they seem to connect or contextualise that group is through food, but not so much the rich history or heritage they might have. It was to bring to light the fact that a minority group is more than their food.

On an almond that recurs throughout the story and its significance:
The almond that keeps popping up in the book, it’s a cheap thrill for me as an author (laughs). In Arab Muslim cultures, when a boy comes of age it’s tradition for his dad to give him a bag of almonds as a gift. The almond in the story represents the narrator’s issues with his dad, the baggage that he keeps because of his strained relationship with his dad. What he does with the almond in the end signifies the fact that he’s finally letting go of his issues with his dad.

The Minorities is available at Lit Books for RM69.90.

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Lit Review: ‘Our Castle by the Sea’ by Lucy Strange

Who: After stints as an actor, singer and storyteller, Lucy Strange became a secondary school teacher and writer of middle-grade historical fiction. Her first book, The Secret of Nightingale Wood, received high praise and her second, Our Castle by the Sea, is the subject of this review.

What: It’s 1939, and England is on the cusp of World War II. Twelve-year-old Petra (Pet) and her family — older sister Magda (Mags), her pa and mother (Mutti) — are lighthouse keepers in the coastal village of Stonegate. Unlike her spirited sister, Pet isn’t particularly brave and is given to believing in myths and legends.

As war encroaches upon their small community, Pet’s family gets caught up in a plot that threatens to tear them apart. Mutti, a German immigrant, is packed off to an internment camp for “enemy aliens” as a matter of national security. Mags becomes increasingly secretive and evasive, and her pa is distracted and distant. It is up to Pet to muster every ounce of courage to uncover the truth and do what she can to set things right.

Why: There is much to unpack in this beautifully written, atmospheric novel — it blends mystery, intrigue and family dynamics with a protagonist, Pet, who starts out quiet and timid but because of the extraordinary circumstances she gets thrown into, becomes a lass of steely resolve by the novel’s end.

The story begins with the telling of a local legend of four sisters, who traded their souls for the safe return of their father lost at the treacherous sandbank, the Wyrm. They were turned into stone when their wish was fulfilled. This myth, the self-sacrifice and bravery of the girls, is embedded in Pet’s psyche and colours her perception and interpretation of events in the book. I love how Strange weaves myth into the fabric of the story because history and identity as a people and culture is as much about real events as it is about the myths and legends passed down through the ages.

The book affords wonderfully nuanced explorations on the themes of love, loyalty and sacrifice, and the way fear and racism can drive a person to do crazy things; World War II is the perfect foil for this. Through the actions of her parents, Pet observes the price of true sacrifice. When acts of sabotage start happening in the village, Pet learns the painful lesson that sometimes, people are not who they may seem, and the enemy within is often more insidious than the enemy without.

The author is masterful at evoking the time and place, and in bringing out the gamut of emotions portrayed in the book through her rich, sensitive prose. Meanwhile, Pet as a character is endearing and wise beyond her years. The build-up of the mystery and suspense makes it a delicious page-turner.

Quotable quote: “If you were torn between loyalty to your country and love for your family, what would you choose?”

Verdict: An evocative, richly rendered historical fiction full of depth of characters and plot (9/10)

Reading level: Ages 10 and up

Availability: Paperback, RM41.90

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Spotlight on Middle Eastern authors

The Unesco World Book and Copyright Day falls on April 23 annually, and each year, a city is named World Book Capital. For 2019, that honour falls on Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates; as such, this month’s picks are dedicated to featuring books written by Middle Eastern authors. Often set in the interstices of culture, tradition and modernity, these stories reflect the pervasive tension that has beset the modern Middle East and its reverberations through the lives of individuals. Yet, these are beautiful stories with sheer underlying humanity that will resonate with every reader.

The President’s Gardens by Muhsin Al-Ramli (RM49.90)
Seeing first-hand the terrible suffering endured by ordinary people in the violent tragedies of Iraq in its modern history was the catalyst for Iraqi writer, poet, academic and translator Muhsin Al-Ramli to write this profound novel. The story begins with Ibrahim, nicknamed “the Fated”, whose story is told set against the last 50 years of the country’s history, of dictatorship, invasion and occupation. Essential to understanding Ibrahim’s story are those of his two best buds, Tariq “the Befuddled”, a schoolteacher, and Abdullah, known as “Kafka”, who becomes a soldier and ends up a prisoner of war. Ibrahim, after he was made lame during the invasion of Kuwait, finds a job in the titular garden, an idyllic location by all appearances but which belies the horrors lurking within. This gripping story of life in a war zone is a vivid investigation of love, death, injustice and the importance of friendship.

Seeing first-hand the terrible suffering endured by ordinary people in the violent tragedies of Iraq in its modern history was the catalyst for Iraqi writer, poet, academic and translator Muhsin Al-Ramli to write this profound novel. The story begins with Ibrahim, nicknamed “the Fated”, whose story is told set against the last 50 years of the country’s history, of dictatorship, invasion and occupation. Essential to understanding Ibrahim’s story are those of his two best buds, Tariq “the Befuddled”, a schoolteacher, and Abdullah, known as “Kafka”, who becomes a soldier and ends up a prisoner of war. Ibrahim, after he was made lame during the invasion of Kuwait, finds a job in the titular garden, an idyllic location by all appearances but which belies the horrors lurking within. This gripping story of life in a war zone is a vivid investigation of love, death, injustice and the importance of friendship.

Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi (RM79.90)
In this intimate memoir, Iranian author and English professor Azar Nafisi recounts the two years in the Islamic Republic of Iran when she met with seven of her most dedicated female students to read and discuss forbidden Western classics by authors including Jane Austen, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry James, and of course, Vladimir Nabokov. This took place from 1995 to 1997 at a time of increased radicalism, when Islamic morality squads would stage arbitrary raids in Tehran, artistic expression was stifled with censorship, and fundamentalists were taking hold of universities. The women who gathered every Thursday morning came from diverse backgrounds — some conservative, others secular — but bonded over their shared love for literature. Literary criticism is intertwined with personal stories of resilience in the face of tyranny, and the result is a book that is illuminating in more ways than one.

The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif (RM75.50)
Egyptian writer and translator Ahdaf Soueif examines the repercussions of the British occupation of Egypt and the fierce political battles of the Egyptian Nationalists in an evocative, epic romantic tale between an English aristocrat, Lady Anna Winterbourne, and Sharif al-Baroudi, an Egyptian nationalist, in 1900. A century later, Anna’s great-granddaughter Isabel Packman finds her notebooks, journals and letters in a trunk and travels to Egypt to piece together Anna’s life. Accompanying her on this journey is Omar Ghamrawi, the man she loves and who happens to be Sharif’s grandnephew. There she meets Omar’s sister Amal, and they become fast friends. Told through the Amal’s voice, Anna and Sharif’s story is echoed by the love affair between Isabel and Omar, set against the continuing political turmoil of the Middle East. This absorbing, eloquent novel provides a lesson in cultural and political history, but also the intricacies of love.

The Red-Haired Woman by Orhan Pamuk (RM75.50)
Turkish novelist, academic and Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk has written a beguiling mystery that explores father-son relationships and questions of patricide in a nod to Oedipus Rex. After Cem’s father abandons the family, the 16-year-old apprentices himself to a master well digger, Mahmut. Cem becomes attached to the elderly man and comes to regard him as a surrogate father. Then one day he meets a stunning red-haired woman, Gülcihan, who is as taken with him as he is by her. A subsequent act by the well puts an end to things, Cem’s relationship with Mahmut also comes to a tragic end. These events change Cem’s life forever and haunt him for the next 30 years. This is an extraordinary novel from one of the great storytellers of our time.

Three Daughters of Eve by Elif Shafak (RM43.90)
Turkish author Elif Shafak’s 10th novel, Three Daughters of Eve, wrestles with questions of identity, faith and feminism through the story of Peri, a Turkish housewife and mother. A violent encounter with a vagrant while Peri was on her way to a dinner party in Istanbul one evening causes an old polaroid to fall out of her purse, triggering unpleasant memories of the past that she would much rather forget. The memories are of her time at Oxford University. She and her two best friends, the worldly Shirin and the devout Mona, engaged in lively discourses on Islam and feminism. Peri also took a life-changing course on God with Shirin’s mentor, the charismatic but controversial divinity professor, Azur. Their group is torn apart by a scandal, and its effects are still felt in present day. Shafak deftly weaves a tale with philosophical overtones to give the reader much to mull over long after the novel ends.

This article appears in the April 2019 issue of FireFlyz, the in-flight magazine of Firefly airlines.

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Lit Recap: Author meet-and-greet with Hanna Alkaf

On Saturday, Feb 17, we celebrated the publication of Malaysian author Hanna Alkaf’s debut young adult (YA) novel, The Weight of Our Sky, with a meet-the-author event that saw more than 70 people in attendance. We were heartened to see the enthusiastic response to Hanna’s novel, which is about a music loving teen with OCD, Melati, who does everything she can to find her way back to her mother during the historic race riots of 1969 in Kuala Lumpur. This is one of those books that on the one hand, is gut-wrenching, but it is also heart-warming. There are heart-breaking depictions of human cruelty, but also of immeasurable kindness. Most of all, it is an empowering tale of hope and courage in the face of terror, both from within and without. Min Hun conducted a Q&A with Hanna, an edited version of which is reproduced below.

Min Hun: Tell us about how you came to write a novel set during the riots of 1969.
Hanna: The Weight of Our Sky was a book that had lived in my head for a long time before I started writing it, mostly for the reasons you mentioned, that we don’t talk about May 13. I remember it from my history textbook but it was really glossed over and sterilised. It always fascinated me what we were not told and what voices we were not hearing, and what was being obscured.

What sort of research did you do to write this book?
I love doing research; it’s so fun to me. But I’m also a journalist by training so I approached it a lot like as if I were writing an investigative feature. I read everything that I could on it: articles written at the time, both from in and out of the country, I read government white papers, any book that I could find. I interviewed survivors and I consulted experts on the things that I needed to get the details right for — although I did end up missing a couple of things.

How did you create your characters?
They are an amalgamation of different people and they are fully Malaysian. It’s very hard to see characters like that in the current YA novels… I write YA and I write for kids because as a kid who read a lot of English books growing up, I don’t think I ever saw anybody who looked like me. I feel like when you’re reading as a kid, a teen or young adult, that’s when what you read is most formative. I think it means a lot to a kid to be able to read a book that they can see themselves in.

There is a theory from researcher Dr Rudin Bishop, who says in kid lit it’s important that children have both mirrors and windows. They should have windows into experiences other than their own and they should also be able to see themselves reflected in the fiction they read. Malaysian kids get a lot of windows but we have very few mirrors. I also enjoy reading YA, and I just really wanted to write Malaysian stories for Malaysian kids.

It was full house with standing room only at the event.

Mental illness is a big part of this book and your first collection of stories, Gila, is also about mental illness. Can you tell us about your interest in the subject and why mental illness is an important part of this novel?
I wrote Gila, a nonfiction book in 2015. I wrote it after I had my daughter, and I was freelancing at that time. I was working on an article about postpartum depression, a very relevant topic to me at that time. I had interviewed 4 or 5 women, and the thing that I noticed was that all these women were educated and lived in urban areas, but not a single one of them — even though they had reached the point of psychosis — had gone to see a psychologist or psychiatrist. They relied on other things — they relied on faith, on community and family but they never went to see a professional. This was weird to me because if you’re sick, you go to a doctor. If your brain is sick you go to somebody who can help you but that wasn’t the case. And I started thinking about why that was. I started doing some research, and I thought if there was something interesting to be uncovered here, I could pitch it as a series of articles. As it turned out, it was one of those topics where the more questions I asked, the more questions I came up with. It became clear that it was a topic that really needed to be talked about in a lot of different but interconnected ways, and that’s how Gila came about.

When I wanted to start writing the novel, I knew that I wanted to create a protagonist who was dealing with this intersection of faith and mental illness, which was a thing that was coming up a lot in the interviews. As Malaysians, we are surrounded by faith, whether you’re a person of faith or not. I wanted a book that explored that intersection between faith and mental illness because I think at the age the protagonist is at, you’re questioning a lot of those things. 

I think you also represented the way our society tends to approach mental illness. It is still largely a taboo topic of discussion, or it’s something you can’t explain. In the novel, Melati’s mental illness was stifling in a way because this sense of losing control, of being enslaved to mental illness, is something we’re all naturally uncomfortable with.
You’re not the only one. I’ve had people say things like the parts where she’s dealing with her OCD, they’re tedious to read and they’re painful. But that’s what OCD is. OCD is tedious and it’s painful. It’s not having these quirks of needing to clean one’s hands or arrange things a certain way. It’s tedious and it’s painful. I wanted the text to reflect that and really put you in her head.

Given how sensitive we are as a society with racism, were you at any point concerned about what you were writing?
Not really, only because we’re not a society that talks about it and that’s a problem. The more we don’t talk about the painful parts of our history, the more likely we are to never learn from them. If we just keep obscuring things that are hard and that are painful and uncomfortable… we have to sit with our discomfort. This is a thing that happened in our history, we have to accept that it happened and we have to figure out why. 

The Weight of Our Sky is available at RM55.90.

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Five books that reveal the many facets of love

It is a generally acknowledged phenomenon that February and love go hand-in-hand together. Regardless of whether it’s due to the mass commercialisation of the emotion due to Valentine’s Day or some deeply-rooted instinct deep within our circadian rhythms, love is, for better or worse, in the air. Love is complicated, however, and nothing captures this complexity better and with greater completeness than the written word. Stories and poetry capture the intricate monologue that happens within lovers in ways that Hollywood blockbusters never will, to reveal just how intertwined love is with a whole host of other difficult emotions. The following titles proffer lesser-acknowledged dimensions of love.

Normal People by Sally Rooney (RM79.95)
Sally Rooney is a late 20-something phenom whose debut novel, Conversations with Friends, was published in 2017 to massive critical acclaim. Her 2018 follow-up, Normal People, was similarly feted and longlisted for the 2018 Booker Prize. The story follows a young couple–Connell and Marianne–who meet each other in secondary school at County Sligo, Ireland and later at university in Dublin. Drawn to each other by pure natural chemistry, they are nevertheless caught in an unending cycle of love and hate with circumstances and personalities conspiring to pull them apart. Rooney captures brilliantly the uncertainty brought about by young love replete with its unwillingness to compromise with its ‘All or Nothing’ battlecry. More poignant is Rooney’s observation that there is nothing normative about love, and there is no such thing as ‘normal people’.

Never Anyone But You by Rupert Thompson (RM89.90)
Never Anyone But You is based on the lives of two pioneering female French surrealists Marcel Moore né Suzanne Malherbe and her partner and lover, Claude Cahun né Lucie Schwob. The latter also happens to be her stepsister after Marcel’s father marries Claude’s widowed mother when she was 14. Thompson’s novel details their early lives as lovers and their transformation into their androgynous counterparts following their move to Paris. There, they strike up close relationships with Paris’ most avant garde and begin their lives as surrealist performers. Their roles quickly changed following the occupation of France and the sisters carried out inspired acts of resistance that included planting anti-war leaflets in German barracks and anti-war propaganda throughout occupied France. Never Anyone is a sensitively told story that nevertheless brims with encounters and anecdotes that places the reader front and centre of this magnificent story of creativity, survival, friendship and, of course, love.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (RM55.90)
Love is an old emotion well-known even to the classical writers. They have known love to inspire, to enliven and deaden, and to encourage heroes to their very best and very worst. Nowhere is this more evident in Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles, which is a retelling of Homer’s Iliad focused on the life of Achilles and his lover, Patroclus. At once a coming-of-age story and a reimagining of one of the most vivid battles in literary history, Miller’s Song is a breathtaking work that is brought to life through her sparkling prose. Love and friendship are key themes of this seminal piece of literature, and Miller contributes to the overall understanding of the work by hazarding a why to the typical what of the story of Achilles. Forget Brad Pitt’s reluctant, nuanced Achilles; the Achilles of Greek myth is much better approximated by Miller’s brash, arrogant and petulant hero of great ardour.

5 Centimetres Per Second: One More Side by Makoto Shinkai (Adapted by Arata Kanoh) (RM70.50)
Writer and producer of Your Name Makoto Shinkai’s 2007 anime 5 Centimetres Per Second was hailed as a critical success and cemented Shinkai’s status as the next Miyazaki. In the original anime, friends Takaki and Akari are separated from each other when the latter’s parents move to a different part of the country. Later, when Akari’s parents too decide to move to the other side of the country, he resolves to visit Akari one last time before they are separated by too great a distance. During their meeting, they realise their feelings for one another but also the futility of hoping for anything more beyond that moment. As the years progress, Takaki continues to be haunted by his first love even as he continues down his own path. This new novel adapted by Arata Kanoh gives readers another side to the story with greater emphasis on Akari’s perspective while leaving the core of the story intact. This is a beautiful retelling of an equally memorable classic.

The Flame by Leonard Cohen (RM115.90)
A while ago, there was a heated debate at Lit Books by a panel guest on whether musicians were poets. The musicians at issue were Patti Smith, Bob Dylan, David Bowie and, of course, Leonard Cohen. Cohen is perhaps most famous in this part of the world as the person who penned the song Hallelujah although few would likely admit to liking his particular rendition of the song. The latest (and probably final) installment in his published work Flame collects unpublished poetry and self-portraits, and also includes lyrics from his last album You Want it Darker. Cohen’s poetry is unabashedly dark, but there is always a flicker of a flame somewhere within that darkness that, if coming from anyone else, would be cringey. Flame, ultimately, is a an intimate love song–autobiographical and universal in its meaning and precision.

This article appears in the February 2019 issue of FireFlyz, the in-flight magazine of Firefly airlines.

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Seven ways to ramp up your reading habit

The coming of a New Year inevitably brings about the desire to set fresh goals and resolutions. While detoxing, dieting and decluttering are all well and good, none of these can quite enrich your mind and soul the way reading a good book can. Do yourself a favour – make it a year of books.

Perhaps you’ve been stuck in a slump and want to get back to reading regularly, or you’re already a voracious reader who’s looking to change things up a bit. Wherever you fall on the spectrum, you’ll find something in this list of fun and entirely achievable ideas to get you going.

1. Read outside your comfort zone.

Exploring an unfamiliar genre, topic or experimental narrative can turn out to be an exhilarating journey of discovery. It exposes you to new things and allows you to think differently, if not critically. All that’s needed is an open mind, and of course, good recommendations. You may find yourself becoming absolutely enamoured with this new frontier, but even if you don’t, you would’ve expanded your literary horizons.

2. Tackle an author’s entire oeuvre.

This one’s for the goal-oriented and systematic reader among us, and those who’d like to become an authority of sorts on a specific writer and their works. Whether you pick an author you’re already familiar with or one whom you have not read before but have always been curious about, you would come away with a deeper appreciation for your chosen author’s storytelling prowess.

3. Revisit an old favourite in between reading new titles.

The wonderful thing about re-reading an old book – other than the sheer pleasure of it – is the unearthing of new revelations, either about the book or your experience of it. You’re a different person from when you first read the book, and revisiting it with different lenses will elicit fresh observations and interpretations.

4. Choose a topic or subject matter to focus on.

Ask yourself, what is one topic you want a deeper understanding of? A specific geographical region of the world, a hobby such as fly fishing or knitting, primitive art, a current social issue, the history of butter or of marine chronometers, perhaps? Whatever it is, make a reading list of books that explore that topic. Make it an expansive list that spans different genres: fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, even.

5. Set a numbers goal.

If you’re one who thrives on achievements, give yourself a tangible goal to strive for. Keep it realistic and achievable – a target of finishing one book a month is a good place to start, or you could go big and challenge yourself with a book or two a week. Then make it a point to put aside time in your day to do nothing but indulge in a spot of reading – set a reminder on your phone, if that helps.

6. Take on a reading challenge.

Try one of the various reading challenges by blogs like Book RiotPopsugar or the Reading Women podcast, which presents a list of specific types of books to read, but leaves the title to you to choose. Book Riot’s Read Harder Challenge consists of things like “a book in which an animal or inanimate object is a point-of-view character” and “a book by or about someone that identifies as neurodiverse”. Popsugar‘s list includes “a book you see someone reading on TV or in a movie” and “a book published posthumously”. The Reading Women Challenge has “a book about a woman athlete” and “a book featuring a religion other than your own.”

7. Join a book club.

Becoming part of a book club is a sure-fire way to get you reading regularly. Getting together with other book aficionados to go over a book with a fine-toothed comb helps you widen your understanding and appreciation of a book and its themes. You’re bound to see the book in a different perspective. A great place to start is to do a search on Facebook and look for reading groups near you. You’re welcome to join our monthly club, Lit Social, which usually takes place every third Thursday of the month at the store at 8pm. Be sure to follow us on Facebook for the latest updates.

Need book recommendations? Visit us and let us match you with the perfect read.

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Our favourite reads of 2018

We’ve read more than we’ve had in years since opening the bookshop this past year. Granted, it’s partly for research purposes, but whatever the reason, it’s also the most pleasure we’ve had in reading in quite some time. Here are some of our favourite books of 2018.

Min Hun’s Picks

Favourite Fiction: Ali Smith’s Winter. Smith has one of the most unique voices in literature today and I am a huge fan of her seasonal quartet beginning with Autumn the year prior. Winter is possibly just as twisty and irreverent as Autumn, and fine evidence of Smith’s appreciation of the pun. As with Autumn, the central theme to Winter is that of change with characters in reminiscent mood with the coming of Christmas (a la A Christmas Carol). As with Smith’s previous novels, it is impossible to say exactly what it is one has previously read but it nonetheless leaves you breathless and empty at the end.

 

Favourite Non-Fiction: GJ Meyer’s A World Undone. Meyer’s book is probably the best single-volume on WWI I’ve come across, and it stands up pretty well despite being published more than a decade ago in 2006. What comes across most clearly from Meyer’s account is just what a comedy of errors it was with the entire enterprise and yet inevitable at the same time. Providing sufficient history without bogging down the narrative, and present-minded enough to make for a ripping yarn, A World Undone is a must for any war history buffs.

 

Favourite Verse: Leonard Cohen’s The Flame. Cohen has been such a large part of my life — since my days of existential crisis at university to my now more sobered self — that it was impossible to pass on his last collection of poetry, self-portrait and lyric. The Flame is unabashedly romantic but also voiced from a place of resignation in recognition, at last, that all is vanity. This final collection of works was put together by his son and stands as a proper testimonial to a life of work and art.

Elaine’s Picks

Favourite Children’s Book: Jakob Wegelius’ The Murderer’s Ape. This middle-grade novel by Swedish award-winning writer and illustrator is an old-timey, epic adventure tale, with equal parts mystery, action, intrigue, and the exotic, but also imbued with a lot of heart. The protagonist is an extraordinary gorilla named Sally Jones who can understand human language, is able to read and write, and is a handy engineer to boot. The main plot of the novel is about how Sally Jones goes about trying to exonerate her Chief, Henry Koskela the sea captain, who becomes entangled in a chain of events that results in him becoming falsely accused of murder. Her efforts take her from Lisbon, Portugal to Bhapur, India and brings her in contact with a sea of colourful and fascinating characters.

There are various themes presented in the story, but what I found particularly moving is how it beautifully depicts the unbreakable bond formed between animals and humans. This is ultimately a tale of friendship and the lengths you would go for the ones you love. Rich in detail, the wonderfully imaginative story takes many unexpected turns, leaving the reader breathless as to what will happen next.

 

Favourite Fiction: John Boyne’s A Ladder to the Sky. A dark tale of literary ambition from a master storyteller, this novel chronicles the rise and fall of Maurice Swift and the depths of depravity he descends into to achieve his goal. I really enjoyed how the story is told from different perspectives with multiple narrators. The novel begins with Maurice as a young aspiring writer who has a fortuitous encounter with celebrated novelist Erich Ackerman with whom he ingratiates himself with — this is told from Erich’s perspective. Part two picks up a few years after Maurice’s successful debut but he is now experiencing a mid-career slump and getting desperate by the day. He is married to Edith, also a novelist, and the story is told from her point of view. In the third and final portion of the book, we finally get inside Maurice’s head and learn that his is a pattern of behaviour established from young. Riveting and brilliantly crafted, this thrilling and captivating book about people and their stories will stay with you long after you’re done.

 

Favourite Non-Fiction: Katherine Reid’s The Landscapes of Anne of Green Gables. The Anne of Green Gables series by Canadian author LM Montgomery is my all-time favourite childhood series. As such, I absolutely adored this gem of a book, as it brought new life and meaning to Montgomery’s novels. This coffeetable book portrays with stunning photography the gorgeous landscape of Prince Edward Island, the setting for all but one of Montgomery’s novels. What gives this book added substance are the biographical anecdotes of Montgomery’s life and writing career, seamlessly weaved into the descriptions of the land that so inspired her. There are also travel tips for those of us — including yours truly — who want to plan a trip to PEI. This is a truly beautiful tribute to Montgomery’s writings and the island she loved with all her heart.

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Seven haunting books to read this October

Halloween is just around the corner! This inevitably starts us thinking about books with dark, haunting, chilling and macabre themes. As chilling as they are compelling, the horror novel compels us to gaze into the void to consider the extreme limits and consequences of events both natural and supernatural. But even as we do so, the void gazes back into us, and we are forced to confront just how much of the dark and the horror are found within us. Here are some of our choice reads this October:

 

We are Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory
This World Fantasy and Shirley Jackson Award Winner follows psychotherapist Dr. Jan Sayer who has a support group comprising of a group of misfits and outcasts whose mental states can only be described as ‘precarious’. The members of the group are hodge-podge and include the likes of Harrison, a Monster Detective and a storybook hero who is now in his mid-30s and spends most of his time popping pills and not sleeping. There is Stan whose only claim to fame comes from having been partially eaten by cannibals, Barbara who is haunted by unreadable messages carved on  her bones, and Greta who may or may not be a mass-murdering arsonist. No one believes the claims of these exceptional individuals except for Dr. Sayer who will help them uncover the monsters they face within and those which are lurking in plain sight. (Paperback, RM71.90)

The Hoarder by Jess Kidd
From the award-winning author of Himself comes the spellbinding tale of lonely caregiver Maud Drennan and a cranky hoarder with a house full of secrets, Cathal Flood. Maud is a caregiver whose sunny disposition masks a deep sadness. A tragic childhood has left her haunted by the company of a cast of prattling saints who pop in and out of her life like tourists. Meanwhile, Cathal is a menace by all accounts. The lone occupant of a Gothic mansion crawling with feral cats, he has been waging war against his son’s attempts to put him into an old-age home. Maud is this impossible man’s last chance: If she can help him get the house in order, he just might be able to stay. The unlikely pair begins to cooperate, bonding over their shared love of Irish folktales and mutual dislike of Cathal’s overbearing son.

But the cluttered corners of the mansion hint at buried family secrets,  reminding Maud that she doesn’t really know Cathal at all. When the forgotten case of a missing schoolgirl comes to light, her curiosity becomes a full-steam search for answers. Packed with eccentric charms, twisted comedy, and a whole lot of heart, The Hoarder is a mesmerising tale that examines the space between sin and sainthood, reminding us that often the most meaningful forgiveness that we can offer is to ourselves. (Paperback, RM69.90)

The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell
This deliciously creepy Gothic novel centres on newly widowed Elsie who is sent to see out her pregnancy at her late husband’s crumbling country estate, The Bridge. With her new servants resentful and the local villagers actively hostile, Elsie only has her husband’s awkward cousin for company — or so she thinks. For inside her new home lies a locked room, and beyond that door lies a 200-year-old diary and a deeply unsettling painted wooden figure — a Silent Companion — that bears a striking resemblance to Elsie herself. (Paperback, RM47.90)

Resin by Ane Riel
This award-winning novel is about Liv who died when she was six years old — or at least, that’s what the authorities think. Her father, wanting to keep her safe in this world, left the isolated house his little family called home one evening, pushed their boat out to sea and watched it ruin on the rocks. Then he went to report his only child missing. But behind the boxes and the baskets crowding her father’s workshop, Liv was hiding. This way, her father had said, she’d never have to go to school; she’d never have to leave her parents. She would be safe. Suspenseful and heart-breaking, Resin is the story of what can happen when you love someone too much — when your desire to keep them safe becomes the thing that could irrevocably harm them. (Paperback, RM79.90)

The Last Horror Novel in the History of the World by Brian Allen Carr
The setting for this novella is Scrape, Texas, a nowhere town near the Mexican border. Few people ever visit Scrape, and the unlucky ones who live there never seem to escape. They fill their days with fish fries, cheap beer, tobacco, firearms, and sex. But Scrape is about to be invaded by a plague of monsters unlike anything ever seen in the history of the world. First there’s La Llorona — the screaming woman in white — and her horde of ghost children. Then come the black, hairy hands. Thousands, millions, scurrying on fingers like spiders or crabs. But the hands are nothing to El Abuelo, a wicked creature with a magical bullwhip, and even El Abuelo mean even less when the devil comes to town. (Paperback, RM49.90)

Windeye by Brian Evenson
The characters in this collection of stories live as interlopers in a world shaped by mysterious disappearances and unfathomable discrepancies between the real and imagined: a woman falling out of sync with the world; a king’s servant hypnotised by his murderous horse; a transplanted ear with a mind of its own. Exploring how humans can persist in an increasingly unreal world, these tales are haunting, gripping, and psychologically fierce, and they illuminate a dark and unsettling side of humanity. (Paperback, RM75.90)

The Pan Book of Horror Stories selected by Herbet van Thal
Originally released in 1959, this book gathers 22 terrifying tales of horror by such famous authors as Peter Fleming, C. S. Forester, Bram Stoker, Angus Wilson, Noel Langley, Jack Finney and L. P. Hartley. Stories of the uncanny jostle with tales of the macabre. There are tales of subtle beastliness (Rasberry Jam); of sickening horror (The Fly or His Beautiful Hands); and of utter chilling terror (The Horror of the Museum). (Paperback, RM49.90)

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Lit Review: ‘Inheritance’ by Carole Wilkinson

Who: Australian author Carole Wilkinson started her writing career at 40, publishing her first book for young readers in 1996; she has been making up for lost time ever since. Over the past 20 years she has written more than 30 books, including the internationally award-winning and bestselling Dragonkeeper series. Inheritance is her latest historical fiction for young readers.

What: Fourteen-year-old Nic is sent to live with her reclusive grandfather at his remote property in the Australian countryside after her father signs up to work on a cruise ship. The homestead was once the childhood home of Nic’s mother who died the day she was born. The house has 30 rooms, sprawling grounds, three dogs but no mobile reception, Internet or functioning television. Left to her own devices, Nic explores the homestead, searching for clues about the mother she never knew. Things become interesting when she learns the ability to leap through a crack-in-time into the past — an ability passed down to the women in her family. With this newfound ability, Nic discovers the dark and shocking secret that haunts the land and the people who live there.

Why: Who among us hasn’t fantasised about being able to slip through time? The ability to glimpse what really took place centuries ago and change the course of history makes for a gripping narrative to be sure, and many authors, past and present, have explored this in their work. But the most impactful time-travel tales aren’t about changing the past but exploring it to better understand ourselves and our history. And this is largely the type of story that award-winning children’s book author Carole Wilkinson has written in her latest novel, Inheritance.

This compelling yarn confronts Australia’s shameful past in regards to the many instances of senseless, cold-blooded massacres of Aboriginals. It tackles this difficult subject with unflinchingly honesty without degenerating into a story of gory and wanton violence it easily could have. But the emotional scars left behind are very real, and very vividly captured in this authentic depiction of one of Australia’s darkest chapters. Wilkinson weaves the narrative into a story blending intrigue, adventure, supernatural elements and good old-fashioned sleuthing, with a curious, plucky teenage protagonist who has a penchant for the classics (Austen’s novels play a significant role in the plot). It’s a heady but thrilling mix.

Ultimately, though, it is an uplifting tale of coming to terms with one’s past — no matter how shocking or shameful — and how, even though you can’t change what happened, you can determine how you respond to it today.

Reading Level: Aged 11 and up

Verdict: A solid time-travel mystery and historical fiction that’s engaging and thought-provoking. (7/10)

Availability: Paperback, RM49.90

Special thanks to Pansing Distribution for a review copy of the book.

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Lit Review: ‘A Ladder to the Sky’ by John Boyne

Who: Irish author John Boyne has written 11 novels for adults and five for younger readers, including the acclaimed and highly successful, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which was turned into a film. He is also the author of the short story collection, Beneath the Earth, and is a regular book reviewer for The Irish Times. Boyne has been awarded numerous Irish book awards and international literary awards, such as the Que Leer Award for Novel of the Year in Spain and the Gustav Heinemann Peace Prize in Germany. In 2012, he was awarded the Hennessy Literary ‘Hall of Fame’ Award for his body of work. In 2015, he received an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of East Anglia. His latest adult fiction is A Ladder to the Sky.

What: Maurice Swift has harboured ambitions to be a writer since his teens. As a young man in post-war Berlin, Maurice has a fortuitous encounter with celebrated novelist Erich Ackerman with whom he ingratiates himself. Erich is lonely and has a tragic story to tell, and Maurice needs a story to write about. Maurice’s debut novel based on Erich’s life story is a hit and sets him on the path to literary stardom. But that only intensifies Maurice’s pursuit of other people’s stories, and he will stop at nothing to succeed.

Why: I have a confession to make: This is my first John Boyne novel, and it is a great introduction to Boyne’s storytelling prowess. A Ladder to the Sky is a brilliantly crafted, riveting tale of dark ambition and of the extremes that a man would go to attain his goal. It’s a familiar trope to be sure: an ambitious, psychopathic protagonist with a bit of talent but not quite enough to become one of the greats, and thus resorts to manipulation and theft. What makes A Ladder to the Sky intriguing is the setting of the tale, which takes place in the literary world; I wouldn’t be surprised if Boyne drew from his personal experiences in the industry to pen this tale.

By turns salacious, scandalous and shocking, the story is told in a non-traditional way using multiple narrators. Far from it being distracting, however, I enjoyed the manner in which this thrilling, plot-driven tale unfolded. The novel is divided into three parts that span three stages of Maurice’s career, with each successive stage seeing him become increasingly ruthless. In between the three main chapters are two shorter, third-person interludes that serve to enhance the overall narrative.

The novel begins with Maurice as a young man with only aspirations of being a writer, and this is told from Erich’s perspective, the veteran novelist he befriends. Part two picks up a few years after Maurice’s successful debut but he is now experiencing a mid-career slump and getting desperate by the day. He is married to Edith, also a novelist, and the story is told from her point of view. In the third and final portion of the book, we finally get inside Maurice’s head and learn that his is a pattern of behaviour established from young.

Does Maurice get his comeuppance? All I will say about this is that the novel is satisfactorily resolved at the end.

Verdict: A page-turner on the pitfalls of ambition. (8/10)

Availability: Trade paperback, RM81.50

Special thanks to Times Distribution for an advance copy of the book.