The AWA Book Review

"Books Are a Uniquely Portable Magic" Stephen King

by Isabelle Tadmoury

Singaporean Book Gems

There’s no shortage of books about Singapore! The most famous of course is Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan which was turned into a Hollywood blockbuster. It’s also the first modern story with an all-Asian cast and an Asian-American lead in 25 years; the last, The Joy Luck Club, was in 1993. Crazy Rich Asians is a Cinderella story about an Asian-American woman meeting her boyfriend’s colorful and, yes, crazy-rich family in Singapore. There are even private tours that retrace the various scenes and where they were filmed throughout the city.

Kevin Kwan's Crazy Rich Asians Series

While Kevin Kwan is internationally well-known, he is also persona non grata in Singapore, his birthplace. Having moved to the United States at age 11 with his parents, he defaulted on his national service obligation. Although he tried to renounce his Singaporean citizenship, he is currently banned from entering the country he made famous through his books.

Interestingly there are quite a few books that recount the transition of the city from the 1930s to present day, from the English classic Tanamera by foreign-correspondent Noel Barber which recounts a love story between an Englishman and a Chinese woman to 17A Keong Saik Road which recounts the life of the daughter of a brothel owner in the red-light district of Chinatown. The most heart-wrenching is probably How We Disappeared about Singaporean “comfort women” during the Japanese occupation. It tells of one woman’s survival and the quest of a child to solve a family mystery.

17A Keong Saik Road

A recent popular series uses indigenous trees as the background for her murder-mysteries. Ovidia Yu’s Frangipani Tree Mystery, the Betel Nut Tree Mystery, The Paperbark Tree Mystery, The Mimosa Tree Mystery and the Cannonball Tree Mystery are a delightful look into Singapore’s past through the eyes of the main character Chen Su Lin. Amateur sleuth Su Lin, works with British- born Chief Inspector Thomas LeFroy to solve the murders that occur during both the British colony and under the Japanese occupation. Su Lin’s childhood limp allows her to go undetected to investigate in places where others can’t go. These stories about strong female characters make Ovidia Yu one of Singapore's first feminist writers and she continues to write thought-provoking plays and novels on the subject.

Ovidia Yu's Mystery Books

Isabelle is an avid reader and book club member. She’s written a children's picture book "Three World Trade Center was our Home” which is part of the 9/11 Museum. Catch her recommendations in the magazine or on GoodReads.