Winner of the Epigram Books Fiction Prize ‘Slick, sharp . . . a joy to read’ Tash Aw Jasmine Leong is the heiress apparent to Phoenix, her family’s billion-ringgit company known especially for its pork snacks. When her grandmother, the great Madame Leong, unexpectedly passes away, Jasmine discovers she is actually a Malay Muslim and this newfound identity threatens to upend her life and ambitions. Finding herself at the centre of a political controversy, and caught between two men who love her, The Accidental Malay examines the human cost of a country’s racial policies and paints a portrait of a woman unwilling to accept the fate history has designated for her. 'A novel both generous and scathing; both honest and nuanced; both grounded in human emotion and engaged with history and politics' Preeta Samarasan, author of Evening Is the Whole Day
Jasmine Leong wants to be the next CEO of Phoenix, her family's billion-ringgit company known especially for its bak kwa. But when Jasmine discovers she is actually a Malay Muslim, her newfound identity threatens to upend her life and ambitions. Set in Kuala Lumpur and other areas of Malaysia, The Accidental Malay examines the human cost of a country's racial policies, and paints a portrait of a woman unwilling to accept the fate history has designated for her.
Winner of the 2020 Epigram Books Fiction Prize When a renegade prophet vanishes in a cloud of pigeons in Kuala Lumpur, chorister and first witness Gabriel finds himself press-ganged into a wild road trip down the Malaysian coast. Meanwhile, in a sleepy town by the sea, Lydia traces the links between her late grandaunt’s eccentric lover and her involvement in the Communist Emergency. As Lydia and Gabriel enter a shadowy mythology of serpents, Sufi saints and plainclothes gods, they must grapple with the theologies and histories they once trusted, in a country more perilously punk than they’d ever conceived of. Reader Reviews: "A dizzying tale of saints, heists, maybe-queens." —The Straits Times "Quite the debut, accomplished, deft, unabashed and exuberant." —Asian Review of Books "Author Joshua Kam’s debut book brings Asian mythology to the forefront." —The Sun Daily Malaysian author blurs myths and truths as you escape on a wild road trip ... This whimsical, rollercoaster ride of a book also carries a tale of old and new Malaysia colliding, with various figures from local history, politics and folklore coming together in an epic quest for the soul of the nation. —newsday24.com "In essence, (the novel) acts as a love letter to Malaysian folklore and history, showcasing an impressive degree of representation and imagination that never feels shoehorned into the narrative." —Bakchormeeboy "What a trip! This 21st-century adventure quest with an Islamic saint also brings us on a madcap tour through a multitude of Malaysian mythologies— Malay epics, Taoist pantheons, WW2/Emergency/Merdeka heroics, and more. Even more vitally, it gives us hope amidst the dire news of our era— political corruption, environmental devastation and bigotry—reassuring us that the human/divine spirit still flourishes in the late-capitalist tropics, and is ultimately destined to triumph over evil. An absolute delight, and truly, deliciously Malaysian.” —Ng Yi-Sheng, award-winning author of Lion City “Borgesian, even Manichean in spirit, with almost reverent borrowings from Nusantara mythologies to Abrahamic religiosity, this novel is a wild ride from start to finish, riffing on Malayan history, politics and folklore in a surprisingly redemptive arc, while remaining deeply interrogative about what it means to keep true to goodness in the ever-changing face of evil.” —Cyril Wong, two-time Singapore Literature Prize-winning author of This Side of Heaven
A Senior Counterinsurgency Advisor to General David Petraeus, Kilcullen's vision of war dramatically influenced America's decision to rethink its military strategy in Iraq. Now, Kilcullen provides a remarkably fresh perspective on the War on Terror.
What if the first modern republic in the world was not America or France but a gold-rich state founded in 1777 in the middle of West Kalimantan? Entrepreneur Hector Yan sets off on a perilous journey after the mysterious murder of his aunt, travelling from Singapore to Hong Kong, Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur and West Kalimantan, in a desperate effort to uncover a priceless treasure. His path mirrors that undertaken by his famous late uncle, who was obsessed with uncovering a lost treasure from a former republic in the thick jungles of Borneo. In a tale interwoven with the rich tapestry of Southeast Asia, Hector races against time to prevent his enemies from uncovering secrets that could change the world as we know it.
A passenger airliner plummets into the Korean DMZ, killing every person on board but one: Susan Chin, a sixteen-year-old Singaporean girl with Down syndrome. The authorities are quick to dismiss the crash as an accident, but the insurers aren't convinced, not over the girl's questionable account. Claims investigator Jean Wan is called upon to challenge the ruling. She befriends Susan and uncovers an eccentric version of her story laced with magic mushrooms, a dead girl and the unusual bond between Susan and her father. Confronted by the stench of conspiracy, Jean realises she must strike at the heart of it all—the innocence of Susan Chin.
* Chosen as a 2020 Kirkus Prize Finalist for Young Readers' Literature! * A Malaysian folk tale comes to life in this emotionally layered, chilling middle grade debut, perfect for fans of The Book of Boy and The Jumbies. I am a dark spirit, the ghost announced grandly. I am your inheritance, your grandmother’s legacy. I am yours to command. Suraya is delighted when her witch grandmother gifts her a pelesit. She names her ghostly companion Pink, and the two quickly become inseparable. But Suraya doesn’t know that pelesits have a dark side—and when Pink’s shadows threaten to consume them both, they must find enough light to survive . . . before they are both lost to the darkness. Fans of Holly Black’s Doll Bones and Tahereh Mafi’s Furthermore series will love this ghostly middle grade debut that explores jealousy, love, and the extraordinary power of friendship.
Set in postwar Malaya at the time when people and governments alike are bemused and dazzled by the turmoil of independence, this three-part novel is rich in hilarious comedy and razor-sharp in observation. The protagonist of the work is Victor Crabbe, a teacher in a multiracial school in a squalid village, who moves upward in position as he and his wife maintain a steady decadent progress backward. A sweetly satiric look at the twilight days of colonialism.
"The author of this book attempts to study the Malay conception of the hero as projected by the ruling class… The readers would benefit greatly from the book. They would attain a better understanding of Malay politics and cultural life. This is the first attempt made to study the conception of the hero in Malay society… the way the author tackles the problem makes interesting reading. Anyone aspiring to have a better understanding of Malay society cannot afford to neglect the book" - Foreword by Syed Hussein Alatas. "[A] constant response [to this book] had been to place the burden of anointing heroes on the book, grudging it for its criticisms of socially or popularly acknowledged heroes. The writer is often chided ‘who do you think then should be Malay heroes?’. Such retort always impressed me how the process of social evaluation remain closed to many, hence their lack of self-introspection. They feel it is a question of finding and installing heroes in a detached manner, little realizing their values, ideals and humanity is very much bound with the process. "This book is not so much on heroes as on hero worshippers. It studies heroes to the extent they reflect the values and ideals of their worshippers themselves. It is not really addressed towards resolving the debate which personality should be heralded as Malay heroes, be it Hang Tuah, Hang Jebat or anybody else for that matter. The interest of the book remains primarily an examination of Malay values and ideals, the sense of cultural identity. The book examines the social-historical forces that had shaped those values and ideals, as reflected in group dynamics and ideologies, as well as the vested interests involved" - Preface by Shaharuddin Maaroof.
