Catherine Menon

I had to read this book after watching the author, interviewed by Colm Toibin at the Hay Festival 2021. The book is set in 20th Century Malaysia. It gives glimpses of different periods of Malaysia's history - the 1920's with a British administered Malaya, 1940's a Japanese occupied Malaya, post-WWII Malayan Emergency period, a period of unrest with communist guerrilla warfare and finally the week in 1985 when Durga returns to Kuala Lipis to visit her Grandmother, Mary. The story enfolds with timelines blending seamlessly in the telling by alternating voices of Mary and Durga. It is a gripping read. The characters feel real, their experiences feel real, I could not put this down.

Interview with Catherine Menon… (mere)