Malaysian
Voices
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| Khairunnisa: A
Good Woman
‘The first time Caroline met Danny was in her college library which is where so many student romances begin’ Caroline is nineteen and a student of Anthropology ("Measuring skulls?" her mother had exclaimed in horror and dismay) when she falls in love with and marries Danny. Marriage with Danny means leaving London and following him to a new life in Malaysia ("Kuala Lumpur," which had such an exotic, intriguing ring about it she was most disappointed to discover later that it meant something as mundane as ‘muddy river mouth’) governed by glorious sunshine, haughty in-laws, twin babies and the challenges brought about by an unexpected decline in fortunes. This contemporary story of two people from
different cultures who marry for love is Ellina binti Abdul Majid’s
newest novel after PERHAPS IN PARADISE
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Iguanas in Our Garden "There used to be iguanas in our garden…." writes Adam who lives with his family in a house that is ‘older than Ayah but younger than Nek’pah.’ A house with light switches like ‘round black beetles’ and furniture so old it is ‘back in old fashion again.’ A collection of everyday events in childhood
simply and humorously told. Accompanied by eye-catching illustrations
drawn from the imagination and pen of a young, aspiring cartoonist. |
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Perhaps In Paradise It is 1969 and Kina is about to celebrate her birthday. The youngest of three girls, she is conscious of the fact that she is neither as pretty nor as clever as her two sisters. Yet her powers of perception and description display a maturity and sensitivity beyond her tender years. Kina’s family is comfortably off. Hers is an ordinary middle class Malaysian childhood ‘in a neat whitewashed bungalow with black and white chicks at the front windows’. Yet situations arise that are unexpected, beyond control – scandal, illness, bereavement, even the presence of a non-too-friendly ghost. Set against the backdrop of the tragedy of 13 May 1969, the novel presents an insight into growing up in the seventies when family pride and keeping up appearances were the be all and end all of Malaysian society. Narrated in a straightforward, simple, often humorous style, the novel also has its dark side – of the consequences of a hasty marriage, domestic violence, abortion – issues which in true Malaysian middle class fashion are never brought into the open for fear of loss of ‘face’. |