They Do Return ... But Gently Lead Them Back 2

by Catherine Lim

A boy is given a girl's name so that he can escape the attention of malignant ghouls. A devout Catholic priest is suspected of hanky-panky with a submissive Chinese wife when she gives birth to an albino child. A young girl student dies before her English examinations, but still manages to write an out-of-point essay for the Cambridge Syndicate. From societal superstitions and the imagination come these 15 tales of the paranormal. 2021 by Catherine Lim. Published in paper format in Singapore by Marshall Cavendish International Asia, recorded by Storyside 2022.

Genres: Short Stories, Horror

Audible Audio

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

林宝音 in Chinese

Catherine Lim Poh Imm (Chinese: 林宝音; pinyin: Lín Bǎoyīn, born 21 March 1942) is a Singaporean fiction author known for writing about Singapore society and of themes of traditional Chinese culture. Hailed as the "doyenne of Singapore writers", Lim has published nine collections of short stories, five novels, two poetry collections, and numerous political commentaries to date.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Esti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found this book burried in heaps of books at Periplus stand, during my books hunting at Jakarta Book Party (Pesta buku Jakarta, Istora Senayan June 2 - 10,2007). Its tiny compared to the rest of the books and being reprinted 8 times since 1983 (mine was printed in 2001) caught my attention.

Being Asian and Balinese in particular, I was grown - up with all these stories about supernatural being around us, I do believe there's another world other than ours. This book is enjoyable to read, next time I'm in S'pore will look for her other books (went to Times website she has (at least) 5 new books on top of this one !).

[Dewi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buku ini berisi tentang kisah-kisah pendek tentang kematian yang bersifat spiritual atau bisa juga dikatakan mistis. Bukan berisi kisah-kisah horor, tapi lebih pada cara pandang terhadap alam yang berbeda. Generasi baru yang skeptis terhadap cara pandang generasi lama, namun masih merinding juga membayangkan roh jahat atau arwah leluhur. Generasi lama menyikapinya dengan mengamini bahwa "mereka" kadang kembali namun kita bisa menuntun mereka ke alam lain dengan doa.

[Claudia Marcela · Rating 4 out of 5]

The curse, rendered in English, loses a great deal of its alarming vehemence; there probably are not words enough in the English language to convey the sheer force of Chinese vituperations. It is the totality of facial expression, the physical act of dragging the words out, as of a monstrous bitch, and above all, of the whole force of tradition going back to countless generations, that invests each image with a power and a terror that cannot be explained by meaning alone.

El título y la sinopsis prometen historias de miedo. Pero más que terror por los fantasmas y ghouls (o lo que los personajes creen que son) que aparecen en cada una de las 15 historias, da miedo el poder que tiene la superstición sobre la psique humana. Lo que las tradiciones y las creencias pueden llevar a cometer a las personas y tomárselo como lo más normal.

Desde un fantasma que ronda el sitio donde murió, un matrimonio desafortunado debido al karma de una vida pasada, o un ataúd que se cobra las vidas de los allegados porque el ocupante destinado no muere, hasta dejar morir a un niño porque se cree que está robando la oportunidad de vivir de otro, cada una de las historias asusta a su manera, ya sea por su giro paranormal o por el poder de las tradiciones sobre los personajes. Y nos brinda el retrato de una sociedad tradicionalista, el que se le eche la culpa de la desgracia a las mujeres, a su físico o sus actitudes es ridículo a la vez que triste.

Aun así, es una lectura adictiva.

Ghosts do return, said Lau Ah Sim, the wise and pious old woman in the town of my childhood, but when they do, gently lead them back. Call them by their name, then tell them to go back quickly to their new home. If they refuse, be patient with them, and gently lead them back.

¿Qué Disfruté?
Las historias tienen ese toque tan realista, que bien podría darlas por ciertas.

¿Qué Prefiero Olvidar?
La despiadada misoginia de los personajes en la mayoría de historias.

[Apollos Michio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some thoughts/observations on these stories:

The Old Man in the Balcony - An old man’s stubborn ‘refusal’ to answer coffin knockings results in the tragic deaths of other people. ⚰️

A Boy Named Ah Mooi - A boy is given a girl’s name so that he can escape the attention of fiends and be kept safe from harm. 🧒🏻

The Legacy - A superstitious dying father staves off death till dawn, in order to bequeath his sons a legacy of prosperity. 🕖

The Story of Father Monet - A man mistakes an albinotic baby for an illegitimate child, thinking that his wife had an affair with a French priest. 👶🏼

Grandfather’s Story - A griefing grandfather tells a story about a farmer, his wife, and a mercenary head nun. 💭

Of Moles and Buttocks - The presence of moles and the size of buttocks are interpreted as Fate’s endowment of either bad or good luck to the people in this story. 🍑

Full Moon - The superstition of getting your ear cut because you pointed at the full moon is touched on by this story. 🌕

The Anniversary - The spirit of a woman who dies in a plane crash lingers around the site to wait for her lover to come visit during the anniversary of the crash. ✈️

The Exhumation - The exhumation of a grave distresses the spirit of a buried grandmother. 🪦

Of Blood From Woman - This story examines the significance and symbolism of blood, especially from women. 🩸

Lee Geok Chan - The eponymous young student dies before taking her Cambridge English examinations, but still mysteriously manages to obtain a grade for it. 📝

Two Male Children - Two male babies are fretted over by their parents, for one of them will be taken away through death to be the Dark Deity of Hell’s boy assistant. ☠️

A Soldier Stalks - A soldier from the Japanese Occupation haunts the campus for artists working on innovative materials for schoolchildren. 🪖

They Do Return… But Gently Lead Them Back - “Ghosts do return… but when they do, gently lead them back.”

K.C. - The author’s friend K.C. leaves an envelope for her to only open a year after his death from cancer. ✉️

In They Do Return… But Gently Lead Them Back, Catherine Lim compiles fifteen short stories that, unlike most of her previous stories, incline more towards the supernatural and other common superstitious beliefs. 🥢

Maybe because I’m reading a lot of her short stories consecutively, I find some of the themes in her stories repetitive, such as the Confucian preference for sons in the past; the importance placed on having healthy and strong babies; the historical practice of having bond servants; and the devoutness in following Chinese superstitions. But these, I believe, reflect the zeitgeist of Singapore in the 1980s, imparting the book an almost nostalgic feel. 🇸🇬

4/5

[Daryl Dela Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book I read from Catherine Lim was Little Ironies: Stories of Singapore. It was recommended to me by my friend's mum, and it was a very enjoyable read. So I wanted to read more of Catherine's books.

This book didn't disappoint me. I liked the collection of short stories, with each story capturing my attention easily and getting me hooked right from the start. I also learned a lot of new words from this book, because Catherine's writing is very descriptive and uses deep vocabulary which helps paint a clearer image into the reader's mind.

Overall, an enjoyable read!

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

editor needs to Open their Eyes cos day was written as clay and i was abit confused but it was vv easy to read and vv interesting! not spectacular but i was intrigued all the same! idk why ppl dl it cos its so digestible and it really sucked me in yk

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Listened to this as an audiobook while playing some animal crossing.
It was okay, not as disturbing as I was expecting it to be.

[Fê Dourado · Rating 4 out of 5]

gostoso de ler e o último conto é perfeito para fechar a coletânea

[Bo Manson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection about ghost stories. Local ghost story carefully narrated by the author. Although it is short, it definitely will send chills to your spine. Sometimes, they are just souls trapped and needed to be set free so both of the world can live peacefully. And the author put it perfectly in her book. Gently. Lead. Them. Back