Boh Beh Zhao: Poems

by Cheng Him

Cheng Him’s explosive debut poetry collection is a narrative-in-poems exploring the inner psyche of the mythical Singaporean Ah Seng, made prismatic through the lens of Buddhism and mid-2010s clubbing fervour.
From the tumultuous days of his childhood to the wayward hurricane of his youth, Boh Beh Zhao charts the trajectory of someone wandering through life as though it has no beginning or conceivable end, and plots his eventual landing into the barren fields of the latter. Hop onboard Ah Seng’s chaotic journey and ask what does it mean to live life so fast that all else seems to stand still?

Genres: Poetry

101 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 25, 2025

Reviews

[Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

i didn’t feel anything, think any new meaningful thoughts, or feel like anything changed in me as i read this collection. we seem to follow the life of a persona and his mother, and. um. that’s all? at no point did i feel surprised by the poems or connected with the persona. at no point did it seem like his life and his journey was written to send a bigger message. i could see the emotions he was supposed to be going through but felt no resonance with them. the poems did not demand my attention with substance or connect with me through real images and issues. instead they caught my attention briefly with gimmicks but the lack of substance could not sustain them. the whole collection was a very quick read because i didn’t really have to slow down and was never prompted to pause to feel emotions or think. yet it also felt like a long read because of how little was actually happening.

[Crispin Rodrigues · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boh Beh Zhao is such an epic poem that captures one person's realisation of not only their adulthood, but also the responsibilities that come with it.

Ah Seng is your typical Singaporean adolescent male - partying, not giving a care despite his lao bu caring for him. There is a change in innocence as the collection moves through meditations of meaning in life, alongside siam diu/Thai disco music. It is truly a blend of two things that do not seem to fit, and yet it is ying and yang, the hedonistic and the stoic.

The collection is complex, but is a journey well worth embarking on.

[CJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really exciting set of poems!!!! I don’t think I’ve seen a poet embrace a local vernacular and explore (the author’s own unique take on) Singlish so fully as a language and device for poetic work and play. Some deeply beautiful, symphonic moments buried in here, even if the consistency of the collection’s conceit falters in places. Nonetheless, I admire the commitment to an entire collection telling one coherent narrative with this extent of philosophical and thematic unity. Saving other thoughts for a longer review!!

[Wayne Low · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review in progress!

[Iain Chow]

Singlish is really melodic and musical, so it comes out quite beautifully in poetry. Really liked the imagery and the use of form.