TRASH: A Southeast Asian Urban Anthology

SEA Urban Anthologies #3

by Dean Francis Alfar (editor), Marc de Faoite (editor)

TRASH is part of a threesome of Southeast Asian urban anthologies. The other two are called FLESH and HEAT. We chose to interpret ‘urban’ as a state of mind rather than population count or infrastructural development, so a few of these stories and essays take place in very remote places indeed. But they shake it up, they twist and shout, they wanna show you what it’s all about.

Featuring work by: Zedeck Siew, Raymond G. Falgui, Lyana Shah, Dipika Mukherjee, Timothy Marsh, Richard Calayeg Cornelio, Ted Mahsun, Eliza Vitri Handayani, Michael Aaron Gomez, Tilon Sagulu, Alexander Marcos Osias, Nin Harris, Francis Quina, M. SHANmughalingam and Victor Fernando R. Ocampo

Genres: Asia, Fiction, Anthologies

228 pages, Paperback

First published April 11, 2016

Reviews

[hans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Different kind of 'trash' represented here. Pinch of cultural and one's life-- revenge, wealth, friendship/relationship or literally trash itself. Having few as my favorites-- Mrs Chandra's War Against Dust (ending was my favorite), For Your Merry Days Are Over (love how the story goes from current to flashback to current, and those inside vault moment) and Flowers for KK (you go woman with that revenge at the end I'm rooting for you!). I love Dandey conversation with the three kids in Bleeding Trash-- another favorite as well, leaving me with strange after taste.

A nice collection-- various style and theme, few life advise and some scarily and real views of people around us. Each idea was great, nevertheless. 3.5 stars!

[Emmy Hermina Nathasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

My rating 3.5; some stories resonate with me and fit in the theme, whereas some doesn't.

[Karin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading globally, for me, tends to do one of two things: either I feel that there's commonalities between myself and the characters, despite our differing cultures, or I feel that our cultures and values and norms are so wildly different that the bridge can't be closed. This collection of short stories did both. Some of the stories were excellent, to me, yet others required such an understanding of the culture that I felt there was a sheet of glass between us, limiting my interaction to nothing more than an outside observer, who can look but not touch.

#readharder2016 book from Southeast Asia.

[Ismim Putera · Rating 2 out of 5]

First of all, a good effort by the editors to compile writings from SEA. I like the energy of new and emerging writers with their new styles and perspectives. However, some of the stories are quite disappointing. Lack of character development, no proper storylines, no conflicts, no motivation and the narrations are painstakingly verbose and monotonous.

[Azrie Idzmeer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would've given this book a four-star but...so many boring stories in it. Only three to four stories worth reading. The rest are just...'trash'.

[ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

skipped the last few stories bc i wasn't interested...some were good but some were just meh

[Em Flaviano]

This was fun! 😄 Now if I can just find the rest Heat and Flesh…

[Pearse Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trash was the first part of a trilogy of anthologies, so I'll hold total judgement, but I am partially disappointed. I guess I expected better content. The stories have more conclusion and character than Loosed Upon the World or We Found Ourselves in Moontown, but not much. Some of these needed more beef, more of an arc. Like "How To Make White People Happy" read someone's entry who has not written for more than a year. "And The Heavens Your Canopy" was just an exploration of an idea rather than a story. The God Neil Clarke would wag his finger at this.
It was a quick read, a cute read, I loved the use of dialogue/language blending, and the background worldbuilding, but I hope Heat and Flesh are more stories rather than "explorations" or vignettes.

[Carmen Thong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great short stories in there, a pleasant read on average... Nothing utterly ground shaking (except maybe for that one dystopian story).