Everything About Us: Readings from Readings 3

Readings from Readings #3

by Sharon Bakar (Editor), Jane Williams (Contributor), Sharon D. Molyneaux-Ohno (Contributor)

A KL taxi driver becomes obsessed with his passenger; an architect working on the biggest project of her professional life becomes the victim of a strange visitation; the lies and evasions of adults begin to unravel for a couple of children in a small American town. From a suicide bomber who escapes detention, to a teacher at the end of her tether, and a father who realizes the necessity of giving his daughter to a stranger, here are stories and poems that run the whole gamut of human emotion. There are pieces about love in all its forms; about terrifying curses and magical transformations; about daring escapes by sea by the dispossessed. And much, much more.

Everything About Us showcases writers who have taken part in Malaysia’s longest-running literary event Readings@Seksan. Once a month, writers come together in the inspiring surroundings of the Seksan Gallery in Bangsar to share their work in front of a live audience, and this third Readings from Readings collection comprises their short stories, microfiction, poetry and creative non-fiction.

243 pages, Paperback

First published August 14, 2016

About the author

Creative writing teacher, editor, indie publisher. Read mainly literary fiction, and love the short story especially. Also vary my reading diet with a bit of non-fiction. Am a bit of a ploddy reader, can't usually manage more than a book a week, but do try to set aside at least an hour to read each day (usually first thing in the morning).

Reviews

[Marc Faoite · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I am one of the contributors to this anthology and its editor Sharon Bakar also edited Tropical Madness, a collection of my short stories. I also personally know at least half the contributors, so this review will focus mainly on those I don’t know personally.

Everything About Us is the third volume in the Readings from Readings series of anthologies of short stories and poems. There are some very strong pieces in this collection and the over all standard is very high. For readers familiar with contemporary Malaysian writing there will be many familiar names, but there are also new writers featured, some having their work published for the first time.

There are too many pieces to comment on each individually, but a few of my personal favourites include, in no particular order:

David T.K. Wong’s Escape from Singapore, a touching non-fiction account of how the author fled with members of his family aboard a cramped boat that brought him to Australia, and a timely reminder that we shouldn’t take peace for granted. This piece is an excerpt from his 2015 memoir Adrift: My Childhood in Colonial Singapore, a book I will definitely be putting on my must-read list.

Crosswords by Cynthia Reed is a moving account of a man dealing with the fact that his wife is losing her memories while simultaneously struggling with the vagaries of his own mind.

Aaron Chelliah’s story Dear Zed is a powerful piece that deals with the troubling but very real subject of Malaysia’s persecution of homosexuals. It is a brave piece and solidly written. Extraordinarily, this is the writer’s first published piece. Hopefully we will have the chance to read more from this writer in the future.

I was lucky enough to hear Sreedhevi Iyer read her story IC a few years ago at the monthly Readings session that is at the origins of this book. It takes a long hard look at Malaysia’s obsession with pigeon-holing everyone, and while not unhumorous there is a certain undercurrent of controlled but fiery anger that gives this piece an edge.

In his scathing poem What is KL? Simon Beaumont tells us that KL (Kuala Lumpur) is a ‘kidney stone trapped in that small Malayan cock dangling off the Asian subcontinent’. There are a lot of home truths in this poem about a city its inhabitants love to hate and hate to love, but ultimately can’t help themselves ‘Because KL is a teenager’s bedroom of a city … still learning how to be a city. And even though KL is messy, it all kind of works.’

Editor Sharon Bakar’s story Just Like Steven Spielberg is one of the few stories that deliberately pays homage to the unique idiomatic and idiosyncratic features of Malaysian English, something that I feel Malaysian writers should be more adventurous with in general. The story also highlights the patriarchal arrogance and blatant misogyny that is all too rife in Malaysia.

Ng Min Shen’s story Yesterday highlights the topics of depression and suicide, difficult subjects to write about, but she manages to sensitively pull off a coherent narrative even if the inevitability of the ending was a little predictable. I was astonished to learn that this is her first published story – definitely a writer to keep an eye on.

If I had to pick a favourite story in this collection it would be Lights by Cheah Pih Nyuk. It blends environmental concerns with magic realism and in a collection that boast some fine writing this is one of the best-written pieces, and also possibly the longest. This is a writer to watch and one I would definitely like to read more of.

There are plenty of other noteworthy stories here from writers such as Vernon Daim, Dina Zaman, and Ted Mahsun, poetry from Nin Harris, Sivani Sivagurunatham, and Bernice Chauly, and a few pieces that straddle poetry and short story forms including two chilling pieces by Dipika Mukherjee, and last and most certainly not least the uniquely strange teamwork of writer Zedeck Siew and illustrator Sharon Chin which is in a category all of its own.

All in all this is a very solid collection and encouraging in that it shows that there are many young (and not so young) writers in Malaysia prepared to speak out and up and capable of doing so with wit and style and insight.

If you’re looking for a primer on contemporary Malaysian writing this collection is a very good place to start.

[Storm Chase]

Readings is a group where writers in Kuala Lumpur (and sometimes out of town authors) come together to read their work to each other and literature fans. This book is an anthology of 30+ pieces written by some of the group.

You’ll note there’s no rating. This is because this is the work of many authors, and as I loved some pieces and didn’t finish others, it doesn’t seem right to rate it.

I should also say that literary fiction isn’t my favourite kind of reading. However, I was asked to review, so here goes.

IC by Sreedhevi Iyer is the best glimpse into the Malaysian mind I’ve seen in a long time. If I’d been editor, I would have led with this story, and made it the focus.

I liked Birthday Cake by Dina Zaman, What is KL by Simon Beaumont and Just Like Spielberg by Sharon Bakar too.

Katu by Nicole Idar, Letter to Zed by Aaron Chelliah and Cherry Blossom by Elaine Chiew were well written.

There were a couple of stories that were too clichéd for my liking. Also, I can’t comment on the poetry. I’m not fond of the stuff so I had a look and ended up skipping most of it. Sorry, it’s one of my shortcomings.

Summary: overall this really isn’t my kind of book. However, I would recommend it anyone who enjoys local tales or as a gift for anyone who want a taste of Malaysian literary fiction.

[Sharon Bakar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm the editor and publisher so I guess have to give it 5 stars - it's my baby and I'm very proud of it.

Please do feel free to add your honest comments and ratings - would love to know which of the pieces you liked best.

[Wan Phing · Rating 4 out of 5]

The editor Sharon Bakar gifted me this book receently, and I had time to read through all 32 authors' short stories, non-fiction, flash fiction and poetry. It is quite a hodgepodge of writing, with no discernible theme except that these are writers who have taken part in Readings @ Seksan (nothing wrong with that).

Be mentally prepared to be transported to different locations (KL, Penang, Terengganu, Singapore, Bali, New Zealand, USA), to different genres (sci-fi, romance, drama, literary, open letters, musings, monologues) and to works from writers of different countries & backgrounds.

Most of the stories have also been published elsewhere. The ones that stood out to me are David T.K.Wong's "Escape from Singapore", an excerpt from his Epigram memoir which I would not have easy access to. Then there's Elaine Chiew's "Cherry Blossom", an interracial love story, and Dina Zaman's "The Birthday Cake" on lost love and regret.

I also enjoyed "Catatonia" by Wan Noraishah Samsudin which is strangely haunting and powerful, written in that Gen-Z literary style with no capitalisations and in second person p.o.v. "Lights" by Cheah Pih Nyuk is climate spec fic, and surprisingly very creative. I have never heard of these two Malaysian writers, and I hope that these published works are not one-offs.

Another plus point is that the book is beautifully designed and published. The cover is great and even has shiny emboss on the sketches. There is artwork inside by illustrator Gladys Teo-Simpson, functioning as page separators. Great introductory read for a dip into an eclectic mix of mostly Malaysian writing with a few diasporic and non-Asian stories thrown in the mix.

[Anna Tan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the stories in these were really sad, and had quite a lot to do with infidelity, people who are a bit unhinged, and crime. Didn't quite get into the poetry either.

I'll just mention the works that caught my attention:
The Monk and the Mouse (Lam Kok Liang)
The Ghost in the Garden (Ted Mahsun)
Crosswords (Cynthia Reed)
The Birthday Cake (Dina Zaman)
Three Little Words (Jeanette Goon)
Lights (Cheah Pih Nyuk)
Katu (Nicole Idar)
Yesterday (Ng Min Shen)
A Letter to Zed (Aaron Chelliah)
IC (Sreedhevi Iyer)

[KV · Rating 3 out of 5]

My heartily thanks to editor Sharon Bakar for giving me this copy for goodreads giveaway program. I really enjoyed reading all the short stories in this book & well done to all the authors for writing a good piece of story. My favourite story from this collection is "A letter to Zed" by Aaron Chelliah.