Tweet

by Isa Kamari

Cultural Medallion winner Isa Kamari’s new novella, Tweet, is a high-quality work of imaginative fiction that marries traditional storytelling with a modern theme. The novel is set in Singapore’s bird park, an international tourist destination and an iconic bird sanctuary. Isa Kamari, through a dialogue between a Singaporean grandfather and his grandchild, ponders over the stress and demands of our modern human existence. Through the grandchild’s innocent questions, the author exposes us to the frailties of our modern life. Intermixed in the narrative is the famous fable of Simurg, the legendary bird, that some of the birds of the bird park are deliriously desirous of meeting. They embark upon a journey that brings them face-to-face with a reality that they had not imagined even in their dreams. In his first ever English language work, Isa Kamari shows us a new facet of his storytelling abilities, which is part philosophical and part imaginative.

80 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Fida Islaih · Rating 4 out of 5]

A yong boy explores a bird park with curiosity of how the caged birds live. It is an easy read with great messages about life and faith. Alongside the dialogue of the young boy and his grandfather there is a parellel dilouge between the birds as they talk about life and desire. In the end you see how the two stories meet. It feels like a reflection on our own lives of limitations and freedom.

[Mohamad Nasrul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: Tweet
Author: Isa Kamari
Publisher: Kitaab Singapore (2016)

Date bought: 11th June 2022
Booth Toko Sue, KLIBF 2022, World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur

Date read: 21-25th October 2023


🐦 Ilham and his grandfather, Jati visit bird park in Singapore
* While strolling through the park, both of them talk so much regarding birds and life.
*So many words from their dialogue can be reflections for ourselves as well. It relates with our life at so many levels.
*The depiction of the bird park illustrate very well in their journey in this book.

🐦Hoopoe, in the quest of searching Simuk - the king of all birds, looking for comrades for the quest.
*Meeting various kind of birds, but with various reasons not to follow the quest with him. Hoopoe's replies for each of the birds with negative reasons, are really uplifting & the answers touch our hearts profoundly.
*The author portrayed birds in this novel descriptively. One can imagined the described bird, even the rare species of the bird. Readers could learn about the species of birds.

🐦The ending intertwined both journey of Ilham and Hoopoe beautifully and quite unexpected. It answered the question in prologue and a few scenes in the story.

🐦Awesome! Short, yet meaningful!