The Pineapple Trail

by Sharifah Hamzah

Two sisters, Safia and Nora, grow up in a town in Malaysia where the pineapple is king, where the fruit’s factory and plantation provide livelihood for the residents. As young women, they start their adulthood at the factory.

Nora is happy to stay in her hometown with all that it offers. Charming and bubbly, Nora has many suitors. Will she make the right choice?

For Safia, the older sister, a chance encounter with a glamorous woman unveils a side of her that she never knew existed. She leaves home to follow the lure of a bigger dream. Alone in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur, through her timidity, Safia loses the drive to seek her goal. Then she meets an ambitious young man who revives that dream. At a time when the city is brimming with new opportunities and new wealth, can they pool their yearnings and achieve all that they want?

The sisters tread life’s journey through expectations, unfulfilled dreams, joys and resolve. This is the story of their pineapple trail.

318 pages, Paperback

Published December 19, 2021

About the author

Sharifah Hamzah is a multi-cultural blogger and writer. Born in Johore and grew up in Singapore, she has worked as a feature writer for a lifestyle magazine in Singapore; a feature writer for a daily English newspaper in Malaysia; and in library services in the United States.

Her blog Building Bridges contains snippets of life from both sides of the globe.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this while on holiday in Malaysia, as I wanted to understand more of the culture. I liked how the lives of the two sisters don’t quite work out as they hoped. In that sense, it mirrors real life. But it’s a shame the author didn’t then use their experiences to develop them as characters. I was hoping for more of a resolution to the story, as it ended with loose ends. Perhaps the author needs to write a follow-up.