Sweet Offerings

Malay Quadrilogy

by Chan Ling Yap

Set in the late 1930s and 1960s, this is the tale of Mei Yin, a young Chinese girl from an impoverished family. Her destiny is shaped when she is sent to Kuala Lumpar to become the ward and companion of the tyrannical and bitter Su Hei who is looking for a suitable wife for her son Ming Kong...and ultimately a grandson and heir to the family dynasty. "Sweet Offerings" is not just a fictional story of the events that ripped one family apart, but a taste of Malaysia's historical political and cultural changes during its transition from colonial rule to independence and beyond.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Asia

352 pages, Paperback

First published September 19, 2009

About the author

Chan Ling Yap (Yap Chan Ling when in Asia) was born in Kuala Lumpur. She was educated in Malaysia and subsequently in England where she obtained a PhD in Economics. She lectured at the University of Malaya before joining the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome where she worked for nearly two decades. She now lives in the UK with her husband and family. For more information visit www.chanlingyap.com and http://www.thesundaily.my/news/386907
http://thesun-epaper.com/wed/23052012...

Reviews

[Kavita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Malaysian stories. This one is about a Chinese Malaysian family that goes through the war and the story ends with the anti-Chinese riots in the 1960s Malaysia. The protagonists are Ming Kong, Mei Yin, and Nelly. It's a typical family saga but encompasses a LOT of the history during this period. Honestly speaking, this is what salvages the second portion of the book.

Mei Yin is from a poor family but when she befriends a rich friend, she is able to achieve her dreams of going to school. However, with the war in China, her friend moves away and she is shipped off to the home of a rich young man in the hopes of marrying him. She finds herself in a polygamist setup, which would be continued over time. Ming Kong ends up marrying both Mei Yin and his girlfriend, Nelly, during the war.

So, the first half of the book reads like a proper generational family saga. It was enjoyable if rather shallow. Ming Kong falls in love with Mei Yin but relies on good ole Nelly to deal with all the problems. But after the war, the man slowly degenerates into one of the worst villain characters I have read about. He slowly starts to abuse not only his two wives, but also his daughter and his mother, not to mention the servants.

I was hoping for a much better ending than what actually happened. I hate to think that Ming Kong won after abusing everyone around him. I would have preferred he steadily declined and was left alone destitute while his wives moved on and enjoyed their lives. Oh, well! The author at least sets the stage for the next book with the daughter as the protagonist, but I don't think I can digest more of Ming Kong in yet another book, so I probably will skip it.

The descriptive daily life of the Ong family is really what keeps this book going. The narrative was a bit clunky and jumped forward from one major event to the other. There is little character development for anyone other than Mei Yin, who gets most of the best screen time but a shitty ending. Nelly literally remains the same, as does Su Hei for the entirety of their lives!

I did enjoy reading the first portion of the book very much and I loved the descriptive manner of the author, so I'll probably pick up other books, just not one featuring Ming Kong.

[Jeanius · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book probably lost something in translation as the prose was very "lumpy", but it was an interesting trip through the history of Malaysia from colonialism, through the second World War, independence and up to the late sixties. Written from through the eyes of various female members of an ethnic Chinese family living in Malaysia, it covered the transition from a fairly backward and traditional way of life to the formation of a modern state. The Japanese occupation is skimmed over, as is the rather uneasy relationship between Malayans and ethnic Chinese, both of which would have been much more interesting than the pretty mundane day-to-day comings and goings of a Chinese family.

[Nur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice to read about my country known as 'Malaysia'.

[Shammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love it....finished in one day

[mastura m · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a little mix feelings for this book because like I do recognise that the author is trying to show how the mindset was back then and it just pains me to think there was a time where women were expected to do nothing but serve their spouse. I have heard stories myself of how things were like this back in the day from my grandmother and you can see the effect of it reflected on the older generation (?) I cannot deny the sweetness that does manage to seep through the infuriating events throughout the book :)

[Em · Rating 2 out of 5]

Books with Malaysian’s history, culture and heritage are always interesting to me and that was the main reason I picked up this book at the first place but putting all the sejarah aspect aside, Sweet Offering was dull and lacking in plot and character developments. I appreciate the writer’s evocative descriptions for most of the settings but I’m not a fan of how she wrote her characters because they sounded almost 2 dimensional, I had a hard time trying to relate. The story was told in a multiple POVs and they were not consistence (first person, third person) which I don’t think it was necessary. I have no plan to pick up its sequel but we’ll see how it goes.

[Baljit · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is basically a family saga set in Malaya, spanning the days during WW2 and the Japanese Occupation, followed by the communist insurgency and then the independence of Malaya. It chronicles the social and economic changes but through the eyes of this Chinese business family.
It did manage to capture some of the essence of local customs and practices although some parts may appear contrived.
I enjoyed this novel more then a previous one I had read, and may indulge in other titles

[Hasya · Rating 2 out of 5]

first half: beautiful and sentimental descriptions of Malaya and our characters. I understood each characters' intentions and actions, and felt deeply for them.

second half: a disastrous soap opera.

wtf is going awn Ming Kong?? I do not see continuity between the characters' personalities from the first to second half, all of them, especially Mei Yin.

[Rebecca Huston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this one to be much more interesting than what I had expected. Set against the years that Malaysia was transiting from a British colony to an independent nation, as well as WWII, it tells the stories of the women in a Chinese family in Kuala Lumpur. While some of the characters are very much stereotypical, they do become interesting enough to stand on their own by the end. It seems that the vile natured mother-in-law is typical in Asian set stories, there is a good explanation for Su Hei's behaviour. All in all, this one got four stars, and a recommendation for someone looking for something a bit different.

For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Chan_L...

[Sometimes IRead · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has been on my TBR for the longest time but it took me a while to track down a copy. The library doesn’t even have a copy for loan!

Sweet Offerings by Chan Ling Yap follows the life of Mei Yin, a young Chinese girl in 1930s Malaya and the rise and fall of her family’s fortunes in Malaysia through to the 1960s. Through the lenses of the varied characters, we see the lot of women in a deeply patriarchal society, as well as the birth of a young nation emerging from colonial rule.

This book was a test of my patience as I read how Mei Yin and Nelly were treated by their husband. I know it is a fact of life that women were treated unfairly and not valued, but it doesn’t mean I can’t be mad about it. From basically being unpaid labor despite being the backbone of the company to being thrown out without a chance to explain one’s position, a large portion of the book just made my blood boil. And that’s just the injustice wrought by men. Women weren’t always allies either, victims of their circumstances or socialized to value men above all. It does make me thankful that I live in this day and age, where at least there have been some changes for women.

Another thing that gave me pause was the prose. Somehow, it read choppily in a way that made me wonder if English is Yap’s second language. There’s nothing incorrect about the grammar, the sentences just didn’t flow and there wasn’t much variety in sentence type. Just the little things that don’t seem like much but can prevent me from fully immersing myself into the world being built. Though I have to say that I loved the Cantonese phrases peppered throughout.

Still, the first half of the book was a nice read, with a Malaya that I could see in my mind’s eye. I did enjoy the setup and the characterization as well. It had me invested before all the horrors of the second half. I do wish that the care rendered in the first half continued in the second, but I guess Yap was emulating the soap opera style in the latter half. Still, I probably will continue with the sequel. Hopefully, the second generation will come with less melodrama and more addressing issues in fledgling Malaysia.

Diversity meter:
Chinese Malaysian characters
Strong female characters

[Ellen Watts · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This family saga takes place over 2-3 generations. Several times I felt that the historic/political context surrounding their lives, (mis)fortunes and decisions was shoehorned in in awkward ways (often in unrealistic sounding conversation).

But for me the main question for books like this is, do you feel drawn into these characters' lives and care about what happens to them? And for me the answer here was absolutely yes.

The ending also felt very abrupt - skipping ahead to a twist in a character's life with almost no context about how her life in this new place had been. However there is a follow up book, which I look forward to reading one day :-)

[Faye · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book as a way to learn more about the history of Malaysia and Singapore. Told through a multigenerational family saga with Chinese Malaysian protagonists, the book covers a lot of history through the daily lives of the characters. From the Japanese occupation to the Second World War, Independence in 1957 and the anti-Chinese violence in 1969.

[Velnie Samin · Rating 4 out of 5]

how shall i say this?

I think this is the first Malaysian made novel i read, and it does shake my curiosity to read until the end of the story. but there's too many unnecessary details which makes me skipping a few paragraphs or maybe pages.

However, overall the book is good to go!

[Jeannette Modesto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read although I was disappointed that she did not follow up on what happened to some of the characters.

[Mindy McAdams · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this to be rather mediocre in both story and writing. The characters are not very three-dimensional. The plot is somewhat mechanical. We meet an ethnic Chinese family in Malaya, with parts in Malacca and Kuala Lumpur, before the Japanese occupation. We have a domineering mother-in-law who is never satisfied with the young wife she selected for her only son. The son and husband is a businessman, focused on making money, and he's a womanizer. Children are born. Malaysia gains its independence. The relationship between wife and husband goes through some changes. That's about it.

From this story, you might think everybody in Malaysia is Chinese. There are no characters who are Malay, Indian, British, or Japanese. You don't absorb the texture of Malaysia the way you do when reading Evening Is the Whole Day -- a far superior work of fiction.

Not recommended!

[Johan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book prior to my first visit to Malaysia and found it an ideal primer for the wonderful ethnic diversity I would later experience in Kuala Lumpur and Penang! The author brings to vivid life the Chinese part of the multicultural mosaic (along with the Malay and Indian populations) that has become the modern state of Malaysia. One can almost taste a steaming cup of Teh Tarik as you follow the tale of Mei Yin finding her way from an impoverished background into Malaysia's more rarified society. Definitely recommended!

[Kathy Chung · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love to see the way Mei Yin "grow" as time goes by. in some some parts she was impulsive.

it was kind of hard to feel much for Mei Yin and the rest of the children coz their character where not intense enough.

at times I felt sorry for Nelly as she had been through so much. and the explanation of what her role will be in the future was not satisfying.

I read bitter sweet harvest before I read this book. of the two books, I felt bittee sweet harvest is more intense in sense of emotions.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mei Yin was a 14 year old girl who was sent away from her family as a potential bride. She had to learn the proper way to behave and how to exist in an upper class family amid all the political and cultural changes that were taking place in Malaysia. She could not do anything or go anywhere without permission. Follow her story as she struggles to keep her sense of self while conforming to the society around her.

[Nadea · Rating 2 out of 5]

the book is not up to my liking.possibly good for those who like the genre of family story. Most of the time, I prefer not to read this type of emotional character(from the husband,wife,kids,mother in law),since it just make myself miserable.

[Yoni Elina · Rating 4 out of 5]

story about live in malaya before the japanese occupation take place in 1941
. multi ethics lived harmorniously in malaya (which is today called Malaysia)
I like when the part about marriage .

[Cami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story. I love finding good books about the area I'm living in or visiting. This book helped me learn more about life in Malaysia.

[Brunvatne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nicely balanced! Historical and cultural notes were slipped in at every turn, but never overwhelmed the fictional plot. An enjoyable way to become better acquainted with Malaysia.

[Elln Sryn]

love it