Malaysian Authors Making a Splash
When Hodder & Stoughton in the UK published by two novels in 1998 (The Flame Tree) and 2000 (Mindgame), I was pretty much the only Malaysian novelist who had been published internationally at that time. That remained the case for a few years as I wondered where everybody else was who might be scribbling away about Malaysia. And then in the last few years, I’ve been pleased to see a number of Malaysian writers making a splash on the international writing scene.
The most recent ones that come to mind are:
Tash Aw - The Harmony Silk Factory
Tan Twan Eng - The Gift of Rain
Siew-Chiah Tei - Little Hut of Leaping Fishes
Shamini Flint - A Malaysian Murder
It’s great to see that Malaysia is becoming known as a literary contender through these new writers and hopefully, many others coming along the way!
I’m sure there are many more Malaysian novelists who have been published internationally that I’m not aware of - please add a comment to help me compile a comprehensive list.
Photo: thanks to eshare from flickr.com (CCL)
- Posted on
Wed, July 2nd, 2008 - Author
Yang-May Ooi - Category
- 6 responses
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July 2nd, 2008 at 2:00 am
Here’s another recent addition to the ranks of internationally published Malaysian authors: Preeta Samarasan. Her new novel is titled Evening is the Whole Day.
You can read more about her book here — http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/evening-is-the-whole-day-by-preeta-samarasan-846082.html
Hope that helps, dear! :)
July 2nd, 2008 at 8:12 am
Thanks, Kenny, for the info and links about Preeta!
July 3rd, 2008 at 7:51 am
Shirley Lim just published Princess Shawl last month. She’s a Malaysian teaching at UC Santa Barbara. Has published previously.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Geok-lin_Lim
July 3rd, 2008 at 12:06 pm
add tinling choong - firewife published by nan talese in the US
and i hear that another friend is getting her novel published by brown littlejohn soon
and yes, you were the trail blazer, yang-may!
July 3rd, 2008 at 7:35 pm
Thanks, Chet and Sharon for addint two more Malaysian authors published internationally. V exciting to see this list grow - and keep growing, I hope!
July 14th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
Coincidentally I was at the local public library today, having had the late afernoon off from work, and there right on the New Books shelf was The Gift of Rain. The book is not only written by a Malaysian, but the setting is too, then known as Malaya. I’m sure reading it will add an edge of familiarity to the adventure, which I eargerly look forward to doing, now that the book is with me for the next three weeks.