stunning debut....

preeta samarasan. this young lady is so far the best (this time it's for real) author. really really really. this is definitely one of my all-time favourite books. the language is so beautiful. seriously, it is. the best of the best. above all that, she is a Malaysian. yes, you heard me right.

her novel, Evening is the Whole Day, is set in Malaysia. her style is reminiscent of other Indian authors like Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy but still manages to bring out some very interesting ways of expressing situations and surroundings. her prose is really really really amazing. she is a master storyteller.

this is some of the reviews for the book.

Samarasan represents the quiet emergence of new Malaysian writing in books such
as Rani Manicka's The Rice Mother and Touching Earth, Tash Aw's The Harmony Silk Factory, and Tan Twan Eng's Booker-longlisted The Gift of Rain last year.

These writers have significantly broadened our understanding of the region earlier
seen largely through the gin-soaked, misty eyes of Somerset Maugham, the
Tiger-beer induced nostalgia of Anthony Burgess*, or the laconic fiction of Paul
Theroux.

He discusses the socio-political background of the novel : Malaysia permeates Samarasan's novel without didacticism about the country's identity politics. It shows the symbiotic and separate relationship between Malays, Chinese and Indians. Jo Kukathas, the gifted satirist, once joked that in Malaysia "the Chinese do the work, the Malays take the credit, the Indians get the blame". Buried within the quip is a stark divide, explaining the consequences of the May 1969 riots which formed the basis of Lloyd Fernando's 1993 novel, Green is the Colour. ... Those riots led to Malaysia's preferential policies, which benefited Malays over Chinese and Indians, so forcing many non-Malays to seek educational and employment opportunities abroad. and calls the story multi-layered, but feels that the plot gets rather complicated.

Francesca Segal in The Observer yesterday found the novel :
Vibrant, descriptive, and peppered with colourful Indian-Malaysian
dialogue, this is an epic that's informative without being worthy, and
engrossing but not frivolous.Indian reviewers seem perplexed by the novel - you
can almost hear them thinking How come this novelist of Indian heritage, clearly
influenced by Indian authors, isn't writing the kind of Indian novel we expect?

Check out Amardeep's review and the interesting debate in the comments at Sepia Mutiny.

You can find other reviews on Preeta's website

anyways, guys. i am not going to discuss the plot here. i am just going to leave you with all these information. i am hoping that you will go out and buy this amazingly awesome book which i love so much. this is a must read for every Malaysian. I'll be posting more about this book later. (but seriously go get this book)

review on Khaled Hosseini's 'A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS'

Mariam is only 15 when she is sent to Kabul to marry rasheed. nearly two decades later, a friendship grows between Mariam and a local teenager, laila, as strong as the ties between a mother and a daughter. when the taliban take over , life becomes a desperate struggle against starvation, brutality and fear. this is one of the best books that i have read in my life. definitely a must read for everyone. khaled hosseini is the type of author who takes you on a ride that brings you excitement using such a language which rips your heart out. this book has that grip which never lets go its readers, making them reread and reread it again and again and again. khaled hosseini is a gifted story teller. here is the synopsis from his web....

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years—from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to the post-Taliban rebuilding—that puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives—the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness—are inextricable from the history playing out around them.Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship. It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love—a stunning accomplishment

what are you guys and girls waiting for? go out today and get this book. ITS FREAKING GOOD.

review on Nicholas Spark's 'AT FIRST SIGHT'

i know that i told you guys that this blog is only for my short stories but i then decided that i should post my reviews here too. anyways, lets get down to business.

this book by the author of the well-acclaimed books such as, A Walk To Remember, Message In A Bottle and many more love novels is extremely readable. in fact, this is one of the best love stories i have read in years. you can really connect with the characters. they are extremely real and true. Lexie Darnell and Jeremy marsh. these names will seem familiar to those of you who have read his True Believer. yes, this is kinda the continuation of that. not really sure, though. i have not read the True Believer. i am sure that it is awesome. what is so special about this book?

well, it speaks in the language of love (true love) unlike other lovey-dovey unrealistic love stories. while reading this book , i felt a sense of truthfulness in the writing. all Nicholas Sparks books are a joy to read. my rating for this book is * * * * * * (5 star). so what are you guys waiting for? go get the book and read it. its wonderful. (RM 21.90 POPULAR Bookstores Malaysia)

here's a very, very, very short summary i found on http://www.nicholassparks.com/ enjoy.

There are a few things Jeremy Marsh was sure he'd never do: he'd never
leave New York City; never give his heart away again after barely surviving one
failed marriage; and most of all, never become a parent. Now, Jeremy is living
in the tiny town of Boone Creek, North Carolina, married to Lexie Darnell, the
love of his life, and anticipating the birth of their daughter. But just as his
life seems to be settling into a blissful pattern, an unsettling and mysterious
message re-opens old wounds and sets off a chain of events that will forever
change the course of this young couple's marriage.