AFT Books

We’re delighted to introduce this new category, AFT Book Recommendations where we bring you some of the latest titles from a growing community of independent publishers in Asia Pacific. In keeping an active community, we ask for your support by purchasing directly from the publishers.

---

WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO HARRY PILLAI?: TWO NOVELLAS by Shivani Sivagurunathan

A collection of two novellas set on Coal Island.

MASTER YOUR LIFE

Middle-aged Debbie’s life is a disaster – her mother abandoned the family when she was a young girl, her father committed suicide and if that isn’t enough, her only son has decided to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps and drown himself.

Turning to her best friend Geraldine and copious amounts of wine for emotional support is getting her nowhere…until one day Debbie’s mysterious ex-husband turns up on the island along with his spiritual guru. Will Debbie find salvation as part of the Master Your Life cult?

WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO HARRY PILLAI?

For decades Harry Pillai has kept his triplet daughters away from the island’s prying eyes. Modern life is rubbish, and he wants no part of it; all electronic devices are banned in the Pillai household and the triplets are forbidden from mingling with the islanders.

Buy it from: LIT BOOKS | RIWAYAT | CLARITY

Listen to the AFT Podcasts‘ Listen By Heart Podcast interview with author, Shivani Sivagurunathan.

THE ACCIDENTAL MALAY by Karina Robles Bahrin

15 September 2022

Winner of the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2022

Jasmine Leong wants to be the next CEO of Phoenix, her family’s billion-ringgit company known especially for its bak kwa. But when Jasmine discovers she is actually a Malay Muslim, her newfound identity threatens to upend her life and ambitions. Set in Kuala Lumpur and other areas of Malaysia, The Accidental Malay examines the human cost of a country’s racial policies, and paints a portrait of a woman unwilling to accept the fate history has designated for her. Source: Lit Books

Buy it from: Epigram Books (SG) | Lit Books (KL) | Gerak Budaya (PG)

Listen to the AFT Podcasts interview with author, Karina Robles-Bahrin on the Listen by Heart Website with show summary.