TAN TWAN ENG
Tuesday, May 13 at 7 p.m. at Microsoft Auditorium, Seattle Public Central Library, 1000 Fourth Avenue

Co-presented with the WASHINGTON CENTER FOR THE BOOK AT THE SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY. This month's schedule was all but set in place when last-minute word came of the opportunity to present the author of one of the year's extraordinary novels—a debut, at that. Tan Twan Eng is the first of two Malaysian novelists to come this way in short order (preceding Preeta Samarasan on May 19), and he does so from his present home in Cape Town, South Africa, having previously worked as a solicitor in Kuala Lumpur. His novel, The Gift of Rain (Weinstein Books), shortlisted for this past year's Booker Prize is a heartbreaking, luminous novel of love and betrayal, set in colonial Malaya (mostly) during its occupation by Japanese forces in World War II. "This epic first novel involves the life of Philip Arminius Khoo-Hutton, half-British and half-Chinese, who lives on the Malaysian island of Penang prior to World War II. Feeling like an outcast in his aristocratic British family, he befriends an older Japanese diplomat, who teaches him the art of aikido. A sacred bond grows between student and teacher ... When war erupts and the Japanese invade ... Philip finds his loyalty divided ... Philip's personal drama unfolds against the backdrop of fascinating glimpses into Chinese culture, British imperialism, and the Japanese occupation that eventually claims the lives of everyone around him. Strong characters and page-turning action make this a top pick for historical fiction." – Library Journal. Free admission is on a first-come, first-serve basis. The Seattle Public Central Library is located at 1000 Fourth Avenue (between Madison and Spring). Special $5 parking coupons for the Central Library garage are available on a limited basis for those attending. For more information, please see www.spl.org, or call (206) 386-4636, or Elliott Bay at (206) 624-6600.

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