4 Singaporean books to read in 2018

#BuySingLit 2018 is about to kick off, bringing together some of Singapore’s best writers for a series of performances, workshops, art installations and more. Of course, there will be book sales too, giving you the opportunity get your hands on quality SingLit or meet the authors in person. Here are four titles to look out for.

Haikuku by Gwee Li Sui

Planning on attending the unique literary dining experience If Food Be the Love of Words? Prepare for it by reading Haikuku, a 2017 volume by one of the writers behind the event, Gwee Li Sui. Over the course of 120 haiku, Gwee explores themes and issues as diverse as MRT breakdowns, haze and elections. If Food Be the Love of Words takes place at 7:30pm on Mar 9 at Happy Pancakes Cafe.

The Epigram Books Collection of Best New Singaporean Short Stories: Volume Three edited by Cyril Wong

A winner of the Singapore Literature Prize, poet Cyril Wong will be participating in the #BuySingLit program Love Letters to Singapore, where 12 writers share what they love about different Singapore neighborhoods (he will be writing about Clementi). This 2017 short story collection edited by Wong includes works by the likes of Amanda Lee Koe and Jennifer Anne Champion, among many others. Meet Cyril Wong as part of Love Letters to Singapore at 5pm on Mar 10 at Philatelic Store @ GPO.

I Want To Go Home by Wesley Leon Aroozoo

“Are you OK? I want to go home.” Those were the last words Yasuo Takamatsu received from his wife, Yuko, shortly before the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami hit their town of Onagawa. Her body was never recovered, and Takamatsu has spent the years since diving in search of her remains. Wesley Leon Aroozoo’s I Want To Go Home tells his story, a story that Aroozoo has also adapted into a feature-length documentary. Watch the documentary and meet Aroozoo at 3pm on Mar 11 at the Arts House as part of Textures—A Weekend With Words.

Terumbu by Cheah Sinann

Singapore in the 19th century is often a place shrouded in the mists of time, but in Cheah Sinann’s new graphic novel Terumbu, we meet familiar characters in the form of two young star-crossed lovers. One is a Riau pirate, the other is the daughter of a penghulu, or village headman, who does not approve of their relationship. The lovers elope just as the British arrive on their shores. The book will be available at the #BuySingLit Festival at VivoCity’s West Boulevard from Mar 6 to 11 and at the #BuySingLit Bazaar at the Arts House from Mar 9 to 11 March.


#BuySingLit 2018 takes place from Mar 9 to 11. For more information, head to the #BuySingLit website or Facebook page.

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