Author Biography | Interview | Books by this Author | Read-Alikes
Tan Twan Eng was born in Penang and lived in various places in Malaysia as a child. His first novel, The Gift of Rain, was longlisted for the Man Booker. His second, The Garden of Evening Mists was a major international bestseller, shortlisted for the Man Booker, and winner of the Man Asia Literary Prize and the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. It was adapted into an award-winning film in 2019 that was directed by Tom Lin. Twan divides his time between Malaysia and South Africa.
Tan Twan Eng's website
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Why did you write about this particular moment in Malaysian history?
I’ve been interested in this period since I was a boy, and I’ve been reading up on it and collecting materials and books on it for a long time. It’s a time which appeals to me, perhaps because it’s so soaked in nostalgia. Things seemed to have been done with more style then, there was a greater emphasis that things had to be done properly.
When I began writing The Gift of Rain, it seemed only natural to me that I set it in that era. The story also required it to be, of course, because I wanted to write about the Japanese Occupation of Malaya and how it affected my characters.
Who do you identify with the most in the novel?
I identify myself with many of the characters in The Gift of Rain – from Philip, to Endo, to Michiko and all the other characters. While the novel isn’t autobiographical in terms of the plot elements, it does contain many of my views on life, the philosophies which have influenced me, and the questions about life which I often ask myself and wiser people around me.
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