KATIE CHEN, 16, lives in the unremarkable suburb of Narre Warren in Australia with her somewhat reclusive Malaysian father. Coming to Australia when she was 5 and losing her mother at 7, she has always struggled with issues of identity. One day, she goes back to Malaysia for her grandmother’s funeral and discovers that her mother – long-thought-dead – is alive. Set in a fictionalised Kuala Lumpur (KL), Katie struggles to reconnect with her mother whom she discovers is Malay. Navigating KL’s underground music scene and the underlying tensions of a country she doesn’t understand, how far is Katie willing to go to find a place to belong?
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Reviews for Katie Goes To KL
“Su-May Tan captures the longings of youth and the ache of displacement with beauty and vivacity. A stunning debut.”
– Kathryn Heyman, author
“The well-crafted story is told from the perspective of sixteen-year-old Katie Chen, who shares various aspects of her teenage world where bands and cute boys offer distractions from the internal struggles faced with family and friends.”
– Li Hsian Choo
“A refreshingly, light read.”
– Ista Kyra
“The rise of Islamic fundamentalism is a growing concern among many Malaysians. Katie Goes To KL is an important contribution to this discourse.”
– Alina Rastam
“It gave me a fresh appreciation of my own cultural heritage.”
– Sarah Chin-Lenn
Two young boys dream of greener pastures in a Western country. A teenage boy falls in love with his best friend’s mother. An elderly lady re-evaluates her relationship with her son who has settled down in Australia.
Lake Malibu and other stories is a collection of interlinked short stories set in Kuala Lumpur and the small Malaysian town of Ipoh. Connected by a theme of escapism, these stories explore themes of cultural identity and migration in a world that is more globalised and fluid than ever.
Reviews for Lake Malibu and other stories
“In Lake Malibu and other stories, Malaysia bursts into teeming life, sensual and unsentimental, peopled by hungry, slightly lonely souls, some Australia-bound, all longing for soul mates. This collection introduces a quietly powerful voice, one that could enrich Australian writing for years to come.”
– James Button, author and former journalist at The Age
“The story is written with the skilful understatement of a genuinely talented writer.”
– Deborah Cass Prize judges
“Through its simple prose and careful, graceful attention to detail, its range of characters — young to old, rich to poor, emigrants to immigrants — as well as the range of situations these characters are in, a nuanced and complex picture of contemporary culture emerges.”
– Varuna Publisher Introduction Program judges for Lake Malibu and other stories
“These stories were born from Su-May’s explorations of the movements and progressions that people make as humans, and the impacts of the choices they make…. It’s soulful, it’s surreal and I think part of the fun of reading it is looking out for the characters who are connected in the other stories.”
– Diana Yeong, Two Book Nerds Talking
Su-May Tan 