Three novels that explore the nature of our relationships: to home, to family, to partners
- Catherine Menon’s moreish Malaysia-set debut Fragile Monsters is a story of a grandmother and her granddaughter
- The Push by Ashley Audrain and Memorial by Bryan Washington both force readers to confront beliefs and biases
Fragile Monsters
by Catherine Menon
Penguin
Reading Fragile Monsters was, for this Malaysia-born reviewer, akin to reliving a story that wasn’t mine. Set in the state of Pahang, the family saga might seem “exotic and overdone” to those with Western sensibilities. But – borrowing from the protagonist, who is home after a decade in Canada – to the Malaysian eye it’s real life.
An important part of that reality is the atmosphere evoked, of a place where bomohs perform magic, leprosy isolates the unlucky, and the “orang minyak jungle spirit” terrifies young girls at night.
Australian-British Catherine Menon absorbed her parents’ stories about Malaysia, specifically of events during the second world war and its aftermath, the Malayan Emergency, when the battle for independence from British rule saw fighting continue for years. To this history, the author stitched a generations-long patchwork of stories beginning in the 1920s.
At the centre are the returnee, Durga, through whose eyes we see layers of lies, and her grandmother, Mary, who is adept at rewriting history. Early in the tale, the old woman is injured in a fire, which persuades her granddaughter to extend her stay. Now a mathematician (like the author), Durga finds photographs hinting at truths that don’t add up. Menon’s first novel has a moreish quality: even when you reach the end, you’ll want more.
The Push
by Ashley Audrain
Pamela Dorman Books