Review: The Gift of Rain

The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hooter: The complexity of human relationships in the face of adversity against the backdrop of WWII in Penang

The complexity of human relationships especially when made adverse by the situation is an area the author navigates through brilliantly in this novel - war, opposing nations, different backgrounds growing up - the author pushes the protagonist through varying relationships that are easy to be black and white but the humanity in each one of the characters pushes it to gray.

Born to an English business man and his Chinese wife, the protagonist navigates life as a local in Penang whilst World War II looms. His friendship and training under a Japanese stranger Endo-san raises a lot of suspicions, whilst reconnecting with his estranged grandfather who had disowned his daughter when she married an Englishman to making friends with the son of a Chinese triad leader - there are many human emotions he has to tackle with. Mixed with prevalent times of Malay peninsula, the horrors of war as the Japanese cycled across the peninsula , he stands conflicted at every point of his life and the rains being metaphorical as they wash away any hopes he has at each turn.

The historical and cultural context of the 1930s-1940s of Penang along with the intricacies and complexities of human relationships make for a good read, even if it can be simmeringly slow in parts like a light drizzle on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The pot pourri of Chinese, Japanese, Malay and a squeeze of British cultures make for an unique delicacy .

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