Stories by Asian writers are increasingly in the spotlight.
After The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka won last year's Booker Prize and The Return of Faraz Ali by British Pakistani author Aamina Ahmad gained widespread critical acclaim, appetites for more are growing.
With that in mind, here are six new releases by writers from the continent, including a novel set in Singapore during the Second World War; a story about friendship, secrets and partition in Karachi, Pakistan, in 1964; and a young woman’s journey to becoming a doctor during Sri Lanka’s three-decade-long civil war.
The Great Reclamation by Rachel Heng
Heng is earning commercial and critical praise for her latest novel, The Great Reclamation. Set 20 years before Singapore gained independence from the British, it's a coming-of-age story of Ah Boon, seven, the son of a fisherman intertwined with the rebirth of a nation.
Uninterested in fishing, Boon prefers to spend time with his best friend Siok Mei whom he eventually falls in love with. He also discovers his unique and strange talent of locating hidden, abundant and movable islands.
However, life gets complicated for Boon, his family and his community when the Japanese army invades Singapore. As the country heads towards a dangerous unknown, Boon stands to lose everything he cherishes including his love for Mei.
Under the Tamarind Tree by Nigar Alam
One night in 1964 in Karachi, Pakistan, everything changed.
Pakistani author Alam’s novel doesn’t start there, however. Throughout the two timelines of the story, the repercussions of the partition of India in 1947 shape the lives of four childhood friends Rozeena, Haaris, Aalya and Zohair.
In the first timeline, in 1964, Rozeena needs her medical career to take off in order to care for her parents and protect the life they have built in Pakistan. And while she has her childhood best friends, whose social standing and different backgrounds seem unimportant at the time, their lives are changed for ever when one of them dies.
Decades later in 2019, Rozeena is now a retired doctor and forms an unlikely friendship with the American granddaughter of one of her old friends, forcing her to think again about the past and its repercussions.
Hospital by Han Song
Acclaimed author Song is considered China’s most prominent science fiction writer, known for exploring themes relating to the impact of technology on human life in dystopian settings.
His latest novel Hospital is no exception.
It’s an experimental narrative of a man named Yang Wei. While travelling for work, Wei suffers a sudden, debilitating stomach pain and wakes up three days later in a hospital.
With no diagnosis and no discharge date, Wei is stuck in a complicated medical system that won’t let him leave. As he attempts to escape, he finds himself at the centre of a corrupt system and confronts his own harrowing reality.
The Brotherless Night by V V Ganeshananthan
V V Ganeshananthan, an American author of Ilankai Tamil descent, took almost 20 years to write her latest novel.
It’s 1981 in the city of Jaffna on the northern tip of Sri Lanka, where Sashi, 16, dreams of being a doctor. But when the start of a three-decade-long civil war tears through the country, Sashi’s life and dreams are turned upside down as she is swept up in the repercussions of politics and violence.
She starts working as a medic at the field hospital for the Tamil Tigers, who are fighting for a separate homeland for Sri Lanka's Tamil minority, but starts to question her place in the war when they engage in questionable and violent tactics. Sashi then joins a secret project documenting human rights violations during the war, finding herself on a journey that will completely change her.
Welcome Me to the Kingdom by Mai Nardone
This literary debut by Thai-American author Nardone spans the perspectives of three different families over decades and across slums, temples and estates in late-20th century Bangkok.
Immersive, imaginative and highly ambitious, Nardone takes readers into the lives of three families starting with the 1997 financial crisis. From a Thai Elvis impersonator and his daughter to a family lost without their American patriarch and a group of orphaned boys – the lives of these families intersect and intertwine as each strive, scheme and fight to create a “good” life for themselves.
The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese
This epic work of historical fiction by Verghese explores the lives of three generations of one family, attempting to understand a strange anomaly affecting them. At least one person from each generation of the Parambil family dies by drowning, and in Kerala where the story is set between 1900 to 1997, there is plenty of water.
The matriarch of the family, known as Big Ammachi, is the reader's guide in the story, where she witnesses harrowing changes in her own home, family, community and country throughout her life. Through her perspective, the reader experiences India’s natural beauty and the changes one family endures as the country transforms around them.
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Spain drain
CONVICTED
Lionel Messi Found guilty in 2016 of of using companies in Belize, Britain, Switzerland and Uruguay to avoid paying €4.1m in taxes on income earned from image rights. Sentenced to 21 months in jail and fined more than €2m. But prison sentence has since been replaced by another fine of €252,000.
Javier Mascherano Accepted one-year suspended sentence in January 2016 for tax fraud after found guilty of failing to pay €1.5m in taxes for 2011 and 2012. Unlike Messi he avoided trial by admitting to tax evasion.
Angel di Maria Argentina and Paris Saint-Germain star Angel di Maria was fined and given a 16-month prison sentence for tax fraud during his time at Real Madrid. But he is unlikely to go to prison as is normal in Spain for first offences for non-violent crimes carrying sentence of less than two years.
SUSPECTED
Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid's star striker, accused of evading €14.7m in taxes, appears in court on Monday. Portuguese star faces four charges of fraud through offshore companies.
Jose Mourinho Manchester United manager accused of evading €3.3m in tax in 2011 and 2012, during time in charge at Real Madrid. But Gestifute, which represents him, says he has already settled matter with Spanish tax authorities.
Samuel Eto'o In November 2016, Spanish prosecutors sought jail sentence of 10 years and fines totalling €18m for Cameroonian, accused of failing to pay €3.9m in taxes during time at Barcelona from 2004 to 2009.
Radamel Falcao Colombian striker Falcao suspected of failing to correctly declare €7.4m of income earned from image rights between 2012 and 2013 while at Atletico Madrid. He has since paid €8.2m to Spanish tax authorities, a sum that includes interest on the original amount.
Jorge Mendes Portuguese super-agent put under official investigation last month by Spanish court investigating alleged tax evasion by Falcao, a client of his. He defended himself, telling closed-door hearing he "never" advised players in tax matters.
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
