About
Author: HK Lim (Brunei)
Genre: Domestic Fiction
Setting
Place: Brunei
Time: 2000s
My Rating (see what this means)
My Subjective Rating: 4
My ‘Objective’ Rating: 2.79
Introduction
Written in Black by HK Lim is a sweet simple novel following the adventures of a ten-year old Johnathan – a Bruneian Chinese boy. Spanning only about two days in Johnathan’s life, on the face of it – nothing really happens in the novel. However, within Johnathan there is a storm – for his mother has left them probably not to come back – he doesn’t know why – and he seems to be the only sibling who keeps on never being around when she calls!
Attending his grandfather’s wake – he sets about another mission to get a call in with his mother – against natural odds – an impatient (though still caring father), a dead phone battery, a jackass of a brother and cousin, a gang of stupid hooligans and cursed houses among others.
Will he succeed?
Synopsis
Family drama, children’s games, misunderstandings – all abound in the book – and make for a very relatable homely tale of possibly any family – Bruneian or otherwise.
Narrated by the 10-year old John, who admittedly sounds much too old for his age at times, the book is well written enough to generate much empathy for Johnathan’s situation. Frustrated towards his father for not putting much effort in trying to get him a call with his mother, hurt that his cousin seems to know more about her than he does, and exasperated by a mother who left and seems disinclined to come back despite having promised to do so when she was leaving – it’s plausible that things were worse in Johnathan mind than it were in reality. It is quite plausible that the turn of events were in fact just a coincidence. But the book manages to keep its reader’s rationalizations aside as they join John on his adventure.
There certainly are warranted demands on credibility on his adventure, but the book remains a rooted pleasant short read. The characters are well developed and realistic. The imagery and the depth of Bruneian Chinese customs well developed, even if the book can take place anywhere. The pace remains brisk. And the ending, despite the complaints I have read in other reviews, was neat and elegant.