South by Tash Aw

 

Jay spends a summer with his family visiting the property they have recently inherited when his grandfather dies.  The land used to be productive but droughts and poor management have made it nothing more than land that has no purpose.  Jay's father, Jack, is a professor and they have always used a manager on the land.  The manager is still full of hopes, sure that with only a bit more work and money, the land can be a productive farm once more.  

Jay is drawn to the manager's son, Chuan.  Older and more sophisticated, Chuan is fascinating to Jay and introduces him to smoking and drinking.  The boys grow closer as they realize a growing attraction between them and soon there is a seduction.  But the two young men come from different worlds and it is unlikely that a relationship between them will thrive.

Tash Aw is a Malaysian author and this book is longlisted for this year's Booker Prize.  This is Aw's third time on the Booker nominee list.  The characters in this book are hard to relate to; there seems to be a distance between the reader and the characters.  Each character is facing the reality that their lives will never be what they had hoped and that creates a miasma of loneliness and despair.  While Jay has his first love, he soon recognizes that it is not to be a lasting affair but a short summer fling.  The theme of loneliness and despair makes this a difficult book to be drawn into but it is recommended for readers of literary fiction and multicultural literature.