Have you read many books by Thai writers yet? Probably not as most of them are not even available in translated form. But did you know that one of the most talented Thai writers of today writes all his books in English? I didn't know too until my last trip to Europe.
Rattawut Lapcharoensap, which is his name, was born in Chicago but raised in Bangkok. Living here in Thailand I had never heard of him but last visit to Europe I came over an interview with in the local newspaper. He already is recognized as a huge talent and belongs to Granta's Best Young American Novelists. He also won the Asian American Literary Award and was shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award.
His book "Sightseeing" was supposed to be a great read and somebody called it "The Beach written by a Thai". I'm not sure about the latter description but I bought the book and was impressed. It is one of those books that is very hard to put down. It consists of 7 short stories that all deal with Thailand. Especially when you lived here you will understand the humor in these stories. The book starts with the story called "Farangs" and as to give you an idea of Rattawut's writing style here are the first lines of the book:
This is how we count the days. June: the Germans come to the islands - football cleats, big T-shirts, thick tongues - speaking like spitting. July: the Italians, the French, the British, the Americans. The Italians like pad thai, it's affinity with spaghetti. They like fabrics, sun glasses, leather sandals. The French like plump girls, rambutans, disco music, baring their breasts. The British are here to work on their pasty complexions, their penchant for hashish. Americans are the fattest, the stingiest of the bunch. They may pretend to like pad thai or grilled prawns or the occasional curry, but twice a week they need their culinary comforts, their hamburgers and their pizzas. They're also the worst drunks. Never get too close to a drunk American. August brings the Japanese. Stay close to them. Never underestimate the power of the yen. This first story is told from the eyes of a young boy growing up on an island in the South of Thailand. It's extremely well told, funny, and so true. There is also short stories about a military draft, cock fighting, Cambodian immigrants and more. To me, this was the best book by a Thai writer that I have read so far and I recommend it to everybody. I will try to get a hand on other stories/books from Rattawut Lapcharoensap. His debut story was "Farangs", published in "Granta 84". Hopefully it is somewhere available online. As for Sightseeing, it can be ordered on Amazon or any other proper book store here in Thailand.
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