Haunted by the untimely death of her father, Malaysian writer Bernice Chauly embarks on a journey to unravel the mystery surrounding a curse that is thought to have plagued her family. She traces a hundred years of her family history to Fatshan, China and Verka, India to recount and relive her ancestors lives against the histories of India, China, Singapore and Malaya. Through prose, letters and journals in different voices, the author creates a layered portrait of how two families traversed time to collide through love and death.
'Growing up with Ghosts' is a moving memoir of the author coming to terms with grief, history and bloodlines.
About the Author
BERNICE CHAULY is a writer, poet, photographer, filmmaker and lecturer. She has published two collections of poems, going there and coming back (1997), The Book of Sins (2008) and a collection of short stories, Lost in KL (2008). She studied TESL and English Literature in Winnipeg, Canada and has worked extensively in the arts in KL for the past twenty years. An ex-journalist, radio correspondent, food writer and publisher, she has also written, acted and directed for the stage and screen. GROWING UP WITH GHOSTS is a fictive memoir in five voices, based on her Punjabi/Chinese family's history and stories. Her work has been published in regional and international anthologies and she has performed in festivals in the Dutch Antilles, Suriname, South Africa, Indonesia, India and Hong Kong. She lives in KL with her two daughters.