The Garden of Evening Mists

Tan Twan Eng

May 2013 · Canons Book 100 · Canongate Books

About this ebook

A BBC TWO BETWEEN THE COVERS BOOK CLUB PICK AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER SHORTLISTED FOR THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE WINNER OF THE MAN ASIAN LITERARY PRIZE AND THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE Teoh Yun Ling was seventeen years old when she first heard about Aritomo and the garden. But a war would come to Malaya, and a decade pass before she would travel to see him. A man of extraordinary skill and reputation, Aritomo was once the gardener for the Emperor of Japan, and now Yun Ling needs him. She needs him to help her build a memorial to her beloved sister, killed at the hands of the Japanese. She wants to learn everything Aritomo can teach her, and do her sister proud, but to do so she must also begin a journey into her own past, a past inextricably linked with the secrets of her troubled country. A story of art, war, love and memory, The Garden of Evening Mists captures a dark moment in history with richness, power and incredible beauty.

Ratings and reviews

Essential reading for those like me - a North Malaysian born just after the Emergency ended to parents who lived through WWII. Knowledge of Japan enhances appreciation of this beautifully written, enormously sad story. Five stars.

Slowly calling you in to this historical mythical and fictional tale..the author unfolds a mystery, a history, love stories and moves the reader to question self time and stpry telling. Loved it.

It's dreamlike quality set in bygone times of an exotic South East Asia..makes this a classic. Loved every detail of it.

About the author

Tan Twan Eng was born in Penang, Malaysia. His debut novel The Gift of Rain was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2007 and has been widely translated. The Garden of Evening Mists won the Man Asian Literary Prize 2012 and the 2013 Walter Scott Prize for historical fiction and was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2012 and the 2014 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. He divides his time between Kuala Lumpur and Cape Town. tantwaneng.com