The title itself is captivating and I can definitely say the same about the stories compiled in the book. There are 17 stories altogether and 16 of them have been published 65 times in 10 countries. Incredible, isn’t it?

Malaysia is a multiracial country where the Malays, Chinese, Indians, Eurasians, Punjabis, Kadazans, Ibans and other races live together in harmony and tolerance. Each group has their own customs and traditions and it’s fascinating to learn about them in addition to learning about ourselves.

I’m impressed with how Raymer managed to write so well about the real essence of being a Malaysian. He certainly knows and understands the various races in the country along with their customs and beliefs. Well, he has lived in Penang for over 20 years and also married a local woman. So he had time to get to know the country. Some of the stories are based on his previous experiences here.

My favourite story is The Future Barrister where a young Indian man who looks like Clark Gable gets drunk in a local bar and starts telling shocking things to a new American friend. The ending of that story made my jaw drop literally. Haha!

The story Smooth Stones also had an ironic and yet predictable ending. A Malay woman buys three “magical” stones from a stranger who claimed that the stones had healing powers. Thinking that the stones could heal her dying husband, the woman paid a large sum of money for them, which looked like they were picked up from the nearby river.

Meanwhile, in The Watcher, a grumpy great-grandfather waits for his great-grandchildren to arrive for Chinese New Year. Sitting on an old wooden bench, he recalls the Japanese invasion into the country while watching the neighbourhood children play with firecrackers. He’ll also occasionally shout out warnings to the children.

In Lovers and Strangers, a writer meets a young woman who looks and talks the same as his former lover who committed suicide. I was waiting for something creepy to happen but then the entire story spells out CREEPY!

I enjoyed reading all the stories in the book. I enjoyed reading about typical Malaysians and our habits that we overlook every day. Raymer must have spent a lot of time writing, editing, and re-writing them. I know because it’s not easy to produce a good short story that wouldn’t let the reader get bored.

This book is highly recommended to anyone who is interested in getting to know Malaysians and also Thailand (Transactions in Thai is set there). If you also need great short story samples, then Lovers and Strangers Revisited is certainly one of the best ones.

It’s supposed to be Harry’s 7th year of schooling at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry but Harry has more important things to do than go back to school. Albus Dumbledore had left Harry with an important job and that is to destroy Voldemort’s Horcruxes. Voldemort found a way to “divide” his soul so nobody can finish him off that easily. He then kept parts of his soul in various objects and these objects are called Horcruxes. Only Harry, Ron, Hermione and Dumbledore know about them.

Nevertheless, it’s not an easy job for Harry to do. Since Voldemort’s gaining power and spreading his influence to as many places and people as possible, Harry, Ron and Hermione are forced to carry out their mission in secret. Also, Dumbledore did not leave much information to help Harry make faster progress. But then, in his will, Dumbledore did leave a Snitch and the Gryffindor sword to Harry, a Deluminator to Ron and a copy of “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” to Hermione. They’re puzzled as to why Dumbledore left them seemingly-useless things but somehow, they know that these items would eventually help them destroy Voldemort.

As they try to find the remaining undestroyed Horcruxes, Harry, Ron and Hermione become more and more frustrated. Harry also begins to lose faith and trust in Dumbledore who was almost like a father to him. He also learns more about Dumbledore’s shadowy past which doesn’t improve matters at all.

Anyway, like the previous six books, this one is just as exciting and gripping. I read to see how Ron and Hermione are getting along, what will happen between Harry and Ginny, the extremely mysterious Severus Snape and more! What are the Horcruxes that Voldemort managed to make and how will Harry find them? Was Albus Dumbledore good or bad? Was he actually helping Harry to succeed or helping Harry to die? These questions were being played frequently on my mind while reading this page-turner of a book.

You can expect lots of twists and turns, just like before. Lots of pleasant surprises too! I’m amazed at how Rowling managed to connect the many events together so that they make sense and that not many loopholes occurred.

I also felt sympathetic towards Snape. In fact, I thought that he was the most unfortunate character in the book and that’s why I really felt sorry for him. You’ll have to read it to know why.

Sigh….I can’t believe it’s the end of the Harry Potter series! I’m pretty sure other Potter fans can’t believe it too. I felt close to the characters ever since I started reading the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. I’ve read so many times about Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, the Weasley family, Dumbledore, the other professors and became so familiar with them that they’re almost like friends (even Draco Malfoy!)! Do you feel the same way? Do you cheer when your favourite character triumphs? Or do you feel devastated when some characters are killed off? I’ve read somewhere before that Rowling shed tears when she was killing off some of the characters! Well, it’s already hard to read about them dying let alone writing about it.

So, what are your thoughts on this book? I’d love to hear all about it!

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: gautami tripathy, nymeth, tanabata, Tuesday

So, it’s Harry Potter’s sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and times are more exciting than ever. Voldemort, the evil enemy of all things good, is at large and his followers are trying their best to help him regain complete power of the wizarding world. Voldemort’s crew call themselves the Death Eaters.

As usual, Harry is always given special treatment and more attention than the other students. This time, he has to endure being called the Chosen One by the others due to some prophecy that he’ll be the one to finish off Voldemort for once and for all. Also, the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, is giving Harry extra lessons during the weekends, supposedly to help Harry understand his enemy, Voldemort.

All the same, what’s going on with Harry’s best friends, Ron and Hermione? Hermione, as usual is the one who’s obsessed with studying and being the only one enthusiastically answering teachers’ questions in class. Ron, on the other hand, is still jealous of Harry at times. But this time around, he’s a prefect and playing Keeper in Gryffindor’s Quidditch team. Therefore, his self-esteem isn’t really low nowadays. Harry’s the Quidditch Captain, by the way.

There’s some romantic tension between Ron and Hermione but neither one would admit that they like each other. I was quite annoyed when Ron started going out with Lavender Brown instead of going out straight with Hermione. I wonder if other people thought the same thing too, that Ron should be with Hermione. Anyone else who thinks otherwise? And speaking of love, Harry secretly likes Ron’s younger sister, Ginny, but she’s already in a relationship with Dean Martin, one of Harry’s friends. See, I told you times were exciting.

We are also introduced to a new professor, Horace Slughorn, who’s also the new Potions teacher. The previous Potions teacher, Professor Snape finally got his dream job, which is teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. Slughorn plays favouritism rather openly, showing interest in students who are connected to famous people or students who are just smart and different from the others. Harry is definitely one of them.

Throughout the book, we are also suspicious about Snape’s loyalty. Harry insists that he’s on Voldemort’s side but Dumbledore is adamant that Snape’s on their side. Harry frequently wears his Invisibility Cloak when he’s spying on the enemy and discovers some very interesting facts.

I was also guessing who the half-blood prince could be. Harry’s been using an old Potions textbook which belonged to The Half-Blood Prince. The Prince seems smart and made a lot of useful notes in the book. Thanks to the book, Harry’s doing really well in Potions class, a subject he has always been weak at.

All right, this has been a pretty long post for a book which I think most of you have already read. Now I’m off to read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7)!

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: nymeth