Preeta Samarasan
Encyclopedia
Preeta Samarasan Malaysian author writing in English
whose first novel, Evening Is the Whole Day, won the Hopwood Novel Award (while she was doing her MFA
at the University of Michigan
), was a finalist for the Commonwealth Writers Prize 2009, and was on the longlist for the Orange Prize for Fiction
.. A number of short stories have also appeared in different magazines; “Our House Stands in a City of Flowers” won the Asian American Writer’s Workshop/Hyphen (magazine)
short-story award in 2007.
. Her father was a schoolteacher in Ipoh
in Malaysia, where she attended the SM (Sekolah Menengah) Convent School. In 1992, she won a United World College scholarship and went to the Armand Hammer United World College of the American West
in New Mexico
, USA. After graduating in 1994, she went to Hamilton College, and then joined the Ph.D. program in musicology
at the Eastman School of Music
, University of Rochester
. She was working on Gypsy music festivals in France, for which she was awarded a Council for European Studies
fellowship in 2002. Meanwhile, in 1999 she had started work on her novel, and eventually she gave up on her dissertation to write. In 2006 she graduated from the MFA
program in creative writing from the University of Michigan
, where she worked on polishing her novel.
), and has been praised for its lyrical, inventive language, often using untranslated Tamil
words, and using aspects of Bahasa syntax, such as reduplicatives as intensifiers. The "ambitious spiraling plot" has also come in for praise. Like servants in some other recent novels (Triton in Romesh Gunesekera
's Reef and Ugwu in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
's Half of a Yellow Sun
), the servant girl Chellam emerges as an important character. The story also describes the May 13 race riots of 1969 using the cameo characters "Rumour" and "Fact". It was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers Prize in 2009 for the Best First Book Award.
Samarasan currently lives in the Limousin region of France with her husband and daughter
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
whose first novel, Evening Is the Whole Day, won the Hopwood Novel Award (while she was doing her MFA
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
), was a finalist for the Commonwealth Writers Prize 2009, and was on the longlist for the Orange Prize for Fiction
Orange Prize for Fiction
The Orange Prize for Fiction is one of the United Kingdom's most prestigious literary prizes, annually awarded to a female author of any nationality for the best original full-length novel written in English, and published in the United Kingdom in the preceding year...
.. A number of short stories have also appeared in different magazines; “Our House Stands in a City of Flowers” won the Asian American Writer’s Workshop/Hyphen (magazine)
Hyphen (magazine)
Hyphen is an American magazine, produced three times a year by a volunteer staff; it is a not-for-profit organization. It was founded in 2002 by a group of San Francisco Bay Area journalists, activists, and artists including Melissa Hung, a former reporter for the Houston Press and East Bay...
short-story award in 2007.
Life
Samarasan was born in Batu GajahBatu Gajah
Batu Gajah is a town located in the state of Perak in Malaysia, about 24 km from Ipoh, the Perak state capital.-Origins and History:...
. Her father was a schoolteacher in Ipoh
Ipoh
Ipoh is the capital city of Perak state, Malaysia. It is approximately 200 km north of Kuala Lumpur on the North-South Expressway....
in Malaysia, where she attended the SM (Sekolah Menengah) Convent School. In 1992, she won a United World College scholarship and went to the Armand Hammer United World College of the American West
Armand Hammer United World College of the American West
The United World College-USA is a United World College founded in 1982 by industrialist and philanthropist Armand Hammer. It is a two-year, independent, coeducational boarding school with about 200 students representing 80-90 countries at any time...
in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, USA. After graduating in 1994, she went to Hamilton College, and then joined the Ph.D. program in musicology
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
at the Eastman School of Music
Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...
, University of Rochester
University of Rochester
The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The...
. She was working on Gypsy music festivals in France, for which she was awarded a Council for European Studies
Council for European Studies
The Council for European Studies was founded in 1970 with a grant from the Ford Foundation. First located at the University of Pittsburgh and later moved to Columbia University, its current institutional host, the Council was originally formed as a limited consortium of Western European studies...
fellowship in 2002. Meanwhile, in 1999 she had started work on her novel, and eventually she gave up on her dissertation to write. In 2006 she graduated from the MFA
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
program in creative writing from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, where she worked on polishing her novel.
Evening Is the Whole Day
Evening Is the Whole Day focuses on the dark secrets of an affluent Malaysian Indian family (also living in IpohIpoh
Ipoh is the capital city of Perak state, Malaysia. It is approximately 200 km north of Kuala Lumpur on the North-South Expressway....
), and has been praised for its lyrical, inventive language, often using untranslated Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
words, and using aspects of Bahasa syntax, such as reduplicatives as intensifiers. The "ambitious spiraling plot" has also come in for praise. Like servants in some other recent novels (Triton in Romesh Gunesekera
Romesh Gunesekera
Romesh Gunesekera FRSL is a British author with a Sri Lankan background.-Life and work:Born in Colombo in 1954, Romesh Gunesekera explores aspects of his native island.He grew up in Sri Lanka and the Philippines, moving to England in 1971...
's Reef and Ugwu in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian writer.Her family is of Igbo descent. In 2008 she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.-Early life and education:...
's Half of a Yellow Sun
Half of a Yellow Sun
Half of a Yellow Sun is a novel by the Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Published in 2006 by Knopf/Anchor, it tells the story of two sisters, Olanna and Kainene, during the Biafran War.-Plot:...
), the servant girl Chellam emerges as an important character. The story also describes the May 13 race riots of 1969 using the cameo characters "Rumour" and "Fact". It was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers Prize in 2009 for the Best First Book Award.
Samarasan currently lives in the Limousin region of France with her husband and daughter