For it wasn't only because I was mildly ill that other people and life in general seemed such a puzzle, so surprising and beyond understanding, so unknowable, and yet so fascinating. So beautiful and yet so ugly too. In a less fevered way, that is how it was for me always and still is: the surprise and fascination, the otherness, the not-me of it all.
- The Toll Bridge, Aiden Chambers
The thing is, I was really nervous about diving into my Ausmat English reading list, I do admit. The initial excitement of just.. knowing and having something to do was quickly shadowed by the fear of not understanding. You see, I've been wallowing through a sea of children-like books: fantasy mostly. On top of that, I've been steadfastly avoiding all forms of adult literature/ novels/ reading materials of any kind. Dont ask me why, occasionally i believe it to be deliberate. A by product of my disappointment in the behaviour of adults in general. Sometimes, I may even attribute it to the scum-below-my-shoe politic system Malaysia has, idk. Perhaps also because i assumed all ideas forthcoming from adults to be dark and deep. Spirals of unanswerable questions presented in verbose, complicated language.
Well I am surprised, and delightfully so, to say that my initial trepidation was completely unfounded. A complete fallacy. I have finished a few (waay too few if you ask me) books on said reading list, and have fallen in love with all of them. (okay, minus Lord of the Flies, but still)
I guess it is due to the fact that I, as a teenage asian living in a totally different time, can recognize certain -if not a majority off- ideas and perspectives brought forth by these authors. It just goes to show that some things, immortalized in writing, transcends.. well, everything. race, religion, place of origin; gender, time and age.
Which means people must be the same, some parts of them at least. And it is comforting to know we are all in some way all relatable. si?
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