Tin Mines and Concubines

Hilary Tham
Washington Writers' Publishing House (2005)
ISBN 0931846765
Reviewed by Beverly Pechin for Reader Views (2/06)

Tin Mines and Concubines is a book of short stories, linked together. At first glance you think, "Oh my, I am never going to keep these characters straight" but as you forget to try keeping them in your mind and who belongs to what family, etc., it suddenly falls into place. You easily bring all of the characters together and settle into a wonderful array of stories about Malaysian and Indian culture.

This book, while I'm certain not intended to be, became a wonderful source of cultural lessons. While you read about the lives and ways of various people, from Henry Tang to Cheng (the son of a rich family who is kidnapped for ransom) you begin to get a feel for the Malaysian culture and all of its mystery and heritage. Ms. Tham entwines lessons of Chinese, Indian and Malaysian words into the story along with many cultural beliefs and traditions. You read of love gone awry with "Picture Bride" as you feel the pain of today's youth having to deal with old time traditions of arranged marriages. You learn of the mysterious traditions and beliefs, and how today's generation must sometimes appease yesterdays wisdom in "Bending Traditions".

I enjoyed that the book had 18 smaller stories that somehow interacted together and blended into one. It was a book you could easily put down to go about some daily chores and pick up again quickly from where you left off. The hardest part was realizing you didn't have to 'keep track' of the characters yourself, as they would soon blend together and you would realize their place easily.

Written in a format that can be enjoyed by both adult and older children, I would highly recommend the book for a touch of history and culture with your kids. It would be a wonderful beginning to learning the Malaysian and Asian ideals, including age old traditions. Being a homeschooling mother, I found that it opened many doors to my own children's thoughts and ideas on marriage and why it could be good or bad to have an arranged marriage. You might be surprised at how you feel about them after completing the book. I felt as though the book brought a true sense of the age old traditions and beliefs into today's society. It was amazing how easily the 'old' and the 'new' can somehow co-exist.

I highly recommend this book to anyone willing to learn more and become intrigued with another culture. It not only contains a series of wonderful, enlightening stories but it touches your heart and mind with a superb explanation of culture that you may never find unless you leave your own country! My applause to Hilary Tham for a job well done. Excellent.

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