The Light Between Us
Wang Tian Wei is pouring his heart out in a letter from Singapore: ‘The wait for your letters is so interminable, it is painful. I clutch at shadows. This intensity of feeling is new to me. It isn’t always hopeful or joyous.’ His voice might seem archaic. That is as it should be; it is 1921. The lovesick Wang is a man of many talents, but he is mainly a photographer. In her reply, Charlie Sze-Toh writes differently: ‘If you were trying to impress me with all the literature you’ve read, consider it done. I am very impressed.’ As it happens, she is writing in 2019 Singapore.
This unique romance is grounded in Quantum Entanglement, a concept that not many scientists may understand. For those who can immerse themselves in its wonderful intersection of worlds, this is an unusual and syncretic work. There is much about the nature of photography and light, the mores of modern Singapore, and those of Singapore of the 1920s through the early 1940s.
Wang is desperately searching for a young girl, Aiko, whose disappearance does not seem to have ruffled her own father too much. For a while, the bond between Charlie and Wang attains symmetry as Charlie is forced to search for her brother.
A few raw edges – minor inaccuracies and some jarring phrases in the letters – are easily compensated for by the extremely well-woven story threads. Does Wang honestly not lust after the pretty Aiko? Will he be able to rescue her from the clutches of a brothel? Will Wang and Charlie ever meet? This is a genre-defying work that blends in elements of mystery and a nicely over-the-top family drama featuring an evil stepmother. That it is rich with references to literature, art, and food makes it even more delightful.
