From the sleeve:

"As the weeklong Taungbyon Festival draws near, thousands of villagers from all over Burma descend upon a tiny hamlet near Mandalay in celebration of the colorful - and primarily gay - spirits known as nats, which are central to Burmese tradition. At the center of the raucous festivities is Daisy Bond, an elder transvestite medium known for his sharp tongue and vivid performances. He has long been revered as one of the festival's most illustrious natkadaws. At his side is Min Min, his handsome young assistant and lover, who endures endless humiliation and abuse from his fiery boss. When a young beggar girl threatens to steal Min Min's heart, the outrageous Daisy finds himself face-to-face with his worst fears. Written in lyrical intoxicating prose, Smile as They Bow will take its place alongside the works of such authors as Arundhati Roy and Pramoyedya Ananta Toer.

Over the past twenty years, Nu Nu Yi has become one of Burma's most acclaimed and socially committed authors - and in 2007, she became the first person living in Burma to be nominated for an international literary award. Smile as They Bow was suppressed for over a decade by the Burmese military government. An intimate and surprising look inside a largely unknown society and culture, this novel is an important addition to the canon of world literature."

What a treat to get to peek into the relatively unknown - well, to me at least - Burmese culture and its traditions. The story itself is simple enough, but the festival and the people attending it are brought to life vividly and in just enough detail to make you feel as though you're experiencing it first hand. I didn't really engage with any of the characters, but I didn't mind that at all as it's not that sort of a book - I didn't read it for the story but for the atmosphere and for the experience.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

The book is now travelling as a surprise RABCK to a certain someone who has it on her wishlist. Enjoy!

Thank you so much, Annimanni, for this wishlist surprise!!!

And all those tea bags and the fair trade chocolate!

What a great, interesting read. The book takes place within one week, during the religious Taungbyon festival which is described excellently, one can almost touch and smell and hear it. There’s quite a bit of information about the history of those festivals, customs, beliefs etc. I didn’t know there are religious transvestites in Burma – it’s a culturally sanctioned role that gay transvestites act as Nat spirits.
Here is good article about the novel

Travelling to KiwiinEngland
who chose it from the Global Village VBB

Thanks for sending me this book ApoloniaX. I didn't know there was such a thing as a Man Asia Literary Prize, so it will be interesting reading a book short-listed for it.

Thanks also for the great historical postcard from Bremen.