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Review by: Richard Phillips on August 15, 2013
Can't believe how fantastic this is! Just seems to speak directly to me.
Can't wait for the next conversation.
Your book was so honest and has helped me understand better, and forgive. Thank you for sharing and I'm with you now.
Review by: Christine Chan on July 21, 2013 :
“The Yellow Banana” is about a young man who had gone to study for a degree in Australia and the many embarrassing and hilarious experiences he had in the first few years of his life there. He had to learn to change his Menglish (Malaysian English) into perfect Australian accent, lived and behaved like a native Australian. It was hard to be accepted into the Australian society especially for one who had no western influence back at the place where he grew up from. Life was naturally lonely when you feel like an alien in a foreign land. But that did not deter him from studying hard and working part time to pay for his studies. The author did a superb job describing life as a student, a musician, a husband, an employee and a business consultant. He cleverly transposed the moments between the present and the past and made a meaningful connection that revealed the lesson he had to learn in life. He tried to be like a native Australian, only to learn that, after all, he was just a “yellow banana”.
This is a well written book with captivating stories that continuously gripped the reader’s heart. The gradual awakening process in the second part of the book was about the journey of the heart. Life is series of happiness and sadness. The pains that we do not want keep coming back to hurt us. We need to let go of the things that no longer serve a purpose in our life, but this will happen only when the heart is willing to release its grip. The author has learnt the lesson well, but he needs a little more practice to fully integrate it into his life.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: thomasina burke on April 01, 2012 :
The first twenty pages of this novel had me laughing out loud at the wonderfully descriptive passages as a young man was being sent far away to fulfill his family's dream to have a college graduate of a westernized university. The trials and tribulations of "The Yellow Banana" aka the author Jian Qiu Huang continue on to be both hilarious and at times bittersweet as he achieves his dream of graduation, becoming a successful businessman, and an accomplished musician.
The second part of the book deals with interpersonal relationships, cultural differences, and betrayal. In these passages, Jian Qui Huang shows a beautifully perceptive insight into the different psyches of men and women, and of the animal traits granted each of us through Chinese traditions. As a person raised in a totally western culture, with no awareness of these "animal traits," short of reading of them on the placemat at our local Chinese restaurant, it intrigued me that there would be so much emphasis placed on them. Often in the US you hear people speaking of the different personality tributes associated with Astrological Signs, but I never paid much attention to it.
In short, I highly recommend this book to anyone who seeks understanding of other cultures, interpersonal relationships, and achieving personal peace and understanding.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: Kerry Sin on March 01, 2012 :
I can relate to the author's intercultural experience as I was in a similar setting when I went abroad for my undergraduate studies in Clayton, not too far from where the Author's account took place. Thus, on a personal level, I can relate to the settings that was described – the cold winters, heaters, Victoria market, and so forth.
However, what is important from the Yellow Banana is how intricate cultures lie at the heart of personal relationships. I could feel the lifting of burden from the Author’s rather painful description of Nelly’s Chapter and the attempts to pin it down on the natural traits of a Tiger, to the healing process that followed.
From one part, it was a personal journey of discovery and feudal responsibility. The other part followed the spiritual awakening that perhaps would have gained more recognition had it been written in a different mind-set.
All that is said, the Author has provided his clan a legacy of their roots, which may or may never again be revisited unless the pages of the Yellow Banana is peeled layer by layer again in a time of a distant future.
Well done Steve, and may we look forward to more of your works!
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: Jeff Chan on Jan. 20, 2012 :
There were always be happy and sad moments in life. Life is truly a learning curve. Great book, highly recommended.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: Matthew Pesce on Jan. 18, 2012 :
Very compelling book that uses interesting stories to give insight into Malay culture. I often wonder what it's really like in some other country--not as a broad generalization but through the experiences of individuals. This book fills that need.
That's where I started...but this book provided more. The overarching story is very personal and heartfelt. You share in the author's journey through life, from fear to excitement to soul-crushing sadness to enlightenment to joy...and back and forth and back and forth.
Overall, a moving and entertaining read. I'm looking forward to the sequel!
(reviewed long after purchase)
Review by: Albert Crowe on Nov. 30, 2011 :
Thoroughly enjoyed it
Wow!! a real page-turner read it in one go. I am in a inter-cultural relationship and this book gave me a fresh perspective on my relationship. I will have to get my GF to read it too.
Thank you for this book, it has shown me a side of my GF which I did not know. I need to be very aware now. I particularly found the last few chapters very relevant and I certainly do not want my relationship to end up like it did in the book. I thank the author for sharing it.
A good read..... excellent!
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: New Life on Nov. 12, 2011 :
Refreshing
I am also a migrant, a student migrant. The book has captured my life accurately. Thank you, it makes me realise I am not the only one.
The book is simple to read and yet very relevant, it spoke straight to me. It does not use 'flowery' language to communicate, and the straight forward everyday language used just makes it so refreshing. It is a wonderful story of one person's perspective of his life.
I particularly liked the way it looks at the cultural difference - between countries.
Very brave of the author to talk about his personal experience - I too learn from the author's experience. Thank you for sharing your pain.
Great read.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: Amy James on Nov. 10, 2011 : (no rating)
Rotten Banana
As a Melbourne writer interested in the experience of trans-continental journeys and the challenges of adaptions to new cultures, I found 'The Yellow Banana' to be a self-indulgent, unbalanced narrative, removed of the complexities of families and relationships that are essential when presenting realism and truth within a story.
Whilst the narrative begins with the charming voice of a young male entering an Australian city and appears to present an intriguing adventure into a new country, it soon spirals into what appears to be a bitter tale of divorce and an inability for the narrator to both realise and admit his shortcomings during the years as a married couple. Instead we are presented with the issues concerning Nelly, the young wife and the baffled husband who is unable to come to terms with her unhappiness.
The appeal of the recent fictional best-seller, 'The Slap' by Australian writer Christos Tsiolkas is that it presents a range of characters' points of view that spring from a diverse cultural background and range of experiences of men and women in relationships. The reader is then allowed to create their own moral code in response to the tension created by the central event.
As a contrast, 'The Yellow Banana' lacks the depth and complexity of human behaviour that is so essential for effective story-telling.
“A writer is a person who cares what words mean, what they say, how they say it. Writers know words are their way towards truth and freedom, and so they use them with care, with thought, with fear, with delight. By using words well they strengthen their souls. Story-tellers and poets spend their lives learning that skill and art of using words well. And their words make the souls of their readers stronger, brighter, deeper” – Ursula K. Le Guin
Amy James - Melbourne Freelance Writer
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: New Life on Nov. 07, 2011 :
I read it overnight and cannot put it down.
Easy to read and humourous it draws you in without you even knowing. I like the subtle and innocent humour - we tend to forget that the best form of humour is from identifying with the most mundane events.
I now know what 'Menglish' is all about.
I can now begin to understand the plight of migrants into Australia.
Fully recommend it.
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: Huang Hou on Nov. 07, 2011 :
I have read this book a second time and felt I learned even more from it. I like it.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: joekool on Nov. 05, 2011 :
Just completed it, I never realised the plight of Asian students in Australia. It gives me a fresh perspective and insight.Great book, fully recommend it to everyone.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: joekool on Nov. 05, 2011 :
Just completed it, I never realised the plight of Asian students in Australia. It gives me a fresh perspective and insight.Great book, fully recommend it to everyone.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: Alan Wong on Nov. 04, 2011 :
Firstly, the author writes in simple English. Its very entertaining and it does explain very well how a student from a different culture tries to blend into the Australian society.
A definite 5 star rating and every worth every cent paid!
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: David Butcher on Nov. 04, 2011 :
What a very different and interesting book! We often take cultural differences for granted but this compelling story brings to life the challenges of straddling dual cultures in both a humerous and tragic way.
Jian Qiu describes so well the problems of trying to leave behind his traditional belief systems and adopt a new life in a different country. In confronting these problems he adeptly uses his experience of both cultures to find his true self and to become stronger and more self-aware.
The book is well written, very easy to read, and yet thought provoking. It manages to blend the language and idioms of two distinctly different cultures in a entertaining story that you will find hard to put down.
Never again will I assume that an overseas student, migrant or asylum seeker understands the nuances of our Australian culture, and I will now certainly appreciate more the way in which the culture we take for granted can impact on those who have chosen our country to make their life.
Jian Qiu uses a lot of anecdotes of his experiences which are memorable and, at tmes, very funny. His visit to a gynaecologist is hilarious ... but you will need to read the book to share this and other stories.
A thoroughly recommended read.
David Butcher
(Professional writer)
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: Huang Hou on Nov. 02, 2011 :
Wow, cannot put it down.
I can identify with Nelly, makes me cry and need to do something about my life.
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: Richard Phillips on August 15, 2013
Can't believe how fantastic this is! Just seems to speak directly to me.
Can't wait for the next conversation.
Your book was so honest and has helped me understand better, and forgive. Thank you for sharing and I'm with you now.
Review by: Christine Chan on July 21, 2013 :
“The Yellow Banana” is about a young man who had gone to study for a degree in Australia and the many embarrassing and hilarious experiences he had in the first few years of his life there. He had to learn to change his Menglish (Malaysian English) into perfect Australian accent, lived and behaved like a native Australian. It was hard to be accepted into the Australian society especially for one who had no western influence back at the place where he grew up from. Life was naturally lonely when you feel like an alien in a foreign land. But that did not deter him from studying hard and working part time to pay for his studies. The author did a superb job describing life as a student, a musician, a husband, an employee and a business consultant. He cleverly transposed the moments between the present and the past and made a meaningful connection that revealed the lesson he had to learn in life. He tried to be like a native Australian, only to learn that, after all, he was just a “yellow banana”.
This is a well written book with captivating stories that continuously gripped the reader’s heart. The gradual awakening process in the second part of the book was about the journey of the heart. Life is series of happiness and sadness. The pains that we do not want keep coming back to hurt us. We need to let go of the things that no longer serve a purpose in our life, but this will happen only when the heart is willing to release its grip. The author has learnt the lesson well, but he needs a little more practice to fully integrate it into his life.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: thomasina burke on April 01, 2012 :
The first twenty pages of this novel had me laughing out loud at the wonderfully descriptive passages as a young man was being sent far away to fulfill his family's dream to have a college graduate of a westernized university. The trials and tribulations of "The Yellow Banana" aka the author Jian Qiu Huang continue on to be both hilarious and at times bittersweet as he achieves his dream of graduation, becoming a successful businessman, and an accomplished musician.
The second part of the book deals with interpersonal relationships, cultural differences, and betrayal. In these passages, Jian Qui Huang shows a beautifully perceptive insight into the different psyches of men and women, and of the animal traits granted each of us through Chinese traditions. As a person raised in a totally western culture, with no awareness of these "animal traits," short of reading of them on the placemat at our local Chinese restaurant, it intrigued me that there would be so much emphasis placed on them. Often in the US you hear people speaking of the different personality tributes associated with Astrological Signs, but I never paid much attention to it.
In short, I highly recommend this book to anyone who seeks understanding of other cultures, interpersonal relationships, and achieving personal peace and understanding.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: Kerry Sin on March 01, 2012 :
I can relate to the author's intercultural experience as I was in a similar setting when I went abroad for my undergraduate studies in Clayton, not too far from where the Author's account took place. Thus, on a personal level, I can relate to the settings that was described – the cold winters, heaters, Victoria market, and so forth.
However, what is important from the Yellow Banana is how intricate cultures lie at the heart of personal relationships. I could feel the lifting of burden from the Author’s rather painful description of Nelly’s Chapter and the attempts to pin it down on the natural traits of a Tiger, to the healing process that followed.
From one part, it was a personal journey of discovery and feudal responsibility. The other part followed the spiritual awakening that perhaps would have gained more recognition had it been written in a different mind-set.
All that is said, the Author has provided his clan a legacy of their roots, which may or may never again be revisited unless the pages of the Yellow Banana is peeled layer by layer again in a time of a distant future.
Well done Steve, and may we look forward to more of your works!
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: Jeff Chan on Jan. 20, 2012 :
There were always be happy and sad moments in life. Life is truly a learning curve. Great book, highly recommended.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: Matthew Pesce on Jan. 18, 2012 :
Very compelling book that uses interesting stories to give insight into Malay culture. I often wonder what it's really like in some other country--not as a broad generalization but through the experiences of individuals. This book fills that need.
That's where I started...but this book provided more. The overarching story is very personal and heartfelt. You share in the author's journey through life, from fear to excitement to soul-crushing sadness to enlightenment to joy...and back and forth and back and forth.
Overall, a moving and entertaining read. I'm looking forward to the sequel!
(reviewed long after purchase)
Review by: Albert Crowe on Nov. 30, 2011 :
Thoroughly enjoyed it
Wow!! a real page-turner read it in one go. I am in a inter-cultural relationship and this book gave me a fresh perspective on my relationship. I will have to get my GF to read it too.
Thank you for this book, it has shown me a side of my GF which I did not know. I need to be very aware now. I particularly found the last few chapters very relevant and I certainly do not want my relationship to end up like it did in the book. I thank the author for sharing it.
A good read..... excellent!
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: New Life on Nov. 12, 2011 :
Refreshing
I am also a migrant, a student migrant. The book has captured my life accurately. Thank you, it makes me realise I am not the only one.
The book is simple to read and yet very relevant, it spoke straight to me. It does not use 'flowery' language to communicate, and the straight forward everyday language used just makes it so refreshing. It is a wonderful story of one person's perspective of his life.
I particularly liked the way it looks at the cultural difference - between countries.
Very brave of the author to talk about his personal experience - I too learn from the author's experience. Thank you for sharing your pain.
Great read.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: Amy James on Nov. 10, 2011 : (no rating)
Rotten Banana
As a Melbourne writer interested in the experience of trans-continental journeys and the challenges of adaptions to new cultures, I found 'The Yellow Banana' to be a self-indulgent, unbalanced narrative, removed of the complexities of families and relationships that are essential when presenting realism and truth within a story.
Whilst the narrative begins with the charming voice of a young male entering an Australian city and appears to present an intriguing adventure into a new country, it soon spirals into what appears to be a bitter tale of divorce and an inability for the narrator to both realise and admit his shortcomings during the years as a married couple. Instead we are presented with the issues concerning Nelly, the young wife and the baffled husband who is unable to come to terms with her unhappiness.
The appeal of the recent fictional best-seller, 'The Slap' by Australian writer Christos Tsiolkas is that it presents a range of characters' points of view that spring from a diverse cultural background and range of experiences of men and women in relationships. The reader is then allowed to create their own moral code in response to the tension created by the central event.
As a contrast, 'The Yellow Banana' lacks the depth and complexity of human behaviour that is so essential for effective story-telling.
“A writer is a person who cares what words mean, what they say, how they say it. Writers know words are their way towards truth and freedom, and so they use them with care, with thought, with fear, with delight. By using words well they strengthen their souls. Story-tellers and poets spend their lives learning that skill and art of using words well. And their words make the souls of their readers stronger, brighter, deeper” – Ursula K. Le Guin
Amy James - Melbourne Freelance Writer
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: New Life on Nov. 07, 2011 :
I read it overnight and cannot put it down.
Easy to read and humourous it draws you in without you even knowing. I like the subtle and innocent humour - we tend to forget that the best form of humour is from identifying with the most mundane events.
I now know what 'Menglish' is all about.
I can now begin to understand the plight of migrants into Australia.
Fully recommend it.
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: Huang Hou on Nov. 07, 2011 :
I have read this book a second time and felt I learned even more from it. I like it.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)
Review by: joekool on Nov. 05, 2011 :
Just completed it, I never realised the plight of Asian students in Australia. It gives me a fresh perspective and insight.Great book, fully recommend it to everyone.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: joekool on Nov. 05, 2011 :
Just completed it, I never realised the plight of Asian students in Australia. It gives me a fresh perspective and insight.Great book, fully recommend it to everyone.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)
Review by: Alan Wong on Nov. 04, 2011 :
Firstly, the author writes in simple English. Its very entertaining and it does explain very well how a student from a different culture tries to blend into the Australian society.
A definite 5 star rating and every worth every cent paid!
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: David Butcher on Nov. 04, 2011 :
What a very different and interesting book! We often take cultural differences for granted but this compelling story brings to life the challenges of straddling dual cultures in both a humerous and tragic way.
Jian Qiu describes so well the problems of trying to leave behind his traditional belief systems and adopt a new life in a different country. In confronting these problems he adeptly uses his experience of both cultures to find his true self and to become stronger and more self-aware.
The book is well written, very easy to read, and yet thought provoking. It manages to blend the language and idioms of two distinctly different cultures in a entertaining story that you will find hard to put down.
Never again will I assume that an overseas student, migrant or asylum seeker understands the nuances of our Australian culture, and I will now certainly appreciate more the way in which the culture we take for granted can impact on those who have chosen our country to make their life.
Jian Qiu uses a lot of anecdotes of his experiences which are memorable and, at tmes, very funny. His visit to a gynaecologist is hilarious ... but you will need to read the book to share this and other stories.
A thoroughly recommended read.
David Butcher
(Professional writer)
(reviewed the day of purchase)
Review by: Huang Hou on Nov. 02, 2011 :
Wow, cannot put it down.
I can identify with Nelly, makes me cry and need to do something about my life.
(reviewed the day of purchase)