(2) 4-6 Hamra has just turned thirteen, though no one in her family seems to have noticed. Due to COVID-19, her home country of Malaysia is under quarantine, leaving her mother working long hours in an overrun hospital hours away, her father distracted by his duty to get supplies to those in need, and Hamra at home to care for her grandparents. While her grandfather often annoys her with his many far-fetched stories, her grandmother's increasing dementia worries and even angers her. Adults are supposed to take care of children, after all. To escape the pressures of caring for elders, Hamra goes to the jungle. When she recklessly takes fruit from the magical jambu tree, a weretiger demands she accompany him on a quest as payment for stealing. If she succeeds, the weretiger will remember his humanity, and her grandmother's dementia will be cured. Accompanied by her best friend, Ilyas, Hamra embarks on a quest where she must face her fears and find the courage to save her family and herself. A compelling story about family, friendship, and the power of memory, filled with Islamic traditions and Malay folklore.

Reviewer: S. R. Toliver | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2023

(2) K-3 Nina's two grandmothers live far away from her and far apart from each other. Though the text does not state exactly where, the dedication ("For my British-American-Malaysian family") and cultural and geographic markers indicate the U.K. for Nana and Southeast Asia for Nenek. Both settings are "somewhere very different" for Nina (whose own view looks like San Francisco). But whether working in the garden, playing board games, or visiting the seaside, Nina is made to feel right at home. Nina's visits with her ­grandmothers are shown side-by-side on well-designed pages, with an engaging, accessible text and featuring cozy yet vibrant illustrations that were "painted on tea-stained paper, using watercolors, many tiny brushes, and a crow quill dip pen" and digitally edited. Differing background colors, patterns, and cultural motifs signify the two different settings, with the unifying features being open arms and warm hearts. Though the premise is somewhat sentimental, the story avoids mawkishness with the art's eye-catching details and the characters' endearing uniqueness (see Mom's blue-streaked hair). In whichever setting she finds herself, Nina feels secure in her family's love as well as in her own multifaceted identity.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2022

(3) YA Sixteen-year-old Melati suffers from OCD and calms her tormenting thoughts (imagining her mother's gruesome death) by tapping and counting. When race riots begin in 1969 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, violence explodes all around Melati and she's separated from her mother. With the help of a Chinese boy, Melati travels through the war-torn city in hopes of reuniting with her mother. A beautifully written, riveting novel.

Reviewer: Kristy Pasquariello

(3) 4-6 In Flint's semi-autobiographical middle-grade debut set in 1986 Malaysia, eleven-year-old Maya, a passionate soccer fan, tries to start a girls' team at her school and worries about her parents' fraught relationship. Family, friendship, and school dramas overlap with half-Indian, half-English Maya's experiences as a minority in her small town. Succinct narration conveys immediacy, and Maya's competing impulses of insecurity and determination are well drawn.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Paul Mirocha. In this intriguing (if wordy) story, Nizam, a Malaysian honey hunter, prepares to follow in his grandfather's footsteps. Soon he'll be responsible for climbing the towering tualang tree at night to harvest honey from the huge beehives. The dramatic illustrations look digitally flattened but are suffused with glowing light. Appended is further information about Malaysia and the real-life honey hunters.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(2) YA In a series of flashbacks, eighteen-year-old Flora recalls her childhood in a dreary boarding school in Borneo. In lyrical and almost sensuous prose, the heat, smells, and luxuriant growth of the island are described and provide a vivid background to a rather slender story line. The author has told a tale more imbued with mood and innuendo than with dramatic tension.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc. | Horn Book Magazine Issue: June, 1982

(4) 4-6 Culture In... series. Each of these books offers readers a superficial look at traditional and contemporary arts and customs in an Asian country. The presentation is generally balanced, but occasional emphasis on the exotic mars the discussion. Captioned photos and text boxes extend the text. Some of the highlighted vocabulary seems aimed at readers younger than the books' intended audience. Glos., ind. Review covers these Culture In... titles: Culture in India, Culture in Malaysia, and Culture in Vietnam.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) K-3 Welcome to My Country series. These books all follow the same formula in content and layout--one or two pages per topic with a captioned illustration on each page. Topics include geography, history, and several aspects of the cultures. Coverage is broad but reasonably current; Iraq touches on the end of Saddam Hussein's reign. Map, reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Welcome to My Country titles: Welcome to Afghanistan, Welcome to Sri Lanka, Welcome to Pakistan, Welcome to South Korea, Welcome to Iraq, and Welcome to Malaysia.

Reviewer: Christina Dorr

(4) 4-6 Countries of the World series. The surveys in this series follow a three-part format: an overview, a "Closer Look" section that discusses country-specific topics at length, and a section about the subjects' relations with North America. Afghanistan includes the ousting of the Taliban, but Iraq stops before the most recent war. Captions and sidebars interrupt the text, but the gorgeous color photos are perfect for browsing. Reading list. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Countries of the World titles: Iraq, Afghanistan, and Malaysia.]

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(3) YA Cultures of the World series. The books in this series will be helpful to report-writing students. In these revised editions, economic and political information has been brought up to date, the color photographs are well reproduced, and the emphasis on the traditional arts and customs of each country has not changed. The economic and cultural maps, a time line, and a list of websites are useful features. Bib., glos., ind. [Review covers these Cultures of the World titles: Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Japan, India.]

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(4) K-3 Photographs by Michael J. Doolittle. Five-year-old Eliza and her parents leave their Connecticut home and learn to adjust to a different kind of life in Malaysia. Written from Eliza's point-of-view, the text is illustrated with colorful photos, both of which document her reactions to such novelties as outhouses and the local market. While the book lacks substantive information about Malaysian culture, it may appeal to American children about to embark on a similar journey.

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