Quick Review - LONTAR #3: The Journal of Southeast Asian Speculative Fiction
Road, the killer.
This issue of LONTAR begins very strongly (the first story is my favourite so far). It includes 5 pieces of fiction and 6 poems, and similar to the previous issue, it leans towards fantasy stories. Here is a quick review of Scifi-ish stories that I like.
You can buy this issue e-book here.
A bit about LONTAR.
LONTAR is the world’s only biannual literary journal focusing on Southeast Asian speculative fiction. The journal was founded in 2012, in order to spread awareness of this literature to readers who might not normally be exposed to it, and to celebrate its existence and diversity within the region. Issue #10, published in May 2018, is the final issue.
A Field Guide to the Roads of Manila - Dean Francis Alfar
We all love the road and the neighborhood that we live in. There are characters in them, reflected by us all living in the area. Some are depressed, some are quiet, and some are festive all the time. Imagine that the roads literally became sentient and took the form of humans. This is the world Dean Francis Alfar has created in this story.
In this amazing world, the story follows our protagonist investigating a murder case that a road may have committed. This is my favourite short story from the LONTAR journal so far.
Setting Up Home - Sabrina Huang
I can't share much about this one without spoiling the plot. However, if you are of Chinese descent or familiar with their culture, you absolutely need to read this. It's a quick read and extremely funny.