Molting

On May 13, 1969, a sudden catastrophe altered the lives of Guiying's family, who rented a room in a sardine-can building, along with her friends and neighbors.Born in 1970, Malaysian Chinese author Ho Shu-fang engages with historical events that unfolded a year before her birth through a full-length novel. She chronicles the lives of her female protagonists on the day of the incident and in the protracted years that followed.From the late 1960s to the 2010s, they endure dark memories, drifting north and south, accepting a fate of gathering and scattering like floating duckweed, tenaciously clinging to life. As if forced into perpetual exile, they gradually age, give birth, and transform amidst rubber plantations, mining lakes, and urban landscapes. Slowly healing, they transcend isolation and shattered lives."e;