AustLit logo
Arlene J. Chai Arlene J. Chai i(A3866 works by)
Born: Established: 1955 Manila,
c
Philippines,
c
Southeast Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
;
Gender: Female
Arrived in Australia: 1982
Heritage: Philippine ; Chinese
The material on this page is available to AustLit subscribers. If you are a subscriber or are from a subscribing organisation, please log in to gain full access. To explore options for subscribing to this unique teaching, research, and publishing resource for Australian culture and storytelling, please contact us or find out more.

Works By

Preview all
1 An Interview with Arlene Chai Arlene J. Chai , Rodney Noonan (interviewer), 2001 single work interview
— Appears in: Otherland , no. 7 2001; (p. 183-191)
1 1 y separately published work icon Black Hearts Arlene J. Chai , Milsons Point : Random House , 2000 Z668513 2000 single work novel
1 7 y separately published work icon On the Goddess Rock Arlene J. Chai , Milsons Point : Random House , 1998 Z241164 1998 single work novel

'Josie Lee travels from her home in Australia to a small island off the coast of China to bury her grandfathers ashes. There, she discovers the old Lee mansion now sold to a developer and a web of family secrets stretching back over the generations. Unknown to Josie, it is the time for righting old wrongs. And as the last of the Lees, she must do the paying. Soon they will gather on the Goddess Rock where, long ago, a betrayed woman cursed Josies ancestors.' (Publication summary)

1 Closing Time Arlene J. Chai , 1996 single work short story
— Appears in: Women Love Sex 1996; (p. 296-308)
1 4 y separately published work icon Eating Fire and Drinking Water Arlene J. Chai , Milsons Point : Random House , 1996 Z259754 1996 single work novel

'"I was someone hungry for stories; more specifically, I was someone who craved after facts. I was, you see, a person with no history. Lacking this, I developed a curiosity about other's people's stories. . . ."

'Clara Perez is a reporter on a small South seas island. An orphan raised by nuns, she is a young woman with origins shrouded in mystery. Full of idealistic ambition, she grows tired of the trivial assignments she's given at the daily paper, yearning to write articles of substance. So when the tiny street of Calle de Leon bursts into flames after a student demonstration–and a soldier kills an unarmed man–Clara seizes the chance to cover the explosive story.

'Yet after Clara rushes to the burning street to investigate the tragedy, she discovers another, more personal one involving some remarkable truths about her unknown past–ghosts, she realizes, which have been silently pursuing her all her life. And as family secrets begin to unfold, Clara's missing history slowly spreads itself out on the tumultuous backdrop of a country wracked by revolution. . . .

'An evocative and multilayered tale, at once political and personal, Eating Fire and Drinking Water is an extraordinary work, a powerful and pulsing novel of politics and commitment, loyalty and love, and the poignant search for truth.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Ballantine ed.)

1 6 y separately published work icon The Last Time I Saw Mother Arlene J. Chai , Milsons Point : Random House , 1995 Z106305 1995 single work novel

'Called back home from Australia to the Philippines by an enigmatic letter from her mother, Caridad begins an emotional journey of self-discovery. The truth emerges in first person accounts by the women involved–Caridad, her mother Thelma, her aunt Emma, and her cousin, Ligaya–and presents a tale of personal tragedy and social devastation during the wartime Japanese occupation, and then during the post-war invasion of American troops billeted at the huge naval bases, which brought the seediest of western culture to the people of Manila.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

1 Jade of Courage Arlene J. Chai , 1995 single work short story
— Appears in: The Australian Women's Weekly , May 1995; (p. 243-255)
X