AustLit

Sarah, adopted by an Australian family, visits Singapore to meet the remaining members of her biological family. As she tries to learn more about the past, peculiar things start to happen.

Vietnamese-Australian school student Huong is subjected to racial abuse at school. His friend James tries to help him find a way to stop the bullying.

Soldiers come to Halil's village and take away his father, a school teacher. Halil decides to go in search of his father, but when he goes to the police station, he himself is imprisoned - on the assumption 'like father, like son'. After being subjected to days of torture he is eventually released when he convinces the doctor to take a stand against the corrupt police.

The story is told from the perspective of what appears to be a woman writing a letter to her dead daughter on what would have been the daughter's eighteenth birthday. The woman is from the Philippines and moved to Australia after she married an older Australian man. The marriage seems to have worked out but there is no indication of what happened to the daughter. (Source: Book)

A young boy, Tan Yali, lives with his mother and grandfather. His grandmother has recently died. Tan Yali is looking forward to celebrating the Spring Dragon Day however his grandmother has twice appeared to him in a dream to tell him that she is not at peace. In order to help his grandmother the boy and his grandfather visit the grave in an attempt to ease her discomfort. (Source: Book)

This short story from Fortune Cookies focuses on Miki, a Japanese exchange student, who comes to Australia and falls in love with a boy in her class, Joe Ciarla. When her father turns up Miki has to choose whether to obey her father by returning home or staying in Australia where she can continue her relationship with Joe.

Tuan Nguyen and his father attempt to escape from Vietnam by crossing the mountains on foot. When they come across a group of refugees being transported across the border by helicopter Tuan's father blackmails the soldiers into allowing Tuan onto the next helicopter to safety. Tuan eventually arrives in Australia where he constantly lives in hope that his father will turn up.

This short story from the collection Fortune Cookies concerns friends Amelia and Su Lin who talk about guys and what they find cute - eyes, hair and so on. They confess to each other who they fancy.

Two girls, daughter of Ta-wha and daughter of Yulsa, walk along the streets at night despite the very real danger of being attacked by a tiger. The girls discuss the conundrum that women are only allowed to walk the streets at night but that is also when tigers roam in search of prey. As they walk the daughter of Yulsa confesses to her friend that she wants a name of her own rather than being known simply as someone's daughter as is the custom. When a tiger chases them into a house and they are lucky to escape they are made aware of the risks they take in searching for any small piece of freedom from the strictures of the society in which they live.

Lacey and her mother are on holidays in Bali. Her mother hopes to take Lacey's mind away from the recent death of her friend, Hayley. Much against her mother's wishes Lacey elects to attend a cremation ceremony where she compares Hayley's funeral to the Balinese funeral customs.