The Fraught Lives of Nathan Kwan and Lapsang Souchong

(Paperback)

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Mystery Of The Disappearing Cat meets Mean Girls, with a dash of All The Cats We Meet Along The Way. A slice of life of Millennials growing up in the 'brave new world' of the 21st Century. When you're always second best, how far would you go to be Number One Will you sacrifice friendship for popularity Will you risk everything to save a cat A multi-stranded story, where the tight friendship between cousins Nathan and Junie Kwan, and their friend Sachin Sundara is the main thread. Students in the fiercely competitive Noble Hall School, they are dismissed as bookish nerds by the popular students who rule at school, and subjected to micro-aggressions. Their friendship kept them afloat... until the bright new girl at school, Aida Anargul, a Diplomat's daughter, befriended them. Fashionista Aida brought a touch of glamour into their lives, and seemed to make the impossible seem, possible. But their excitement is short-lived as Nathan's world came crashing down when his precious Siamese cat disappeared one night. The friends embarked on a frantic search for Lapsang Souchong and discovered that their little neighbourhood is hiding a dark secret. The narrative merges the charm of old-school mystery, adventure and folklore, with complex New Age characters, including (sometimes) unlikeable protagonists who are annoying know-it-alls and formidable antagonists with (sometimes) admirable qualities.

Author Bio

Tutu Dutta was born in Churachandpur, India in 1957. Her family moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1963, when her father joined the Malaysian Army as a Medical Officer. She went to school in Malaysia and has a B.Sc. from Universiti Putra Malaysia and an M.Phil. from the University of Malaya. As an undergraduate, she won a scholarship from Japan Airlines, to attend Summer School at Sophia University in Tokyo, an eye-opening experience which instilled a love for folklore. She has also studied at the University of Strasbourg, France. Dutta started writing children's books when she lived in far flung cities as the spouse of a diplomat, including- Singapore, Lagos, New York, Havana and Zagreb. She has a daughter, Shona Yean, who was born in Singapore in 1992. While her daughter was growing up, Tutu Dutta read the same books her daughter did. Shona is her informant on youth and popular culture and keeps her abreast of international trends; Shona qualified as a Barrister at Middle Temple Inn (UK) in 2017. To date, Tutu Dutta has authored nine books, including Timeless Tales of Malaysia, Eight Treasures of the Dragon, and the middle grade duology, The Jugra Chronicles, a story set in 17th Century Borneo. Phoenix Song, is her first picture book; published by Lantana Publishing (UK) and illustrated by Martina Peluso. Phoenix Song is also her first book, to be translated into Malay, and was published by Oyez! in 2017. In 2016, Marshall Cavendish decided to publish a new edition of Timeless Tales of Malaysia, entitled The Magic Urn and Other Timeless Tales of Malaysia. This was followed by Nights of the Dark Moon, a collection of dark folktales from Asia and Africa, in 2017. Nights of the Dark Moon was reprinted in 2019 and garnered renewed interest and positive media reviews in Malaysia and India. Also in 2019, an anthology she co-edited with Sharifah Aishah Osman, entitled The Principal Girl- Feminist Tales from Asia, was published by GB Gerakbudaya Enterprise Sdn Bhd, a publisher known for social activism. This book was a surprise hit with YA readers and received wide media coverage and reviews. She was invited as a speaker at the Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore, twice. The first in 2013, where she presented a paper entitled 'Adapting Asian Folktales for Children's and YA Literature', and in 2017 she presented two papers, 'Folklore Finesse' and 'Hidden Elements'. She was also one of the speakers at a panel of Malaysian authors during the East-West Conference organized by the University of Malaya in 2017. Tutu Dutta was also one of the judges for the Scholastic Asia Young Writers Award 2014, representing Malaysia. Her stories are rooted in Asian culture and reflect the research she had put into the subject. Readers and reviewers have also pointed out the feminist leanings and the deep reverence for nature, in her stories. In fact, Timeless Tales of Malaysia, inspired a group of children to produce a video about it and was the subject of a Master's Degree in English Literature at the University of Malaya, by a post-graduate student, Siti Nor Fatiha.