The Storm We Made: A Novel

The novel describes Cecily’s Eurasian heritage, having been born to a family descended from Portuguese settlers. Cecily lives out the life expected of her, becoming a mother of two by the time she turns 30 years old. She is largely unhappy with domesticity and often fantasizes about violence against her family.

Ten years before Abel’s disappearance, Cecily is shown to be working as an informant for Fujiwara. She steals information from the documents of her husband, who works for the public works division of the British colonial government. Cecily also finds herself attracted to the Japanese general. One day, she fishes through the garbage for Gordon’s notes on changes in tide levels. Fujiwara finds her there and tells her about a new German leader who is forming an alliance with Japan and Italy, ensuring their victory against the British. This fills Cecily with hope.

Cecily and Fujiwara met in 1934 at a party welcoming the new assistant British resident in Bintang. Fujiwara, posing as a Hong Kong merchant under the name Bingley Chan, starts visiting the Alcantara house to drink with Gordon. Whenever Gordon falls asleep, Cecily and Fujiwara discuss their shared dissatisfaction with British colonial rule. The Malayan people are like second-class citizens in their own homeland, and Cecily’s own children even begin to spout British lies about Malayan savagery. Cecily is also repulsed by her husband’s pursuit of European approval. Fujiwara, meanwhile, tells her about the way the British regularly insult him. He shares about the loss of his infant son. Eventually, Fujiwara reveals his true identity. Cecily feels sympathetic for the cause he espouses: an Asia for Asians.

The narrative returns to 1945, introducing Abel as a prisoner of the Kanchanaburi Labor Camp situated along the border of Burma and Thailand. On the eve of Abel’s 15th birthday, his British history teacher, Brother Luke, invited him to work for the Japanese building a new supply rail line. Abel refused but was kidnapped the following day by two Japanese soldiers, who then took him to the border work camp.

Six months after his kidnapping, Abel is thrown into the labor camp’s chicken coop because he has insulted the camp supervisor, Master Akiro. The supervisor often picks on Abel because he is fair-skinned. On one occasion, Master Akiro cuts Abel and another boy, Rama, to show that dark-skinned Malays and light-skinned Malays bleed the same way. That day in the chicken coop, Master Akiro rapes Abel.

At the teahouse where she works, Jujube listens to three Japanese soldiers who worry about their fate after hearing the news that the Americans have dropped a nuclear bomb on Nagasaki. Jujube is reassured by her favorite regular customer, Mr. Takahashi, a teacher who dotes on her and gives her gifts, from extra food ration coupons to books. Jujube reminds Takahashi of his daughter in Nagasaki, and though she is hesitant to form an emotional connection to him, she appreciates his favor, especially as many of the other Japanese men are violent toward the Malayan women. In particular, she fears for her little sister, Jasmin, since the soldiers often take girls around her age to rape at their comfort stations.

Takahashi helps Jujube to clean up and close the shop for the evening, so that Jujube can make it home before curfew. Takahashi is anxious over the possible loss of his daughter in the bombing of Nagasaki. He offers to walk Jujube home, and when they reach a checkpoint, he speaks up for her and tells her to bow when the soldier singles her out for being outdoors past curfew. Jujube bows and is released.

Shortly before Abel’s disappearance, Jasmin meets another little girl named Yuki, whose face is scarred. Yuki’s invitations to play are a welcome change to Jasmin, who spends most days hiding under the floorboards from the comfort station recruiters. Cecily has also cut Jasmin’s hair and forces her to wear Abel’s clothes to disguise her as a boy.

One night, while playing a board game called congkak, Jasmin notices that Yuki has blood around her leg. Yuki explains that there was a rough uncle that day, but she refuses to elaborate. Jasmin is used to seeing Yuki’s many cuts and scars and knows that Yuki lives in a house with several girls led by an older woman, Aunty Woon. Yuki tells Jasmin how repulsive it feels to have something go inside her vagina. Jasmin offers to let her talk to Jujube, but Yuki refuses and invites her to go see “[her] favorite place in the whole world” (64).

Yuki leads Jasmin to a place outside town. They reach a row of shacks that are inhabited by young girls and military men. Jasmin is afraid but Yuki promises to show her a hiding place. Yuki brings her to a broken wheelbarrow, which they climb into and hide. Jasmin feels safe there.