Passion between the covers

Roll With It: Life Lessons In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Author: Nova Renata Publisher: MPH Publishing, self-help

BRAZILIAN jiu-jitsu is not a martial art that is very well-known in Malaysia. But it is not practitioner and author Nova Renata’s mission to make it popular; instead, she wants to share how her life has been affected by taking up this sport – which, by the way, is for everyone, she says, from athletes to stay-at-home mums and office workers.

The Silent Witness

Author: Casey Watson Publisher: Harper-Element, fiction

CASEY Watson is a pseudonym for a former British schools behaviour manager who is now a specialist, with her husband, in fostering children with painful pasts. Watson disguises her real experiences as fiction to share the stories of these troubled kids.

This case begins with Watson receiving an emergency fostering call at the worst possible time: the night before Christmas.

Twelve-year-old Bella’s mother is being held by police and her father is fighting for his life in hospital after being attacked by her, in self-defence, the mum claims.

What really happened? Bella is the only witness, and she’s refusing to talk.

Will Watson be able to break through to her?

We Crossed A Bridge And It Trembled: Voices From Syria

Author: Wendy Pearlman Publisher: Harper-Collins, nonfiction

PROF Wendy Pearlman teaches Middle East politics, speaks fluent Arabic, and lived and studied for 20 years in the Arabic world. For this book, she interviewed hundreds of displaced Syrians over four years across the Middle East and Europe to give a voice to ordinary people affected by one of this century’s worst civil wars.

The book is divided into eight sections covering the major phases of Syria’s recent history, from pre-rebellion times (“Authoritarianism” and “Hope Disappointed”) and the 2011 Arab Spring-sparked revolution (“Revolution”), to the prolonging of the war as sects and commu-

nities are played off against each other (“Crackdown”, “Militarization”, “Living War”), the surge of Syrians leaving their country (“Flight), and thoughts on the end result of all this (“Reflections”).

How I Learnt To Play: My Adventures In Writing And Drawing

Author: Andrea Tan Publisher: MPH Publishing, self-help

AUTHOR Andrea Tan wants adults to remember what it was like to simply play. It was playing with ink and colours three years ago that helped Tan discover the artist in her; it is her willingness to play that allows her to tap into her creativity for her writing and art.

She created this book when she realised that play can help anyone, even people with “normal” nine-to-five jobs, on their personal and professional journeys.

They Took My Shoes

Authors: Carmen Soo & Michelle Yoon

Publisher: MPH Publishing, social commentary

IF we don’t stop to talk to the old man we see sitting quietly by the side of the road, how would we know that he used to serve in the Malaysian Armed Forces? If we ignore the Indonesian woman who’s walking aimlessly around town, how would we know that she was tricked into entering the country and has nowhere to go? There is a story behind each face.

In this book are some of those stories. Stories that roam the streets of Kuala Lumpur, waiting to be discovered by us.

They Took My Shoes is a part of social enterprise KakiSeni’s WOMENGirls project.