POETRY
VITAL POSSESSIONS
By Marc Nair
Ethos Books/Paperback/83 pages/ $16.82 before GST/Books Kinokuniya and ethosbooks.com.sg
"Nature never fails," writes poetphotographer Nair, "to push against the grain/of forgotten cities." In his ninth collection, the 2016 Young Artist Award recipient asks through poetic forms such as haiku and ghazal what it really means to be a "garden city", as the natural and manmade strive to co-exist in one small space. He first conceived this collection during a 2015 writing residency at Gardens by the Bay and, yes, there is a poem in the shape of a Supertree.
FICTION
THIS IS WHERE I WON'T BE ALONE
By Inez Tan
Epigram Books/Paperback/159 pages/ $18.90 before GST/Major bookstores and epigrambooks.sg
Tan takes it old school with the title of her debut short-story collection, which references Kit Chan's well-loved National Day song Home. The stories are fresh and often morbidly funny, from a sentient dried oyster observing the mother and daughter who plan to cook and eat it, to the plight of a social studies teacher whose students start answering every question with "Lee Kuan Yew", Singapore's founding prime minister.
WITHOUT
By Michele Koh Morollo
Self-published/Paperback/187 pages/ $14.90 before GST/Books Kinokuniya, Popular and Times
Koh Morollo looks at lack and longing in these short stories that take place around the world, from a chance encounter on the Athens Metro that evolves into a debate on the migrant crisis, to a ferry ride in a futuristic Hong Kong, to a global survey on female friendships.
NON-FICTION
LATE-NIGHT THOUGHTS OF A JAZZ MUSICIAN
By Jeremy Monteiro
Marshall Cavendish/Paperback/ 196 pages/$28 before GST/ Major bookstores
Singapore's "King of Swing" and Cultural Medallion recipient pens his memoir, with anecdotes from a jazz career that spans more than four decades - brushing shoulders with music greats such as Sammy Davis Jr and Tony Bennett and even signing a contract with a "mafia clause" for a musician with ties to the Mob as well as his thoughts on the industry.
COMICS
ALL THAT REMAINS
By James Tan
Lien Foundation and Alzheimer's Disease Association/Paperback/72 pages/Free/ E-mail info@forgetusnot.sg
In three frank, poignant stories, comic artist Tan explores what life is like for those with dementia and their caregivers, from the various tricks a daughter uses to occupy her mother despite the disease, to the love story between an elderly man and the wife who flares up at him in her forgetfulness. Tan draws on the experiences of his own family and friends for these stories.
The book is being distributed free to spread awareness of dementia.
MR KIASU #10: EVERYTHING ALSO FIRST CLASS
By Johnny Lau
Shogakukan Asia/Paperback/ 128 pages/$13.80/Books Kinokuniya, MPH, Popular, Action City and TOG
In the latest instalment of the popular cartoon, Mr Kiasu tries living in the futuristic Terminal City, a utopia under Changi Airport, and also travels to Tokyo, Japan.