Reviewed by Jay Scott Kanes
“Here you go.” With those words, Bjorn Turmann, a Canadian author living in Thailand, handed me a copy of his latest novel, The Karaoke World of Cortous Haire (2006, Konstrukt Books, Canada, 364 pages). So began a pleasant journey – through the pages, into the life of a recognizable protagonist and across a slice of Southeast Asia.
My encounter with the Bangkok-based wordsmith happened at a multi-author booksigning event outside a Dymocks bookstore in Hong Kong's Central business district. Along with the book, I garnered an explanation.
“Karaoke makes an interesting methapor for life in Asia,” Turmann said. “Many Asians grab at microphones to sing karaoke, yet they're terrified of public speaking. It's one of the many contradictions.”
Tall and amiable, Turmann somehow reminds me of Peter Mahovolich, a slick player with the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens in the 1970s. Mahovolich skated well, but Turmann tells a better story.
The Karaoke World of Cortous Haire mixes comedy, adventure, romance, social studies, human interest, music and travelogue. Fascinated readers join the protagonist as he finds his way on unfamiliar turf – Singapore, Thailand and Laos.
Turmann paints vivid word pictures. Shadowing Cortous is like joining a friend on a three-year journey minus the tickets and queues. There's an unmistakable sense of wandering, sightseeing, walking beside Cortous, sipping wine at the same table and even helping him to push karaoke videos or computer software at work.
Expatriates will recognize familiar experiences, dilemmas and oddities. Yet The Karaoke World of Cortous Haire isn't typical. How many other books set in the tropics obsess about faulty snow-removal machines?
Turmann's memorable characters suggest that persistence pays off and that unlikely events may turn probable. Prepare to meet a hostile clown from Liechtenstein, a know-all company secretary, an irrepressible karaoke-video maker, a Scotsman obsessed with gauging workers' happiness, an artist inspired by a nearby prison and Cortous' many girlfriends.
Like Cortous, Turmann knows a little about marketing. He promotes the book with a five-minute video on the Internet (www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCeUBZQKkfg).
Admittedly, I identify easily with Cortous and his creator. Turmann left Vancouver for Singapore in 1993. Cortous arrived from Winnipeg in 1997. I landed in Hong Kong from Regina in 1992. We all remain in Asia.
Parting ways with Cortous on the final page left a lingering sadness. Maybe I'll find a remedy in Good Daughter, Turmann's first novel published in 2005.
Approval rating: 82 per cent.
For more information: www.cortoushaire.com
(December 11, 2006)
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