aiyah (Cantonese*) — exclamation to show dismay or surprise
aiyoh (Mandarin) — exclamation to show mild annoyance
alamak (Malay) — expression of surprise or shock
amah (Portuguese derivation) — Cantonese domestic helper
cheen (Cantonese) — money
dai goh (Cantonese) — big brother
deem ah (Cantonese) — how are you?
genmaicha (Japanese) — green tea combined with roasted rice
gunjin (Japanese) — a person in the military
kagi (Japanese) — key
konbanwa (Japanese) — good evening
kurippu (Japanese) clip
kway teow (Hokkien) — fried thick, flat rice-noodle dish
lah (Cantonese) — placed at the end of a phrase for emphasis
matte kudasai (Japanese) — wait, please
nan desu ka? (Japanese) — what is it?
poh piah (Teochew) — thin pancake rolled and stuffed with a savoury filling
san (Japanese) — honorific used after a name, which can mean Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms
selamat kembali (Malay) — welcome back
tanto (Japanese) — a straight-bladed dagger
uguisu (Japanese) — a bush warbler often kept as a cage bird for its song
wallah (Hindi) — a person concerned with a specific business
yuuki ne? (Japanese) — brave, eh?
*Colloquial Cantonese has been rendered into English phonetically.
Author’s Note
The events of Lizard’s Tale occur about thirteen months before the real-life bombing of Singapore by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force, on 8 December 1941. The Imperial Japanese Army then occupied Singapore until September 1945, when WWII officially ended.
In pre-war Singapore, spies and agents collected information for Japan in preparation for the impending conflict. There was a photography studio at Raffles Hotel run for many years before the war by a Mr Nakajima. He was employed by the Straits Times newspaper and was the official photographer for the British naval base. People were surprised to see him during the war as a lieutenant colonel in the Imperial Japanese Army, and it was claimed that he was a Japanese intelligence officer. This mysterious figure is the basis for the fictional Mr Nakajima in this story.
Mr Shinozaki, the man who tried to get Lizard to leave Tanaka’s Emporium, is based on the real-life Shinozaki Mamoru, who was put in Changi Prison by the British in 1940 for espionage and only released when the Japanese took control of Singapore. After his release he saved many local people during the war. According to his autobiography, the army gave him the job of protecting Germans (as Germany was allied to Japan) and ‘good citizens’ from bad treatment by the Japanese authorities. Shinozaki decided to give out passes to anyone who asked him, to protect them from beatings or imprisonment, risking his own safety.
Several other fictional characters in Lizard’s Tale are based on real historical figures. Mr Arathoon managed Raffles Hotel for many years, even during the Japanese occupation. Sir Arthur Percival was a senior British Army officer who played an important part in the war in Malaya, although he wasn’t in Singapore at the time Lizard’s Tale is set. Sir William Dobbie was General Officer Commanding Malaya until 1939. King George VI and Emperor Hirohito were the reigning monarchs of their empires in 1940.
All the events in which these characters appear in Lizard’s Tale are fictitious.
Acknowledgments
There are many people I would like to thank.
My father Keng Mow, who grew up in a shop house in Tanjong Pagar, which exists only in memories and photographs and now also in Lizard’s Tale. The family home and tailor shop were downstairs, but I never got to see what the floor above was like in real life.
My mother Siu Chee, who gave us comics and started us on a lifelong love of books.
My sister Weng Chyn and my brother Weng Key, for being terrific and reliable (and still just a bit annoying sometimes—love you, guys).
My Singapore relatives for being welcoming and endearingly honest in the Cantonese way.
I’m grateful to those who gave me feedback: Janice Marriott, Cath Mayo, Robin Harding, Ana Sharpe, Lisa Grace and Lindsey Dawson, also to Tony Hill, Melinda Hii, Megan Cartwright and Jamie Cartwright.
Thanks to Leanne Hall for saying nice things about my book, and writing lovely books for young people.
Thanks to Mandy Brett, for choosing my manuscript, Imogen Stubbs for the beautiful cover design and Sarah Allen for the gorgeous illustration, and to Jamila Khodja, Anne Beilby, Stefanie Italia, Khadija Caffoor, Emily Booth, Shalini Kunahlan, Patti Patcha and all at Text. I’m especially grateful to Jane Pearson, whose editing was terrifying and wonderful.
Thanks to my dear friends Lynda, Bhavana and Fiona (I miss you).
Love always to Amelia, Olivia and Samantha for lighting up my life in brilliant colours.
For Marty, your steadfast and loving support means the world to me.
Thanks to God, who makes everything possible.
Weng Wai Chan was born in Singapore and spent her childhood there. She now lives in Auckland with her husband and children. Lizard’s Tale is her first book.
textpublishing.com.au
textpublishing.co.uk
The Text Publishing Company
Swann House, 22 William Street, Melbourne Victoria 3000, Australia
The Text Publishing Company (UK) Ltd
130 Wood Street, London EC2V 6DL, United Kingdom
Copyright © Weng Wai Chan, 2019
The moral right of Weng Wai Chan to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright above, no part of this publication shall be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this book.
Published by The Text Publishing Company, 2019.
Book design by Imogen Stubbs.
Cover and internal illustrations by Sarah Allen.
Typeset in Stempel Garamond by J&M Typesetting.
ISBN: 9781925603910 (paperback)
ISBN: 9781925626872 (ebook)
A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia.
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