The Black Isle (64 page)
But by God, do I feel alive in my stalling!
I take a deep breath and let the escalator carry me down.
Here are some books I consulted for information and inspiration.
Unit 731 Testimony
by Hal Gold (Yenbooks, Tokyo, 1996) and
A Plague Upon Humanity: The Secret Genocide of Axis Japan’s Germ Warfare Operation
by Daniel Barenblatt (HarperCollins, NY, 2004)
Forgotten Armies: The Fall of British Asia 1941–1945
by Christopher Bayly and Tim Harper (Belknap Press, Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 2005)
Yoshitoshi’s Strange Tales
by John Stevenson (Hotei, Amsterdam, 2005)
Malay Magic: Being an Introduction to the Folklore and Popular Religion of the Malay Peninsula
by Walter William Skeat (Dover, NY, 1967)
John Powers, loving husband, bolster, booster, and buoy.
Mitch Hoffman, brilliant, steadfast editor.
Barbara Braun, my agent, and John F. Baker—miracle workers.
Mark E. Doten, the boy wonder who fished me out of the bog.
Jessica Levin, my first “civilian” cheerleader.
Patricia Williams, Kathleen Clark, and FuzzCo, all of whom tried to make me presentable.
Anne Twomey, who designed such a fine-looking book jacket, Kim Hoffman, Lindsey Rose, Siri Silleck, Carrie Andrews, and everybody at Grand Central/Hachette who worked so hard to bring this monster out.
The constant Nico, and the cats who came a-visiting along the way: Pheebs, Snugs, Spike, Zero, Minnie, Momo (Mokes), Katara, Lill, Taco, and the late, great Bandit.
The wonderful friends who collaborated on my book trailer: Marijke van Kets, Lucas Jodogne, Carla Dunareanu, Jeremy Haik, and Hannah Mir Jayanti. Thank you!
Those who offered wisdom and kindness, from ancient times:
Philip Cheah, Pierre Rissient (the Whistling Snake), Melissa Franklin, Gretchen and Barry Mazur, Steve Erickson, Richard Peña, Laurie Ochoa, Rey Buono (high school drama teacher with whom I fought and fought)…and all the characters in the newsroom at
The Straits Times
’s “Life!” under Richard Lim and T. Sasitharan when I was there as a rookie covering movies—I have never forgotten you.
You are all my favorite ghosts.
9 : Where Have All My Ghosts Gone?
10 : The Serpent in the Garden
14 : The Night of the Burning Trees
15 : A Sorcerer’s Work Is Never Done
18 : The Prime Minister and Lady Midnight
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2012 by Sandi Tan
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First e-book edition: July 2012
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ISBN 978-0-446-58270-4