Bangkok Wakes to Rain

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2020 EDWARD STANFORD 'FICTION WITH A SENSE OF PLACE' AWARD
Places remember us... 'An important, ambitious, and accomplished novel. Sudbanthad deftly sweeps us up in a tale that paints a twin portrait: of a megacity like those so many of us call home and of a world where sanctuary is increasingly hard to come by' Mohsin Hamid A missionary begs to be sent home.
A jazz pianist is hired to perform for ghosts.
An army colonel smells the food of home for the last time.
A girl designs herself a new face.
An old woman uploads her consciousness.
Bangkok Wakes to Rain is an intricately plotted novel where characters and stories are linked by place, not time. As the novel builds to a futuristic crescendo, moments of intimacy serve to remind us that no matter what the ebb of time may change, we humans persevere. Praise for Bangkok Wakes to Rain: 'Compelling' Financial Times 'Breathtakingly lovely' Kirkus 'A sumptuous accomplishment' Esquire 'A simple, ingenious conceit' Alexander Chee 'Elegant and restrained' Wall Street Journal 'Saturated in the senses' Claire Vaye Watkins 'A swirling, always surprising storytelling structure' Guardian 'An original and quietly memorable reading experience' Washington Post 'Beautifully textured and rich with a sense of place' Karen Walker Thompson 'Reading this book feels like waking up to a singular and important new voice' Rajesh Parameswaran

Pitchaya Sudbanthad grew up in Thailand, Saudi Arabia, and the American South. He has received fellowships in fiction writing from the New York Foundation for the Arts and the MacDowell Colony, and currently splits time between Bangkok and Brooklyn.