S.L. Lim

Middle-class, clever and white, Nick is a child of privilege while his best friend Andie is the daughter of Indo-Chinese refugees. Despite their very different backgrounds, they share a conviction they can change the world for the better. At the outset, Nick is pushing papers in a dead-end job while Andie is embarking on a secular crusade against world poverty. This generates conflict with her white husband Benjamin, who feels that Australians should come first. Meanwhile, Andie's cousin, the teenage Tony is burdened by his parents’ traumatic past and impossible expectations. To their dismay, he finds solace in radical faith. S. L. Lim acutely captures the dreams and disaffections of a millennial generation. Real Differences is an emotionally resonant novel about idealism, ethical ambition, and love, filled with unforgettable characters. It ultimately asks us the most important question of all: What is our life for?

Real Differences

'Before I go into my grave,' she says out loud, 'I will kill that man.' A brilliant new novel from the author of Real Differences. A family favour their son over their daughter. Shan attends university before making his fortune in Australia while Yannie must find menial employment and care for her ageing parents. After her mother's death, Yannie travels to Sydney to become enmeshed in her psychopathic brother's new life, which she seeks to undermine from within … This is a novel that rages against capitalism, hetero-supremacy, mothers, fathers, families – the whole damn thing. It's about what happens when you want to make art but are born in the wrong time and place. S. L. Lim brings to vivid life the frustrations of a talented daughter and vengeful sister in a nuanced and riveting novel that ends in the most unexpected way. It will not be easily forgotten. 'A coiled spring of a novel, Revenge hits you right between the eyes.' — Malcolm Harris

S.L. Lim

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