Review - 'Dial A for Aunties' by Jesse Q. Sutanto

I'm not sure what exactly I thought Dial A for Aunties was going to be. Perhaps a cozy mystery because there's a dead body? But no, it definitely wasn't that.

Instead, it's more like a mishmash of romance, social commentary about Asian culture, satire/comedy, soap opera, and thriller. If you're like "What?" after reading that, then that about sums up my feelings.

The story is crazy right out of the gate, and it just gets more so from there. Each scene, when taken individually, makes sense. But when you put them back-to-back, it doesn't gel into one cohesive story. One moment, Meddy is running around hiding a dead body, then her mom and aunts show up and act overbearing, then she's making out with her ex. And it just keeps going round and round. I seriously got whiplash from it all.

It doesn't help that the treatment of each idea in the book is over-the-top, so it's hard to take any of it seriously. The aunties are caricatures of Asian culture, but in their most exaggerated and grating forms. Even while hiding a dead body, all they care about is filial piety and respecting your elders. One even busts out in tai chi every time she's stressed, right in the middle of whatever scene.

And every character is nothing more than a one-dimensional stereotype taken to the extreme. Meddy is such a dutiful Asian child that she's a complete pushover. She can't even broach the subject of leaving home, even though she's twenty-six. And Nathan is your typical besotted ex-boyfriend, who still pines for Meddy and follows her around like a lovesick puppy everywhere. I tell you, no real person acts like this.

It's not that I didn't enjoy any of of this book. I did. There were a bunch scenes that made me smile or laugh. But if you think about it, they don't really make sense as a whole. At one point, Meddy even comments on how unrealistic everything is. I'm like, Girl, that's the first time you've made sense in this entire book!

If you're going to approach this story, the only way to do it successfully is to suspend all your disbeliefs. Whatever chaos is happening on the pages, you need to just nod and accept. People acting utterly nonsensical? Accept. Impossible/illegal stuff going down? Accept that too. Random lovey-dovey scenes thrown in? Yep, just let it all in. Acceptance is the word of the day while reading this book.

Readaroo Rating: 3 stars