Book Review: A Certain Exposure by Jolene Tan

A Certain Exposure revolves around the subject of adolescence in Singapore. The book touches on a variety of sensitive societal issues like racism, sexual orientation, religion, stereotypes and elitism. It is an avid reflection of Singapore in the late 1980s.

The book’s protagonist is Brian, an average Singaporean boy whose twin brother Andrew, a former MOE scholar, committed suicide during his time studying overseas. A Certain Exposure explores the coming-of-age journey of the two brothers and unravels the truth behind Andrew's suicide. It highlights many Singaporean societal issues such as gender inequality and misogyny:

“In these modern times you couldn’t be sure that marriage would sort them out, either – many thought themselves “liberated” and still might not marry at all, and those who did might still cow their poor husbands into who knows what kind of arrangement. Most of the girls in his school couldn’t even cook!"

The occasional use of Singlish and reference to places in Singapore adds a local touch to the novel that is familiar to many Singaporeans. In addition, the author does an excellent job with the procession of the novel; the use of dates at the start of every chapter to “time travel” between the years of the novel is particularly appealing.

Though the book does a fantastic job in exploring many prominent societal issues, it seems rather overwhelming to have big topics like intolerance of LGBT, downsides of meritocracy, racism etc. simultaneously crammed into 200 pages of narrative. It is also somewhat overambitious on the author's part to overload the book with an excessive amount of societal problems. This causes the book to be superficial and brief at times.

For instance, when Brian’s childhood friend Priya was discriminated due to her race, Brian’s mother persuaded him to end their friendship as she did not want Brian to be affected. The character Priya then ceased to exist after breaking off contact with Brian. Thus, a more fleshed out character and plot development would have greatly helped dissect these sensitive topics in a more nuanced manner.

Though sensitive topics raised in the book may offend certain readers, A Certain Exposure is definitely a book worth reading as it is relatable and provides an honest portrayal of Singapore’s societal problems.