By Siti Sarah Sofea
Creepy, and messy but sweet. If one is told to describe the novel The Girl and The Ghost by Hanna Alkaf in three words, those three words would be the choices most people would opt for. However, these three words alone cannot do justice to the roller-coaster ride of emotions that this story takes readers on. This middle-grade book written by the rising Malaysian author, Hanna Alkaf is about a lonely girl named Suraya who is neglected by her only family—her mother—and has never had any friend in her life.
That is until the day a pelesit, which is a hereditary spook (commonly associated with grasshoppers and cricket) from her grandmother she named as Pink, came into her life. Suraya and Pink became inseparable since then, with Pink protecting Suraya in his own unusual ways. The relationship between the two faced struggle with the presence of a new kid, Jing, who quickly became Suraya's new best friend. When a bigger threat came for them, conflicts were set aside as they worked together to solve the problem with a shocking truth awaiting them in the end. There are a few interesting aspects of the story like the structure and moral aspect that will be discussed in this review.
When it comes to the structure and plot development of the story, the book is beautifully written with its smooth story progression and the interconnectedness of events. The transition between the climax— the ‘pawang’ became a threat— and the falling action— where Suraya easily forgave Pink and proceeded to execute their mission to stop the pawang— nonetheless seems to be rushed. The hasty transition might be in line with the characters’ desperate urge to stop the villain’s wicked schemes and to put things in the right places as they swiftly moved from one event to another. Conversely, the resolution when Pink’s origin and the background of Suraya’s mother and her grandmother were revealed is very satisfying and heart-wrenching.
There are also a number of culture references in the story that are influential to the structure of the story. In some cases, authors are found to be using too many pop culture references to the point that they seem forced and out of place. However, in The Girl and The Ghost, the references have their own purposes that help with the setting, foreshadowing and plot development.
For starters, the diction used by Hanna Alkaf consists of Malaysian culture references that ultimately help in building the world in the story with reference to ‘iPhone’ and ‘McDonald’s’ to reflect the modern setting of the story and ‘cicak’, ‘jambu’ and ‘comel’ to reflect the characters' background. An interesting observation that can be made is that the author does not italicise or use quotation marks for the references she made (opposing the whole italicising foreign words norm), living up to her ‘unapologetically Malaysian’ title. This, in result, helps the culture infused throughout the story as ‘natural’ and not out of place.
Next, the allusion to ‘Pinocchio’ and the villain that Suraya was afraid of seems to be a foreshadowing for the coming of the ‘pawang’ who wanted to manipulate Suraya much like Stromboli who wanted to use Pinocchio for his own greed. There are also many references of Star Wars throughout the story that aid in moving the storyline as Suraya and Jing got closer by watching Star Wars (causing Pink’s jealousy) and Jing got the inspiration to solve their problem through reflection of ‘Star Wars’ values.
From a moral perspective, this book mainly revolves around the value of friendship, family and forgiveness. This book received a few criticisms over the portrayal of toxic relationships, how the victim mindlessly and easily forgave her abusers and how the author simply neglected them. However, there are a few things that need to be considered.
First of all, Pink is described as “ghosts don’t have hearts” right in the beginning of the book, and that he was accustomed to how things were in his nature. Yet, though he was not supposed to have a heart, throughout the story, Pink grew to be caring and mindful of his master emotionally, unlike how he was with his old master. This actually reflects the good and evil of every creature, with Pink and some other ghosts showing their good sides and human sides that they once had.
Even Suraya’s mother’s act of neglect was revealed to be caused by the tragedy and grief she had to bear for years. Although her actions should not be justified, the disclosure of the pain and the agony that she suffered which made her the way she was lets readers to have empathy and understanding of her actions; readers are reminded how she is, afterall, a human. Both Suraya’s mother and Pink were ‘humanised’ through the presence of a bigger villain and by bringing them back to their origin, which eventually helps the characters to come to a realisation of their own actions and the decisions they should have made.
Other than that, it is interesting to note how the author actually offers solutions for almost every issue she raised. Starting from the bullying issue, through the character Suraya, Hanna demonstrated how one does not have to stoop to the low level as the bullies to fight them and that one should seek help when they are in need. Moreover, in regards to toxic relationship, when Suraya could not handle the torture Pink was giving her, she sought for help from her mother and told her everything, leading to her mother offering comfort and advice.
Another issue that left a deep impression on readers is body image. When Suraya went to the clinic and her body was judged by the doctor, she avoided continuing the conversation and even reminded herself to not care about people's opinion of her body. However, as one scrutinises, the sentences in that scene (like how adults always ask children questions despite actually being disinterested in them) seem to imply that not all adults are reliable, which opposes the message to look for adult’s help.
Nonetheless, the issues brought up by the author can come across as too heavy for the middle-grade audience, especially when it comes to the spookiness (which leans more towards gore and disturbing elements), mental health, body issues and toxic relationships. Overall, it also depends on the maturity and sensitivity of the readers, so reader discretion is definitely advised, regardless of the age for the sensitive contents included in the book.
All in all, The Girl and the Ghost is an interesting and fun book to read. The storyline is enjoyable and the cultural references are engaging for readers, making it a recommendable read. Although there are quite a number of issues addressed and portrayed in the story that seem controversial, by reading between the lines, readers would be able to learn the lessons behind and be amazed at Hanna Alkaf’s attention to details.
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