What Gives Us Our Names by Alvin Pang

What Gives Us Our Names Reviews

• 
  Vera

  Having heard reviews from friends, I decided to give this book --- if it can be called a book --- a shot, and boy was I disappointed. Let me give you an excerpt -
  
  "Success has always been good at numbers and appearances. Years ago, when we were together in college, he was the sort everyone wanted to have around all the time. Back then he was pursuing Purpose, and they did seem a perfect couple to those who knew them both. ... After that Purpose, went abroad in search of her beloved Passion, who has been missing for awhile now. Success immersed himself in work, and eventually met and married Complacency, who is easy to please."
  
  Seriously?
  
  This tiny book (thank god for it's size) is shockingly tacky and chock-full of easy and obvious morals. If it was entertaining, I could totally forgive the obviousness but unfortunately, the tone is pompous and didactic --- the way it's written screams to me "YOU SHOULD BE LEARNING SOMETHING FROM THIS." The air of self-importance emanating from this chapbook is unbearable. Possibly worse is its cheap sentiment. If anything, this is "cute" - totally understandable had it been written by a 15 yr-old for her school assignment.
  
  I hear Alvin Pang is a lauded Singaporean poet but this is is perhaps what happens when a poet jumps into prose thinking that language trumps sentiment or character or concept. Even the language, to be honest, is wildly unspectacular. Would not recommend this.
• 
  Diana

  A really beautiful work personifying different emotional states. I love how there is an added humanity through the fact that Pang sometimes marries different elements. He not only isolates the different elements within us but creates a map of emotion that allows us to question and understand the multitude of selves that exist within us. I enjoyed sharing this piece with friends and seeing their reactions. Quite a universal piece of work. Clear but precise writing free from pretensions. Really really loved it.
• 
  Jason Lundberg

  A wonderful collection of Calvino-esque apotheotic short pieces which follow the personifications of various character traits (Success, Passion, Freedom, Failure, etc.). Pang imbues each piece with timeless universality, although Singaporean readers are sure to find added meaning.
• 
  Blair

  Let me set the scene of me reading this:
  I am in a bookstore with my family, trying to avoid getting run over by other book lovers. I see this book, a small thing, on a nearby shelf, and I pick it up and head to a corner. Desperate to avoid the crowd of bustling readers, I settle down and tell my parents to give me fifteen minutes to read this. It was the only book on the shelves that wasn't about the same thing.
  
  
  It took my ten minutes. This has forty pages, and. . . it was pretty good. I couldn't decide whether to give it four or five stars, because its hard to have a negative opinion about a book that's 42 pages long. It was a very easy read, but I liked it nonetheless for its beauty and . . . quality.
  
  The words must have hated the outside world, for they huddled in the center of the page, leaving a lot of blank space gaping around them. They appeared to be double spaced as well, meaning that there were very few words total. The plot was virtually nonexistent, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a pleasant read. It reminded me of an assignment I'd get in school: to write an emotion as a person. Each chapter was exactly this: there was despair, anxiety, passion, patience. . . etc. It was very well written and I quite liked the way the stories (vaguely) synthesised at the end.
  
  If you're looking for a very short read thats still intriguing, I highly recommend it.
• 
  Ariya

  There're some books that you're certain they will leave some traces to your mind, playfully lingering in your memories and from time to time, it will provoke with the heart-warming sensation. This charming book is one of them.
• 
  CuriousBookReviewer

  I was blown away!
  .
  “Regret caught up with Learning and Maturity. Imagination and Discipline promised to keep in touch more often.”
  .
  If Passion, Purpose, Despair or Success were people, what would they look like? Sound like? How would they behave? This book is a work of creative genius! Alvin Pang takes these words literally and personifies them-What’s in a name? Sorry, Shakespeare, but apparently everything, in this book! What an adventure! Be prepared to be awed, touched and inspired by this collection of connected and beautiful short stories. I absolutely loved it.
• 
  Anginn May

  Less than 50 pages but still a great work of proses. It features our human sentiments as characters. There is no story, no plot, it's just a book that tells how different aspects of your emotions are all connected to make you human. Lovely.
• 
  Karolina

  I am not sure what was the point of this book? I'd give it an additional half a star for beautiful design/typesetting. And because I really like Math Paper Press and what they have been doing to promote Singaporean literature.
• 
  Michelle

  I loved reading every single bit of this book! I liked how accessible the writing style is, feeding readers with details—but just enough for imagination to come to play.
  
  I liked how the author personifies the different emotional states very well, and like Diana said, with tinges of humanity. Most of all I admire how the book isn't just about psychoanalyzing emotions, the author gives readers room to ponder about a person's role in creating these traits. Really makes me think deeper about my existence and my environment. Definitely a book I'll be reading again in the near future!
• 
  Hila

  This is the best book i have ever read
• 
  Elaine C.

  A short, sweet, easy read, personifying different emotional states. The premise is so pure and simple, yet peppered with pockets of profoundness.
  
  Absolutely delightful to spend my morning coffee with.
• 
  Rania

  Probably one of my most beautiful reads this year. I'm floored; the prose is so simple, clean, yet poignant. There's such depth and weight to every word, and the whole book has an obvious purpose. Makes me want to buy more from this author/publisher (next SG trip when...)
• 
  refine here

  First of all I like the design of this book, simple and sophisticated or one can call it classy. It is not too thick and I love the vintage look of the book. Alvin Pang is the first Singaporean writer that I come across in Facebook, I explore many other writers from Singapore through Alvin's posts on Facebook, I really appreciate that.
  
  Now back to the book. When I read this book, I can imagine him {Alvin} is actually pen down the story mapping for each of the characters in the book. I am not going to give the story line here as spoiler , you got to find it out yourself by reading it. However what is so genius about this book, is how Alvin develops the characters in a very short pages and link them all into one story. He takes human's trait, character or behavior and use those as the name for each of the characters in the book. This what makes the book is so special. You will find names such as Success, Failure, Courage, Beauty, Persistent and so on .... Each one of them live up to the name given by Alvin. Each one of them have chapter dedicated solely for them, through this chapter we understand what kind of character are they and how they connect to other characters in the book. It's a story about life, hope, love .... and relationship. I do enjoy reading them.
  
  This is the first time for me to actually read his short stories, most of the time I read his poems. I am looking forward for more like this from Alvin.
• 
  Es

  My review of this book is not so much as what it contains, but the circumstances that led me to read it, and therefore what this book meant to me at the time.
  
  I had just passed the psychometrician board exam, yet I felt strangely disappointed in myself. I had graduated at the top of my class and gave myself the heavy burden of topping the board exam. And yet, that morning when I woke up to the results, I was not greeted by the news that everyone expected. And so, in an angry and rash decision, I booked a flight and left for Singapore for a week.
  
  There, in the suburban outskirts of the megacity, my research came up with a small bookshop that contained rare books, literary antiquities, and gems from local authors, so I ventured and walked by myself, alone, lonely, angry, in a foreign country in a foreign city.
  
  And when I got there, I felt like home. This is one of the books I bought, and I went to the nearest coffeeshop and read it. I took the subway back to my airbnb and read it in the train too. And by the time the day ended, I finished it, and suddenly I was no longer angry and the emotions I felt all had names and they became physical and tangible and suddenly I can deal with them.
  
  Worth one read, or ten.
• 
  Joely

  I don't know about you, but the title itself already has an almost mystical allure. This is such an incredibly short read you can almost certainly finish it in an hour or two, and you will. Even though you would want to savour it, because it is absolutely beautiful and romantic. If I had to choose one book that defined my 2017 year, it would be this one (then again, I don't read many books, and I am easily moved, but that should not take credit away from this work).
  
  Pang personifies pivotal emotions and tells the story of that emotion. The idea itself is already loaded with potential, but Pang absolutely blossoms this very potential with his artistic way of words. Perhaps from Pang's stories of these emotions, you, too, can understand yourself better, you party-animal, you (this would make a lot more sense after you read the book).
  
  TLDR: Read it. Love it. Feeeeeel it.
  
  ""Truly," he said, "it is what we love that gives us our names.""
  
  
• 
  Sonaksha

  Loved reading this beautifully illustrated chapbook. While I may have picked it up for its stunning illustrations, I really enjoyed the style and idea behind it. Though it may have veered a bit much on the abstract side, wandering into an almost musing style reflection, there's still something that kept me reading and thinking about the way Alvin Pang perceives and describes qualities, emotions, ways of being.
• 
  Lyn

  The sliver thin size of the book belies its substantive literary weight and beauty. I thoroughly enjoyed reading What Gives Us Our Names, for its simplicity, its honesty and its resonance with one's soul.
  
  Beautifully allegorical without preaching, and the values come through with startling clarity.
• 
  Seleta Fitriani

  If you only allowed to read one book: make sure you choose this one.
  
  Obviously my favourite book of ALL TIME. Found this book in singapore, and bless that bookstore for providing me a book that i didn't know i needed in my life.
  
  The only critique is it was TOO SHORT.
  I need more of this please :)
• 
  Casidhe

  Undoubtedly, Alvin Pang has crafted pieces of prose that are clever, inspiring and entirely applicable to our everyday lives. Treading the fine line between poetry and prose, "What Gives Us Our Names" is a wonderful example of Singaporean literature at its very best.
• 
  Jiexiang

  Sebei solid wor, 10/10 will intro
  
  ME LIKEY
  
  
• 
  Carissa Gomez

  Just awesome. Every word and elements makes sense! This is one of the books that I'd love to read over and over again!
• 
  Shahidah

  What a beautiful read! Simple and quick to finish. Last chapter was a bit confusing because I didn't know what the word meant, but definitely leaves you wanting more.
• 
  Anne Marie

  What a great way to end the week, in bed with these thoughtful words that stoke familiar chords in us all.
• 
  Jen Loong

  Poetic reflection of its namesake title, what gives us our name? If you had to summarize your character into one word, what would that be?
• 
  Yu Zhe (YZ)

  What Gives Us Our Names by Alvin Pang
  
  Today’s *spoiler free* review is brought to you by YZ🍀
  
  📌 𝑶𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑽𝒆𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒄𝒕: A WordWanderlust’s ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Read
  
  📁 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: Fiction, Singapore-Literature
  
  📚 𝑻𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔: This is a really quick read! I suggest reading this over a nice cup of tea at a local cafe on a lazy day. It is a simple yet insightful read that personifies various emotions/states of mind. I think the personification of these emotions/states and their inter-relationships provides the entire work a sense of familiarity. We have all had our fair share of successes and failures, experienced despair, and felt the comfort of hope. I think most (if not all) of these emotions/states have a universal quality to them. It is a quick read, and can seem like an easy one too but when you do give the contents of the book some thought, you’ll find some great timeless wisdom.
  
  Thank you @booksactually for this wonderful read!
  
  🖋️ 𝑭𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝑸𝒖𝒐𝒕𝒆 : Despair keeps no clocks. If you ask him the time, he will always say it is too late to complete your journey.
• 
  Izzy Grace

  Finishing What Gives Us Our Names confused me, very few books can do that — and not in a good way. It just didn’t do it. It didn’t make me feel anything (other than confusion).
  
  Some passages are deep, sure, but overall this book felt cheesy. After reading great reviews about What Gives Us Our Names, I expected it to be a heartfelt and riverting read. But for me it felt rather like a series of words being plucked out of thin air, jammed together, and left to be hanging there.
  
  The best part of this book is the quote: “Truly, it is what we love that gives us our names”, and that’s it. It’s quite a letdown since I really wanted to like this book, perhaps I missed something during my first read. It’ll take some time before I pick this up again, though.
• 
  Isabella Abigail Ow

  I remembered reading this book when I was in Secondary school. The times of reading books which inspired me when I was a child or teenager create the best memories. Those were the times I really felt, and to feel inspired meant one's imagination was free. Being young, I remembered not understanding many things that were deep beyond my experience or maturity. But the feelings of being swept away by language and wondering what all of it meant and where it would take you are only recreated when you find a book that speaks to you and moves you.
  
  I really cherish those memories, and I cherish the writings that make me feel this way.