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Authors Interviewing Characters: Pim Wangtechewat

August 22, 2023 | By Women Writers Women Books | Reply More

The Wang family are hiding a secret – they all have the ability to time travel. When parents Joshua and Lily depart for the past and never return, their children Tommy and Eva are forced to deal with their grief alone. Eva might be trying to find her place in the present, but Tommy is pulled further and further into a past that he hopes holds the truth. When he falls in love with a woman from a different era, his inability to confront his own history has severe ramifications for the people who can truly bring him happiness.

Heartfelt and hopeful, weaving through decades and across continents and told through incredible prose, The Moon Represents My Heart is an unforgettable debut about the bond between one extraordinary family and the strength it takes to move forward.

Authors Interviewing Characters: Pim Wangtechewat

Tommy Wang at fourty-four doesn’t look very different from the photographs I’ve seen of him as a young man. Tall, slim, with the same sharp cheekbones and piercing eyes. He’s been a renowned historian and WWII researcher for nearly two decades now. Yet we, the general public, hardly know anything about him.

For us to conduct this interview, he opens his home to us and takes us into his study. He is generous enough to show me his book collection, and talks me through the historical photographs he has taped to his wall. He greets my camera crew warmly and makes small talk like he’s known them for years. A natural.

Sitting on the coffee table in the middle of the room is his latest and (if he himself is to be believed) very last book…

ME: Mr. Wang, I know you’re not a big fan of interviews, so I very much appreciate you giving us so much of your time.

TOMMY (smiles): Well, it’s all in the spirit of getting people to come out and buy the book.

ME: Yes, this book. You have called it your “magnum opus.” Your entire life’s work studying the experiences of Chinese immigrants in Britain during the WWII era. Mr. Wang, why is this a topic you’ve been so passionate about for so long?

TOMMY (laughs): Isn’t it obvious? I’m British-Chinese, and I was born and raised in London. Growing up here, we get fed so much information about the Second World War during our school years, but we only get the same ol’—don’t take this the wrong way—boring stories. It’s time we mix it up a little!

ME: Some people would argue that those stories aren’t boring, but are essential to our understanding of modern day Britain…

TOMMY: Well, the same argument can be made for these stories I’m telling. Rather, I’d say that without them, we are neglecting a very large part of what is not only our collective history, but also our humanity.

ME: When did you become interested in this area of history?

TOMMY: To be honest, not until my late twenties. I was quite…what is the right word…lost?… as a young man? Couldn’t give a toss about what goes into the history books.

ME: So what changed?

TOMMY (pauses): Age, I suppose. The birth of my daughter. Wanting to leave something worthwhile behind for her and her generation.

ME: Is your daughter a historian like you?

TOMMY (laughs): What my daughter does is far above, and far more important than, what I do. I wouldn’t presume to speak for her. You’d have to talk to her yourself.

ME: What about your parents, Joshua and Lily Wang? There are many in academic circles who hear your last name and still remember their contribution to this very same field.

TOMMY: What about my parents?

ME: There’s not a lot of record on what happened to them. Many have called their passing, and I’m quoting this word for word, “suspicious.”

TOMMY: This is quite a rude topic to be addressing…

ME: Nine years ago, an investigation was launched by a group of very vocal scientists who presented a seemingly outlandish yet fascinating theory that your parents might be—

TOMMY: An investigation that my sister and I did not agree with. An investigation that led to nothing. So can we drop this now?

ME: Can you at least give us an answer on how your parents have inspired your work, Mr. Wang?

TOMMY: I love my parents and I’m very proud of their accomplishments. But I would love not to discuss what is a traumatic childhood experience with strangers, if that’s alright with you.

ME: That is alright. I apologise, Mr. Wang.

TOMMY: Apology accepted. Now…what else do you want to know?

ME: You’ve been praised for your exceptional writing. How vivid your descriptions are of the past. Small details about historical events that are so minute, so exceptionally precise that some people have questioned how you came by that information?

TOMMY: Well, I’m a historian and a researcher. That is my job.

ME: But some would say your skills far exceed others in your field.

TOMMY (smiles): Maybe I’m simply exceptional.

ME: Mr. Wang—

TOMMY: Next question.

ME: Aren’t you interested in addressing this topic?

TOMMY: No. Next question.

ME (pauses): Very well. What does a good historian require?

TOMMY: Intelligence. Curiosity. My daughter would say…compassion. And…time.

ME: Time?

TOMMY: Yes. Time.

—

Pim Wangtechawat is a Thai-Chinese writer from Bangkok, Thailand. Pim’s short stories, poems, and articles have been published in various websites, literary magazines, and journals, including the Mekong Review, the Nikkei Asian Review, Den of Geek, and YesPoetry. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from King’s College London and graduated with distinction from Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland with a master’s in creative writing. The Moon Represents My Heart is her debut novel.