《過境之鳥》：窮追不捨，發掘真相以解開抱憾的過去

「如果當初努力了解姊姊，是否就能改變她的命運？」—石田連

香港書展首設「東盟文學節」促進兩地交流，包括印尼裔新加坡作家Clarissa Goenawan獲翻譯為十二種語言的處女作《過境之鳥》屬推介作品之一。作品設定於日本一座虛擬城市「赤川」，姊姊石田惠子離奇死亡，弟弟石田連前往領取骨灰時決定短暫赤川，揭開這宗命案的前世今生。

相傳赤川昔日是農村，楓葉掉進水裡，河水染成紅色，在河邊一帶落戶農夫因而命名；另指兩群農夫為爭土地打架，其中一群徹底被消滅，剩下農夫把屍體丟進河裡，血把河水染紅。血色蔓延至石田惠子身上，案發當晚下著大雨，在一小時半內遭襲擊而大量出血，翌日才被發現遺體。

以調查謀殺案為主軸的《過境之鳥》引人入勝，石田連追尋姊姊昔日的生活足跡，並與其身邊相關人士互動，試圖抽絲剝繭。當以為距離真相向前邁步，石田連的生活旁枝不時讓觀眾觸蘸，不論是同事本田、政客加藤先生與其病妻、酒店前台職員，還是學生七星一家舉動均令人生疑。

小說加插奇幻元素，夢中雙馬尾女孩究竟是憑空想像、年輕姊姊，還是與加藤家相關？自從父母感情轉差，石田連與姊姊形影不離，患有「長女症候群」的石田惠子無微不至地照顧弟弟，直至她搬遷至赤川後才減少與弟弟相處。石田連對姊姊的離世深感內疚，誓要找出畏罪潛逃人士。

「人們常在失去後，才明白甚麼是重要的。」—石田連

尋兇過程中，石田連不時憶起昔日片段，包括姊姊親手製作的咖喱飯，「當你為在乎的人下廚，投放心意，情感就會透過料理傳遞」。在撒灰時遇上一群「雨鳥」，牠們不管飛到多遠都會回家，猶如當初石田惠子十九歲生日時放生「自由鳥」一樣。過了充實一生，也許不完美但無悔。

「如果他們學會彼此和解就好，有時求同存異無甚麼不好。」作品展示傳統觀念如何影響下一代成長，舉例石田父親出軌破壞和睦家庭；加藤家以姻親決定醫院繼承的安排，而犧牲兩姊妹幸福；七星父親出軌觸發手模妻子心存殺機，七星以「偷泡泡糖並非偷取別人丈夫」而養成陋習。

甚麼是愛情？死黨仁深信由「喜歡」與「慾望」交集而成，自幼荷爾蒙作祟，夥拍石田連在校內校外四出「食女」，直至「搞出人命」才決定修心養性；少年的輕狂影響石田連的價值觀，在姊姊遇害後反思與女友奈恵關係。愛情總是不經意來臨，當你意識到時已墜入太深而不能自拔。

生於印尼、青年時移居新加坡的作者，以日本作故事背景，當中滲透不少日本傳統文化，舉例勞工日夜顛倒加班、姊姊以食物表達對弟弟的關愛，及酩酊大醉的歡送會等。最終石田仍不知未來的路應該怎走，正如七星所言滿腦充斥疑惑，即使年紀再大，仍處於與青少年一樣茫然狀態。

情緒帶來痛楚，

人們無法看見傷口，

但仍真實存在。

悲傷本身不會傷害別人，

真正會傷害自己的，

是在悲傷後所做的事情，

並把悲傷帶給身邊的人。

——《過境之鳥》，石田惠子

名稱：過境之鳥 (Rainbirds)

作者：Clarissa Goenawan

年份：2018

出版地：美國

出版社：Soho Press

類別：小說

評分：6.5/10

Rainbirds - Truth, a Potent Antidote for Regret

“If I had made an effort to understand my sister, could I have changed her fate?” - Ishida Ren

For the first time, the Book Fair will introduce the “ASEAN Literary Festival” to foster cultural exchange between the two sides. One of the featured works is “Rainbirds”, a debut novel by the Indonesian-born Singaporean writer Clarissa Goenawan. Set in a fictional Japanese city called “Akakawa”, the story begins with the mysterious death of  Ishida Keiko. Her younger brother Ishida Ren decides to stay in Akakawa for a short time to uncover the truth behind this murder.

It is believed that the maples fell into the river and turned the water red, resulting in the farmers coining the village as “Akakawa”. Some said two groups of farmers fought over the land. When one of the groups was defeated, the other farmers threw the corpses into the river and the blood turned the water red. Same as for Ishida Keiko. The case of murder happened in a heavy-rained night where no one noticed the victim. Her body was discovered until the next day.

Rainbirds managed to catch the readers’ attention with a murder investigation as its core. As Ren traced his sister’s life in Akakawa and interacted with people connected to her, he pieced all the fragmented clues into a full picture. As he kept throwing back to his life with Keiko, whether his colleague Honda, politician Mr. Kato and his ill wife, a hotel front-desk staff member, or the family of his student “Seven Starts” could be the offenders, leaving the reader suspicious.

Fantasy plays a vital role in this novel. Did Ren invent the Pigtails in his dream? Was she the younger version of Keiko? Even worse, did she have a connection to the Kato family? Since the relationships of their parents deteriorated, Keiko who suffered from “eldest daughter syndrome” has cared for Ren meticulously, until she relocates to Akagawa. Ren felt guilt over Keiko’s death and vowed to find the murderer who had escaped.

“It is common for people to realize what is important after it's gone.” - Ishida Ren

During the search for the murderer, Ren recalls the curry rice cooked by Keiko. “When you cook for someone you care about and you put your heart into it, your feelings will come through.” He encountered a group of “rainbirds” when scattering the cremated ashes upon the mountain. No matter how far they travel, they will always return home. Remember how Keiko released the “free birds”? She believed she had lived a fulfilling life, even if it was not a perfect one.

“If only they would learn to make peace with each other. Sometimes it's all right to agree to disagree.” Traditional values do shape the growth of the next generation. The infidelity of Ren’s father destroyed the harmony of Ishida's family. Arranged marriage in the Kato family benefited the hospital inheritance yet sacrificed the happiness of the sisters. The infidelity of Seven Star’s father even triggered the tragedy by his hand mold wife. It was not surprising that Seven Star developed a bad habit of stealing bubble gum, as stealing someone’s husband was even worse.

What is love? Ren’s best friend, Jin, believes it is formed between “like” and “lust”. Hormones in puberty triggered how they teamed up to go after girls, until Jin had to marry due to an unexpected pregnancy. The recklessness of youth affected Ren’s view of love. After Keiko’s tragedy, he started to reflect on his relationship with his girlfriend Nae. Love comes when you least expect it. When you realize what has happened, you know there is no way to escape.

Born in Indonesia and moving to Singapore in her youth, the author set the story in Japan and assassinated Japanese traditional culture, for example the working overtime in Ren’s school, how Keiko expressed her love of Ren through curry rice, and even the drinking farewell tradition. In the end, Ren was still confused and did not know what to do in the future. It was not exclusive to teenagers. When we are already old, and we are still as clueless as them

The trouble with emotional pain is,

you cannot see the wound.

But it is still there, and it is real.

Sadness alone cannot harm anyone.

It is what you do when you are sad

that can hurt you and those around you.

—— Ishida Keiko, “Rainbirds”

Title: Rainbirds

Author: Clarissa Goenawan

Year: 2018

Region: USA

Publisher: Soho Press

Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Crime

Score: 6.5/10