This is probably some of the most exciting news ever, but I’m so happy to have arranged this exclusively Southeast Asian blog tour for Hanna Alkaf’s The Weight of Our Sky!
I love this book so much and being able to arrange this tour and work with SEA bloggers was so rewarding. The whole idea was to help get reviews out into the world from people who are #OwnVoices or almost #OwnVoices for The Weight of Our Sky and see what they had to say, and so I hope you enjoy the entire tour!
Each blogger is truly wonderful and there are so many exciting posts ahead that you’ll be able to read! This is one of my favorite 2019 releases and I felt so so seen by The Weight of Our Sky and am quivering with excitement thinking of y’all reading what each of these wonderful people have to say!
So stick with us, because over the next two weeks we’ll be shouting all about The Weight of Our Sky! Find the schedule below + make sure to give the bloggers some love!
January 28th
Vicky Who Reads (Welcome Post) & Shut Up Shealea (Review)
January 29th
Jessica @ Endless Chapters (Review + Favorite Quotes)
January 30th
Lily @ Sprinkles of Dreams (Review + Favorite Quotes)
January 31st
Zoë @ If the Book Will Be Too Difficult (Interview)
February 1st
As Told by Zaheerah (Review + Playlist)
February 4th
Vinny @ Artsy Draft (Review + Aesthetic)
February 5th
Erika @ The Nocturnal Fey (Review + Favorite Quotes)
February 6th
May @ Forever and Everly (Review + Aesthetic)
February 7th
CW @ The Quiet Pond (Review + Creative Interview)
February 8th
Bookevin (Review + Creative Post)
I am so awed that all these amazing bloggers are joining me for this tour, and am so exceptionally proud of each of them for taking the time to be part of this!
We’ve all been working on this for so long, and it’s absolutely wild this tour is finally happening and you get to read all the posts!
They’ve all got invaluable input to add, and I hope as you follow the tour, you’ll be able to hear a little bit about how amazing this book is for Southeast Asian readers. 💜
Please feel free to follow along, and I’ll be threading all the cool things happening on Twitter, so you can check in there!
More About the Book
The Weight of Our Sky by Hanna Alkaf
Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster, 5 February 2019
Hardcover, 384 pages
A music loving teen with OCD does everything she can to find her way back to her mother during the historic race riots in 1969 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in this heart-pounding literary debut.
Melati Ahmad looks like your typical movie-going, Beatles-obsessed sixteen-year-old. Unlike most other sixteen-year-olds though, Mel also believes that she harbors a djinn inside her, one who threatens her with horrific images of her mother’s death unless she adheres to an elaborate ritual of counting and tapping to keep him satisfied.
But there are things that Melati can’t protect her mother from. On the evening of May 13th, 1969, racial tensions in her home city of Kuala Lumpur boil over. The Chinese and Malays are at war, and Mel and her mother become separated by a city in flames.
With a 24-hour curfew in place and all lines of communication down, it will take the help of a Chinese boy named Vincent and all of the courage and grit in Melati’s arsenal to overcome the violence on the streets, her own prejudices, and her djinn’s surging power to make it back to the one person she can’t risk losing.
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Book Depository | IndieBound | Bookalicious!
More About the Author
Hanna Alkaf graduated with a degree in journalism from Northwestern University and spent over ten years writing everything from B2B marketing emails to investigative feature articles, from non-profit press releases to corporate brochures. She now spends her time making it up as she goes along, both as an author of fiction and as a mom. Hanna lives in Kuala Lumpur with her family. THE WEIGHT OF OUR SKY is her first novel.
Photo credit: Azalia Suhaimi
Website | Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter
Preorder Inentives
There are a lot of awesome prizes you can get for preordering The Weight of Our Sky, so please totally take a peep below because ALL the gorgeous swag (and there’s A Lot of it) is part of this campaign for a wonderful book!
US/INTL Preorder Giveaway (full info here)
Preorder or request The Weight of Our Sky from your local library to receive
- an enamel pin designed by Rizal Aziz
- a bookmark
- a signed bookplate illustrated by Hanna Alkaf
- a pop-up card featuring scenes of old-school Malaysia from Loka Made, illustrated by Fei Giap
Malaysian Bookalicious! Preorder Giveaway (full info here and here)
Preorder your special signed copies of The Weight of Our Sky in either paperback or hardcover from Bookalicious! to receive
- a bookmark (paperback)
- a bookmark and enamel pin (hardcover)
(Please note that preorders through Bookalicious! come with their own giveaway items and are not eligible for the US/INTL giveaway.)
Tour Giveaway!
And, we’re so excited to also share with you this awesome international giveaway for readers following along with the tour! One lucky winner will receive a copy of The Weight of Our Sky & a Kampung House coloring book!
The Kampung House coloring book has gorgeous line drawings of old-school Malaysian wooden kampung houses, common in 1969. And of course, who can pass up a chance at winning their own copy of The Weight of Our Sky?! Enter through the Rafflecopter button below!
Vicky Who Reads 
Omg I really wanted to read this book , it’s everywhere on Twitter anyway, there’s no rafflecopter link ? It’s only pic
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the link is working for me, but here you go again! https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/f86ac49b10/?
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and it’s sooo awesome omg I hope you enjoy!!!
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Ahhhh it’s so cool that you organised this 😀
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awww omg thank you, Michelle!!!! <3333
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It’s so cool that you did a Southeast Asian Blog Tour! I can’t wait to read everyone’s posts and their experience reading the book. It really sounds amazing; as a 60s obsessed, I actually know a lot about various riots and revolutionary acts around the globe for this period, like the Prague Spring in Czechoslovakia and even protests in my country, Brazil. However, I had never heard about the race riots in Malaysia, so I’m super excited to know more about it. The characters also sound amazing, so I hope to have my hands on it as soon as I can. (And thanks for hosting the giveaway, Vicky!) 💛
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aww, thank you! and that’s awesome–I hope you enjoy! I know my mom talked about the Indonesian race riots from the 90s so this really felt close to home for me. I hope you enjoy reading when you get the chance, and love all the tour stops!! ❤
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This is so exciting! I lived in Malaysia for over 10 years, and I learned about the race riots in history class, so I really want to read this book!
Looking forward to reading all the reviews 😀
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Ooooh, omg that is amazing!!! I really hope you enjoy reading the book and the reviews!!! ❤
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Thank you! 😊
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this is such an incredible idea and endeavor!!!! its amazing to see the weight of our sky get this hype. i cannot WAIT to read it
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omg thank you and I’m so glad you’re excited!!!! I am just SO READY for this book to come out eeeee
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I’m going to come back to this post after I read the book so I can read and comment on everyone’s posts. My copy is waiting for me in KL and I hope to be in the right frame of mind to read it soon, because I know how heavy it can be!
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OH YES, PLEASE DO! I hope you love it and ahhhhh omg I can’t wait to hear what you think! definitely prepare yourself, but I hope you come out triumphant in the end ❤
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