Words by Culturalee Contributor Maya Saengkrachang
Veeraporn Nitiprapha’s award winning novel The Blind Earthworm in the Labyrinth is a poetic soap opera about star-crossed, bruschetta-eating lovers, set under shady pikul trees.
A sensuous melodrama in the style of a lakorn, The Blind Earthworm in the Labyrinth by Veeraporn Nitiprapha (translated by Kong Rithdee) slaloms through yellow houses, blue rooms, the aroma of damask roses, servings of kanom chan and the banks of the Chao Praya. Nitiprapha portrays a ménage à trois in poetic prose that sculpts a romantic vision of modern-day Bangkok.
In a sudden turn of events, Chareeya re-enters Pran’s world after years of estrangement, bumping into him at a Bangkok club as a song by The Cure plays. Pran, in love with (but rejected by) Chareeya, seeks comfort in her twin Chalika, her exact double. When Chareeya comes to see Pran as more than a protective adopted brother, she discovers that he has reserved every one of his Mondays to be with her twin.
Nitiprapha was on a mission with The Blind Earthworm in the Labyrinth to transcribe the psychological sequence of recollection. Like the mind when recalling memories, the novel jumps from association to association. Each chapter is a channel from one image, word, place, or event to another thematically connected one. Guided by Nitiprapha, we travel through the novel’s wormholes, emerging in new spaces after every few pages. Tethered to no one perspective, Nitiprapha subjects us to several imaginary karmic incarnations in her book.
The Protagonists of The Blind Earthworm in the Labyrinth are leather-wearing Thai men who resemble Che Guevara, and women with sweeping long locks who can whip up feasts from around the world. My sole frustration is that, as Nitiprapha reels off the facets of each character’s persona, there comes to be a common denominator of glamour and romance affecting each one of them. As you read, you begin to see how it goes: “Ah, Pran’s need for belonging has made him the most popular lover in Bangkok!” Even in their sorrow, Nitiprapha can’t help but make each character cool and extraordinary. However, Nitiprapha does somehow manage to siphon the true essence of the country, its geography and its flora, and funnel it into her novel. The Blind Earthworm in the Labyrinth becomes a journey through blooming garden courtyards in Bangkok, refreshing waters and the landscape of the Northern regions. Nitiprapha’s prose turns an eye to nuance, transforming each small flower and act of affection into a magical event.
This review was originally published by Voice Mag, a magazine and platform for young creatives covering arts, culture, politics and technology. Culturalee Founder Lee Sharrock is a Voice Mag Advocate.
