Today is National Day. It is also Cheryl Dada’s birthday. As Elderflower Home prepares for the celebration, Cheryl Dada too gets ready for her party. Between the hours of noon and seven p.m., she encounters the cantankerous residents and caregivers, her mother and people of yesteryears. What unfolds is a story about a woman coming to terms with age, loss and love.

Three Singaporean university students in London, as unalike as can be, become roommates and then fast friends. Over three winters in the mid-2010s, Gigi, Yi-En and Clare rely on each other in the face of trauma and big, scary life changes. When news comes of Clare’s disappearance, Gigi and En take a road trip to the countryside to retrace the path of her final days. What We Learned from Driving in Winter explores how we are able to live with tragedy with a little help from our friends.

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The Epigram Books Collection of Best New Singaporean Short Stories: Volume Five gathers the finest Singaporean stories published in 2019 and 2020, selected by guest editor Balli Kaur Jaswal from hundreds published in journals, magazines, anthologies and single-author collections.