People like Tan Twan Eng

Tan Twan Eng (Chinese: 陳團英, b. 1972) is a Malaysian novelist who writes in English. He is best known for his 2012 book The Garden of Evening Mists which won the Man Asian Literary Prize and Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, and was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, making Tan the first Malaysian to be recognised by all three awards.

Tan was born in Penang and grew up in Kuala Lumpur. He is of the Straits Chinese descent. Tan speaks mainly English, Penang Hokkien, and some Cantonese.

Tan studied law at the University of London, and later worked as an advocate and solicitor in one of Kuala Lumpur's leading law firms before becoming a full-time writer.

He has a first-dan ranking in aikido and lives in Malaysia.