Congratulations to Tan Twan Eng for making Penang proud by becoming the first Malaysian to win the prestigious Man Asian Literary Prize

Tan's novel, The Garden of Evening Mists, tells the story of Yun Ling Teoh, the survivor of a Japanese prison camp who looks back at the early 1950s and her relationship with the mysterious creator of then-Malaya's only Japanese garden.

Described as "far-ranging and intricately layered", Tan's post-war novel managed to pip four other authors, including Turkish Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk, for the USD30,000 (RM93,000) prize. Last year, Tan had also been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.

Tan's win is not only a feather in a cap for himself, but also a great recognition of Malaysian talent. This is proof that Malaysians can compete with the best from around the world. More importantly, we hope that Tan's win will inspire and encourage many other aspiring writers from Malaysia, especially amongst the young, to hone their talents in the literary arena.

Penang is of course very happy and honoured to have hosted Tan twice during our annual George Town Literary Festival, and hope to have the honour of having him in our shores again in the future. National Laureate Datuk Pak Samad Said reminded me yesterday to invite Tan again as Datuk Pak Samad Said was very proud of Tan’s achievements that has brought fame to our country.

Tan Twan Eng’s success as an English author is a culmination of all the hard work put in and shows the importance of preparing the young for the future by setting standards of excellence.