Currently lecturing in creative writing at NTU, where he's the National Arts Council's international writer-in-residence, Tash Aw, the author of the Booker-nominated The Harmony Silk Factory will be appearing at various public events in Singapore over the next few months to talk about his new novel, Five Star Billionaire.

Set among Malaysian expats in Shanghai, this is the third novel from the Taipei-born, UK-educated Malaysian author. Aw was the first recipient of the M Shanghai Literary Residency; an award that grew out of that city's popular annual literary festival. We asked him why he chose to set the novel there:

"I was travelling through Shanghai and noticed that there were many foreigners living there, including plenty of Malaysians and Singaporeans. So I decided to spend more time there myself, and ended up falling in love with the city. It's a city that has soul underneath its poise, a sense of nostalgia underneath its brash exterior. And it's the only city I know in Asia that is made for strolling - I spent many days and nights wandering through the streets with no real purpose other than to soak up the atmosphere."

To read our interview with Tash Aw, click here.

Catch Aw at these public appearances:

April 6 (Sat) 2pm at Kinokuniya and 7:30pm at Books Actually

April 9 (Tue) 7pm at Singapore Management University, Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Seminar Room 1.2

April 12 (Fri) 7:30pm at Living Room, The Arts House

April 13 (Sat) 2pm at Littered with Books and 4:30pm at Select Books