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jana33's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sampam's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
ashleyg006's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
joyceontheroad's review against another edition
4.0
Mooi verhaal in een compleet andere tijd. Twee verschillende vrienden verliezen elkaar in het proces van het opgroeien, en worden beïnvloed door hun achtergrond en de vorming van hun persoonlijkheid aan de hand van de actualiteiten van die tijd. Boeiend geschreven, bijna poëtisch.
danique_horror's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
eleanordoesreading's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
summerfreeman's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
annesbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
anouk_adriana's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
clarareads1000books's review against another edition
5.0
It was about time that I read some more Dutch classic literature, and decided to pick up this novella by Hella Haasse. I read her "Scharlaken Stad" (the Scarlet City) years ago when I was still a teenager and couldn't appreciate the literary value of her writing at the time.
Oeroeg is a novella filled with innocence and growth - the coming of age of two boys, one the son of a Dutch colonialist, the other the son of his Indonesian servant. The two boys grow up together and lead intertwined lives - becoming best (and only) friends. The young Dutch boy, who is the narrator of the novella, is largely unaware of class and race differences, and meets the slow but inevitable estrangement of his best friend Oeroeg caused by a pre-determined system of colonial superiority with disbelief and consternation.
For example, in this incredibly touching, cristal-clear and beautiful passage; the boy asks a Dutch employee of his father why the adults are telling him that he and Oeroeg are different, and Oeroeg less (translated by me from the Dutch):
"Is Oeroeg less than us?" I stammered out. "Is he different?"
'Are you daft,' Gerard said calmly, without taking the pipe out of his mouth. 'Who says so?'
I put into words, not without difficulty, my realisations of that afternoon.
'A panther is different from a monkey,' Gerard said, after a pause, 'but is one less than the other? Now, you think that's an idiotic question, and you're right. Keep finding that just as idiotic, when it comes to people. Being different - that's just normal. Everyone is different from another. I am also different from you. But being less or more because of the colour of your face or what your father is-that's nonsense. After all, isn't Oeroeg your friend? If he is such that he can be your friend-how can he ever be less than you, or anyone else?"
The last paragraphs of the novella, when the Dutch boy - now a grown adult - returns to Indonesia after WWII, in the mid of independence wars, in the search of his lost childhood and especially his friend, Oeroeg - simply tore my heart, so powerfully did Haasse convey the feeling of loss of a home, friendship and identity. I belief that these were very personal feelings of the author herself who was born and grew up in Indonesia, but could not return or recognize her childhood world after WWII, banished to her country of origin where she had never lived, a stranger forever in both worlds.
Of course the book in no way portrays in full scale the atrocities of Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia or the aftermatch after WWII, but I also don't think that it is the point. This is a very personal and contained story, and in my opinion beautiful within that scope. It outlines how the colonial system disfavoured and limited possibilities for young native people, and created a class- and race-system that could never be overruled. But more than anything I think Hella Haasse was trying to give voice to the love she felt for that country, her attachment to the native people despite the class and racial divides, and the deep sadness of losing something you hold dear.
The audiobook narrated by the author herself gives an even more personal feel to the novella. Compared to other audiobooks, this one is less edited - sometimes, the elderly voice will stumble over a word, or you will hear the sound of a page being turned, or of the narrator shifting in her seat - all of which made me feel like I was her grandchild sitting by the fire listening to her own childhood stories. And that was just the most cozy, nostalgic feeling ever. I loved it.
Oeroeg is a novella filled with innocence and growth - the coming of age of two boys, one the son of a Dutch colonialist, the other the son of his Indonesian servant. The two boys grow up together and lead intertwined lives - becoming best (and only) friends. The young Dutch boy, who is the narrator of the novella, is largely unaware of class and race differences, and meets the slow but inevitable estrangement of his best friend Oeroeg caused by a pre-determined system of colonial superiority with disbelief and consternation.
For example, in this incredibly touching, cristal-clear and beautiful passage; the boy asks a Dutch employee of his father why the adults are telling him that he and Oeroeg are different, and Oeroeg less (translated by me from the Dutch):
"Is Oeroeg less than us?" I stammered out. "Is he different?"
'Are you daft,' Gerard said calmly, without taking the pipe out of his mouth. 'Who says so?'
I put into words, not without difficulty, my realisations of that afternoon.
'A panther is different from a monkey,' Gerard said, after a pause, 'but is one less than the other? Now, you think that's an idiotic question, and you're right. Keep finding that just as idiotic, when it comes to people. Being different - that's just normal. Everyone is different from another. I am also different from you. But being less or more because of the colour of your face or what your father is-that's nonsense. After all, isn't Oeroeg your friend? If he is such that he can be your friend-how can he ever be less than you, or anyone else?"
The last paragraphs of the novella, when the Dutch boy - now a grown adult - returns to Indonesia after WWII, in the mid of independence wars, in the search of his lost childhood and especially his friend, Oeroeg - simply tore my heart, so powerfully did Haasse convey the feeling of loss of a home, friendship and identity. I belief that these were very personal feelings of the author herself who was born and grew up in Indonesia, but could not return or recognize her childhood world after WWII, banished to her country of origin where she had never lived, a stranger forever in both worlds.
Of course the book in no way portrays in full scale the atrocities of Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia or the aftermatch after WWII, but I also don't think that it is the point. This is a very personal and contained story, and in my opinion beautiful within that scope. It outlines how the colonial system disfavoured and limited possibilities for young native people, and created a class- and race-system that could never be overruled. But more than anything I think Hella Haasse was trying to give voice to the love she felt for that country, her attachment to the native people despite the class and racial divides, and the deep sadness of losing something you hold dear.
The audiobook narrated by the author herself gives an even more personal feel to the novella. Compared to other audiobooks, this one is less edited - sometimes, the elderly voice will stumble over a word, or you will hear the sound of a page being turned, or of the narrator shifting in her seat - all of which made me feel like I was her grandchild sitting by the fire listening to her own childhood stories. And that was just the most cozy, nostalgic feeling ever. I loved it.