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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
sad
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Bepaald geen pageturner, dit boek. Toch uitgelezen. Ik vond het laatste hoofdstuk wel mooi en een beetje tragisch.
Nooit gelezen, tot nu. Titel vond ik niet aansprekend, maar ik heb daardoor laten afleiden: wat een fantastisch boek.
#readtheworld Netherlands
An interesting approach to the historical fiction genre as it was written through the use of actual familial archives of a Dutch family of Tea Lords (Dutch colonizers in Java during the 19th-early 20th century). However, I found myself wondering how much of the letters in the book were actual transcriptions as opposed to fictionalized accounts of the truth. The start of the book seems heavily dependent upon the author's impressions and imagination, which is completely fine and expected in a work of fiction. However, the latter third of the book seems almost lazy and hastily thrown together, relying more heavily on the written correspondence and less so on the characters' continued development. The characters stop interacting directly with one another and stop evolving as individuals.
I wish this novel would have considered more of the effects of the colonizers on Java, as it seems like yet another "White Savior" story, glorifying the Dutch and their exploitation of native populations in their cultivation of tea, coffee and quinine for profit. The only native character given a speaking voice is that of the nursemaid, who is still relegated to only a couple of lines of dialogue. While the working conditions and wages of the laborers are discussed, it is only from a business standpoint with its effect on the bottom line for the Tea Lords. I know this was published nearly 30 years ago, so I'll take it with a grain of salt, but I think Haasse could have done better, both from a cultural and literary standpoint.
An interesting approach to the historical fiction genre as it was written through the use of actual familial archives of a Dutch family of Tea Lords (Dutch colonizers in Java during the 19th-early 20th century). However, I found myself wondering how much of the letters in the book were actual transcriptions as opposed to fictionalized accounts of the truth. The start of the book seems heavily dependent upon the author's impressions and imagination, which is completely fine and expected in a work of fiction. However, the latter third of the book seems almost lazy and hastily thrown together, relying more heavily on the written correspondence and less so on the characters' continued development. The characters stop interacting directly with one another and stop evolving as individuals.
I wish this novel would have considered more of the effects of the colonizers on Java, as it seems like yet another "White Savior" story, glorifying the Dutch and their exploitation of native populations in their cultivation of tea, coffee and quinine for profit. The only native character given a speaking voice is that of the nursemaid, who is still relegated to only a couple of lines of dialogue. While the working conditions and wages of the laborers are discussed, it is only from a business standpoint with its effect on the bottom line for the Tea Lords. I know this was published nearly 30 years ago, so I'll take it with a grain of salt, but I think Haasse could have done better, both from a cultural and literary standpoint.
Cerita kehidupan dengan deskripsi tempat yang luar biasa.
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a piece of classic Dutch colonial fiction. Interesting that it is based on archival materials. I liked learning about the period, but note that this is post colonial fiction only in time, not critique. It is a sort of archive from the time it is written about Dutch tea plantations in Indonesia in the late 19th c. The Indonesian characters are given little depth or personality, but are included as laborers in the ditch colonial life.
“Heren van de Thee” is de tweede boek geschreven door Hella S. Haasse die ik gelezen heb na “Sleuteloog”. Het boek gaat over Rudolf Kerkhoven en het bedrijf van zijn familie in Nederlands-Indië.
Het boek is een roman, maar is gebaseerd op waargebeurde verhaal van Kerkhoven familie. Haasse heeft uitgebreide onderzoek gedaan om deze roman te schrijven. Voordat ze deze roman schreef, kreeg ze archieven over het leven van Kerkhoven familie. Dit maakt het boek omvangrijk met historische waarde.
Het boek is een roman, maar is gebaseerd op waargebeurde verhaal van Kerkhoven familie. Haasse heeft uitgebreide onderzoek gedaan om deze roman te schrijven. Voordat ze deze roman schreef, kreeg ze archieven over het leven van Kerkhoven familie. Dit maakt het boek omvangrijk met historische waarde.
Based upon historical facts. At the turn of the 19th and the 20th century a certain Rudolf Kerkhoven starts a tea plantation on Java (Indonesia, then a Dutch colony); after a difficult period, he eventually builds up a small empire through skill and stubbornness. Based upon archive material that was made available by his descendants. So Haasse once again has written documented fiction. At the same time it's a kind of Bildungsroman and psychological character drawing. But Haasse does not really succeeds in bringing a good story, she steers to close to her documentary material. What finally remains are the scenic descriptions, reminding a bit of her first work Oeroeg, but with more accuracy and less overdone mystical. Briefly: an interesting novel, but certainly no masterpiece. (2.5 stars)
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated