Scan barcode
misspalah's review
4.0
Of course the problem of negotiating between one's local audience and a much larger audience is a circular question not limited to writers coming out of an oral tradition. How much do you explain? (Do you describe a local food or just use the name for it?) I was interested to read, just before coming here, Kulleh Grasi's book, Tell Me, Kenyalang, translated by festival co-director Pauline Fan, which incorporates various languages, imagery, and practices from Grasi's home in Sarawak-and Fan's decision to leave many words and phrases from the indigenous languages untranslated but annotated, recreating what the reading experience would be to someone who only knows Malay. It is fascinating that Grasi-and there may well be others, I just happen to have read his book--that Grasi in Malaysia is mirroring what is also the case in Mexico and various parts of Latin America today. That kind of connection seems to me to be part of what may be a future map of world literature.
- New Trade Routes of the word by Eliot Weinberger : Muara (Confluence/pertemuan) edited by Pauline Fan and Hafiz Hamzah
.
This book could have been better if they were to be published separately and available in English and Malay edition. Rather than combining it in the same edition - the english part were accompanied together with the original text, either Vietnamese, German, Persian and Myanmar. As for the Malay part there’s no english translation - only the original text discussing local works. I know that this is the first collaboration of Georgetown Literary Festival with Svara but i am trying to make sense how both parts were equally inaccessible for both that read exclusively either in Malay or English. I could only make this comment as i read in both languages as some of the literature analyses/ discourses done in the Malay section are excellent that i felt bad for those who don’t read in Malay. Same goes to English section as well. Now that i already get this off my chest, i have to praise that as a whole collection - either essays, short stories, poetry, book reviews and even translations were solid 10. It tried to capture what does world’s literature entailed of - the connection with imperialism and globalisation , messages of the stories and novels and even the complexity of the translation of the work that was featured in the book. I have to admit that i have not yet read some of the works mentioned here but after reading the analysis and the review - i am intrigued and would love to get a copy. I felt that i have to buy Earthlings by Sayaka Murata after reading the review titled “Earthling : Manual lari dari bumi by Rebecca Ilham”. I also would like to hunt my own copies of “Lake like mirror” by Ho Sok Fong after reading her own commentary on her works. She’s so honest and not afraid to share how she felt especially on the language she chose to write - “I write in Chinese, my mother tongue, and yet I often feel that it is a language I will never completely master-even if I switched to writing in another language, I think I would feel the same. As the poet Gu Cheng wrote, with each word we take a bite. 1 like the brokenness of things, their vestiges, much more so than some idealised perfection. The residue tells me that something has been here and that it wasn't fixed in place”. The poetry analysis written by KO KO THETT deserved its own spotlight. It has been 2 years since Myanmar Military Coup yet the resistance voice grew louder and take placed in the form of poetry. I choose to highlight this particular part simply because i am rooting for younger generation of Myanmar to keep on fighting and resisting. “Ko Inwa witnesses how "the Generation Z" were relentlessly engaged in flash protests. Each time there was a crackdown they dispersed and were ready to regroup the following day; "They talk about / one of their shoes / that went off on the run./ About a a wallet they lost. [...] They talk about how one of their phones / dropped and cracked. / How they had to flee for their life. / They laugh again. Everything is light. / They say 'See you tomorrow.' They don't talk big." They also came up with several innovative forms of protests in what they call the "Spring Revolution." There were multi-religious prayers in the evenings, protests of parked cars in the middle of roads in Yangon, a display of flowers or flip-flops in memory of the fallen, and even an exhibition of pyittaingtaung, the Burmese answer to a Tumbling Kelly, as a symbol of resilience”. Article titled ‘The last ferry to Georgetown’ written by Badrul Hisham is a thought provoking filled with historical insights. He shared why he wanted to research about ‘Pondok Education’ because “ Part of the reason behind the study was because at the time, pondoks were getting a bad reputation for harbouring extremist views on religion, and a few Malaysians from pondok background had fled to Syria and joined the militant groups there to fight against the Syrian government. Never mind the fact that most Malaysians who joined militant groups, from the Islamic State to Jemaah Islamiyah or Al-Qaeda, were educated in universities studying engineering or chemistry, and came from middle to upper class backgrounds. When it came to looking for scapegoats, the pondok community was an easy target. Uneasy with this simple scapegoating, we decided to visit these pondoks ourselves to learn more about them, the people and their history”. Another impactful essay that i can think of while writing this review is how Erni Aladjai explained ecofeminism and environmental issues via her novel titled ‘Haniyah dan Ala di Rumah Teteruga’. She was inspired by her late grandmother action that she always be respectful to all - human and non human. “Pernah sekali, ketika saya menanyakan hal ini, nenek berkata bahwa beliau meminta kepada keranjang rotan itu agar bisa menjadi ringan manakala dipikulnya sepanjang jalan dari hutan ke rumahnya di desa. Nenek memperlakukan benda mati seolah punya jiwa. Setelah dewasa saya melihat perilaku nenek saya ini adalah upayanya menjalin hubungan yang setara antara manusia dan yang non manusia; tumbuhan, hewan bahkan benda. Meskipun, nenek saya di masanya tak pernah mengenal wacana ekofeminisme sepanjang hidupnya, dia juga tak pernah mendengar nama Daniel C. Dennet atau membaca buku Kinds of Minds, tetapi nenek berperilaku sebagai seorang wanita yang melihat dirinya sebagai manusia bukanlah hal yang paling tinggi di bumi in. Ini adalah laku yang ekofeminis bagi saya. Itulah ketika saya menulis novel Haniyah dan Ala di Rumah Teteruga, saya menjadikan ini sebagai upaya mengarsipkan ingatan-ingatan berharga di masa kecil, mengarsipkan kenangan saya akan mendiang nenek..” Overall, the book did expose many literary gems that was not mainstream but deserved attention from both local and international readers. I actually wanted to write more especially on the essays written by Wan Nor Azriq about “Anak Mat Lela Gila” and “Displacement and Disappearance” Lilianne Fan on Refugee’s experience of displacement and the trauma that came with it - but space might held me down from doing it. I am hoping at least with my review, you might want to get your own copy of this book.
- New Trade Routes of the word by Eliot Weinberger : Muara (Confluence/pertemuan) edited by Pauline Fan and Hafiz Hamzah
.
This book could have been better if they were to be published separately and available in English and Malay edition. Rather than combining it in the same edition - the english part were accompanied together with the original text, either Vietnamese, German, Persian and Myanmar. As for the Malay part there’s no english translation - only the original text discussing local works. I know that this is the first collaboration of Georgetown Literary Festival with Svara but i am trying to make sense how both parts were equally inaccessible for both that read exclusively either in Malay or English. I could only make this comment as i read in both languages as some of the literature analyses/ discourses done in the Malay section are excellent that i felt bad for those who don’t read in Malay. Same goes to English section as well. Now that i already get this off my chest, i have to praise that as a whole collection - either essays, short stories, poetry, book reviews and even translations were solid 10. It tried to capture what does world’s literature entailed of - the connection with imperialism and globalisation , messages of the stories and novels and even the complexity of the translation of the work that was featured in the book. I have to admit that i have not yet read some of the works mentioned here but after reading the analysis and the review - i am intrigued and would love to get a copy. I felt that i have to buy Earthlings by Sayaka Murata after reading the review titled “Earthling : Manual lari dari bumi by Rebecca Ilham”. I also would like to hunt my own copies of “Lake like mirror” by Ho Sok Fong after reading her own commentary on her works. She’s so honest and not afraid to share how she felt especially on the language she chose to write - “I write in Chinese, my mother tongue, and yet I often feel that it is a language I will never completely master-even if I switched to writing in another language, I think I would feel the same. As the poet Gu Cheng wrote, with each word we take a bite. 1 like the brokenness of things, their vestiges, much more so than some idealised perfection. The residue tells me that something has been here and that it wasn't fixed in place”. The poetry analysis written by KO KO THETT deserved its own spotlight. It has been 2 years since Myanmar Military Coup yet the resistance voice grew louder and take placed in the form of poetry. I choose to highlight this particular part simply because i am rooting for younger generation of Myanmar to keep on fighting and resisting. “Ko Inwa witnesses how "the Generation Z" were relentlessly engaged in flash protests. Each time there was a crackdown they dispersed and were ready to regroup the following day; "They talk about / one of their shoes / that went off on the run./ About a a wallet they lost. [...] They talk about how one of their phones / dropped and cracked. / How they had to flee for their life. / They laugh again. Everything is light. / They say 'See you tomorrow.' They don't talk big." They also came up with several innovative forms of protests in what they call the "Spring Revolution." There were multi-religious prayers in the evenings, protests of parked cars in the middle of roads in Yangon, a display of flowers or flip-flops in memory of the fallen, and even an exhibition of pyittaingtaung, the Burmese answer to a Tumbling Kelly, as a symbol of resilience”. Article titled ‘The last ferry to Georgetown’ written by Badrul Hisham is a thought provoking filled with historical insights. He shared why he wanted to research about ‘Pondok Education’ because “ Part of the reason behind the study was because at the time, pondoks were getting a bad reputation for harbouring extremist views on religion, and a few Malaysians from pondok background had fled to Syria and joined the militant groups there to fight against the Syrian government. Never mind the fact that most Malaysians who joined militant groups, from the Islamic State to Jemaah Islamiyah or Al-Qaeda, were educated in universities studying engineering or chemistry, and came from middle to upper class backgrounds. When it came to looking for scapegoats, the pondok community was an easy target. Uneasy with this simple scapegoating, we decided to visit these pondoks ourselves to learn more about them, the people and their history”. Another impactful essay that i can think of while writing this review is how Erni Aladjai explained ecofeminism and environmental issues via her novel titled ‘Haniyah dan Ala di Rumah Teteruga’. She was inspired by her late grandmother action that she always be respectful to all - human and non human. “Pernah sekali, ketika saya menanyakan hal ini, nenek berkata bahwa beliau meminta kepada keranjang rotan itu agar bisa menjadi ringan manakala dipikulnya sepanjang jalan dari hutan ke rumahnya di desa. Nenek memperlakukan benda mati seolah punya jiwa. Setelah dewasa saya melihat perilaku nenek saya ini adalah upayanya menjalin hubungan yang setara antara manusia dan yang non manusia; tumbuhan, hewan bahkan benda. Meskipun, nenek saya di masanya tak pernah mengenal wacana ekofeminisme sepanjang hidupnya, dia juga tak pernah mendengar nama Daniel C. Dennet atau membaca buku Kinds of Minds, tetapi nenek berperilaku sebagai seorang wanita yang melihat dirinya sebagai manusia bukanlah hal yang paling tinggi di bumi in. Ini adalah laku yang ekofeminis bagi saya. Itulah ketika saya menulis novel Haniyah dan Ala di Rumah Teteruga, saya menjadikan ini sebagai upaya mengarsipkan ingatan-ingatan berharga di masa kecil, mengarsipkan kenangan saya akan mendiang nenek..” Overall, the book did expose many literary gems that was not mainstream but deserved attention from both local and international readers. I actually wanted to write more especially on the essays written by Wan Nor Azriq about “Anak Mat Lela Gila” and “Displacement and Disappearance” Lilianne Fan on Refugee’s experience of displacement and the trauma that came with it - but space might held me down from doing it. I am hoping at least with my review, you might want to get your own copy of this book.
More...