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Fiction, suffering, and apathy: is life like jazz? |
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Indonesia
“To me, that's the unique quality of jazz. It's entertainment, sure, but it's a form of entertainment that's full of grief and stricken with bitterness."
–Seno Gumira Adjidarma, Jazz, Perfume, and the Incident
Jazz, Perfume & the Incident
By Seno Gumira Adjidarma
Translated by George Harris
Published by the Lontar Foundation
Modern Library of Indonesian Literature Series
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Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 — Childhood stories. Most people wrote theirs; fewer have drawn theirs. But one thousand words is not easy to write, and a picture does not have to be too detailed to tell a good story.
Boey Cheeming’s collection of hand-drawn childhood stories, When I Was A Kid is an example of how simple lines and words are all you need to tell a tale.
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 Julie Wu’s novel about a Taiwanese family, set partially in Taiwan and partially in the US, is a remarkable tale that scrutinizes the authoritarianism ingrained within traditional Chinese family values
Make no mistake about it, this is a really excellent novel. I don’t say this because, at least in the early chapters, it’s set in Taiwan. Nor is it because the narrator is a native of Taoyuan. The Third Son is wonderful in the ways most really good novels are wonderful, reasons that I will attempt to elucidate below.
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Treasures of basketry and beyond |
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Indonesia
A landmark publication introduces the richest and most complex plaited traditions in the world.
Plaited Arts from the Borneo Rainforest
Author: Bernard Sellato
Publisher: The Lontar Foundation 2012
Pages: Hardcover
Usually grand publishing projects on Indonesian ethnic arts focus on artifacts and statuary made from the 'noble materials' like bronze, stone, jewelry and hardwood, and do not concern themselves with perishable implements, which conjure up a slightly disparaging perception among art collectors, auctioneers and museum curators who are obsessed with the antiquity and authenticity of objects. But due to the progressive disappearance and skyrocketing prices of genuine 'noble' pieces from the open market, stakeholders were forced to turn to new types of products for business reasons. This led to the emergence, starting in the 1970s, of great interest in ethnic textiles, beads and basket-ware, with a corresponding surge in prices and a shift in the perception of plaited work as art.
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