Historical fiction books from Indonesia
Recommended historical fiction books (6)
Travel the world without leaving your chair.
If you are into historical fiction here are some historical fiction books from Indonesia for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge.
1.
Beauty Is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan EN
Description:
The English-language debut of Indonesia's rising star.
2.
Cigarette Girl by Ratih Kumala EN
Description:
Pak Raja is gravely ill. On his deathbed, he calls the name of a woman who isn’t his wife: Jeng Yah. His three sons, the heirs to the Djagad Raja Clove Cigarette dynasty, are thrown into an uproar and their mother is consumed by jealousy. Racing against time, Lebas, Karim and Tegar go to the most remote corners of Java to fi nd Jeng Yah before death comes to claim their father. The journey takes them on a winding path as they uncover business and family secrets. Lebas, Karim, and Tegar discover the origins of Djagad Raja Clove Cigarettes and how it came to be the number one kretek in Indonesia... continue
3.
Description:
"A wonderful exercise in humanism . . . [by] a prodigious and impressive storyteller".—Jakarta Globe An epic saga of "families and friends entangled in the cruel snare of history" (Time magazine), Home combines political repression and exile with a spicy mixture of love, family, and food, alternating between Paris and Jakarta in the time between Suharto's 1965 rise to power and downfall in 1998, further illuminating Indonesia's tragic twentieth-century history popularized by the Oscar-nominated documentary The Act of Killing. Leila S. Chudori is Indonesia's most prominent female journalist. Ho... continue
4.
Description:
'Oeroeg was mijn vriend.' Zo begint het aangrijpende verhaal van de vriendschap tussen een Indonesische jongen en de zoon van een Nederlandse administrateur in het Nederlands-Indië van voor de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Geleidelijk groeien de twee jongens uit elkaar. Wanneer de Nederlandse jongen na een studie in Delft terugkeert in het Indië dat nog net geen Indonesië is geworden, blijkt hun verwijdering te zijn uitgegroeid tot een kloof. Oeroeg heeft gekozen: voor zijn eigen volk en tegen de Nederlanders, dus ook tegen zijn vriend. Geschokt vraagt die zich af of hij voorgo... continue
5.
Potions and Paper Cranes by Lan Fang EN
Description:
Sulis is a young woman selling potions in Surabaya's harbor district. She meets Sujono, a coolie with dreams of becoming a freedom fighter, and whose passion for Matsumi, a geisha called to Java by a Japanese general, is destined to ruin all of them. In Potions and Paper Cranes, each tells the story of their lives during the end of World War II and Indonesia's transition from a Dutch colony to an independent republic.
6.
The Question of Red by Laksmi Pamuntjak EN
Description:
From award-winning Indonesian author Laksmi Pamuntjak comes a tale of profound love against the backdrop of myth, culture, and politics. In this sweeping saga of love, loss, revolution, and the resilience of the human spirit, Amba must find the courage to forge her own path. Amba was named after a tragic figure in Indonesian mythology, and she spends her lifetime trying to invent a story she can call her own. When she meets two suitors who fit perfectly into her namesake's myth, Amba cannot help but feel that fate is teasing her. Salwa, respectful to a fault, pledges to honor and protect Amba,... continue