The Booktrekker: Indonesia

READ Many of the books I read for this blog are tedious and take me forever to get through. That was not the case for the book I chose for Indonesia. Pramoedya Ananta Toer’s The Girl from the Coast, translated by Willem Samuels, arrived in the mail Friday morning, and I was finished with it by … Continue reading The Booktrekker: Indonesia

Review: When It Rains by Rassi Narika

Oh no, its raining! Again.  Why does it have to rain everyday? I wanna go outside. When will it stop?If you have a young one complaining incessantly about a downpour, you’ll enjoy reading Rassi Narika’s picture book When It Rains. It follows the Dora-esque* journey of Kira and her friends through a rainy day, showing … Continue reading Review: When It Rains by Rassi Narika

Translator Showdown: Where Manga Meets the Novel — by publisher Bruce Rutledge

May GLLI Blog Series:  Japan in Translation, No. 21  Two of Japan’s all-time best-selling writers, the late Shigeru Mizuki of Gegege no Kitaro fame and contemporary writer Haruki Murakami, have translators who live about seven miles apart from each other in the Seattle area. My company, Chin Music Press, decided to get those translators together … Continue reading Translator Showdown: Where Manga Meets the Novel — by publisher Bruce Rutledge

International Banned Book: The Fugitive by Pramoedya Ananta Toer (Indonesia)

Plot:  In the twilight days of Japanese power in his country, an Indonesian army officer sparks an insurrection against the occupation army but is forced to flee into the jungle when he is betrayed by one of his own comrades. Challenge: Banned in Indonesia in 1950, for containing "subversive" material, including an attempt to promote Marxist–Leninist … Continue reading International Banned Book: The Fugitive by Pramoedya Ananta Toer (Indonesia)