book review Archives

Book Review: ‘The Glass Islands: A Year in Lombok’ by Mark Heyward

Indonesia ExpatFebruary 1, 2024

by Indonesia ExpatFebruary 1, 20240

‘The Glass Islands: A Year in Lombok’ – Published by Monsoon Books (2023) Mark Heyward, in his book The Glass...

Looking into the Minangkabau Press

Donny SyofyanFebruary 5, 2023

by Donny SyofyanFebruary 5, 20230

The crucial role of the press in shaping the history of Minangkabau is undeniable. Appearing on the historical stage in...

Book Review: Revitalising Bahasa Indonesia Abroad

Donny SyofyanSeptember 14, 2022October 13, 2022

by Donny SyofyanSeptember 14, 2022October 13, 20220

Bahasa Indonesia has a great opportunity to be one of the world’s main languages following Indonesia’s large population and abundant...

Bali 50 – Years of Changes

Mirella PandjaitanAugust 13, 2022September 27, 2022

by Mirella PandjaitanAugust 13, 2022September 27, 20220

Having the “right” friendship is sensational. Some might come and go, while others can continue flourishing into meaningful unions. Speaking...

Book Review: The Bard, the Bad and the Ugly

Kenneth YeungAugust 4, 2022

by Kenneth YeungAugust 4, 20220

Kenneth Yeung reviews a poet’s prosaic recollection of expat life in Jakarta. In 2013, a 53-year-old, divorced New Zealand man...

Joseph Conrad’s Eastern Voyages, by Ian Burnet

Ian BurnetJanuary 14, 2022September 30, 2023

by Ian BurnetJanuary 14, 2022September 30, 20230

The title caught my eye immediately: Joseph Conrad’s Eastern Voyages, Tales of Singapore and an East Borneo River. The cover,...

Intercultural Communication Key to Global Understanding

Donny SyofyanJuly 8, 2021July 9, 2021

by Donny SyofyanJuly 8, 2021July 9, 20210

BOOK REVIEW “Cultures and Communication” An Indonesian Scholar’s Perspective. In an increasingly globalised world, how people interact across cultures have...

Literary Postmodern Perspective in ?Will Badrul Mustafa Never Die??

Donny SyofyanDecember 17, 2020July 9, 2021

by Donny SyofyanDecember 17, 2020July 9, 20210

“Will Badrul Mustafa Never Die? Verse from the Front” comprises a series of poetry that incorporates various traditions into modern literary...

Recruit To Revolution

Terry CollinsAugust 24, 2016

by Terry CollinsAugust 24, 20160

John Coast was 31 when he flew to Bukittinggi in 1948. His life’s journey until that point had been one...

Jalan Jalan – A Novel of Indonesia

Terry CollinsJanuary 25, 2016January 25, 2016

by Terry CollinsJanuary 25, 2016January 25, 20160

Mike Stoner Tuttle Publishing 2016 ISBN 978-0-8048-4629-5 The dozen or so books about Indonesia that I’ve reviewed, most for these...

A Brief History of Indonesia

Terry CollinsNovember 2, 2015October 20, 2017

by Terry CollinsNovember 2, 2015October 20, 20170

A Brief History of Indonesia by Tim Hannigan pub. Tuttle 2015 pp.288 ISBN 978-0-8048-4476-5 (pbk) ISBN 978-0-4629-1716-7(ebook) The sub-title is far...