Harry Aveling: 6 books

Drought, a translation of Iwan Simatupang’s novel, Kering (1972), is a joyous celebration of life and human commitment. Its hero is an ex-student, ex-soldier, and ex-bandit, who decides to transmigrate to one of the outer islands of Indonesia to restart life as a farmer. His near failure brings...

Rendra (1935-2009), one of Indonesia’s most important poets and dramatists, was raised within a mystical Javanese milieu. He saw the individual, nature, and society as potentially forming one harmonious whole. This commitment to personal authenticity and social justice was expressed in Rendra’s...

Morphology of Desire gives a generous introduction to the full range of writing by the internationally acclaimed Indonesian poet, Dorothea Rosa Herliany, from the 1980s to the present day. Through a distinctive mix of striking imagery and boldness of voice, the poet sets out to destroy many of the...

As with the works of other Iwan Simatupang, The Pilgrim (Ziarah) is characterized by unusual writing. The Pilgrim is a mixture of complex, poetic lyrics and a meditation on life, death and art. Through the figures of artists and an cemetery overseer, the author convey the thoughts of philosophy and...

German title: Der geliehene Körper und andere Gedichte Indonesian title: Tubuh Pinjaman dan puisi lainnya Joko Pinurbo’s poetry is immediately recognizable for its simple language, accessibility, and the recurrent use of a number of specific but unusual motifs. His poems deal with...

Supernova: The Knight, The Princess and the Falling Star (Supernova: Ksatria, Putrid an Bintang Jatuh), published in 2001, is an innovator in the development history of modern Indonesian literature. Written by a young writer, as intellectual work that takes the form of pop-art and is set in the real...