Pauline Fan, Beyond Redemption: Fatimah Busu and the Reckoning of Malay Literature March 27, 2025 – Posted in: In The News, Reviews

On this terrible morning, everything is relentless – Fatimah Busu, “The Lovers of Muharram” An Ordinary Tale About Women and Other Stories, recently published by Penguin Random House SEA, gathers my translations of ten of Fatimah Busu’s most searing short stories. These narratives, steeped in the rhythms and struggles of rural Malay life, lay bare the quiet resilience and fierce defiance of women caught in the grip of economic hardship, gendered oppression, sexual violence, and…

English translations bring Fatimah Busu’s BM stories to new audiences March 5, 2025 – Posted in: Uncategorized

Hanis Maketab, The Star4 March 2025 Within Malay literature circles, Fatimah Busu is already a familiar and highly-respected name, especially when great Malay women writers are being discussed. Now, English language readers are finally getting the chance to get better acquainted with the prolific Kelantanese author’s writings. An Ordinary Tale About Women And Other Storieshttps://arecabooks.com/product/an-ordinary-tale-about-women-and-other-stories/https://arecabooks.com/product/an-ordinary-tale-about-women-and-other-stories, translated by Pauline Fan and published by Penguin Random House SEA, features 10 of Fatimah’s short stories that have been…

Tanjung Malim travel writer spends two months visiting Malaysia’s small towns by bus, pens book January 9, 2025 – Posted in: Uncategorized

By MELANIE CHALIL In a fast-paced world, Lam Ching Fu is taking the slow travel movement to new heights by travelling to Malaysia’s small towns using public buses. His journey to the northern states of Perak, Perlis, Penang and Kedah took two months to complete, unearthing many hidden gems along the way. Born and raised in Tanjung Malim, Lam, affectionately known as FuFu, had just returned from living abroad for 10 years when he decided…

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A Malaysian Ecocriticism Reader October 28, 2024 – Posted in: Reviews

To begin with, there has been significant theoretical work involving life-writings—an umbrella term that can include, for instance, the autobiographical novel and memoirs. Rather than to see such texts as presenting the “truth” per se, it is more rewarding to read them as literary representations, including how the “self” may emerge in textualised form. In this dynamic, ﬁction and auto/biography are more closely linked than they may initially appear–indeed, “our memories are always already textualized”…

Significant contributions of Malaysian Tamil Muslims January 4, 2024 – Posted in: Uncategorized

Ranjit Singh Malhi Very little has been written about the substantial contributions of the Malaysian Tamil Muslims towards nation-building. Originating from Tamil Nadu, India, and renowned as an entrepreneurial community with astute business acumen, the Tamil Muslims played a major role in promoting the nation’s early trade and commerce, pioneering Malay publications, establishing mosques, and bequeathing religious endowments. Tamil Muslims who immigrated to what is currently Malaysia can be divided into three main groups: Marakkayar,…

A review of One-Legged Football October 23, 2023 – Posted in: Reviews

Carol Leon, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia From the outset, it is apparent that One-Legged Football and Other Stories authored by Patricia Lim Pui Huen is a labour of love. The book honours the memory of her husband Dato’ Dr. Lim Kee Jin, a man who dedicated his life to medicine and was an active member of JARO (Johor Area Rehabilitation Organisation) for many years, serving as its Chairman for forty-six of them. The proceeds…

A woman of strength July 13, 2023 – Posted in: Authors

Born in Hong Kong in 1932 then raised in Singapore, Datin Patricia was working as a librarian at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) when she wrote her first book. Before this, she studied arts at the University of Malaya, where she met her husband, a medical specialist. Through observing and sharing knowledge with the researchers and becoming interested in what they sought out, she learned how to write her own historical book. Datin…

Son of Patani: ‘Diari’ Raja yang dirampas takhta June 12, 2023 – Posted in: Uncategorized

Shafizan JohariAstro AwaniJanuari 1, 2023 FADILLAH tekun menulis satu demi satu tutur ibunya di satu buku nota yang disimpannya sejak 10 tahun lalu. Di dalam buku nota itu, pelbagai cerita keluarganya yang disampaikan secara lisan, kini dicatat semula, sebagai salah satu usaha mengenang sejarah keluarga. Malah inilah antara hobi utama bekas pensyarah sastera dalam Bahasa Inggeris ini sejak bergelar pesara. Daripada hobi, ia bertukar menjadi komitmen. “Saya nak pastikan kisah hidup Nenda Raja diketahui oleh…

Publikasi yang akan datang (awal 2023) December 1, 2022 – Posted in: Excerpts

Suami Isteri Naik Haji 1939–1940: Kembara Raja Shahabuddin dan Rahmah Rihlah atau kisah naik haji ini merakamkan petualangan Raja Shahabuddin dan isterinya Rahmah yang menaiki kapal terakhir ke Jeddah sebelum pecahnya ‘Peperangan Besar Eropah’ (Perang Dunia Kedua) sembari ‘U-boats’ (kapal selam Jerman) menjadi jerung yang bermaharajalela di lautan lepas. Karya Raja Shahabuddin yang ditinta dalam aksara Jawi dan dicetak pada 1940 mengisi lompang (lacuna) periwayatan perjalanan haji dari Tanah Semenanjung ke sekujur tanah gurun merupakan…

Celebrating unique charm of Penang houses June 28, 2022 – Posted in: In The News, Reviews

By Jeremy Tan Buildings are such a ubiquitous element of the urban environment that few give a second thought to how they were designed and constructed. From the inception of an idea on paper and then brick, there are countless processes and influences involved, especially in places like Penang which was at the crossroads of global trade by the turn of the 20th century. The confluence of cultures along with colonialism gave rise to a…

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