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6th out of 45 books
—
11 voters
Town Boy (Kampung Boy #2)
by
Lat
Malaysian teenager Mat makes a life-changing move fromthe quiet kampung where he was bornto Ipoh, the rapidly industrializing nearby town. Living far from his rural roots at a boarding school,he discovers bustling streets,modern music, heady literature, budding romance, and through it all his growing passion for art.
The companion novel to the critically acclaimed Kampung...more
The companion novel to the critically acclaimed Kampung...more
Paperback, 192 pages
Published
October 2nd 2007
by First Second
(first published 1980)
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I am continuing to love this series. I love the way the characters move in their environments of streets, coffee shops, into cyclos and onto buses. The main character now lives in a town ( a big change for his poor family) and it chronicles his days in school and the meeting of his best friend, Frankie. There are some great sequences in this book, really fantastic little snippets of life that are so familiar for all that they occurred a lifetime ago to someone else on the other side of the world...more
Buku ini memoarnya si penulis. Ceritanya tentang seorang anak yang tinggal di sebuah kampung, di Malaysia. Percakapannya campuran antara Malay dan English. Yah seperti orang-orang Melayu itu cakap lah. Lucu aja bacanya. Kek gini nih:
Mat: "Oh no, today we're having a double math period!"
Frankie: "Relax... any minute now we're going to have another encounter with Normah"
NORMAH - the hottest girl in Ipoh
She made heads turn...
Both: "Wow..."
Frankie: "If I want to go out on a date with a girl I can g...more
Mat: "Oh no, today we're having a double math period!"
Frankie: "Relax... any minute now we're going to have another encounter with Normah"
NORMAH - the hottest girl in Ipoh
She made heads turn...
Both: "Wow..."
Frankie: "If I want to go out on a date with a girl I can g...more
This book follows the action of Kampung Boy, with Lat's character Mat having left the kampung to go to school in the--you guessed it--town. The events depicted give a peek into 1960s Malaysian life, while also displaying the universal experiences of coming of age.
Lat's art may seem crude, but it is very vibrant and expressive. I love the characters' expression & the way they move! His backgrounds give a real sense of place; I've never been to Malaysia (let alone in the 1960s), but I've spen...more
Lat's art may seem crude, but it is very vibrant and expressive. I love the characters' expression & the way they move! His backgrounds give a real sense of place; I've never been to Malaysia (let alone in the 1960s), but I've spen...more
Lat, otherwise known as Kampung Boy, returns in this second volume of his life story, "Town Boy," detailing the second half of his adolescence in the small town of Ipoh in Malaysia. It's an autobiographical tale and Lat masterfully shares with us his tale of growing up in the 1960's in Malyasia--relating not a tale of someone famous or that has great life changes happen to them, but that of the everyday person. A person that we can all relate to, because we can connect with him. We can see our o...more
Last year I went gaga over a Malaysian comic from the seventies. Doesn't a sentence that like sound cool? Like I'm some kind of obscure comic enthusiast with a penchant for the best overseas comics of decades past? The truth is far less sexy, I'm afraid. First Second brought to our American shores the comic book Kampung Boy, a title that original appeared in Malaysia long ago. Initially the format didn't intrigue me, but after a test run I found that I liked Lat (the one-namer author) and his wo...more
I liked this even better than Kampung Boy... there was one section that I kept showing to teachers in the library that cracked everyone up instantly... let's just say it showed the significant difference in alertness between two groups of students, to the detriment of one :) I also love the way Lat draws adolescent boys, lounging around and trying to look bow-leggedly cool.
Yet again, I learn not to be prejudiced against international comics, even when they appear to be coming of age stories. Town Boy is more Sergio Aragones than Robert Peck, and while its narrative does cover the years between ten and the late teens, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of structured growth in any of the characters. Its story exists at all mostly to provide Lat with a chance to fill some pages, and, really, Aragones is the comparable artist who comes to mind, each page overflowing...more
I didn't enjoy this title as much as I enjoyed Kampung Boy. I thought the first was a lot more fun, the pictures more humorous, and the story more in depth. In Town Boy, it was occasionally hard to find the main character, Mat, in the drawings. Kampung Boy so far is the better of the two.
In this sequel to Kampung Boy, Lat continues his autobiography from when he starts school and he and his family members become "town people" to when he finishes school. It's amusing, just as KB was, and the glimpse into a childhood from another culture is enlightening. I agree with reviews that say it lacks the focus of KB and that makes it somewhat less successful. Lots of details are provided in the illustrations, but they're not supported in the text, which may leave some readers in the dark....more
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Membaca naskhah Edisi Terhad berkulit tebal yang dibeli dari Istana Budaya, Kuala Lumpur sewaktu pementasan Lat Kampung Boy Sebuah Muzikal. Naskhah yang merakam sejarah negara dari kaca mata seorang pelukis komik.
Sequel to "Kampung Boy". Mat moves to a much larger town, Ipoh, Indonesia. He attends middle and high school and makes a posse of friends, including Frankie, who is Chinese. All born in the early 1950's, the boys are listening and dancing to the best of rock and roll from the early days-edgy, raw, forbidden. Mat's friend Walter has records and a phonograph, so they make friends through listening to rock and roll and continue to spend lots of time together.
More fun from the artist, but now darlin...more
More fun from the artist, but now darlin...more
I was curious to read this because Jason Shiga (my new cartoonist crush) mentions in an afterword to "Double Happiness" that he was very much inspired by Lat's work & "Town Boy" in particular. And in fact there are a few scenes in Town Boy that Shiga basically replicates in "Double Happiness," only shifting the scene from 1960's Malaysia to present-day SF Chinatown.
I think I liked "Kampung Boy" a bit more than this one, although I did really love the street scenes in "Town Boy." Lat's drawi...more
I think I liked "Kampung Boy" a bit more than this one, although I did really love the street scenes in "Town Boy." Lat's drawi...more
Aug 27, 2010
Starkville Public Library Young Adult Section
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
real-life,
manga-and-graphic-novels
Mat has gone away to boarding school, exchanging kampung for town. As a teenager in Malaysia in the 1960s, Mat navigates friendships, girls, and school as he begins to figure out what he wants to be after he graduates.
<3 <3 <3
A bit sad now that Lat is growing up in this book. The ending is kinda bittersweet. :( I wonder whatever happened to Frankie?
A bit sad now that Lat is growing up in this book. The ending is kinda bittersweet. :( I wonder whatever happened to Frankie?
Such a cultural icon is somewhat lost by cultural differences. But expressive art style & realistic storyline is wonderful!
Awesome again. Just a tad less so than Kampung Boy, because I loved all the cultural stuff in that one.
Together with "Kampung Boy", this book forms one of the great visual memoirs of the 20th century. There is no high drama; this is day-to-day life that radically changes as a family moves from its traditional rural home to a modern town in the mid-20th century.
While I'm very glad that First Second made this book available to American audiences for the first time, I'm disappointed that the page area has been severely reduced from the original versions. I would urge avid readers to seek out Malays...more
While I'm very glad that First Second made this book available to American audiences for the first time, I'm disappointed that the page area has been severely reduced from the original versions. I would urge avid readers to seek out Malays...more
Nice follow-up to Kampung Boy, but not as unified or as funny as that book. Still worth a read.
I enjoyed the first one better, but this one is still funny, interesting, and cute. They are fun reads!
I love the illustrations depicting the diversity of life in the late 1960s in Malaysia.
Unreservedly recommended. Great drawings. Great heart.
Not as good and funny as Kampung Boy, but still a good read.
such a cute book about the malay way of life.
A great follow up to Lat's very funny, engaging and nostalgic Kampung Boy. Mat's family left their Kampung life behind and moved to the city in this sequel where Mat made new friends, excelled in art and pondered on his future. The drawings are amazing and hilarious, particularly those of Mat's best friend Frankie who encouraged Mat to become an artist. I was practically grinning from the beginning to the end.
Dec 18, 2007
Robin
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone who likes offbeat graphic novels
Shelves:
graphic-novels,
2008-list
This is the second book published in the U.S. by Lat. This continues the author's story as his family moves to town and he progresses through school in Malaysia. It's really a neat story because it's set in a different part of the world. And the artwork is fun. The pictures seem simple but there is a lot going on in them and I like how he captures life during this time period.
Funny. A family book, perfect for nostalgia. Hilarious illustrations, and at some cases, touching.
It's about Happy, simple childhood times and I never get bored reading it just expecting Lat's ridiculous actions in facing his simple but memorable childhood problems.
It's about Happy, simple childhood times and I never get bored reading it just expecting Lat's ridiculous actions in facing his simple but memorable childhood problems.
"Though the individual scenes are often excellently executed, as a whole the book seems to lack a purpose, goal, or unifying theme to unite the work." More here: http://www.playbackstl.com/content/vi...
I becoming a big fan of Lat. I hope more of his books are to be published here in the future. Kudos to :01 First Second for publishing the 1st 2 books.
Reading this right after Kampung Boy was a great way to spend an afternoon--almost like a trip to Malaysia!
Another sweet read (& see) by Lat and a perfect sequel to the first book. The drawings are great.
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