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35th out of 45 books
—
11 voters
Malaysian Tales: Retold & Remixed
by
Daphne Lee
Fables and fairytales. Myths and legends. They are an integral part of our heritage; of the legacy of our forefathers. Handed down from generation to generation. Passed on by word of mouth. Lamplight stories that quietly and cleverly skirt that fine line between childish fantasy and profoundly penetrating philosophy.
This stunning new collection features 16 classic tales as...more
This stunning new collection features 16 classic tales as...more
Paperback, 204 pages
Published
June 2011
by ZI Publications
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As this book consists of 16 individual stories, I will review them one by one.
A Little Warm Death by Karina Bahrin is a retelling of the legend of Puteri Sa'adong. When I looked at the title, I expected something that is related to murder or crime, but the story turned out to be something else, which was rather bland. 1 star.
The concept of Batu Belah by Zed Adam Idris is new and exciting, but I got confused by the identities of the protagonists. I thought Kenanga is a girl and Tanjung is a boy....more
A Little Warm Death by Karina Bahrin is a retelling of the legend of Puteri Sa'adong. When I looked at the title, I expected something that is related to murder or crime, but the story turned out to be something else, which was rather bland. 1 star.
The concept of Batu Belah by Zed Adam Idris is new and exciting, but I got confused by the identities of the protagonists. I thought Kenanga is a girl and Tanjung is a boy....more
Inspired by Adèle Geras’s The Tower Room Trilogy and Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber, two books that sought to interpret western fairytales in a contemporary setting, Daphne Lee challenged thirteen Malaysian writers (and herself) to present both well known and forgotten folktales from the Malay peninsula in a new light for today’s modern Malaysian. These tales were first told in an age when life was hard, filled with superstition and the fate of the people were at the whims of their rulers. S...more
Bumped up to 3 stars for the brilliant cover. I really intensely wanted to like this. The stories I remember most are the two Preeta Samarasan ones ("Si Tanggang" and "Mahsuri"; I liked "Mahsuri" better -- notwithstanding any issues I had with both stories, Samarasan is a writer fully in control of her craft) and the Zed Adam Idris story, "Batu Belah", which reminded me a bit of Geoff Ryman. Creepy robot monkeys and sticky human-ish relationships. Also totally random endings!
I hope there are mor...more
I hope there are mor...more
A slightly uneven anthology, with some pieces that probably should have been left on the cutting room floor, but others gleam in contrast. The two stories by Preeta Samarasan in particular are incredible pieces of writing, and I'm now keen to seek out her other work. And the editor's own contribution is also wonderfully concise and beautifully written.
It was also a bit difficult for me (a non-Malaysian) to get a sense of the source texts that these stories were riffing on, because I'm just not f...more
It was also a bit difficult for me (a non-Malaysian) to get a sense of the source texts that these stories were riffing on, because I'm just not f...more
I don't remember many Malaysian tales, and I had only ever been exposed to a few of them in my literature classes in school. Some of the stories in this collection became familiar as I read on, but for many, I was reading them as if for the first time. I think I would appreciate these retold stories more if I knew the original tales first - which I am now more curious to find out about! My favourites from this collection included Si Tanggang, Endless Night, Bawang Puteh, Bawang Merah and The Pro...more
some of the stories were a little clunky or suss but they all held my interest. I particularly enjoyed Preeta Samarasan's two contributions and I will definitely check out more of her writing. also gets points for having a number of stories centering queer relationships.
Quite an interesting read. Some of the tales are popular, but most of them I haven't read (or heard)before.
There are some editorial errors. For example in 'The Boy who Saved Singapura' by Kee Thuan Chye, there are two paragraphs with the same words. Somebody forgot to delete one. But overall I like the book.
There are some editorial errors. For example in 'The Boy who Saved Singapura' by Kee Thuan Chye, there are two paragraphs with the same words. Somebody forgot to delete one. But overall I like the book.
May 09, 2013
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