By Grace Ng A daughter rapes and kills her father. This was how I first came to know Shirley Lim – through a short story entitled Mr. Tang’s Girls that I had to analyze for a literature class. Lim grew up in Malaysia but moved to America in her twenties. It is from her diasporic […]
By Yasmin Zetti Martin Pang Khee Teik, writer, photographer, program director at The Annexe, and former editor of Kakiseni takes time out from his decadent life to give us Kakisenians some friendly advice, pass on some birthday greetings, and talk about the ‘do’ this coming weekend at The Annexe. Caution, reading ahead means you risk […]
By Gabrielle Low In Bernice Chauly’s small but substantial collection of poetry and prose, The Book of Sins, words indeed rage forth from the page, and they do so with a searing yet unembellished forcefulness. It’s hard not to note, first and foremost, the urgent, pounding rhythm to some of the lines in this collection. […]
By Ann Lee For any history of Malaysian literature, it is remiss not to consider the pioneering work of Lloyd Fernando (1926-2008) — author, academic, and eloquent champion of Malaysian literature. At the landmark 1971 Cultural Congress that defined Malaysian literature into “national” and “sectional”, Lloyd spoke (in Malay) about his hopes for the future […]
By Kathy Rowland Persepolis is based on the best-selling graphic novel of the same name by Marjane Satrapi. Directed by Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud, featuring the voices of Danielle Darrieux and Cathering Deneuve, it won the Jury Prize at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, along with a clutch of other international awards and nomination. Like […]
By Veronica Shunmugam In last week’s part of what the arts meant to 2007, I looked at what the arts community offered in terms of nation building, promoting heritage and arts-culture exchange. In the second part of this overview, I’d like to highlight arts outreach, arts for health, how options for arts training as well […]
By Loo Jia Wen “I have a bit of a split personality,” says Shahnon Ahmad (January 13th, 1933; full name: Datuk Haji Shahnon bin Ahmad) in Amir Muhammad’s ‘Raising A Stink’ (Asiaweek; May 7th 1999). “People look at me and see a pious man, but there’s a repressed side which comes out in my writing. […]
By Pang Khee Teik and Zedeck Siew Who is this ‘Beard’ that gave you your last name? Did you have a rough time as a kid with a name like that? My dad’s family name is Beard. It’s a Cornish name. I didn’t have a hard time in Malaysia, but when I came to school […]
By Saifullizan Tahir Majlis pelancaran buku From Majapahit to Putrajaya –– yang mana saya terlewat dan bila sampai majlis sudahpun selesai. Mujurlah berkesempatan duduk sama menikmati teh tarik bersama beberapa teman yang masih berlegar di situ. Pada ketika inilah saya dirapati oleh Kathy untuk membuat ulasan buku Farish. Ulasan buku saya yang sebelum ini adalah […]
By Philip Koh This double review first appeared in Sunday Star, Aug 1998. Damned To Fame: The Life of Samuel Beckett (1906-1989) By James Knowlson Samuel Beckett – The Last Modernist By Anthony Cronin Samuel Beckett is a master of 20th Century literature. He straddles world literature casting his influence beyond his Anglo-Irish, French, German […]
By Yati Hj Kaprawi Melalui seni, U-Wei Haji Saari sentiasa meneroka alam pemikiran baru. Isu-isu dan sifat manusia yang kompleks seperti identiti sesuatu bangsa pun dipaparkannya. “Kalau takut meneroka, baik saya berhenti berfikir,” ujarnya. Kali ini U-Wei mencabar lagi isu identiti bangsa dengan pementasan barunya bertajuk Wangi Jadi Saksi. Ia mengisahkan peristiwa bersejarah dalam dunia […]
By Michelle Woo Professionally: an editor, and formerly a literary one. Creatively: a writer of socially-provocative plays and stirring prose. From the heart: an aspiring actor. Kee Thuan Chye, at 47 years of age, talks about his ripening dreams. Kakiseni: What drives your writing? Is it a sense of the past, present, or future? Kee: […]
