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Cerita-Cerita Jakarta
Bagaimana Jakarta akan bercerita tentang dirinya?
Sekelompok lansia melakukan petualangan penutup di hari terakhir Istana Boneka beroperasi. Di Kalibata, ibu dan anak mencoba lepas dari hantu masa lalu yang kembali muncul, dari masa mereka hidup di Kramat Tunggak. Di perempatan Palmerah, dua pengamen berada di tengah demonstrasi yang berujung bentrok. Bersama-sama, kita akan naik sepeda motor, komuter, taksi, ke kantor imigrasi, ke Sudirman yang tenggelam, ke emperan toko roti di Cikini, melihat dari dekat bagaimana sepuluh penulis mengalami, membayangkan, dan menuturkan Jakartanya—kota dengan cerita-cerita yang terus bertumbuh, bersilangan, dan tak pernah usai.
Kumpulan cerita pendek ini pertama kali terbit di Inggris sebagai The Book of Jakarta, bagian dari seri Reading the City penerbit Comma Press. Kini antologi ini hadir untuk menyapa pembaca dalam bahasa saat kali pertama ia ditulis.
Sekelompok lansia melakukan petualangan penutup di hari terakhir Istana Boneka beroperasi. Di Kalibata, ibu dan anak mencoba lepas dari hantu masa lalu yang kembali muncul, dari masa mereka hidup di Kramat Tunggak. Di perempatan Palmerah, dua pengamen berada di tengah demonstrasi yang berujung bentrok. Bersama-sama, kita akan naik sepeda motor, komuter, taksi, ke kantor imigrasi, ke Sudirman yang tenggelam, ke emperan toko roti di Cikini, melihat dari dekat bagaimana sepuluh penulis mengalami, membayangkan, dan menuturkan Jakartanya—kota dengan cerita-cerita yang terus bertumbuh, bersilangan, dan tak pernah usai.
Kumpulan cerita pendek ini pertama kali terbit di Inggris sebagai The Book of Jakarta, bagian dari seri Reading the City penerbit Comma Press. Kini antologi ini hadir untuk menyapa pembaca dalam bahasa saat kali pertama ia ditulis.
213 pages, Paperback
First published March 18, 2021
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February 18, 2021
Various Authors
The Book of Jakarta: A City in Short Fiction
Comma Press
144 pages
7.4
The Book of Jakarta, written by the city's most talented writers is an ode to the metropolis. The way each author interprets the meaning of Jakarta offers a rare glimpse on what it actually means to be living in the city.
Jakarta, geographically and socioeconomically speaking, is a city that is so diverse that its corners and crevices can be captured out of context and molded to fit someone's narrative. Some part of the city, if captured with certain amount of lighting and filter, bears some verisimilitude with a Japanese train station. The bustling and bourgeois business district of Sudirman itself looks like Seoul from certain angles.
But, Jakarta does not only cover the well-developed southern or central side of the city, so at this point, it becomes a sort of game for the city's denizens to find and capture the inconspicuous and often-overlooked part of the city that can be captioned with "Jakarta with taste of some-other-place". The chaotic, squalid slums are often referred crassly as "Jakarta with taste of India" or "Jakarta with taste of Syria". But behind those nuance-lacking jokes, it shows how the socioeconomic disparities are actually one of the components that build Jakarta. It's not rare to find closely-packed and dirty neighborhood behind the gleaming skyscrapers. It's a common view to see a family pulling a wagon on the same road with another family who sits comfortably inside a swanky Lexus. The city's so diverse that you can find every kind of people, coming from across the country, but all have the common goal: chasing that Jakarta dream. In some sense, with all of its flaws, Jakarta is a romantic city.
That spirit is what The Book of Jakarta tries to capture. Written by ten talented writers in the country, some still live in Jakarta and some once called it a home, The Book of Jakarta comprises ten excellent stories about the city. Each writer has their own interpretation on what Jakarta means in their life and it results in diverse and interesting anthology which succinctly encapsulates what the city actually is.
Jakarta is a romantic city, just like what I've said, and some authors feel the same way. The book opens with Ratri Ninditya's "B217AN", a wordplay around the city's license plate, about a soon-to-be bride who went on a date with her stoic, anti-capitalist ex-boyfriend for the last time, a night before her wedding with white, capitalist fiancé. On their last date, the girl reminisced her past relationship and reflected on what life could've been while riding pillion on a motorcycle. This date is modest, compared to what the white fiancé might splurge on one, but it's meaningful. "B217AN" induces some sense of longingness and perfectly summarizes what it means to be in love with someone that we can't have.
The next story is equally good, if not more enthralling. "The Aroma of Shrimp Paste" by Hanna Francisca captures the inefficient and bureaucratic immigration office, while at the same time, effectively tackling the racial nuance that's apparent not only in the city, but in the whole country. The theme of racial dynamics recurs again in Cynthia Hariadi's "The Sun Sets in the North". In this one of the anthology's highlights, Hariadi writes about the friendship between two Chinese-Indonesian girls who came from different social backgrounds. Their friendship looked solid until 1998s riot occurred. By then, they realized that they came from different world, one had the means to flee from the chaos, while the other one had stuck. My other favorite story in the book also captures the social dynamics of the city. In "The Secret from Kramat Tunggak", Dewi Kharisma Michellia poignantly writes about the secrets hidden inside the infamous red-light district of the city.
But one thing that I really like from the book is that it doesn't try to paint Jakarta in a good light, but presents the city as it is, complete with its squalor, inequalities, and flaws. Knowing that international readers may read the book, it's of course tempting to portray Jakarta as a modern, lush, and flawless city. But, that's not what the city actually is. The book consists of stories from people who are rarely listened to before: struggling middle-class, prostitutes who try to make their ends meet each day, the street buskers, the street artists. This book is their ode to the city, but it's also their lament and critiques.
The Book of Jakarta: A City in Short Fiction
Comma Press
144 pages
7.4
The Book of Jakarta, written by the city's most talented writers is an ode to the metropolis. The way each author interprets the meaning of Jakarta offers a rare glimpse on what it actually means to be living in the city.
Jakarta, geographically and socioeconomically speaking, is a city that is so diverse that its corners and crevices can be captured out of context and molded to fit someone's narrative. Some part of the city, if captured with certain amount of lighting and filter, bears some verisimilitude with a Japanese train station. The bustling and bourgeois business district of Sudirman itself looks like Seoul from certain angles.
But, Jakarta does not only cover the well-developed southern or central side of the city, so at this point, it becomes a sort of game for the city's denizens to find and capture the inconspicuous and often-overlooked part of the city that can be captioned with "Jakarta with taste of some-other-place". The chaotic, squalid slums are often referred crassly as "Jakarta with taste of India" or "Jakarta with taste of Syria". But behind those nuance-lacking jokes, it shows how the socioeconomic disparities are actually one of the components that build Jakarta. It's not rare to find closely-packed and dirty neighborhood behind the gleaming skyscrapers. It's a common view to see a family pulling a wagon on the same road with another family who sits comfortably inside a swanky Lexus. The city's so diverse that you can find every kind of people, coming from across the country, but all have the common goal: chasing that Jakarta dream. In some sense, with all of its flaws, Jakarta is a romantic city.
That spirit is what The Book of Jakarta tries to capture. Written by ten talented writers in the country, some still live in Jakarta and some once called it a home, The Book of Jakarta comprises ten excellent stories about the city. Each writer has their own interpretation on what Jakarta means in their life and it results in diverse and interesting anthology which succinctly encapsulates what the city actually is.
Jakarta is a romantic city, just like what I've said, and some authors feel the same way. The book opens with Ratri Ninditya's "B217AN", a wordplay around the city's license plate, about a soon-to-be bride who went on a date with her stoic, anti-capitalist ex-boyfriend for the last time, a night before her wedding with white, capitalist fiancé. On their last date, the girl reminisced her past relationship and reflected on what life could've been while riding pillion on a motorcycle. This date is modest, compared to what the white fiancé might splurge on one, but it's meaningful. "B217AN" induces some sense of longingness and perfectly summarizes what it means to be in love with someone that we can't have.
The next story is equally good, if not more enthralling. "The Aroma of Shrimp Paste" by Hanna Francisca captures the inefficient and bureaucratic immigration office, while at the same time, effectively tackling the racial nuance that's apparent not only in the city, but in the whole country. The theme of racial dynamics recurs again in Cynthia Hariadi's "The Sun Sets in the North". In this one of the anthology's highlights, Hariadi writes about the friendship between two Chinese-Indonesian girls who came from different social backgrounds. Their friendship looked solid until 1998s riot occurred. By then, they realized that they came from different world, one had the means to flee from the chaos, while the other one had stuck. My other favorite story in the book also captures the social dynamics of the city. In "The Secret from Kramat Tunggak", Dewi Kharisma Michellia poignantly writes about the secrets hidden inside the infamous red-light district of the city.
But one thing that I really like from the book is that it doesn't try to paint Jakarta in a good light, but presents the city as it is, complete with its squalor, inequalities, and flaws. Knowing that international readers may read the book, it's of course tempting to portray Jakarta as a modern, lush, and flawless city. But, that's not what the city actually is. The book consists of stories from people who are rarely listened to before: struggling middle-class, prostitutes who try to make their ends meet each day, the street buskers, the street artists. This book is their ode to the city, but it's also their lament and critiques.
February 11, 2021
The book is originally written in English but this review is in Bahasa Indonesia
Sekitar bulan Maret 2020 lalu saat aku berkunjung terakhir kalinya ke POST yang berada di lantai dua Pasar Santa, Jakarta Selatan, aku disambut oleh Maesy dan Teddy. Aku berniat untuk mengucapkan terima kasih dan berpamitan karena akan pulang ke Surabaya dan entah kapan akan kembali ke ibukota. Kami bertiga tidak tahu menahu kalau itu adalah saat terakhir kami bertatap muka karena pandemi hingga kini masih belum juga mereda. Di sela-sela obrolan kami, Measy dan Teddy bercerita kalau mereka sedang dalam proses pembuatan buku The Book of Jakarta yang merupakan bagian dari serial Reading the City. Saat itu aku baru tahu beberapa seperti The Book of Tokyo: A City in Short Fiction dan The Book of Tehran: A City in Short Fiction. Algoritma Instagram membawaku sampai pada laman Comma Press.
Setahun kemudian, awal 2021, The Book of Jakarta pun lahir. Edisi cetaknya cepat sekali terjual. Maesy juga mengakui bahwa stok yang mereka miliki semakin menipis. Meskipun buku ini sudah bisa didapatkan dalam bentuk digital (sudah tersedia di Kindle, Kobo, dan Google PlayBooks), rupanya pembaca memang menginginkan edisi cetaknya.
Bisa jadi karena buku ini unik. Berupa kumpulan cerpen yang ditulis oleh para penulis yang namanya sudah tidak asing lagi seperti Ben Sohib, Sabda Armandio Alif, Afrizal Malna. Kalau aku boleh bilang, pelanggan setia POST pasti sudah mengenal "siapa" mereka, para penulisnya itu. Barang tentu menjadi daya tarik tersendiri.
Berisi 10 cerita pendek, The Book of Jakarta menghadirkan berbagai "cita rasa." Ia bukanlah kumpulan cerita yang didesain untuk menampilkan sisi terbaik Jakarta saja. Ia juga berisi hal-hal yang selama ini kita ketahui, tapi kita tolak keberadaannya. Hmm, ketimpangan sosial yang jelas-jelas terjadi, misal.
Apakah ini merupakan gabungan kepiawaian antara penulis, penerjemah, dan penyunting sehingga semua cerita yang di dalamnya bisa aku nikmati tanpa bersusah payah mengernyitkan dahi? Bisa saja demikian. Sekalinya aku membaca satu cerita, rasanya seperti dibawa ke dalam narasinya. Merasakan "mood" yang memang ditawarkan oleh penulis untuk dirasakan, bukan sekadar menjadi teks yang berjajar. Dorongan untuk terus membacanya hingga selesai dan berujung mengawali cerita baru begitu besar. Meskipun sepertinya tulisan-tulisan aslinya berbahasa Indonesia lalu diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Inggris, semua cerita dalam buku ini sangat "enak" untuk dinikmati.
Ada beberapa cerita yang menurutku memiliki "suasana" yang sama dengan novel The Majesties (baca saja ya, aku tidak mau memberi tahu pada cerita yang mana). Ada juga yang membuat rindu pelesiran kota Jakarta tanpa merasa khawatir dengan pandemi ini. The Book of Jakarta benar-benar mengajakku "melihat" Jakarta.
Barangkali aku merasa "dekat" dengan Jakarta dan familiar dengan ceritanya karena aku sudah 6 tahun berada di sini. Aku sudah tahu jargon atau nama-nama tempat yang digunakan dalam cerita. Entahlah apabila aku bukan orang Jakarta, yang juga tidak familiar dengan bahasa gaul yang dipakai di Jakarta.
The Book of Jakarta adalah 10 cerita tentang Jakarta yang apa adanya. Yang tidak dipoles sana-sini hanya untuk mendapatkan gelar "Instagramable."
The stories in this collection are written from a variety of perspectives, exploring the experiences of everyday life in Jakarta from all angles; the tricks and maneuvers people use to survive and thrive in this chaotic city.
Sekitar bulan Maret 2020 lalu saat aku berkunjung terakhir kalinya ke POST yang berada di lantai dua Pasar Santa, Jakarta Selatan, aku disambut oleh Maesy dan Teddy. Aku berniat untuk mengucapkan terima kasih dan berpamitan karena akan pulang ke Surabaya dan entah kapan akan kembali ke ibukota. Kami bertiga tidak tahu menahu kalau itu adalah saat terakhir kami bertatap muka karena pandemi hingga kini masih belum juga mereda. Di sela-sela obrolan kami, Measy dan Teddy bercerita kalau mereka sedang dalam proses pembuatan buku The Book of Jakarta yang merupakan bagian dari serial Reading the City. Saat itu aku baru tahu beberapa seperti The Book of Tokyo: A City in Short Fiction dan The Book of Tehran: A City in Short Fiction. Algoritma Instagram membawaku sampai pada laman Comma Press.
Setahun kemudian, awal 2021, The Book of Jakarta pun lahir. Edisi cetaknya cepat sekali terjual. Maesy juga mengakui bahwa stok yang mereka miliki semakin menipis. Meskipun buku ini sudah bisa didapatkan dalam bentuk digital (sudah tersedia di Kindle, Kobo, dan Google PlayBooks), rupanya pembaca memang menginginkan edisi cetaknya.
Bisa jadi karena buku ini unik. Berupa kumpulan cerpen yang ditulis oleh para penulis yang namanya sudah tidak asing lagi seperti Ben Sohib, Sabda Armandio Alif, Afrizal Malna. Kalau aku boleh bilang, pelanggan setia POST pasti sudah mengenal "siapa" mereka, para penulisnya itu. Barang tentu menjadi daya tarik tersendiri.
Jakarta is a city that is struggling to contain its own growth, and as a result, an overwhelming number of Jakartans spend most of their days out on the streets, on their way somewhere.
Berisi 10 cerita pendek, The Book of Jakarta menghadirkan berbagai "cita rasa." Ia bukanlah kumpulan cerita yang didesain untuk menampilkan sisi terbaik Jakarta saja. Ia juga berisi hal-hal yang selama ini kita ketahui, tapi kita tolak keberadaannya. Hmm, ketimpangan sosial yang jelas-jelas terjadi, misal.
Apakah ini merupakan gabungan kepiawaian antara penulis, penerjemah, dan penyunting sehingga semua cerita yang di dalamnya bisa aku nikmati tanpa bersusah payah mengernyitkan dahi? Bisa saja demikian. Sekalinya aku membaca satu cerita, rasanya seperti dibawa ke dalam narasinya. Merasakan "mood" yang memang ditawarkan oleh penulis untuk dirasakan, bukan sekadar menjadi teks yang berjajar. Dorongan untuk terus membacanya hingga selesai dan berujung mengawali cerita baru begitu besar. Meskipun sepertinya tulisan-tulisan aslinya berbahasa Indonesia lalu diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Inggris, semua cerita dalam buku ini sangat "enak" untuk dinikmati.
Ada beberapa cerita yang menurutku memiliki "suasana" yang sama dengan novel The Majesties (baca saja ya, aku tidak mau memberi tahu pada cerita yang mana). Ada juga yang membuat rindu pelesiran kota Jakarta tanpa merasa khawatir dengan pandemi ini. The Book of Jakarta benar-benar mengajakku "melihat" Jakarta.
Barangkali aku merasa "dekat" dengan Jakarta dan familiar dengan ceritanya karena aku sudah 6 tahun berada di sini. Aku sudah tahu jargon atau nama-nama tempat yang digunakan dalam cerita. Entahlah apabila aku bukan orang Jakarta, yang juga tidak familiar dengan bahasa gaul yang dipakai di Jakarta.
The Book of Jakarta adalah 10 cerita tentang Jakarta yang apa adanya. Yang tidak dipoles sana-sini hanya untuk mendapatkan gelar "Instagramable."
April 19, 2021
A delightful collection of short stories with the theme of Jakarta. It was published previously in English, as a part of the City series. But I'm grateful to read it in Indonesian, since I think there are many stories with specific tone and atmosphere that can not translated into English.
As a short story collection, Cerita-Cerita Jakarta is pretty diverse. There are sad stories, happy stories, haunting stories, fantasy, dystopian-like, romance, and many more. My current favorites included "Aroma Terasi", a funny little gem about the experience of a Chinese Indonesian lady taking care of her passport at the immigration office, "Buyan", a fantastical and satirical story about Jakarta in the future, the clash of technology and environment, and I also like the story with a long title, about a man from Depok who spent his day in Jakarta, so relatable, heartwarming and funny.
I hope there will be more books like this, and I think the great curation can not happen without the Post Press people, who always selective in choosing the books that they will publish. Kudos.
As a short story collection, Cerita-Cerita Jakarta is pretty diverse. There are sad stories, happy stories, haunting stories, fantasy, dystopian-like, romance, and many more. My current favorites included "Aroma Terasi", a funny little gem about the experience of a Chinese Indonesian lady taking care of her passport at the immigration office, "Buyan", a fantastical and satirical story about Jakarta in the future, the clash of technology and environment, and I also like the story with a long title, about a man from Depok who spent his day in Jakarta, so relatable, heartwarming and funny.
I hope there will be more books like this, and I think the great curation can not happen without the Post Press people, who always selective in choosing the books that they will publish. Kudos.
March 5, 2021
March 5, 2021 Update: Added bonus material at the end, in advance of next week's Borderless Book Club meeting.
Indonesian Shorts
Review of the Comma Press paperback edition (official publication date in GR shown as March 18, 2021)
The Book of Jakarta provides an excellent variety of short stories centred around the varied multicultural world of the Indonesian capital. It is part of Comma Press' Reading the City/A City in Short Fiction series along with titles such as The Book of Khartoum: A City in Short Fiction, The Book of Cairo: A City in Short Fiction, etc.
I was most easily drawn to the stories that covered areas of common human issues such as fighting the bureaucracy in The Aroma of Shrimp Paste and seniors and aging in Grown-Up Kids. All of the stories were well translated and came with several footnotes to explain the more inside-baseball language nuances & references. Food items were less often explained and required some googling for further understanding (I confess to an almost complete ignorance of Indonesian cuisine aside from Nasi goreng).
1. B217AN *** by Ratri Ninditya translated by Mikael Johani Woman who is about to get married goes out on a final date with an ex-boyfriend.
2. The Aroma of Shrimp Paste ***** by Hanna Fransisca translated by Khairani Barokka. A woman attempting to get a passport runs through various bureaucratic hurdles including having to cover up her leg-baring shorts at the passport office.
3. The Problem *** by Sabda Armandio translated by Rara Rizal. Street buskers are caught up in the middle of anti-government protests.
4. Buyan **** by Utiuts translated by Zoë McLaughlin. Sci-fi story of a driverless taxi riding amok into a flooded section of Jakarta based on outdated city maps in its programming.
5. The Secret from Kramat Tunggak ***** by Dewi Kharisma Michellia translated by Shaffira Gayatri. A daughter comes to understand her mother's secret.
6. Grown-Up Kids ***** by Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie translated by Annie Tucker. Seniors go on a roller-coaster ride with a surprising twist.
7. Haji Syiah *** by Ben Sohib translated by Paul Agusta. A cleric attempts to reform two drunks who attend his prayer meetings.
8. The Sun Sets in the North ***** by Cyntha Hariadi translated by Eliza Vitri Handayani. Two schoolgirls Tata (Renata) and Ace (Grace) become friends despite their different class backgrounds. Ace's family is so rich that they have windows that show 'the sun setting in the north'.
9. All Theatre is False **** by Afrizal Malna translated by Syarafina Vidyadhana. A street beggar imagines his life as an acting role.
10. A Day in the Life of a Guy from Depok Who Travels to Jakarta *** by Yusi Avianto Pareanom translated by Daniel Owen. Exactly what the title says, a man running various errands in the capital encounters various people and takes various transportation during a single day.
I read The Book of Jakarta due to its selection for the 2021 Borderless Book Club for which it is the March 11, 2021 selection. Although not officially published until March 18, 2021, orders made direct to the publisher at Comma Press are already being fulfilled as of January 2021.
Trivia and Links
This article in The Jakarta Post.
This interview with contributors Ratri Ninditya and Mikael Johani.
This interview with translator Khairani Barokka.
Podcast recommendations: 'New Naratif Political Agenda', 'Southeast Asian Dispatches' and 'Talking Indonesia'.
Khairani Barokka's reading on Translators Aloud.
Indonesian Shorts
Review of the Comma Press paperback edition (official publication date in GR shown as March 18, 2021)
The Book of Jakarta provides an excellent variety of short stories centred around the varied multicultural world of the Indonesian capital. It is part of Comma Press' Reading the City/A City in Short Fiction series along with titles such as The Book of Khartoum: A City in Short Fiction, The Book of Cairo: A City in Short Fiction, etc.
I was most easily drawn to the stories that covered areas of common human issues such as fighting the bureaucracy in The Aroma of Shrimp Paste and seniors and aging in Grown-Up Kids. All of the stories were well translated and came with several footnotes to explain the more inside-baseball language nuances & references. Food items were less often explained and required some googling for further understanding (I confess to an almost complete ignorance of Indonesian cuisine aside from Nasi goreng).
1. B217AN *** by Ratri Ninditya translated by Mikael Johani Woman who is about to get married goes out on a final date with an ex-boyfriend.
2. The Aroma of Shrimp Paste ***** by Hanna Fransisca translated by Khairani Barokka. A woman attempting to get a passport runs through various bureaucratic hurdles including having to cover up her leg-baring shorts at the passport office.
3. The Problem *** by Sabda Armandio translated by Rara Rizal. Street buskers are caught up in the middle of anti-government protests.
4. Buyan **** by Utiuts translated by Zoë McLaughlin. Sci-fi story of a driverless taxi riding amok into a flooded section of Jakarta based on outdated city maps in its programming.
5. The Secret from Kramat Tunggak ***** by Dewi Kharisma Michellia translated by Shaffira Gayatri. A daughter comes to understand her mother's secret.
6. Grown-Up Kids ***** by Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie translated by Annie Tucker. Seniors go on a roller-coaster ride with a surprising twist.
7. Haji Syiah *** by Ben Sohib translated by Paul Agusta. A cleric attempts to reform two drunks who attend his prayer meetings.
8. The Sun Sets in the North ***** by Cyntha Hariadi translated by Eliza Vitri Handayani. Two schoolgirls Tata (Renata) and Ace (Grace) become friends despite their different class backgrounds. Ace's family is so rich that they have windows that show 'the sun setting in the north'.
9. All Theatre is False **** by Afrizal Malna translated by Syarafina Vidyadhana. A street beggar imagines his life as an acting role.
10. A Day in the Life of a Guy from Depok Who Travels to Jakarta *** by Yusi Avianto Pareanom translated by Daniel Owen. Exactly what the title says, a man running various errands in the capital encounters various people and takes various transportation during a single day.
I read The Book of Jakarta due to its selection for the 2021 Borderless Book Club for which it is the March 11, 2021 selection. Although not officially published until March 18, 2021, orders made direct to the publisher at Comma Press are already being fulfilled as of January 2021.
Trivia and Links
This article in The Jakarta Post.
This interview with contributors Ratri Ninditya and Mikael Johani.
This interview with translator Khairani Barokka.
Podcast recommendations: 'New Naratif Political Agenda', 'Southeast Asian Dispatches' and 'Talking Indonesia'.
Khairani Barokka's reading on Translators Aloud.
January 12, 2022
Cerita-cerita Jakarta ini parah. Awalnya saya pikir ini bakal jadi tipikal kumcer yang enggak seimbang kualitasnya—cuma bersatu di satu tema yang sama aja. Ternyata saya salah, mungkin partly because they choose the right writers. Apa isinya bisa dibilang sudah menggambarkan Jakarta? Bisa jadi. Tapi, hemat saya, kisahnya lebih banyak berputar di kalangan kelas bawah—mungkin karena hanya itu yang menarik. Bagaimanapun, saya senang dengan isinya. Semuanya bagus dan punya poinnya masing-masing. Tidak membosankan. Namun, tentu saja saya punya penilaian sendiri. Konsepnya you take the best for last bite. Saya tidak tahu proses urutan ceritanya bagaimana, tetapi semakin ke akhir saya semakin suka dengan ceritanya. Apalagi bagian Pengakuan Teater Palsu-nya Malna dan milik Yusi Avianto ((Cerita Malna barangkali akan saya usulkan untuk dibuat adaptasi ke Komunitas Seni saya, semoga bisa disetujui)) Semuanya buat saya merenung dan menentukan akhirnya sendiri.
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January 27, 2021Jakarta. This city, man, what can you say. It’s a lot.
I read this book almost right after finishing The Book of Tokyo, another of Comma Press’ reading the city collection, so it’s hard not to make comparisons. It’s a little hard to do this fairly though since I’ve lived in Depok (or, as Yusi Avianto Pareanom puts it, “..just say the suburbs of Jakarta, it’s easier that way”) since I was in 7th grade. For one, The Book of Jakarta’s stories name drops its locales more often. This is easier for a native but might be a little opaque for foreign readers. Another point of comparison is that its stories are more grounded and historically charged. Sabda Armandio’s The Problem and Cyntha Hariadi’s The Sun Sets in the North deals with significant ruptures in the city’s social fabrics from its recent history. The Book of Tokyo offers what I think are more individualistic stories, while many of Jakarta’s authors are bound to the city’s past, present, or even premonitions of its future.
The stories this book tells is also diverse. From buskers, vagabonds, to rich aunties and schoolgirls. As it should be when one wants to represent this absolute mess of a city. Here are my favorites:
The Problem
○ A story of the September 2019 protests told from the perspective of Yuli, a busker.
○ The characters are *chef’s kiss*. I love the dynamic between Yuli, Gembok, and Gembok’s unnamed friend. Yuli’s waning tolerance for Gembok’s pretentious student protester friend is relatable and her sass is top-class.
○ Though it is very sarcastic in tone, I think the story conveys what a lot of people experienced in the September protests. Diverse crowds take the streets, and in spite of differences, there is ultimately a sense of solidarity and camaraderie, tenuous though that may be.
○ “Disorderly. I hate that word. What did they expect? For people to show up to the protest, take out a mat, and have a picnic?”
Grown up Kids
○ Jakarta in the (near?) future. It is no longer the capital and property prices have skyrocketed (Future. Right.). A group of elderly women takes one last ride at Dufan.
○ Why did the author choose Dufan as the setting for this morbid story? It feels so right. Amusement parks for me always create a sense of world-weary melancholy, Dufan especially. I remember the first time I went to Dufan, I was maybe 8 or 10. We went to Istana Boneka last. Me, mom and dad. I remember seeing the worn-down boat and the murky water pooling on the floor, the dirty mechanical dolls and their awkward movements. The sound of that hazy choir, “Lihat indahnya dunia, milik kita semua.” For some reason, these made me realize the impermanence of things. Rides will wear down, things will decay, mom and dad will grow old and die. The day will end.
The Sun Sets in the North
○ 1998 through the perspective of middle class Chinese-Indonesian schoolgirl and her friendship with an upper class schoolmate.
○ This story started off rather cute. Puberty, boys, etc. But with the setting it was bound to take a left turn. Its focus on not only race relations but class is poignant, especially how it portrays privilege as something that makes people blind to how their actions can hurt others, and just consequences in general.
○ ”Tata was quiet for a while, looking for grief or sorrow in her heart. All she found was a scar, which no longer pained her but reminded her that people were born differently, had different preferences and carried different shaped wounds.”
A Day in the Life of a Guy from Depok who Travels to Jakarta
○ A middle-aged landscaper from Depok travels to Jakarta for a day. He meets clients, friends, and have odd conversations with taxi drivers.
○
○ (I'm not middle-aged though)
Tangents
Now that it is undergoing renovation, the past TIM portrayed in Confessions of a False Theatre is the one I still hold so vividly in my mind. TIM holds so many memories. It is my go to dating place, and also my go to place for when I’m in a gonna-go-do-stuff-alone mood. A quick hop on the commuter line, drop off at Gondangdia, and walk for 10 minutes to TIM. Grab a movie, browse the little corner bookshop that smells like rat piss, then go home.
As much as I liked A Day in the Life of a Guy from Depok who Travels to Jakarta, I wish there was a story about people using less expensive method of commute. My O.G. Depok-Jakarta route when I worked in Senopati involved a lot of angkot and Metromini (because I didn’t want to pay for the Go-Ride fare). I think Metromini is probably one of the most universal experience for any Jakarta commuter, and I am kind of sad that this was not represented!
I read this book almost right after finishing The Book of Tokyo, another of Comma Press’ reading the city collection, so it’s hard not to make comparisons. It’s a little hard to do this fairly though since I’ve lived in Depok (or, as Yusi Avianto Pareanom puts it, “..just say the suburbs of Jakarta, it’s easier that way”) since I was in 7th grade. For one, The Book of Jakarta’s stories name drops its locales more often. This is easier for a native but might be a little opaque for foreign readers. Another point of comparison is that its stories are more grounded and historically charged. Sabda Armandio’s The Problem and Cyntha Hariadi’s The Sun Sets in the North deals with significant ruptures in the city’s social fabrics from its recent history. The Book of Tokyo offers what I think are more individualistic stories, while many of Jakarta’s authors are bound to the city’s past, present, or even premonitions of its future.
The stories this book tells is also diverse. From buskers, vagabonds, to rich aunties and schoolgirls. As it should be when one wants to represent this absolute mess of a city. Here are my favorites:
The Problem
○ A story of the September 2019 protests told from the perspective of Yuli, a busker.
○ The characters are *chef’s kiss*. I love the dynamic between Yuli, Gembok, and Gembok’s unnamed friend. Yuli’s waning tolerance for Gembok’s pretentious student protester friend is relatable and her sass is top-class.
○ Though it is very sarcastic in tone, I think the story conveys what a lot of people experienced in the September protests. Diverse crowds take the streets, and in spite of differences, there is ultimately a sense of solidarity and camaraderie, tenuous though that may be.
○ “Disorderly. I hate that word. What did they expect? For people to show up to the protest, take out a mat, and have a picnic?”
Grown up Kids
○ Jakarta in the (near?) future. It is no longer the capital and property prices have skyrocketed (Future. Right.). A group of elderly women takes one last ride at Dufan.
○ Why did the author choose Dufan as the setting for this morbid story? It feels so right. Amusement parks for me always create a sense of world-weary melancholy, Dufan especially. I remember the first time I went to Dufan, I was maybe 8 or 10. We went to Istana Boneka last. Me, mom and dad. I remember seeing the worn-down boat and the murky water pooling on the floor, the dirty mechanical dolls and their awkward movements. The sound of that hazy choir, “Lihat indahnya dunia, milik kita semua.” For some reason, these made me realize the impermanence of things. Rides will wear down, things will decay, mom and dad will grow old and die. The day will end.
The Sun Sets in the North
○ 1998 through the perspective of middle class Chinese-Indonesian schoolgirl and her friendship with an upper class schoolmate.
○ This story started off rather cute. Puberty, boys, etc. But with the setting it was bound to take a left turn. Its focus on not only race relations but class is poignant, especially how it portrays privilege as something that makes people blind to how their actions can hurt others, and just consequences in general.
○ ”Tata was quiet for a while, looking for grief or sorrow in her heart. All she found was a scar, which no longer pained her but reminded her that people were born differently, had different preferences and carried different shaped wounds.”
A Day in the Life of a Guy from Depok who Travels to Jakarta
○ A middle-aged landscaper from Depok travels to Jakarta for a day. He meets clients, friends, and have odd conversations with taxi drivers.
○
○ (I'm not middle-aged though)
Tangents
Now that it is undergoing renovation, the past TIM portrayed in Confessions of a False Theatre is the one I still hold so vividly in my mind. TIM holds so many memories. It is my go to dating place, and also my go to place for when I’m in a gonna-go-do-stuff-alone mood. A quick hop on the commuter line, drop off at Gondangdia, and walk for 10 minutes to TIM. Grab a movie, browse the little corner bookshop that smells like rat piss, then go home.
As much as I liked A Day in the Life of a Guy from Depok who Travels to Jakarta, I wish there was a story about people using less expensive method of commute. My O.G. Depok-Jakarta route when I worked in Senopati involved a lot of angkot and Metromini (because I didn’t want to pay for the Go-Ride fare). I think Metromini is probably one of the most universal experience for any Jakarta commuter, and I am kind of sad that this was not represented!
May 3, 2021
It's rare to find a short story collection where you like all of the stories in the book, and yet that's what happened with this book for me. I didn't hate any of the stories in this book, they were all good and some were really good. The stories (to me) are pretty diverse in terms of themes, there were topics on bureaucracy, class differences, racial dynamics in Indonesia, there's even a speculative fiction piece about tech progression and climate change. I also love how the stories aren't about the glitz and glam of Jakarta. So glad I picked this one up in its original language.
My favorite stories, in case anyone's wondering: B217AN, Aroma Terasi, Matahari Tenggelam di Utara, Buyan, Suatu Hari dalam Kehidupan Seorang Warga Depok yang Pergi ke Jakarta, oh and also the Editor's note! lol so random, but this was indeed a good read too, you can see how much love and attention Maesy & Teddy put into this anthology.
My favorite stories, in case anyone's wondering: B217AN, Aroma Terasi, Matahari Tenggelam di Utara, Buyan, Suatu Hari dalam Kehidupan Seorang Warga Depok yang Pergi ke Jakarta, oh and also the Editor's note! lol so random, but this was indeed a good read too, you can see how much love and attention Maesy & Teddy put into this anthology.
February 20, 2021
what was the untold cost of forcing down a dictator?
January 24, 2021
It's so good! That's the first thing that popped up in my mind after I finished The Book of Jakarta.
Ten authors told Jakarta from unique perspectives across its neighbourhoods. Stories of common Jakartans with their lives and problems through different times: the untold past, the could be present, and the probable future. The current full of history Indonesia's capital city with its non-stop development that will be replaced by the (supposed to be well planned) new capital city soon.
I love all of the stories. I love the translation that could keep the nuances of various bustle of the city and its citizen. I love the way stories were arranged giving unexpected experience every time you start a new one, like how every alley in Jakarta will give you unexpected surprises. Though there're three stories that I like the most: the could be not that distant future of the abandon sinking capital city on "Buyan" by utiuts, the should be added trigger warning on "Grown Up Kids" by Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie, and the heart wrenching friendship of the past on "The Sun Sets in The North" by Cyntha Hariadi (my favorite!). I should also added "Haji Syiah" by Ben Sohib on how perfectly capture the alley and its habitants.
I always wonder, what do people outside Indonesia know about Jakarta?
Ten authors told Jakarta from unique perspectives across its neighbourhoods. Stories of common Jakartans with their lives and problems through different times: the untold past, the could be present, and the probable future. The current full of history Indonesia's capital city with its non-stop development that will be replaced by the (supposed to be well planned) new capital city soon.
I love all of the stories. I love the translation that could keep the nuances of various bustle of the city and its citizen. I love the way stories were arranged giving unexpected experience every time you start a new one, like how every alley in Jakarta will give you unexpected surprises. Though there're three stories that I like the most: the could be not that distant future of the abandon sinking capital city on "Buyan" by utiuts, the should be added trigger warning on "Grown Up Kids" by Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie, and the heart wrenching friendship of the past on "The Sun Sets in The North" by Cyntha Hariadi (my favorite!). I should also added "Haji Syiah" by Ben Sohib on how perfectly capture the alley and its habitants.
I always wonder, what do people outside Indonesia know about Jakarta?
March 11, 2021
I loved this collection of short stories set in Jakarta, the fastest sinking city in the world. There was incredible variety in the stories, themes and writing styles. As mentioned at the Borderless Book Club, there are over 700 languages in Indonesia, similar with different cultures. Difficult to pack into a short collection, but nevertheless this was an excellent compilation.
I would suggest to sit down and savour it slowly.
I would suggest to sit down and savour it slowly.
May 19, 2021
Suka banget buku ini. Jakarta disajikan dalam bentuk 10 cerita yang berbeda, dari penulis yang berbeda. Yang jadi favoritku adalah "Matahari Tenggelam di Utara" karya Cyntha Hariadi dan "Suatu Hari dalam Kehidupan Seorang Warga Depok yang Pergi ke Jakarta" karya Yusi Avianto Pareanom. Dari buku ini, Jakarta digambarkan dari sudut pandang gang-gang kecil, lampu merah jalan raya, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Apartemen Kalibata, perumahan elit di utara Jakarta yang berlatarkan Mei '98 saat kerusuhan terjadi, dan tempat-tempat lainnya di kota Jakarta yang memiliki ceritanya sendiri.
February 2, 2022
Judul : Cerita- Cerita Jakarta
Jumlah halaman : 213 halaman
Penerbit : Post Press
Buku ini terdiri dari 10 cerita pendek yang cukup banyak menceritakan daerah2 di Jakarta yg kurang akrab di telinga saya. Namun ketika daerah tsb di ceritakan dalam bentuk tulisan, saya seperti menjadi org jakarta🤣. Beberapa cerita cukup mengasikkan seakan tidak ingin berhenti disitu saja.
Jumlah halaman : 213 halaman
Penerbit : Post Press
Buku ini terdiri dari 10 cerita pendek yang cukup banyak menceritakan daerah2 di Jakarta yg kurang akrab di telinga saya. Namun ketika daerah tsb di ceritakan dalam bentuk tulisan, saya seperti menjadi org jakarta🤣. Beberapa cerita cukup mengasikkan seakan tidak ingin berhenti disitu saja.
January 17, 2021
It have 10 short stories with various genre. It' s so refreshing theme and you can see Jakarta with different point of view.
May 8, 2021
This review is taken from my IG post @descanto part 1
This review is taken from my IG post @descanto part 2
This review is taken from my IG post @descanto part 3
For somebody who was born and grow up in the small city of Y, I've never been a huge fan of the Big Durian Jakarta. I couldn't remember how many professional offers I turned down back then even when they offered 3 times or even 4 times bigger salary. Every time my boss asks me to obtain the data and gives me two choices: "Western part of Java or eastern ones? Western part of Indo or eastern parts?" My answer will always be, "to the east...to the east..."
I couldn't really stand on the city esp the density and the traffic..😬 even I've experienced living there for months while obtaining the data and living with Mas Pilot during his deployment in Jakarta back then. For someone who used to live along with the slogan "Alon-alon waton kelakon." - Better safe than sorry; I always feel like I'm running out of time in Jakarta yet I do so very little. 🤦♀️
I guess it's a matter of mental blocks or it's because I'm too coward to move out of my comfort zone. The mental blocks that remain firm (until now). I mean: Working and grabbing enough $$$ while traveling to those exotic places in eastern parts of Indo and maintaining a low-cost living in the city of Y do sound a great deal, ey? Where can you get a small portion of nasi kucing for 1500 IDR? Nasi kuning with the whole fried egg and 2 gorengan for 5000 IDr? Where can you ride your motorbike and see some oldies wearing their worn-out batik sarong - working in the rice field every early morning?
I know...I know that I'm being an ass for comparing the Big Durian to the small city of Y which completely are incomparable lol. Yet I've been asking myself like, "if Jakarta can speak...what will it say? What kind of lamentation we will hear?
Then comes this book: Cerita-cerita Jakarta that gives voices to Jakarta.
Cerita-cerita Jakarta (the Book of Jakarta- Eng. version) portrays the Jakarta life and compiles it into stories. Through those stories, you can see that Jakarta is no difference than any other big cities with its controversies. The Jakartans are no difference than any other people living in any other parts of the world. They prolly face the same problems in their daily life.
The Book of Jakarta consists of 10 short stories; narrated from different perspectives which are unique and centred in the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
The light tone of the narrative makes these stories readable and bring the fun to its readers; it's entertaining. The life portrayed in the story is what we often see in our daily life making them familiar to us as a reader too.
In the stories like Aroma Terasi (the Smell of Shrimp Paste) for instance. A Chinese njonja come to the imigration office to obtain a passport through a broker. Instead of paying IDRp 250k as what's written in the govt. regulation, she'd have to pay extra. It's not something new to see in the Indonesian corrupted bureaucracy. Extra payment for extra service.
I love The Secret from Kramat Tunggak, written by Dewi Kharisma Michellia and is translated by Shaffira Gayatri. It tells a story about a mother-daughter relationship. The mother used to work as a prostitite in Kramat Tunggak. And this daughter later comes to understand her mother's secret which also leads to the secret of her birth. Beautifully written as even a fe.prostitute is portrayed as a human who experiences pain, lust and the longing of love.
Another story I love the most is The Sun Sets in the North by Cyntha Hariadi translated by Eliza Vitri Handayani. It tells about two schoolgirls Tata (Renata) and Ace (Grace). They become friends despite their different class backgrounds. Ace's family is so rich;they have windows that show 'the sun setting in the north'. Until a mass incident leads to their separation and it changes Tata's opinion about her bestfriend.
There are some other stories that I like even some also leave me so "mehhhh." It's prolly because the absurdity or the translation. Some sentences are more meaningful in the mother language. Yet some contexts are powerful when it's translated. For instance? In all Theatre is False, when both characters are getting so philosophical or the kissing part between Tata and Ace. The sense is stronger in Eng. transl. version.
Well, when it comes to the translation of the Book of Jakarta, I really do not have anything to say. Those stories are well-translated making it easier for us to read.
Mikael Johani for instance, stirring the pot and making the story more fun to read because the language in his translated story is so flowy . Khairani Barokka also is able to deliver the Indonesian jokes and anecdotes over the shrimp paste into English. Eliza and Syarafina are also a good translator which are able to deliver the sense of the story to non-Indonesia readers.
Raising my glass for the translators who have done their job wonderfully. 🍻🙌
Mind you, when it comes to the translated version of the Book of Jakarta, those well-translated stories also came with several footnotes. I honestly dun find those footnotes necessary tho. It's simply because people can just google it themselves. Add the facts that some footnotes about the local terms don't describe those terms rightly... like they only copied them from Google. So, okay! Keep the footnotes if it's necessary yet be very cautious. Do it in tact!
Returning to the story lines - as aforementioned, these stories do not only portray the social life but also address the social issues in Indonesia: the racial issues, class gap, democra(zy)cy, along with any other issues. However, my only highlight of this book is (prolly) to add more stories about those living in the suburbs of Jakarta. As a non-Jakartan who experience the love and hate relationship with the city, I'd love to hear more stories like the Secret in Kramat Tunggak. Some stories about the factory workers or the fishermen in Muara Angke will be lovely. I honestly want to see Jakarta from its suburbian perspectives too. Some stories that will prolly change my mind about the concrete jungle Jakarta.
I know that Jakarta is huge and it may take ages to portray the life people are living there. So many places, so many people; so there's nothing we can do but expect a sequel of this book.
Soon I wish... ❤
I should've shipped you this book, G @bookmarked.in.newyork as a reminiscence of short living in Jakarta years ago...
This review is taken from my IG post @descanto part 2
This review is taken from my IG post @descanto part 3
For somebody who was born and grow up in the small city of Y, I've never been a huge fan of the Big Durian Jakarta. I couldn't remember how many professional offers I turned down back then even when they offered 3 times or even 4 times bigger salary. Every time my boss asks me to obtain the data and gives me two choices: "Western part of Java or eastern ones? Western part of Indo or eastern parts?" My answer will always be, "to the east...to the east..."
I couldn't really stand on the city esp the density and the traffic..😬 even I've experienced living there for months while obtaining the data and living with Mas Pilot during his deployment in Jakarta back then. For someone who used to live along with the slogan "Alon-alon waton kelakon." - Better safe than sorry; I always feel like I'm running out of time in Jakarta yet I do so very little. 🤦♀️
I guess it's a matter of mental blocks or it's because I'm too coward to move out of my comfort zone. The mental blocks that remain firm (until now). I mean: Working and grabbing enough $$$ while traveling to those exotic places in eastern parts of Indo and maintaining a low-cost living in the city of Y do sound a great deal, ey? Where can you get a small portion of nasi kucing for 1500 IDR? Nasi kuning with the whole fried egg and 2 gorengan for 5000 IDr? Where can you ride your motorbike and see some oldies wearing their worn-out batik sarong - working in the rice field every early morning?
I know...I know that I'm being an ass for comparing the Big Durian to the small city of Y which completely are incomparable lol. Yet I've been asking myself like, "if Jakarta can speak...what will it say? What kind of lamentation we will hear?
Then comes this book: Cerita-cerita Jakarta that gives voices to Jakarta.
Cerita-cerita Jakarta (the Book of Jakarta- Eng. version) portrays the Jakarta life and compiles it into stories. Through those stories, you can see that Jakarta is no difference than any other big cities with its controversies. The Jakartans are no difference than any other people living in any other parts of the world. They prolly face the same problems in their daily life.
The Book of Jakarta consists of 10 short stories; narrated from different perspectives which are unique and centred in the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
The light tone of the narrative makes these stories readable and bring the fun to its readers; it's entertaining. The life portrayed in the story is what we often see in our daily life making them familiar to us as a reader too.
In the stories like Aroma Terasi (the Smell of Shrimp Paste) for instance. A Chinese njonja come to the imigration office to obtain a passport through a broker. Instead of paying IDRp 250k as what's written in the govt. regulation, she'd have to pay extra. It's not something new to see in the Indonesian corrupted bureaucracy. Extra payment for extra service.
I love The Secret from Kramat Tunggak, written by Dewi Kharisma Michellia and is translated by Shaffira Gayatri. It tells a story about a mother-daughter relationship. The mother used to work as a prostitite in Kramat Tunggak. And this daughter later comes to understand her mother's secret which also leads to the secret of her birth. Beautifully written as even a fe.prostitute is portrayed as a human who experiences pain, lust and the longing of love.
Another story I love the most is The Sun Sets in the North by Cyntha Hariadi translated by Eliza Vitri Handayani. It tells about two schoolgirls Tata (Renata) and Ace (Grace). They become friends despite their different class backgrounds. Ace's family is so rich;they have windows that show 'the sun setting in the north'. Until a mass incident leads to their separation and it changes Tata's opinion about her bestfriend.
There are some other stories that I like even some also leave me so "mehhhh." It's prolly because the absurdity or the translation. Some sentences are more meaningful in the mother language. Yet some contexts are powerful when it's translated. For instance? In all Theatre is False, when both characters are getting so philosophical or the kissing part between Tata and Ace. The sense is stronger in Eng. transl. version.
Well, when it comes to the translation of the Book of Jakarta, I really do not have anything to say. Those stories are well-translated making it easier for us to read.
Mikael Johani for instance, stirring the pot and making the story more fun to read because the language in his translated story is so flowy . Khairani Barokka also is able to deliver the Indonesian jokes and anecdotes over the shrimp paste into English. Eliza and Syarafina are also a good translator which are able to deliver the sense of the story to non-Indonesia readers.
Raising my glass for the translators who have done their job wonderfully. 🍻🙌
Mind you, when it comes to the translated version of the Book of Jakarta, those well-translated stories also came with several footnotes. I honestly dun find those footnotes necessary tho. It's simply because people can just google it themselves. Add the facts that some footnotes about the local terms don't describe those terms rightly... like they only copied them from Google. So, okay! Keep the footnotes if it's necessary yet be very cautious. Do it in tact!
Returning to the story lines - as aforementioned, these stories do not only portray the social life but also address the social issues in Indonesia: the racial issues, class gap, democra(zy)cy, along with any other issues. However, my only highlight of this book is (prolly) to add more stories about those living in the suburbs of Jakarta. As a non-Jakartan who experience the love and hate relationship with the city, I'd love to hear more stories like the Secret in Kramat Tunggak. Some stories about the factory workers or the fishermen in Muara Angke will be lovely. I honestly want to see Jakarta from its suburbian perspectives too. Some stories that will prolly change my mind about the concrete jungle Jakarta.
I know that Jakarta is huge and it may take ages to portray the life people are living there. So many places, so many people; so there's nothing we can do but expect a sequel of this book.
Soon I wish... ❤
I should've shipped you this book, G @bookmarked.in.newyork as a reminiscence of short living in Jakarta years ago...
February 10, 2023
Buku ini sudah ada di rak buku mungkin lebih dari setahun, buku ini ikut pindahan tiga kali sebab hidup paska pandemi adalah kerepotan sendiri. Akhirnya aku selesai membacanya pagi ini. Semangatku menamatkan buku ini lebih tinggi ketika salah satu kawan WNA bertanya soal buku apa yang dia bisa baca soal Jakarta, buku bahasa Inggris yang aku tahu cuma buku ini. Ya sudah, aku beli juga tapi bahasa Indonesia saja sebab malas sekali membaca tulisan kawan-kawan sendiri pakai bahasa Inggris.
Sebagai manusia yang numpang lahir di Jakarta, menurutku buku ini menambah pengetahuanku soal Jakarta. Aku tidak pernah terlalu tertarik soal kota ini jadi hampir tidak pernah punya waktu mengulik informasi, semua ku ketahui ala kadarnya saja. Dari buku ini aku tahu ada Keramat Tunggak, TIM sebelum dipugar, Dharmawangsa di masa depan dan sudut-sudut familiar lain yang selama ini tidak terlalu penting dari hidupku. Buku ini mampu mengajak kita berimajinasi soal masa depan Jakarta tanpa memaksa kita lari dari hari-hari menakutkan.
Sebagai sebuah produk kumpulan cerita ini solid, meskipun aku tidak tahu pasti tidak akan mewakili seluruh cerita Jakarta. Mungkin butuh POV orang Bekasi atau BSD selain orang Depok seperti Paman Yusi.
Ringan tapi tidak akan membawamu terbang, demikian buku ini.
#WhatSekarReads2023 #WhatSekarReads #CeritaCeritaJakarta
Sebagai manusia yang numpang lahir di Jakarta, menurutku buku ini menambah pengetahuanku soal Jakarta. Aku tidak pernah terlalu tertarik soal kota ini jadi hampir tidak pernah punya waktu mengulik informasi, semua ku ketahui ala kadarnya saja. Dari buku ini aku tahu ada Keramat Tunggak, TIM sebelum dipugar, Dharmawangsa di masa depan dan sudut-sudut familiar lain yang selama ini tidak terlalu penting dari hidupku. Buku ini mampu mengajak kita berimajinasi soal masa depan Jakarta tanpa memaksa kita lari dari hari-hari menakutkan.
Sebagai sebuah produk kumpulan cerita ini solid, meskipun aku tidak tahu pasti tidak akan mewakili seluruh cerita Jakarta. Mungkin butuh POV orang Bekasi atau BSD selain orang Depok seperti Paman Yusi.
Ringan tapi tidak akan membawamu terbang, demikian buku ini.
#WhatSekarReads2023 #WhatSekarReads #CeritaCeritaJakarta
April 16, 2021
Semua ceritanya menurutku berkesan, ada cerita yang bikin senyum tipis, sedih, dan lega.
Banyak hal menarik yang dipotret oleh para penulis. Untuk yang tinggal/ kerja di Jakarta pasti ada beberapa adegan yang 'ih bener banget!'.
Di cerita 'Suatu Hari dalam Kehidupan Seorang Warga Depok yang Pergi ke Jakarta' betul-betul merasa terwakili, perjalanan yang melelahkan di commuter line, orang-orang yang ditemui di perjalanan, dan betapa magernya balik ke Jakarta kalau ga ada urusan mendesak. Hahaha
Buatku buku ini recommended banget untuk dibaca :)
Banyak hal menarik yang dipotret oleh para penulis. Untuk yang tinggal/ kerja di Jakarta pasti ada beberapa adegan yang 'ih bener banget!'.
Di cerita 'Suatu Hari dalam Kehidupan Seorang Warga Depok yang Pergi ke Jakarta' betul-betul merasa terwakili, perjalanan yang melelahkan di commuter line, orang-orang yang ditemui di perjalanan, dan betapa magernya balik ke Jakarta kalau ga ada urusan mendesak. Hahaha
Buatku buku ini recommended banget untuk dibaca :)
December 16, 2020
Short stories set in Jakarta
Maesy Ang and Teddy W Kusuma are independent publishers who own a bookshop in a traditional market in Jakarta. They champion titles from independent Indonesian publishers and curated works in English. In its first six years, the bookshop has hosted over 300 events, from writing classes and magazine workshops, to book discussions and readings. Its publishing arm, POST Press, has released a handful of titles ranging from novellas to children’s literature.
The Book of Jakarta is a collection of ten short stories by young Indonesian writers, all translated – by different people – into English. As well as the stories, the books also gives us profiles of the 10 authors and the 10 translators. They provide us with a very interesting and thought-provoking collection. Jakarta (I had not realised) is a city sinking into the sea as a result of global warming. One story – set a few years in the future – describes a passenger in a driverless cab being driven past a barrier and toward the incoming sea because the SatNav hadn’t updated to the latest flood information. Another describes the growing up school relationship between a middle class shop owner’s daughter and the daughter of a much wealthier family. When the ‘troubles’ surrounding the potential overthrow of President Sukarno erupted on the streets of Jakarta, the wealthy family fled to the States without the daughters saying good bye to each other.
Yet another describes activists on the streets during the same ‘troubles’. And one covers a couple of days in the life of two street people who believe they are actors – and who play to their audience. And one more takes us through the city on a motor bike with a boy and a girl heading to a subterranean den of prostitution and transsexual culture. A final story is about old and poor couples, living in an apartment block unable to pay their bills, and who plan to exit this world.
The collection of stories brings to the fore some sides of Jakarta that many Western tourists or business people would not normally see.
The Book of Jakarta is well worth reading.
Maesy Ang and Teddy W Kusuma are independent publishers who own a bookshop in a traditional market in Jakarta. They champion titles from independent Indonesian publishers and curated works in English. In its first six years, the bookshop has hosted over 300 events, from writing classes and magazine workshops, to book discussions and readings. Its publishing arm, POST Press, has released a handful of titles ranging from novellas to children’s literature.
The Book of Jakarta is a collection of ten short stories by young Indonesian writers, all translated – by different people – into English. As well as the stories, the books also gives us profiles of the 10 authors and the 10 translators. They provide us with a very interesting and thought-provoking collection. Jakarta (I had not realised) is a city sinking into the sea as a result of global warming. One story – set a few years in the future – describes a passenger in a driverless cab being driven past a barrier and toward the incoming sea because the SatNav hadn’t updated to the latest flood information. Another describes the growing up school relationship between a middle class shop owner’s daughter and the daughter of a much wealthier family. When the ‘troubles’ surrounding the potential overthrow of President Sukarno erupted on the streets of Jakarta, the wealthy family fled to the States without the daughters saying good bye to each other.
Yet another describes activists on the streets during the same ‘troubles’. And one covers a couple of days in the life of two street people who believe they are actors – and who play to their audience. And one more takes us through the city on a motor bike with a boy and a girl heading to a subterranean den of prostitution and transsexual culture. A final story is about old and poor couples, living in an apartment block unable to pay their bills, and who plan to exit this world.
The collection of stories brings to the fore some sides of Jakarta that many Western tourists or business people would not normally see.
The Book of Jakarta is well worth reading.
July 28, 2021
Senangnya bisa membaca buku tentang kota yang memiliki hubungan cinta dan benci denganku, Jakarta.
Buku ini memiliki 12 cerita yang ditulis oleh 12 penulis berbeda. Kebanyakan dari nama penulis tidak familiar bagiku. Namun, ini tidak mempengaruhi buruk terhadap pendapatku mengenai karya-karya mereka.
Sebetulnya, aku butuh waktu yang cukup lama untuk bisa menikmati buku ini. Entah karena saat membacanya kondisiku sedang tidak baik-baik saja atau memang aku tidak begitu paham dan familiar maupun tidak mampu membayangkan beberapa cerita yang dihadirkan di awal.
Namun, semakin ke belakang aku semakin merasakan keseruan dari karya-karya yang dihadirkan dalam buku ini. Cerita tentang apartemen Kalibata menjadi titik awal aku tertarik sepenuhnya dengan buku ini. Sayang, bukan cerpen ini yang menjadi favoritku.
Cerpen favoritku adalah cerpen terakhir dari buku ini yang menceritakan soal rutinitas warga Depok saat pergi ke Jakarta. Ceritanya sangat kasual dan sehari-hari. Mungkin, banyak dari kita yang merupakan warga Jabodetabek terhubung dengan baik dengan cerita ini.
Selain kedekatan secara emosional dengan cerpen tersebut. Aku pun merasa penulisan cerpen ini sangat bagus. Mudah dimengerti untukku. Saat aku intip siapa penulisnya. Oh, ternyata ditulis oleh penulis yang sama dari buku Raden Mandasia si Pencuri Daging Sapi, Yusi Avianto yang kerap disebut sebagai salah satu buku yang berkualitas dari teman-teman pembaca di Twitter.
Melalui buku ini, aku kemudian terdorong untuk membaca buku Raden Mandasia si Pencuri Daging Sapi dan mungkin beberapa karya lainnya yang juga ditulis oleh para penulis cerpen dalam Cerita Cerita Jakarta.
Buku ini mungkin akan sangat lekat bagi kita yang sering mendatangi Jakarta. Namun, buku ini juga bisa memberi gambaran lain dari Jakarta, tidak hanya yang bagus-bagus soal Senayan, Kuningan, Thamrin, atau Sudirman. Banyak cerita tersembunyi di balik ibukota negara kita ini, yang bahkan, aku sebagai orang yang tinggal di sana pun masih belum mengetahui atau bahkan tidak pernah mendengarnya sama sekali.
Cobalah untuk membacanya. Mungkin kamu akan merasakan cinta yang sama seperti yang aku punya terhadap kota ini, Jakarta yang banyak cerita tapi penuh dengan polusi dan kemacetan.
Buku ini memiliki 12 cerita yang ditulis oleh 12 penulis berbeda. Kebanyakan dari nama penulis tidak familiar bagiku. Namun, ini tidak mempengaruhi buruk terhadap pendapatku mengenai karya-karya mereka.
Sebetulnya, aku butuh waktu yang cukup lama untuk bisa menikmati buku ini. Entah karena saat membacanya kondisiku sedang tidak baik-baik saja atau memang aku tidak begitu paham dan familiar maupun tidak mampu membayangkan beberapa cerita yang dihadirkan di awal.
Namun, semakin ke belakang aku semakin merasakan keseruan dari karya-karya yang dihadirkan dalam buku ini. Cerita tentang apartemen Kalibata menjadi titik awal aku tertarik sepenuhnya dengan buku ini. Sayang, bukan cerpen ini yang menjadi favoritku.
Cerpen favoritku adalah cerpen terakhir dari buku ini yang menceritakan soal rutinitas warga Depok saat pergi ke Jakarta. Ceritanya sangat kasual dan sehari-hari. Mungkin, banyak dari kita yang merupakan warga Jabodetabek terhubung dengan baik dengan cerita ini.
Selain kedekatan secara emosional dengan cerpen tersebut. Aku pun merasa penulisan cerpen ini sangat bagus. Mudah dimengerti untukku. Saat aku intip siapa penulisnya. Oh, ternyata ditulis oleh penulis yang sama dari buku Raden Mandasia si Pencuri Daging Sapi, Yusi Avianto yang kerap disebut sebagai salah satu buku yang berkualitas dari teman-teman pembaca di Twitter.
Melalui buku ini, aku kemudian terdorong untuk membaca buku Raden Mandasia si Pencuri Daging Sapi dan mungkin beberapa karya lainnya yang juga ditulis oleh para penulis cerpen dalam Cerita Cerita Jakarta.
Buku ini mungkin akan sangat lekat bagi kita yang sering mendatangi Jakarta. Namun, buku ini juga bisa memberi gambaran lain dari Jakarta, tidak hanya yang bagus-bagus soal Senayan, Kuningan, Thamrin, atau Sudirman. Banyak cerita tersembunyi di balik ibukota negara kita ini, yang bahkan, aku sebagai orang yang tinggal di sana pun masih belum mengetahui atau bahkan tidak pernah mendengarnya sama sekali.
Cobalah untuk membacanya. Mungkin kamu akan merasakan cinta yang sama seperti yang aku punya terhadap kota ini, Jakarta yang banyak cerita tapi penuh dengan polusi dan kemacetan.
October 14, 2021
“Jakarta, kota yang senantiasa bergegas tapi kerap kita rasa tak bergerak kemana pun.” -Catatan Editor Cerita Cerita Jakarta, Teddy W. Kusuma dan Maesy Ang.
Saya benar-benar tertawa saat membacanya. Memang selalu seperti itu, Jakarta dan segala hiruk pikuknya, lampu merah dimana-mana yang selalu membuat saya tak berhenti melihat jam tangan, mata yang perih setiap menghabiskan empat puluh menit perjalanan berangkat dan pulang kantor, memastikan jam berangkat setiap kereta komuter atau transjakarta jangan sampai ketinggalan karena sekali ketinggalan hancur sudah rencanamu seharian, atau bagaimana mengantri obat dan layanan publik yang minimal menghabiskan setengah jam mungkin? Kita semua tahu itu, Jakarta selalu bergegas, kalau tidak kamu akan ketinggalan.
Tapi pada kenyataannya, saya hanya terjebak dalam kota penuh romansa, suka cita, masygul, dan pelik kehidupan ini, yang selalu membuat saya jatuh cinta lagi dan lagi. Jatuh cinta pada setiap sudut tempat pedagang asongan atau tukang ojek mangkal, pada proyek-proyek mangkrak yang entah kapan akan berhasil mengurangi kemacetan Jakarta, pada sudut-sudut kedai romantis di Blok M atau Jalan Sabang, pada gedung-gedung pencakar yang selalu membuat kepala saya mendongak sepanjang Jalan Sudirman, pada setiap halte dan trotoar yang dipenuhi pejalan kaki yang entah kemana tujuan mereka hari itu, hingga pada setiap langit senja atau malam pekat penuh polusi, namun saat bulan purnama atau langit jingga tiba, saya tak pernah berhenti bersyukur pernah menjadi bagian dari kota ini.
Sekali lagi buku atau tulisan tentang Jakarta memang tak pernah mengecewakan. Setelah sebelumnya menggandrungi Affair yang didapuk sebagai obrolan urban homojakartanesis oleh Seno Gumira Ajidarma, semalam saya baru saja menyelesaikan kumpulan cerita pengalaman dari sudut pandang 10 spesies homojakartanesis lainnya.
Kumpulan cerita dalam Cerita-Cerita Jakarta terasa ditata sedemikian rupa sehingga sejak catatan editor, pilihan cerita pembuka, hingga pilihan cerita penutup, semuanya berhasil mengiringi emosi pembaca dengan sangat tenang sekaligus menyenangkan. Tidak terkesan buru-buru untuk mencapai klimaks, menyebut setiap sudut tempat di Jakarta yang ingin disebutkan, menciptakan apapun tokoh yang ingin diciptakan, memanggil latar peristiwa manapun dan kapanpun yang ingin diungkit, hingga berakhir dengan bagaimanapun ending yang diinginkan. Tanpa peduli dengan bagaimana pembaca akan merespon.
Hal itu saya rasakan pada cerita pembuka. Judulnya saja sudah mengganggu saya sedemikian rupa. B217AN. Ratri Ninditya berhasil membuat saya menikmati setiap kalimatnya tanpa jeda. Ringan dan cukup membuat saya can relate. Namun tiba-tiba di akhir bagian, saya hampir dibuat mengamuk dengan penyelesaiannya yang tak memberi kejelasan. Bahasa kerennya open ending mungkin ya? Tapi lebih tepatnya yang ada di pikiran saya: apakah saya terlalu bodoh masa tidak paham dengan ending ceritanya?
Karena tak mau dianggap kalah, saya membaca ulang cerita tersebut, saya telusuri setiap bagian, meski tetap saja saya tak mendapat jawaban. Apalagi judulnya yang saya kira terbaca “Brijan”? Sampai akhirnya saya menyerah dan menelusuri google. Setelah mendapat jawaban atas judul tersebut, saya hanya terkekeh dan merasa benar-benar bodoh. “Berdua Satu Tujuan”. Sesimpel itu bodoh!
Dan setelah mengetahui arti judul tersebut, barulah cerita tersebut mulai terasa logis dalam otak saya.
Kisah-kisah berikutnya diwarnai latar yang sangat bervariasi, dan itu yang saya tunggu! Mulai dari kantor pemerintahan, Jalan Gatot Subroto-yang sehari-hari saya lewati-hingga Senayan, Kampung Melayu Pulo Gebang di Jatinegara, Dunia Fantasi di Taman Impian Jaya Ancol, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Stasiun Pondok Cina dan Margonda City milik Kota Depok, serta Kramat Tunggak dan Pantai Mutiara di Jakarta Utara.
Salah satu cerita favorit saya jatuh kepada Matahari Tenggelam di Utara gubahan Cyntha Hariadi. Sebuah realita persahabatan dua manusia berbeda kelas sosial dalam lingkungan sekolah, dua remaja naif yang baru tahu rasanya melumat bibir manusia dan menjadi ketagihan, dua jiwa yang meskipun sedalam apapun kalian jatuh cinta, kalau sudah ditampar dengan kejamnya dunia, naluri untuk menyelamatkan diri sendiri memang akan selalu menang. Menampik keras sebuah omong kosong “aku rela melakukan apapun demi kamu, meski harus mengorbankan nyawaku.” Tai kucing! Realistis bro realistis, Cyntha berhasil merangkai kenaifan remaja yang kebanyakan ditutup-tutupi oleh anak-anak zaman sekarang dalam cerita ini. Hats off!
Dari dulu saya selalu jatuh cinta dengan tempat-tempat yang menemani saya tumbuh, jatuh cinta, tersandung, dan bangkit lagi. Salah satunya Jakarta, tempat saya tumbuh lima tahun terakhir.
Sepuluh cerita yang saya rasa tak akan membosankan mau dibaca berapa kalipun. Menemani masa-masa karantina di ibukota, jauh dari orang tua dan saudara, pun sahabat dan rekan kerja yang juga sedang menyelamatkan dirinya masing-masing. Kalian bisa mengunjungi @post_santa untuk mengantarkan buku ini sampai pada rumah tercinta kalian. Selamat membaca!
Saya benar-benar tertawa saat membacanya. Memang selalu seperti itu, Jakarta dan segala hiruk pikuknya, lampu merah dimana-mana yang selalu membuat saya tak berhenti melihat jam tangan, mata yang perih setiap menghabiskan empat puluh menit perjalanan berangkat dan pulang kantor, memastikan jam berangkat setiap kereta komuter atau transjakarta jangan sampai ketinggalan karena sekali ketinggalan hancur sudah rencanamu seharian, atau bagaimana mengantri obat dan layanan publik yang minimal menghabiskan setengah jam mungkin? Kita semua tahu itu, Jakarta selalu bergegas, kalau tidak kamu akan ketinggalan.
Tapi pada kenyataannya, saya hanya terjebak dalam kota penuh romansa, suka cita, masygul, dan pelik kehidupan ini, yang selalu membuat saya jatuh cinta lagi dan lagi. Jatuh cinta pada setiap sudut tempat pedagang asongan atau tukang ojek mangkal, pada proyek-proyek mangkrak yang entah kapan akan berhasil mengurangi kemacetan Jakarta, pada sudut-sudut kedai romantis di Blok M atau Jalan Sabang, pada gedung-gedung pencakar yang selalu membuat kepala saya mendongak sepanjang Jalan Sudirman, pada setiap halte dan trotoar yang dipenuhi pejalan kaki yang entah kemana tujuan mereka hari itu, hingga pada setiap langit senja atau malam pekat penuh polusi, namun saat bulan purnama atau langit jingga tiba, saya tak pernah berhenti bersyukur pernah menjadi bagian dari kota ini.
Sekali lagi buku atau tulisan tentang Jakarta memang tak pernah mengecewakan. Setelah sebelumnya menggandrungi Affair yang didapuk sebagai obrolan urban homojakartanesis oleh Seno Gumira Ajidarma, semalam saya baru saja menyelesaikan kumpulan cerita pengalaman dari sudut pandang 10 spesies homojakartanesis lainnya.
Kumpulan cerita dalam Cerita-Cerita Jakarta terasa ditata sedemikian rupa sehingga sejak catatan editor, pilihan cerita pembuka, hingga pilihan cerita penutup, semuanya berhasil mengiringi emosi pembaca dengan sangat tenang sekaligus menyenangkan. Tidak terkesan buru-buru untuk mencapai klimaks, menyebut setiap sudut tempat di Jakarta yang ingin disebutkan, menciptakan apapun tokoh yang ingin diciptakan, memanggil latar peristiwa manapun dan kapanpun yang ingin diungkit, hingga berakhir dengan bagaimanapun ending yang diinginkan. Tanpa peduli dengan bagaimana pembaca akan merespon.
Hal itu saya rasakan pada cerita pembuka. Judulnya saja sudah mengganggu saya sedemikian rupa. B217AN. Ratri Ninditya berhasil membuat saya menikmati setiap kalimatnya tanpa jeda. Ringan dan cukup membuat saya can relate. Namun tiba-tiba di akhir bagian, saya hampir dibuat mengamuk dengan penyelesaiannya yang tak memberi kejelasan. Bahasa kerennya open ending mungkin ya? Tapi lebih tepatnya yang ada di pikiran saya: apakah saya terlalu bodoh masa tidak paham dengan ending ceritanya?
Karena tak mau dianggap kalah, saya membaca ulang cerita tersebut, saya telusuri setiap bagian, meski tetap saja saya tak mendapat jawaban. Apalagi judulnya yang saya kira terbaca “Brijan”? Sampai akhirnya saya menyerah dan menelusuri google. Setelah mendapat jawaban atas judul tersebut, saya hanya terkekeh dan merasa benar-benar bodoh. “Berdua Satu Tujuan”. Sesimpel itu bodoh!
Dan setelah mengetahui arti judul tersebut, barulah cerita tersebut mulai terasa logis dalam otak saya.
Kisah-kisah berikutnya diwarnai latar yang sangat bervariasi, dan itu yang saya tunggu! Mulai dari kantor pemerintahan, Jalan Gatot Subroto-yang sehari-hari saya lewati-hingga Senayan, Kampung Melayu Pulo Gebang di Jatinegara, Dunia Fantasi di Taman Impian Jaya Ancol, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Stasiun Pondok Cina dan Margonda City milik Kota Depok, serta Kramat Tunggak dan Pantai Mutiara di Jakarta Utara.
Salah satu cerita favorit saya jatuh kepada Matahari Tenggelam di Utara gubahan Cyntha Hariadi. Sebuah realita persahabatan dua manusia berbeda kelas sosial dalam lingkungan sekolah, dua remaja naif yang baru tahu rasanya melumat bibir manusia dan menjadi ketagihan, dua jiwa yang meskipun sedalam apapun kalian jatuh cinta, kalau sudah ditampar dengan kejamnya dunia, naluri untuk menyelamatkan diri sendiri memang akan selalu menang. Menampik keras sebuah omong kosong “aku rela melakukan apapun demi kamu, meski harus mengorbankan nyawaku.” Tai kucing! Realistis bro realistis, Cyntha berhasil merangkai kenaifan remaja yang kebanyakan ditutup-tutupi oleh anak-anak zaman sekarang dalam cerita ini. Hats off!
Dari dulu saya selalu jatuh cinta dengan tempat-tempat yang menemani saya tumbuh, jatuh cinta, tersandung, dan bangkit lagi. Salah satunya Jakarta, tempat saya tumbuh lima tahun terakhir.
Sepuluh cerita yang saya rasa tak akan membosankan mau dibaca berapa kalipun. Menemani masa-masa karantina di ibukota, jauh dari orang tua dan saudara, pun sahabat dan rekan kerja yang juga sedang menyelamatkan dirinya masing-masing. Kalian bisa mengunjungi @post_santa untuk mengantarkan buku ini sampai pada rumah tercinta kalian. Selamat membaca!
August 1, 2021
Born and raised in Jakarta, I can relate so much to stories written inside this book, even those written in context I'm not really familiar with... But that shouldn't come as a surprise since the title of the book basically says so. I was expecting this book to talk about particular areas in Jakarta and the story that lies underneath. However, I feel like this book tells more about the different lives of Jakartans, rather than focusing on the city itself. That not all Jakartans are urban and open-minded, work at SCBD, and spend weekends playing dogs at Como Park. In fact it doesn't talk about it at all. This part gives a nice surprise.
What I love so much about this book is how different it portrays each character, sometimes even by using nicknames such as initials,—probably to show how insignificant names are—or stereotypes like 'tiko', and 'warga Depok'—in contrast, to show how significant 'names' are to some group of people.
Another thing that I discovered from the book—and I'm using the verb 'discover', since I haven't seen any reviews mentioning this—is somehow almost all these stories are relating itself to 'death', as if it is something forgotten every time we talk about the metropolitan city of Jakarta. It is the capital city of Indonesia, where people from outside the region come to hustle and seek for a better future. I wasn't really sure if this is a theme the book wishes to highlight, but it is a fun topic to discuss.
My favorite out of all is definitely 'Anak-anak Dewasa' by Ziggy Z, such a dystopian story, providing a contrast between death as a theme, and theme park as place of context.
What I love so much about this book is how different it portrays each character, sometimes even by using nicknames such as initials,—probably to show how insignificant names are—or stereotypes like 'tiko', and 'warga Depok'—in contrast, to show how significant 'names' are to some group of people.
Another thing that I discovered from the book—and I'm using the verb 'discover', since I haven't seen any reviews mentioning this—is somehow almost all these stories are relating itself to 'death', as if it is something forgotten every time we talk about the metropolitan city of Jakarta. It is the capital city of Indonesia, where people from outside the region come to hustle and seek for a better future. I wasn't really sure if this is a theme the book wishes to highlight, but it is a fun topic to discuss.
My favorite out of all is definitely 'Anak-anak Dewasa' by Ziggy Z, such a dystopian story, providing a contrast between death as a theme, and theme park as place of context.
December 29, 2023
cerita cerita jakarta was based on how the writers see the other side of jakarta obvi its abt the low / middle class society cus its always been a fun topic to discuss.
sometimes i kinda lost in the language there haha altough i am indonesian but their language is something else (good meaning) in the end i love it! my favorite part is by cynthia hariadi "matahari tenggelam di utara" the sadness just hit the spot like we all know the big differences between upper class and lower class people. lower class could never stay side by side with upper class.
sometimes i kinda lost in the language there haha altough i am indonesian but their language is something else (good meaning) in the end i love it! my favorite part is by cynthia hariadi "matahari tenggelam di utara" the sadness just hit the spot like we all know the big differences between upper class and lower class people. lower class could never stay side by side with upper class.
December 25, 2021
Saya bukan orang Jakarta dan belum pernah mengunjungi Jakarta (kecuali dufan). Jadi, saya tidak dapat sepenuhnya membayangkan Jakarta itu seperti apa. Meskipun begitu, saya rasa kehidupan di mana pun tetap bergulir sebagaimana mestinya.
Cerpen-cerpen yang disajikan menarik. Beberapa ada yang berhasil membuat tertawa geli, keheranan, juga kesal karena open-ending. Secara keseluruhan, saya menikmati membaca buku ini. Bacaan yang cukup menghibur di akhir tahun.
Cerpen-cerpen yang disajikan menarik. Beberapa ada yang berhasil membuat tertawa geli, keheranan, juga kesal karena open-ending. Secara keseluruhan, saya menikmati membaca buku ini. Bacaan yang cukup menghibur di akhir tahun.
July 15, 2023
Interesting stories; the characters were well sketched out, and it was clearly meant to be a satire on modernizing culture as well. It's really unfortunate that I can't read Bahasa Indonesia-- I think if I had been able to read these stories in their original language, the prose would have seemed less uniform to me. None of the short stories were bad, but they were often clearly more focused on drawing out elements of the city or drawing the picture of a particular Jakartan character than most short stories as a genre.
April 19, 2021
Jakarta. Ia diceritakan dari beragam perspektif di buku ini. Ditulis oleh tangan-tangan yang namanya sebagian besar sudah kauakrabi kiprahnya. Itu lantas memberi validasi ketika awal membelinya, "Buku ini pasti bukan karya sembarangan, yang sekali baca dan kaulupakan." Dan, itu benar. Menamatkan buku ini bagiku seperti menikmati santapan paling pas, presisi, seimbang. Kompleks.
O ya, ini buku terbitan POST yang kali pertama kubaca. Sepertinya aku mesti melirik terbitan mereka yang lain.
O ya, ini buku terbitan POST yang kali pertama kubaca. Sepertinya aku mesti melirik terbitan mereka yang lain.
July 31, 2021
jakarta dalam 10 kacamata. ada yang terjadi di satu dua dekade lalu, ada yang dilatarkan terjadi di masa depan. kesemuanya punya ciri khas orang jakarta. kutipan dari jakarta sebelum pagi yang cocok banget buat buku ini: jakarta is a weird place and it gets creepier by day.
cerpen favorit: anak-anak dewasa, buyan, dan haji syiah.
cerpen favorit: anak-anak dewasa, buyan, dan haji syiah.
September 14, 2021
Cukup menyenangkan membaca kumcer ini. Genre cerpennya sangat beragam, dari eksperimental sampai futuristik. Saya pribadi suka sekali cerpen Ziggy dan Utiuts. Cerpen Ziggy sangat menghangatkan hati sekaligus tragis, lembut, dan mengagetkan. Kontradiksi-kontradiksi ini dibuat dengan seimbang dan membuat saya jatuh cinta. Cerpen Utiuts sendiri sangat futuristik dan ditulis dengan kocak juga satir. Sangat menghibur dan menyenangkan untuk dibaca.
October 24, 2022
Cerita-cerita pendek yang dekat di hati, menceritakan Jakarta yang seadanya — keras, lucu, beragam, kreatif, sendu, gila. Selalu 🤍 Jakarta!!!!!
Saran: baca Cerita-Cerita Jakarta sewaktu menunggu jemputan Gojek, sewaktu duduk di MRT dari Lebak Bulus ke Bundaran HI, sewaktu mengisap teh hangat di kedai kopi favorit!
Saran: baca Cerita-Cerita Jakarta sewaktu menunggu jemputan Gojek, sewaktu duduk di MRT dari Lebak Bulus ke Bundaran HI, sewaktu mengisap teh hangat di kedai kopi favorit!
April 17, 2021
Kalau disuruh pilih Jakarta atau Bandung, tentu tak pakai pikir lagi kupilih Bandung. Jakarta gerah, Bandung adem, begitu garisbesarnya
Buku ini juga terasa gerah. Bacanya keringetan, mesti kipas-kipas, lebih baik lagi pakai AC yg sayangnya di rumahku engga ada karena selama ini engga perlu. Cerita-ceritanya mengalir rapi, tak ada kalimat yg terbuang, tapi entahlah... Sepertinya Jakarta memang gerah buatku, yg lebih suka yg adem-adem 🤭
Buku ini juga terasa gerah. Bacanya keringetan, mesti kipas-kipas, lebih baik lagi pakai AC yg sayangnya di rumahku engga ada karena selama ini engga perlu. Cerita-ceritanya mengalir rapi, tak ada kalimat yg terbuang, tapi entahlah... Sepertinya Jakarta memang gerah buatku, yg lebih suka yg adem-adem 🤭
December 15, 2021
Baca ini karena tiba2 kangen Jakarta. Walaupun ternyata ceritanya tidak membuat kangenku terobati, cerita-cerita di buku ini aku suka. Punya keunikan sendiri karena Jakarta diceritakan dari sudut pandang yang berbeda-beda.
May 9, 2021
Saya beri bintang tiga, karena hanya ada tiga cerpen yang menurut saya bagus di buku ini: "Buyan", " Anak-Anak Dewasa", dan "Suatu Hari dalam Kehidupan Seorang Warga Depok yang Pergi ke Jakarta".
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