East Java Indonesia
Destination: Indonesia
Books: A List from Alan Cheuse book, A Trance After Breakfast
Alan Cheuse, who thinks the way A Traveler’s Library readers do about what constitutes good travel literature, says, “But fiction, which still trumps history when it comes to putting you in a certain time and place, past, present, or future, would, I hoped, give me the feel of the real life of the region.”
Here are some of the books that Alan Cheuse read during and after his trip to Indonesia. You’ll have to read his book, A Trance After Breakfast, to find his complete comments and additional books.
Lord Jim (1896), by Joseph Conrad. He talks about other books by Conrad, particularly Almayer’s Folly.
Max Havelaar: Or the Coffee Auctions of the Dutch Trading Company (1859) by Edward Douwes Dekker (pen name Multatuli)
The Islands (1952) by Albert Alberts
Far Eastern Tales, a collection of short stories from the twenties by W. Somerset Maugham. I found this interesting article from a present day ex-pat in the far east about this book.
A Tale from Bali,(1937 translation in English) by Vicki Baum, author of Grand Hotel.
The Long Day Wanes, a trilogy (1964) by Anthony Burgess.
The Year of Living Dangerously (1979) by Christopher Koch.
Twilight in Jakarta (1963), by Mochtar Lubis.
If I ever get to take my long-desired trip to Bali–I certainly will not be wanting for travel literature.
Do you have other recommendations for Indonesian reading material? Have you been there? Which of these books do you want to add to your traveler’s library?
PDF Tags: Alan Cheuse, Books, Indonesia, travel literature
This post takes me back to my teen years with your mention of W. Somerset Maugham. I loved his short stories. I’m surprised I still have the old paperbacks. They’re tattered and yellowed. But I checked, and I do still have them. Might have to drag those out again.
Thanks for the reminder.
Jackie