But how do you feel reading a book in your own language written by someone who speaks the same language as you do, but it still felt strange to you? Like, do we speak the same language? I’m conflicted. This is very personal though, for I’m never a fan of this kind of writing. Those who read the English version may not be able to relate, but the original version is just so awkward. Thats why I’m telling you (and myself): keep your mind open to every interpretation, every different possible meaning. I know maybe it was the author’s intention to make it uncomfortable. I know this whole book is thought to be an allegory, and this woman symbolizes something, but still, it was an eye-rolling element. It was my major turn off, to be honest, and I hesitated if I wanted to finish this book. Everyone seemed like they have a story to tell. Every character was introduced really well. Most of the time I was amused by the historical narratives more than the story itself. Man, this review couldn’t get any more passive-aggresive. Not like out-of-this-world amazing, but more than enough to stun me, it was actually close to crazy. – I think his idea to mix up Indonesian history and magic realism was amazing. Even without cliffhangers at the end of the chapters, I always wanted to know what happened next. I appreciate the author challenging the stream about women, in 2002 Indonesia. She got the entire city’s respect despite her widow status and her profession, which usually were frowned upon, if not despised, in real life.
I’m not saying I’m a big fan, but her characterization was on point. She has this nobody-can-stop-me personality. Now let’s talk about my love-hate relationship with this book. This book is very political and it was not intended for international readers at first, so maybe reading a little about Independent War and 30 September Movement (Indonesia’s extreme Red Scare) beforehand would help. Go read something else.Ĭantik Itu Luka (Beauty is a Wound) is one of the most absurd reads in my life, but if you make yourself familiar with Indonesian literature, you’ll actually find a lot of books with this kind of writing style: strange, flowery, theatrical, and allegory-fueled, which is not something I usually enjoy reading, and to be honest, some scenes were too disturbing for me to read. If you’re 100 pages in and still cannot enjoy it, leave it for good. First of all, I’m telling you now at the beginning before we dive deeper into the real talk.
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