A feminist trajectory of literary influences A writer pays homage to the women writers and intellectuals who paved the way for others Read more
Review: Women, Sexual Violence and the Indonesian Killings of 1965-66 Pohlman’s study provides sensitive and powerful testimony of the impact of this violence on women and girls Read more
Murdering army, silent church Reverend Mery Kolimon, researcher and advocate working on the 1965 killings in Eastern Indonesia, has a personal connection to this piece of history Read more
Review: Man Tiger strikes! Longlisted for the prestigious Man Booker International Prize Eka Kurniawan’s novel signals the birth of a sophisticated crime noir genre in Indonesian literature Read more
Review: Jakarta, Mon Amour A series of illustrated books offers a visual journey through the history of Jakarta and brings back vivid memories Read more
A post-colonial subversive Like Toer’s tetralogy before it, Semua Untuk Hindia turns Indonesia’s national history narrative on its head Read more
After ’98: Censorship, compromises and resistance Cancellations at UWRF 2015 were just the latest example of censorship in democratic Indonesia Read more
Introduction to Man Tiger: A Novel by Eka Kurniawan Introduction to Man Tiger: A Novel by Eka Kurniawan Read more
Review: 'Enduring impunity': Women surviving atrocities in the absence of justice Ongoing impunity for perpetrators continues to impact on the lives of women survivors Read more
Review: The Crocodile Hole Saskia Wieringa’s latest novel brings to life a dark period in Indonesia’s past Read more
The Crocodile Hole Indonesia, beginning of the 1980s. The young journalist Tommy comes into contact with the survivors of the genocide that the New Order regime of General Suharto carried out. To her bewilderment she hears stories about lurid dancing, castrations and the murder by young girls of a number of generals in the night of October 1 1965. Guided by Ibu Sri, herself a former prisoner and a member of the women’s organisation that was held responsible for these alleged sexual and sadistic perversions she sets herself the task to unravel these fantasies. Who invented these hateful lies which were meant to incite mass organizations to murder possibly one million of their neighbors? Tommy is betrayed and thrown into prison. Read more
A twist of fate Indonesian novels about 1965 reach back to the Mahabharata to find hope and resignation Read more
Bringing Indonesian literature to the world Lontar Publishing’s John McGlynn speaks with Petia Dimitrova about the upcoming Frankfurt Book Fair 2015 at which Indonesia is the Guest of Honour nation and about the challenges of publishing Indonesian literature in translation Read more
Review: Lontar’s Modern Library of Indonesian Literature Translations of Indonesian literature offer insights into both the universality and particularity of Indonesian culture and society Read more
Review: Democracy, corruption and the politics of spirits in contemporary Indonesia Nils Bubandt brings an exciting new approach to the study of Indonesia's politics Read more
Review: Exploring the musical pasts of the Toba Batak Julia Byl’s ethnographic study reveals a musical tradition formed by its interactions with other cultures and musical influences Read more
Freedom Arguably Indonesia's finest living writer of fiction, Putu Wijaya reflects on Indonesia's nationhood in his short story, 'Freedom'. Read more