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Monsoon Tiger and Other Stories
Set in nowhere, Monsoon Tiger and Other Stories tells the tale of loneliness and love.
"There is no doubt as to the depth and breadth of Rain Chudori’s literary gift. Not only does she have an ear for the music of language, but she also writes with then imbleness, maturity and emotional acuity of someone way beyond her years. Packed with wit, irony and wisdom, her stories simply glitter."
– Laksmi Pamuntjak
"There is no doubt as to the depth and breadth of Rain Chudori’s literary gift. Not only does she have an ear for the music of language, but she also writes with then imbleness, maturity and emotional acuity of someone way beyond her years. Packed with wit, irony and wisdom, her stories simply glitter."
– Laksmi Pamuntjak
208 pages, Paperback
First published December 19, 2015
42 people are currently reading
261 people want to read
About the author
Rain Chudori
10 books57 followersRain Chudori is an award-winning author, curator, and life-long nomad. She is the founder of Moment Studio & curator of Comma Books Publishing.
She has written Monsoon Tiger and Other Stories (2015), Imaginary City (2017), and Biru dan Kisah-Kisah Lainnya (2018). She is based in New Delhi, India but belongs everywhere. She is currently an artist in residence in New York.
She has written Monsoon Tiger and Other Stories (2015), Imaginary City (2017), and Biru dan Kisah-Kisah Lainnya (2018). She is based in New Delhi, India but belongs everywhere. She is currently an artist in residence in New York.
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July 12, 2016Review awal:
Mengapa saya membeli buku karya orang Indonesia tapi ditulis dalam bahasa Inggris?
Mungkin saya lelah membaca buku karya pengarang Indonesia yang ditulis dalam bahasa Indonesia, tapi kemudian mencampuraduknya dengan bahasa Inggris, dalam jumlah yang sangat "mengkhawatirkan" banyaknya.
Jadi saya menghargai para sastrawan yang berkeras menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dengan kosa kata yang bahkan mungkin kita sudah tidak familiar lagi, dan para penulis muda seperti Rain Chudori, Naela Ali, Alanda Kariza, yang langsung menulis dalam bahasa Inggris sekalian. Lebih jelas dan konsisten.
Lha Ika Natassa juga punya buku berbahasa Inggris, "Underground", kok nggak disebut? Ah justru dia lah salah satu pengarang yang paling suka mencampur aduk bahasa Indonesia dan Inggris dalam buku-buku lainnya. Jadi untuk menunjukkan protes saya, saya tidak akan beli dan baca "Underground". Hehehe.
Mengapa saya membeli buku karya orang Indonesia tapi ditulis dalam bahasa Inggris?
Mungkin saya lelah membaca buku karya pengarang Indonesia yang ditulis dalam bahasa Indonesia, tapi kemudian mencampuraduknya dengan bahasa Inggris, dalam jumlah yang sangat "mengkhawatirkan" banyaknya.
Jadi saya menghargai para sastrawan yang berkeras menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dengan kosa kata yang bahkan mungkin kita sudah tidak familiar lagi, dan para penulis muda seperti Rain Chudori, Naela Ali, Alanda Kariza, yang langsung menulis dalam bahasa Inggris sekalian. Lebih jelas dan konsisten.
Lha Ika Natassa juga punya buku berbahasa Inggris, "Underground", kok nggak disebut? Ah justru dia lah salah satu pengarang yang paling suka mencampur aduk bahasa Indonesia dan Inggris dalam buku-buku lainnya. Jadi untuk menunjukkan protes saya, saya tidak akan beli dan baca "Underground". Hehehe.
September 30, 2017
When I first saw this book while I was browsing through Gramedia, looking for authors I might recognize, I saw Rain Chudori's name and immediately thought of Leila S. Chudori. I looooved her novel
Pulang
, and I didn't know anything about this book other than it's a collection of short stories. My mom told me this was a children's book, written by Leila's daughter. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this is actually for adults!
I didn't expect much coming into this short story collection. Even though I adored the simple and minimalistic production of the book - how small and compact it is, with simple cover and overall white tone, and a lovely typefront, I didn't really know what to expect.
The short stories in this book actually blew me away with its prose and themes. The first story I read I thought, all right, this might be something I'm gonna like. By the time I reached the second and third, especially the beautiful writing in The Dollhouse and The Sandcastle, I was hooked. You know when you love reading something so much you're in a dilemma on whether you should read everything because you can't stop, but you also don't want to finish it too soon to keep all the feelings and the writing as long as you can? This is what I felt while I was reading it. As a result, I tried to space out the short stories, reading only one every few days.
I love how unique and different from each other every story in the collection is. When I look back at the table of contents, I can still make out which story is about which and what I loved about it. I also love how even though they're different, all of them have that same similar feel and vibe going on throughout the story, not just because of the same writing style but also the themes discussed, the small objects mentioned, and the elements taking part in the stories. Elements like cigarettes, animals, couples who don't love each other, quietness, nature, are all intertwined between the stories and you just know it's the same person writing them. At the same time, I adore how some of the stories really feel personal and nostalgic, almost like she was the child who played around in Taman Gajah, or she was the one being cheated on by her boyfriend. It all felt like one person's memories.
The stories were written beautifully, and although it felt a little odd to read an Indonesian person writing in English, the writing style is just wonderful to read. It's clear she knows her English, being a translator before an English-language author. I love how she repeats phrases and even a whole paragraph, I love how she'd put in lyrical words that make you have to stop and catch a breath. I love how those writing styles really evoke the emotions the author wants the readers to feel: sometimes happiness, oftentimes loneliness and sadness and desperation. I also sense a certain sense of passiveness in the stories, how sometimes the characters aren't really relatable and feel detached, even the narrator, but you can really feel their emotions and the lack of dialogue in the book, added with the long-tailed description of places and objects and weather. On some cases, if other people would try and write this way, it would seem too flowery and boring. But Rain Chudori succeeded to make me love and cling to every single word.
Some of my favourite stories are: The Swimming Pool, Monsoon Tiger, and Beneath the Bougainvilleas.
I know this isn't a book for everyone. I've read some reviews saying that they got bored and didn't enjoy the stories. But I know that I love slow, atmospheric stories, where not a lot actually happens, but when you look back you remember only how you felt while you were reading it, and this book is exactly it. I can't find any clear flaw in this book, to be honest. At first I only rated this book 4 stars, thinking, I'm not a huge fan of short story collections, most of the times I'd only rate them 3 or 4 stars because they're forgettable and some of the stories just don't gel with me. Although I do have favourite stories in this collection, I loved every single one of them and so I am changing my rating of this book to 5 stars. It's amazing how despite how I've read a book by her mother, therefore automatically comparing her work to her mother's, this book is a 180 degree turn from Pulang that I just couldn't compare the two of them. Well done! I absolutely cannot wait to read more of her work.
Bookmarks:
Many, as one would do around sandcastles, would appreciate it from a distance but would never think to touch or even come near it, perhaps due to fear of changing its structure or disturbing its existence. They marveled but never dared approach because they realized the frailty of its element, and how it would crumble with a single touch. The sandcastle, wet and gleaming under the sun, waited for the only thing that could destroy it: the waves. And like the waves returning the sandcastles to its natural state, quickly and rhythmically, he destroyed my being. (p.84)
In truth, a man was not a benefaction, but a malediction. (p.91)
Humans hide their love in the compartments of their body. We take it out in rare moments to caress between our nimbly thumbs and then return safely to where we think it belongs. (p.142)
Outside, we could hear the sounds of husbands saying their goodbyes to their wives. Their cars slowly rolled outside of their driveways, and the doors closed. Finally, we returned to the quietness of the morning where the only sounds made were the toils of love: washing the dishes, drying the laundry, caring for the children, counting the days away to extinction. (p.153)
I didn't expect much coming into this short story collection. Even though I adored the simple and minimalistic production of the book - how small and compact it is, with simple cover and overall white tone, and a lovely typefront, I didn't really know what to expect.
The short stories in this book actually blew me away with its prose and themes. The first story I read I thought, all right, this might be something I'm gonna like. By the time I reached the second and third, especially the beautiful writing in The Dollhouse and The Sandcastle, I was hooked. You know when you love reading something so much you're in a dilemma on whether you should read everything because you can't stop, but you also don't want to finish it too soon to keep all the feelings and the writing as long as you can? This is what I felt while I was reading it. As a result, I tried to space out the short stories, reading only one every few days.
I love how unique and different from each other every story in the collection is. When I look back at the table of contents, I can still make out which story is about which and what I loved about it. I also love how even though they're different, all of them have that same similar feel and vibe going on throughout the story, not just because of the same writing style but also the themes discussed, the small objects mentioned, and the elements taking part in the stories. Elements like cigarettes, animals, couples who don't love each other, quietness, nature, are all intertwined between the stories and you just know it's the same person writing them. At the same time, I adore how some of the stories really feel personal and nostalgic, almost like she was the child who played around in Taman Gajah, or she was the one being cheated on by her boyfriend. It all felt like one person's memories.
The stories were written beautifully, and although it felt a little odd to read an Indonesian person writing in English, the writing style is just wonderful to read. It's clear she knows her English, being a translator before an English-language author. I love how she repeats phrases and even a whole paragraph, I love how she'd put in lyrical words that make you have to stop and catch a breath. I love how those writing styles really evoke the emotions the author wants the readers to feel: sometimes happiness, oftentimes loneliness and sadness and desperation. I also sense a certain sense of passiveness in the stories, how sometimes the characters aren't really relatable and feel detached, even the narrator, but you can really feel their emotions and the lack of dialogue in the book, added with the long-tailed description of places and objects and weather. On some cases, if other people would try and write this way, it would seem too flowery and boring. But Rain Chudori succeeded to make me love and cling to every single word.
Some of my favourite stories are: The Swimming Pool, Monsoon Tiger, and Beneath the Bougainvilleas.
I know this isn't a book for everyone. I've read some reviews saying that they got bored and didn't enjoy the stories. But I know that I love slow, atmospheric stories, where not a lot actually happens, but when you look back you remember only how you felt while you were reading it, and this book is exactly it. I can't find any clear flaw in this book, to be honest. At first I only rated this book 4 stars, thinking, I'm not a huge fan of short story collections, most of the times I'd only rate them 3 or 4 stars because they're forgettable and some of the stories just don't gel with me. Although I do have favourite stories in this collection, I loved every single one of them and so I am changing my rating of this book to 5 stars. It's amazing how despite how I've read a book by her mother, therefore automatically comparing her work to her mother's, this book is a 180 degree turn from Pulang that I just couldn't compare the two of them. Well done! I absolutely cannot wait to read more of her work.
Bookmarks:
Many, as one would do around sandcastles, would appreciate it from a distance but would never think to touch or even come near it, perhaps due to fear of changing its structure or disturbing its existence. They marveled but never dared approach because they realized the frailty of its element, and how it would crumble with a single touch. The sandcastle, wet and gleaming under the sun, waited for the only thing that could destroy it: the waves. And like the waves returning the sandcastles to its natural state, quickly and rhythmically, he destroyed my being. (p.84)
In truth, a man was not a benefaction, but a malediction. (p.91)
Humans hide their love in the compartments of their body. We take it out in rare moments to caress between our nimbly thumbs and then return safely to where we think it belongs. (p.142)
Outside, we could hear the sounds of husbands saying their goodbyes to their wives. Their cars slowly rolled outside of their driveways, and the doors closed. Finally, we returned to the quietness of the morning where the only sounds made were the toils of love: washing the dishes, drying the laundry, caring for the children, counting the days away to extinction. (p.153)
March 12, 2016
Plenty of fancy words. I don't want to make justice on the content. Rather than a short story collection this book is more like a youngster urban diary. Enough said.
August 3, 2016
Rain Chudori must have had a deep understanding in life. It shows. But the thing is, her words has yet to reach her wisdom—she knows what to say, but she has yet to know how to say it.
The stories are filled with superficiality, clusters of mismatched “heavy” words that could have worked just fine (better, even) with their simpler synonyms. It’s like she is picking elaborate words from thesaurus to make her phrase more poetic, but sacrificing the depth of her message (which, ironically, more enticing than her wordings) in the process.
I feel bad for frowning upon her choice of words of all things, but it’s the only thing that bugs me. As I said, the stories are thoughtful, matured, deep; but they’re brought up rather poorly. It’s not a matter of her writing style, though—it’s a matter of experience. Her style hasn’t “ripened” yet, as does her ability to convey her brilliant thoughts through the limitation of words. Give it a few years and she would thrive into the literary talented young writer she is praised to be.
Anyway, the only story that “hits the spot” is “Taman Gajah”. It’s simple, honest, but it reaches me in a way other stories can’t.
Looking forward to read more from her in the future.
The stories are filled with superficiality, clusters of mismatched “heavy” words that could have worked just fine (better, even) with their simpler synonyms. It’s like she is picking elaborate words from thesaurus to make her phrase more poetic, but sacrificing the depth of her message (which, ironically, more enticing than her wordings) in the process.
I feel bad for frowning upon her choice of words of all things, but it’s the only thing that bugs me. As I said, the stories are thoughtful, matured, deep; but they’re brought up rather poorly. It’s not a matter of her writing style, though—it’s a matter of experience. Her style hasn’t “ripened” yet, as does her ability to convey her brilliant thoughts through the limitation of words. Give it a few years and she would thrive into the literary talented young writer she is praised to be.
Anyway, the only story that “hits the spot” is “Taman Gajah”. It’s simple, honest, but it reaches me in a way other stories can’t.
Looking forward to read more from her in the future.
January 12, 2016
2.5 stars. Taman Gajah is my favorite story. It's quirky, beautiful and heartbreaking. The rest is kinda weird for me. Surrealist generasi Murakami lah :))
March 8, 2016
"for those who wait."
This book contains 8 stories that mostly about love, but they are not just another love stories. As Laksmi Pamuntjak put it, they are "... the tale of loneliness and love." These stories are mature, you won't believe the author was only 14 when she wrote her first story, "Smoking with God".
The themes do remind you about how love beautiful is, as well as the perishing that might follow. It is about secret, fear, troubled mind, loneliness, elation, pity, self-invention, sex, family, acceptance - to mention few. I think, although the author uses a lot of metaphors and allegory, the stories are realistic to me, without too much of sugar coating and maybe I can find myself in the stories as I can relate to some of the emotion shown there. You all can relate to the emotions shown there.
Some of the stories kind of giving me the impression that the author comes from somewhat troubled family (aren't we all?), and makes me want to say, "oh, Rain..". Other story has this storytelling style that makes me go all "Damn, girl...". One story makes me want to hug my beloved ones and thank God I have them, while the other buries me in deep thought and contemplation.
Kudos to Rain! I definitely am going to have your next literary works!
This book contains 8 stories that mostly about love, but they are not just another love stories. As Laksmi Pamuntjak put it, they are "... the tale of loneliness and love." These stories are mature, you won't believe the author was only 14 when she wrote her first story, "Smoking with God".
The themes do remind you about how love beautiful is, as well as the perishing that might follow. It is about secret, fear, troubled mind, loneliness, elation, pity, self-invention, sex, family, acceptance - to mention few. I think, although the author uses a lot of metaphors and allegory, the stories are realistic to me, without too much of sugar coating and maybe I can find myself in the stories as I can relate to some of the emotion shown there. You all can relate to the emotions shown there.
Some of the stories kind of giving me the impression that the author comes from somewhat troubled family (aren't we all?), and makes me want to say, "oh, Rain..". Other story has this storytelling style that makes me go all "Damn, girl...". One story makes me want to hug my beloved ones and thank God I have them, while the other buries me in deep thought and contemplation.
Kudos to Rain! I definitely am going to have your next literary works!
June 8, 2016
2,5 rounded.
Beautiful but superficial stories about loneliness that gives me such a surrealist Murakami vibe without his special touch of slapping you lightly on the head (and honestly, I don't even like Murakami that much) that it ultimately falls flat. I love Rain's earlier stories with my personal favorite being Taman Gajah... the ones written in 2015 seemed like it strayed from the firmness she had before, and it seemingly revolve in a pattern that is repetitive.
Quite a decent debut though.
Beautiful but superficial stories about loneliness that gives me such a surrealist Murakami vibe without his special touch of slapping you lightly on the head (and honestly, I don't even like Murakami that much) that it ultimately falls flat. I love Rain's earlier stories with my personal favorite being Taman Gajah... the ones written in 2015 seemed like it strayed from the firmness she had before, and it seemingly revolve in a pattern that is repetitive.
Quite a decent debut though.
October 30, 2016
I love these stories, they're fun.
Suka dengan cerita-cerita di buku ini.
Suka dengan cerita-cerita di buku ini.
February 4, 2016
Nampaknya Rain Chudori memiliki perbendaharaan kata bahasa inggris yang sangat luas. Terbukti beberapa kali saya harus membuka google translate untuk menerjemahkan beberapa kata yang asing di telinga saya dan beberapa kali saya harus membaca berulang ulang kali untuk mencerna makna dari setiap kalimat. Dibalik itu, buku kumcer ini patut dibaca dan i have to say that Rain Chudori is a talented writer.
Setiap cerita memiliki suasana sepi, sendu dan beberapa diantaranya selalu menceritakan mengenai hubungan pernikahan yang telah hambar. Saat membaca buku ini, saya membayangkan setiap cerita bagaikan sebuah film pendek dengan alur lambat, minim dialog namun kaya akan bahasa visual, diiringi dengan scoring lagu2 indie-pop/ twee-pop akustik. Penulis juga lihai dalam menguntaikan setiap kalimat puitis menjadi satu kesatuan berupa cerita pendek.
Cerpen favorit saya adalah : Smoking with God,Taman Gajah, The Sandcastle, The Swimming Pool,Moonsoon Tiger. Untuk cerpen Smoking with God, saya sedikit kecewa karena di buku ini sudah banyak mengalami proses editing, sehingga beberapa bagian ditiadakan, Sebelumnya saya pernah membaca Smoking with God di web resmi The Jakarta Post dan saya suka sekali. Kaget juga karena saat cerpen itu ditulis,penulis baru berusia 14/15 tahun, usia yang sangat muda untuk menulis cerpen seindah itu.
Buku ini cocok untuk kamu yang menyukai alur lambat, ingin memperluas kosakata bahasa inggris dan yang menyukai suasana sepi
Setiap cerita memiliki suasana sepi, sendu dan beberapa diantaranya selalu menceritakan mengenai hubungan pernikahan yang telah hambar. Saat membaca buku ini, saya membayangkan setiap cerita bagaikan sebuah film pendek dengan alur lambat, minim dialog namun kaya akan bahasa visual, diiringi dengan scoring lagu2 indie-pop/ twee-pop akustik. Penulis juga lihai dalam menguntaikan setiap kalimat puitis menjadi satu kesatuan berupa cerita pendek.
Cerpen favorit saya adalah : Smoking with God,Taman Gajah, The Sandcastle, The Swimming Pool,Moonsoon Tiger. Untuk cerpen Smoking with God, saya sedikit kecewa karena di buku ini sudah banyak mengalami proses editing, sehingga beberapa bagian ditiadakan, Sebelumnya saya pernah membaca Smoking with God di web resmi The Jakarta Post dan saya suka sekali. Kaget juga karena saat cerpen itu ditulis,penulis baru berusia 14/15 tahun, usia yang sangat muda untuk menulis cerpen seindah itu.
Buku ini cocok untuk kamu yang menyukai alur lambat, ingin memperluas kosakata bahasa inggris dan yang menyukai suasana sepi
December 24, 2015
I remember Okky Madasari told me, literature is about structure. You should build your story around a structure. The structure can be anything, a regime, government, society, religion, even family. When you lose the structure, when you are too focus on your character, or the story, or the plot, you'll miss the essence of literature.
Also literature makes people think about reality, about humanity. Literature grows compassion. If it distracts you from reality, gives you temporary happiness and satisfaction, then it is not literature.
Well, for me, it is very well said. Literature is not about sophisticated words or complicated idealism.
I wouldn't say that these collection of short stories are not good, but I still feel that the writer add the structure to her stories not building her stories around the structure.
Also literature makes people think about reality, about humanity. Literature grows compassion. If it distracts you from reality, gives you temporary happiness and satisfaction, then it is not literature.
Well, for me, it is very well said. Literature is not about sophisticated words or complicated idealism.
I wouldn't say that these collection of short stories are not good, but I still feel that the writer add the structure to her stories not building her stories around the structure.
March 17, 2016
Jujur saya tidak mau membandingkan Rain Chudori dengan Haruki Murakami. Isi dan gaya penulisan mereka punya keunikan masing-masing, tapi tidak bisa dipungkiri, sebagai penggemar karya Murakami, saya merasa ada pengaruh Murakami di karya Rain. "Surreal", " Loneliness", "Love" adalah 3 hal yang paling sering kita temui ketika membaca Murakami.
Saya suka dengan gaya tulisan Rain. Tidak menggurui dan tidak berusaha menjadi "polisi moral". Tiap pembaca akan menangkap makna yang berbeda dan mungkin sangat personal.
Saya suka dengan gaya tulisan Rain. Tidak menggurui dan tidak berusaha menjadi "polisi moral". Tiap pembaca akan menangkap makna yang berbeda dan mungkin sangat personal.
October 5, 2019
This book didn't tell me stories, it leads me to my own tales instead. I was left breathless by the Monsoon Tiger and Beneath The Bougainvilleas. Kalau orang lain bandinginnya sama Murakami, dari buku ini ku malah jadi inget Lang Leav. lol.
January 4, 2016
I wish I knew what to call the feeling that came alongside these stories. Whatever it was, it was lovely.
September 24, 2016
Complete review coming soon!
June 29, 2017
Paling suka sama Taman Gajah. Gak nyangka sih liat Rain Chudori yang terlihat edgy bisa nulis beberapa cerita yang cukup manis dan romantis.
October 11, 2020
Rain knows how to craft words with feelings.
I slowly read this book because i know her story is the type of paragraphs i would read and read twice in my head before continuing the next ones.
Beautiful.
I slowly read this book because i know her story is the type of paragraphs i would read and read twice in my head before continuing the next ones.
Beautiful.
September 18, 2018
Enjoy it but not completely understand it. (?)
August 9, 2022
"Love is a demand for purity. It is, at its barest form, an attempt to find and discover the impresions we have inflicted on each other." (Hlm. 148)
March 6, 2016
A satisfying short stories collection by someone who you would describe as "Leila S Chudori's daughter & granddaughter of The Jakarta Post founder". Beautiful with sophisticated selected words yet not over-romanticized. Mostly surreal, I don't really want to compare her to Murakami (like another reviewer wrote) but I can conclude her 'writing style' from these 8 stories, which I like quite a lot. My real favorite is 'The Swimming Pool' which vividly brought me to another dimension. It's not 5 stars because I really think she's young, bright and she'll improve even better.
Recommended for those who like Indonesian literature and expect something fresh.
Recommended for those who like Indonesian literature and expect something fresh.
July 25, 2016
My friend told me one day, "The book you delay to read is the book you won't ever read." I'd like to prove her wrong, so I started my 2016 TBR pile. My choice fell to this one.
Not sure if I like it, but it's okay. By Goodreads standard, two stars are okay. My favorite is maybe Smoking with God because it is heartbreakingly beautiful, and The Swimming Pool because that one is the most relatable and realistic and yet... superficial.
Needless to say, this book is worth the money and my time (haha), but perhaps it's just not for me.
Not sure if I like it, but it's okay. By Goodreads standard, two stars are okay. My favorite is maybe Smoking with God because it is heartbreakingly beautiful, and The Swimming Pool because that one is the most relatable and realistic and yet... superficial.
Needless to say, this book is worth the money and my time (haha), but perhaps it's just not for me.
March 29, 2017
Short and enjoyable. Perfect for your commute.
October 17, 2016
1.5 stars. Rain's problem isn't that she can't write, she can. She can tell stories too. But just not in English. I don't want to read another page long sentence please, just write in Bahasa.
When you force language it often comes out pretentious because you string the same words over and over again. Maybe because at the time she wrote some of the stories she was younger? Who knows. Point is, don't force language and don't make fiction an autobiography.
When you force language it often comes out pretentious because you string the same words over and over again. Maybe because at the time she wrote some of the stories she was younger? Who knows. Point is, don't force language and don't make fiction an autobiography.
November 24, 2016
This book leaves me with unsettling feelings--yet comforting at the same time. I don't know. It feels like the warmth of sun that is there but doesn't really reach anything. I don't know. I don't know. However, author's brilliance to capture and tell stories, mostly about silence and maybe even taboo, is something that should be appreciated.
Read
July 20, 2016“'If you ever want to visit, I'll be here, always, smoking with god,' my father said."
At the age of 14, Rain Chudori took her first puff on a cigarette. Sat down next to god, with a lowercase 'g.' And waited.
At the age of 14, Rain Chudori took her first puff on a cigarette. Sat down next to god, with a lowercase 'g.' And waited.
August 8, 2016
I liked Taman Gajah and The Swimming Pool. The other stories kinda made me confused and a little hard to follow. Well, maybe that's just me. However, I liked how she put the words and the vocabulary she used are vary.
June 29, 2016
My favourite:
- Taman Gajah
- The Swimming Pool
- Monsoon Tiger
- Beneath the Bougainvilleas
- Taman Gajah
- The Swimming Pool
- Monsoon Tiger
- Beneath the Bougainvilleas
February 28, 2020
First of all there's no doubt Rain has a wonderful way of thinking. There's no questioning to it. She has her own way on seeing life. Regard of this book I find it hard to finish. I dont know why. For me it is not a page turner. Even so it did not mean i dislike the book. I like it but just average amount. I find some part to wishy-washy but on the other side also very intriguing. I have no trouble by it being written in English, it just that it didnt quite convey her thoughts through these stories. Furthermore despite how I have never be in love before I am a sucker for hopeless romantic stories, yet these didnt really interest me and sometimes make me want to pick up another book just to make me feel something.
Overall my top three are: (1) The Swimming Pool, it has strong daydream esque with a hint manic pixie dream girl/boy to it (manic pixie not in the meaning the female character exist solely to thicken the plot for male characters, but the ambiance it gave to the overall story), (2) The Sandcastle, no doubt if I were in the main character position I too would fall for the painter. He gave me this mysterious, charming, but also cold aura. There's this conversation that really struck by me:
"One day your castle will fall apart," The Painter said. I raised my head from the pillow. "You build this castle around yourself intricately, yet it's made of sand."
"We're all just waiting for the tide," I said.
"It will come."
"It has."
It has me ponder how everyone has 'a wall' for the story it's this sandcastle. and while hiding behind our wall/sandcastle we are waiting for it to be broken. To be destroyed. Either by the tide or other thing. In this story, for me, it's the Painter. I think it's quite beautiful. I also liked how the Wife and the main character has a soft spot for the same men, yet it's a different form. Main character's love is simple like kiddie crush but two level above it. It's simple and not mature like how The Wife loves. I also like this quote: "She realized that men were like a legacy: destined to be passed on from woman to woman and loved into their prime. In truth, a man was not a benefaction, but a malediction.",
(3) Monsoon Tiger, I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It has really strong surrealism vibe to it. I also like how after reading it I thought about how in relationship we 'take' something from the other person to our own benefit. For her, i forgot her name, her relationship with the dude she seek to be loved and that is why she thought him how to read. Meanwhile the dude also taking something from her, which is her unconditional love for him. But that only can go long for some time, later in the story we found out that her love wasnt enough for him that is why he seeks others. I love how this is about letting someone go and be portrayed by letting Monsoon go back to the zoo.
After writing my top three, my least favorite one is Beneath The Bougainvilleas. If it's romance I LIVED for adultery and unfaithfulness, but this one turns me off because it involves her sister. If it's love triangle and involve a sibling I take 1000 steps away from it. I just hated it. But, despite all that it showed us how love can be a different form and the emotions or should I say beautiful emotions did not enough for said love. It also has ms thinking "what the fuck happen" when she turned into a tree(?). Also I kept repeating this paragraph, trying to understands it but I can. Maybe someone will help. Please.
" Love is a retreat from purity. It is, at its barest form, an attempt to escape and recover from the damages we have inflicted on each other. When we speak, when we touch, when we refine out emotions from one to form to another, out whole constitution shifts ever so slightly that we do not notice, how deeply the impressions are. We are constantly falling in love all over again, with the same demands, with the same impossibilities, with the same gesture of resolution for purity, And we retreat, we lose."
Overall my top three are: (1) The Swimming Pool, it has strong daydream esque with a hint manic pixie dream girl/boy to it (manic pixie not in the meaning the female character exist solely to thicken the plot for male characters, but the ambiance it gave to the overall story), (2) The Sandcastle, no doubt if I were in the main character position I too would fall for the painter. He gave me this mysterious, charming, but also cold aura. There's this conversation that really struck by me:
"One day your castle will fall apart," The Painter said. I raised my head from the pillow. "You build this castle around yourself intricately, yet it's made of sand."
"We're all just waiting for the tide," I said.
"It will come."
"It has."
It has me ponder how everyone has 'a wall' for the story it's this sandcastle. and while hiding behind our wall/sandcastle we are waiting for it to be broken. To be destroyed. Either by the tide or other thing. In this story, for me, it's the Painter. I think it's quite beautiful. I also liked how the Wife and the main character has a soft spot for the same men, yet it's a different form. Main character's love is simple like kiddie crush but two level above it. It's simple and not mature like how The Wife loves. I also like this quote: "She realized that men were like a legacy: destined to be passed on from woman to woman and loved into their prime. In truth, a man was not a benefaction, but a malediction.",
(3) Monsoon Tiger, I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It has really strong surrealism vibe to it. I also like how after reading it I thought about how in relationship we 'take' something from the other person to our own benefit. For her, i forgot her name, her relationship with the dude she seek to be loved and that is why she thought him how to read. Meanwhile the dude also taking something from her, which is her unconditional love for him. But that only can go long for some time, later in the story we found out that her love wasnt enough for him that is why he seeks others. I love how this is about letting someone go and be portrayed by letting Monsoon go back to the zoo.
After writing my top three, my least favorite one is Beneath The Bougainvilleas. If it's romance I LIVED for adultery and unfaithfulness, but this one turns me off because it involves her sister. If it's love triangle and involve a sibling I take 1000 steps away from it. I just hated it. But, despite all that it showed us how love can be a different form and the emotions or should I say beautiful emotions did not enough for said love. It also has ms thinking "what the fuck happen" when she turned into a tree(?). Also I kept repeating this paragraph, trying to understands it but I can. Maybe someone will help. Please.
" Love is a retreat from purity. It is, at its barest form, an attempt to escape and recover from the damages we have inflicted on each other. When we speak, when we touch, when we refine out emotions from one to form to another, out whole constitution shifts ever so slightly that we do not notice, how deeply the impressions are. We are constantly falling in love all over again, with the same demands, with the same impossibilities, with the same gesture of resolution for purity, And we retreat, we lose."
September 5, 2020
I rarely dig into a book of short stories. However, my friend Dina suggested a novel by this author, but our local library only had this anthology of short stories in their system, so I checked it out and am I glad I did. Ms Chudori has so many great turns of phrases (even in translation) that I want to list them all - but they you wouldn't need to read the book - HA! There are 8 short stories averaging about 23 pages each. Each story has to do with love in varying aspects, including puppy love from a female perspective and each story is brilliant. Ms Churdori almost writes her stories as memories and as poetry. For example the female lover of Monsoon Tiger says: "'Let me do something for you for the last time.' I took the sewing box, one of the few things I had decided to keep in the apartment, kneeled and fixed the hem of Michael's raincoat. The drops of rain from his collar fell to my face and it felt like it had wept enough for me." And this from Swimming Pool: "'It's going to be beautiful. The world in glass,' he said. I looked at him and saw that however hard I tried, I couldn't reach into his heart. Like a swimming pool at night, I entered slowly, feeling the cool of his touch on my skin, hearing the tiny ripples of his heartbeat, basking in the glow of the underwater lights but I could not keep him in the palm of my hand. The only thing I could do was watch him disappear." I highly recommend this.
November 12, 2016
Termasuk dalam selera, menyentuh, atau menggerakkan, bukan selalu jadi ukuran bagus dan tidaknya suatu karya (bagi saya). Lepas dari siapa penulisnya, Monsoon Tiger menyimpan banyak potensi.
Dibuka dengan menggelegarnya judul "Smoking with god", Rain sudah menasbihkan diri bukan sebagai remaja biasa yang berkutat dalam warna-warni cinta monyet atau dunia sekolah. Ia menampilkan kedalaman yang dewasa. Cerpen-cerpen berikutnya pun menarik. Rain mampu menyeimbangkan permainan diksi, meliukkan plot dan sabar mengurai adegan. Sebagai kumcer pertamanya, ia pun tak meledak-ledak ingin memamerkan kemampuan. Justru, tenang dan menajamkan pemaknaan. Rain juga berhasil membawa pembacanya untuk mengikuti apa yang ia sampaikan hingga akhir. Sekilas saya merasakan gaya Avianti Armand dalam pemilihan tema. Dan sama seperti Avianti, karya Rain seakan-akan tidak ingin mengubah apa-apa dari kenyataan. Ia hanya perlahan menyentuh, namun kuat membekas. Ketenangan itu yang membuat saya berpikir untuk berencana membacanya kembali kelak.
Rain Chudori menunjukkan bakat muda yang menjanjikan.
Dibuka dengan menggelegarnya judul "Smoking with god", Rain sudah menasbihkan diri bukan sebagai remaja biasa yang berkutat dalam warna-warni cinta monyet atau dunia sekolah. Ia menampilkan kedalaman yang dewasa. Cerpen-cerpen berikutnya pun menarik. Rain mampu menyeimbangkan permainan diksi, meliukkan plot dan sabar mengurai adegan. Sebagai kumcer pertamanya, ia pun tak meledak-ledak ingin memamerkan kemampuan. Justru, tenang dan menajamkan pemaknaan. Rain juga berhasil membawa pembacanya untuk mengikuti apa yang ia sampaikan hingga akhir. Sekilas saya merasakan gaya Avianti Armand dalam pemilihan tema. Dan sama seperti Avianti, karya Rain seakan-akan tidak ingin mengubah apa-apa dari kenyataan. Ia hanya perlahan menyentuh, namun kuat membekas. Ketenangan itu yang membuat saya berpikir untuk berencana membacanya kembali kelak.
Rain Chudori menunjukkan bakat muda yang menjanjikan.
June 21, 2023
I bought this book many years ago and only decided to read it recently. The book being written in English is a surprise I didn't expect, and I commend the author for it! That being said, unfortunately this was a rather frustrating read.
This is a collection of stories about love, about loneliness. A lot of them center around loveless relationships. I noticed that there are a lot of repetitions in each story regarding its depiction of love. The author used a lot of complicated, elaborate words that felt... unwarranted? And a lot of run-on sentences, which I could tell were attempt at a style, but it didn't work. I could tell every story was intended to be "deep", but the word usage and structure honestly took me out from these stories.
My favorite out of all of them is the Monsoon Tiger, and my least favorite being Taman Gajah. It is relieving to know that I don't need to read about the colorful potato sack, or the pretty dress, or the tail, or the writer's daughter again.
This is a collection of stories about love, about loneliness. A lot of them center around loveless relationships. I noticed that there are a lot of repetitions in each story regarding its depiction of love. The author used a lot of complicated, elaborate words that felt... unwarranted? And a lot of run-on sentences, which I could tell were attempt at a style, but it didn't work. I could tell every story was intended to be "deep", but the word usage and structure honestly took me out from these stories.
My favorite out of all of them is the Monsoon Tiger, and my least favorite being Taman Gajah. It is relieving to know that I don't need to read about the colorful potato sack, or the pretty dress, or the tail, or the writer's daughter again.
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