What do you think?
Rate this book
The Leeter Tunku
96 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2019
25 people want to read
About the author
Gwee Li Sui
42 books37 followersGWEE LI SUI is a bestselling poet, artist, critic, and translator from Singapore.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 26, 2024
From the book:
XXI
Then got a fox lai:
"Hello," said the fox.
"Hello," the Leeter Tunku politely, turning around to see bo lang.
"Over here lah," said the voice, "under the apple tree..."
"You are who?” asked the Leeter Tunku. "You sibeh hansum leh..."
"I is a fox," said the fox.
"Lai, lai, play with me," said the Leeter Tunku. "I very the sad..."
"Cannot lah," said the fox. "I not tame one."
"Orrh! Paiseh," said the Leeter Tunku.
After thinking a bit, he added:
"'Tame' - means what ah?"
"You not from here one, issit?" said the fox. "You looking for what ah?"
"Looking for peepur lor," said the Leeter Tunku. "So 'tame' means what?"
"Peepur," said the fox, "they got guns, and they hunt one. Sibeh buay tahan them! They oso keep chickens. The only thing of interest. You looking for chickens ah?"
"No lah," said the Leeter Tunku. "I looking for kawan- kawan. So 'tame' means what?"
"Something forgotten these days liao," said the fox. "It means to make ties..."
"Make ties?"
"Aberden," said the fox. "You only a leeter boy-boy to me, same-same as a hundred thousand other leeter boy-boys. And I dun need you. You oso dun need me. I only a fox to you, same-same as a hundred thousand other foxes. But, if you tame me, we will need each other lor. You'll be special in all the world to me. And I'll be special in all the world to you..."
"I start to unnerstan liao," said the Leeter Tunku. "Got this flower... I think she tamed me..."
"Maybe," said the fox. "You simi sai oso see on Earth..."
"Aiyah! Not on Earth lah," said the Leeter Tunku.
The fox seemed very the kaypoh:
"On another planet?"
"Ya lah."
"Got hunters on that planet?"
"No."
"Wah, interesting! Got chickens?"
"No."
"Alamak, nothing is perfect," sighed the fox.
But the fox went back to his idea:
"My life sibeh sian one. I hunt chickens, and peepur hunt me. Hampalang chickens look same-same, and hampalang peepur look same-same. So I a bit sian liao. But, if you tame me, my life will become bright leh. I will recognai footstep sounds different from all others. All other footsteps will scare me into hiding. Yours will call me out macam music. And then look! You see that wheatfield over there? I dun makan roti, so wheat is bo use to me. Wheatfields are bo meaning to me. And that's sibeh sad lor! But your hair keem-keem wor. So it'll be so shiok if you tamed me! Wheat, keem-keem, will make me think of you. And I'll love to hear wind blow through the wheat..."
The fox diam-diam and stared at the Leeter Tunku long- long:
"Tolong... tame me!" he said.
"I wan," said the Leeter Tunku, "but bo eng lah. I got kawan-kawan to find and many things to learn."
"Acherly you learn about the things you tamed nia," said the fox. "Peepur neh take time to learn anything one. Hampalang they buy from the shops. But, since no shop got sell kawan-kawan, peepur bo kawan-kawan lor. So, if you wan a kawan, tame me lah!"
"How?" asked the Leeter Tunku.
"You must can tan ku ku," answered the fox. "First you sit a bit away from me, over there, on the grass. I'll watch you from the side of my bak chew, and you must diam-diam. Language causes misunnerstanding one. But every day you can sit a leeter closer..."
The Leeter Tunku returned the next day.
"Better come back same time lah," said the fox. "If, for example, you come afternoon four o'clock, at three o'clock I will start to fewl happy liao. The closer it gets, the happier I'll fewl. At four o'clock, I will fuss and stress - got meaning of happiness liddat! But, if you own time own target, I neh know when to be redi... We need rituals."
"Ritual is what?" asked the Leeter Tunku.
"Something often forgotten liao," said the fox. "It's what makes one day different from other days and one hour different from other hours. My hunters, for example, got a ritual. Every Thursday, they go joget with char bors in the kampung. So Thursday is my special day! I can go jalan-jalan in the vineyards. If the hunters own time own target go joget, then all the days same-same, and I bo holiday liao."
So the Leeter Tunku tamed the fox. And when the time to cabut came:
"Alamak," said the fox, "I ai cry liao."
"Your own fault lor," said the Leeter Tunku. "I deen wan to hurt you, but you said to tame you..."
"Aberden," said the fox.
"But you will cry!" said the Leeter Tunku.
"Aberden," said the fox.
"So liddat is good meh?"
"Good because of wheat colour mah," said the fox.
Then he added:
"Go visit the roses again lah. You will unnerstan how yours is special in all the world. Then come back to say bye bye, and I'll tell you a secret."
So the Leeter Tunku went to visit the roses again.
"You not at all like my rose leh, nothing at all," he told them. "Bo lang tamed you, and you got tame bo lang. You are what my fox was. He only a fox, same-same as a hundred thousand other foxes. But I made him my kawan, and now he's special in all the world."
And the roses felt paiseh.
"You are cantik but empty," he said some more. "I cannot mati for you lor. Of course, to a passing stranger, my rose looks same-same as you. But she is more tok kong to me than hampalang you all because I got water her. Because I got put glass cover over her. Because I got shelter her with a screen. Because I got kill hampalang caterpillars (except two or three for butterflies). Because it was her I got listen to complain lah, hao lian lah, even diam-diam. Because she is my rose."
Then he went back to the fox:
"Bye bye," he said.
"Bye bye," said the fox. "This is my secret. Simper-simper one: you can see with your heart nia. What is tok kong the bak chew cannot see."
"What is tok kong the bak chew cannot see," the Leeter Tunku repeated so that he buay forget.
"The time you wasted on your rose is what makes her tok kong."
"The time I wasted on my rose is...," the Leeter Tunku repeated so that he buay forget.
"Peepur forgot this truth liao," said the fox. "But you mustn't hor. You are responsible forever for what you tamed. You are responsible for your rose..."
"I is responsible for my rose...," the Leeter Tunku repeated so that he buay forget.
XXI
Then got a fox lai:
"Hello," said the fox.
"Hello," the Leeter Tunku politely, turning around to see bo lang.
"Over here lah," said the voice, "under the apple tree..."
"You are who?” asked the Leeter Tunku. "You sibeh hansum leh..."
"I is a fox," said the fox.
"Lai, lai, play with me," said the Leeter Tunku. "I very the sad..."
"Cannot lah," said the fox. "I not tame one."
"Orrh! Paiseh," said the Leeter Tunku.
After thinking a bit, he added:
"'Tame' - means what ah?"
"You not from here one, issit?" said the fox. "You looking for what ah?"
"Looking for peepur lor," said the Leeter Tunku. "So 'tame' means what?"
"Peepur," said the fox, "they got guns, and they hunt one. Sibeh buay tahan them! They oso keep chickens. The only thing of interest. You looking for chickens ah?"
"No lah," said the Leeter Tunku. "I looking for kawan- kawan. So 'tame' means what?"
"Something forgotten these days liao," said the fox. "It means to make ties..."
"Make ties?"
"Aberden," said the fox. "You only a leeter boy-boy to me, same-same as a hundred thousand other leeter boy-boys. And I dun need you. You oso dun need me. I only a fox to you, same-same as a hundred thousand other foxes. But, if you tame me, we will need each other lor. You'll be special in all the world to me. And I'll be special in all the world to you..."
"I start to unnerstan liao," said the Leeter Tunku. "Got this flower... I think she tamed me..."
"Maybe," said the fox. "You simi sai oso see on Earth..."
"Aiyah! Not on Earth lah," said the Leeter Tunku.
The fox seemed very the kaypoh:
"On another planet?"
"Ya lah."
"Got hunters on that planet?"
"No."
"Wah, interesting! Got chickens?"
"No."
"Alamak, nothing is perfect," sighed the fox.
But the fox went back to his idea:
"My life sibeh sian one. I hunt chickens, and peepur hunt me. Hampalang chickens look same-same, and hampalang peepur look same-same. So I a bit sian liao. But, if you tame me, my life will become bright leh. I will recognai footstep sounds different from all others. All other footsteps will scare me into hiding. Yours will call me out macam music. And then look! You see that wheatfield over there? I dun makan roti, so wheat is bo use to me. Wheatfields are bo meaning to me. And that's sibeh sad lor! But your hair keem-keem wor. So it'll be so shiok if you tamed me! Wheat, keem-keem, will make me think of you. And I'll love to hear wind blow through the wheat..."
The fox diam-diam and stared at the Leeter Tunku long- long:
"Tolong... tame me!" he said.
"I wan," said the Leeter Tunku, "but bo eng lah. I got kawan-kawan to find and many things to learn."
"Acherly you learn about the things you tamed nia," said the fox. "Peepur neh take time to learn anything one. Hampalang they buy from the shops. But, since no shop got sell kawan-kawan, peepur bo kawan-kawan lor. So, if you wan a kawan, tame me lah!"
"How?" asked the Leeter Tunku.
"You must can tan ku ku," answered the fox. "First you sit a bit away from me, over there, on the grass. I'll watch you from the side of my bak chew, and you must diam-diam. Language causes misunnerstanding one. But every day you can sit a leeter closer..."
The Leeter Tunku returned the next day.
"Better come back same time lah," said the fox. "If, for example, you come afternoon four o'clock, at three o'clock I will start to fewl happy liao. The closer it gets, the happier I'll fewl. At four o'clock, I will fuss and stress - got meaning of happiness liddat! But, if you own time own target, I neh know when to be redi... We need rituals."
"Ritual is what?" asked the Leeter Tunku.
"Something often forgotten liao," said the fox. "It's what makes one day different from other days and one hour different from other hours. My hunters, for example, got a ritual. Every Thursday, they go joget with char bors in the kampung. So Thursday is my special day! I can go jalan-jalan in the vineyards. If the hunters own time own target go joget, then all the days same-same, and I bo holiday liao."
So the Leeter Tunku tamed the fox. And when the time to cabut came:
"Alamak," said the fox, "I ai cry liao."
"Your own fault lor," said the Leeter Tunku. "I deen wan to hurt you, but you said to tame you..."
"Aberden," said the fox.
"But you will cry!" said the Leeter Tunku.
"Aberden," said the fox.
"So liddat is good meh?"
"Good because of wheat colour mah," said the fox.
Then he added:
"Go visit the roses again lah. You will unnerstan how yours is special in all the world. Then come back to say bye bye, and I'll tell you a secret."
So the Leeter Tunku went to visit the roses again.
"You not at all like my rose leh, nothing at all," he told them. "Bo lang tamed you, and you got tame bo lang. You are what my fox was. He only a fox, same-same as a hundred thousand other foxes. But I made him my kawan, and now he's special in all the world."
And the roses felt paiseh.
"You are cantik but empty," he said some more. "I cannot mati for you lor. Of course, to a passing stranger, my rose looks same-same as you. But she is more tok kong to me than hampalang you all because I got water her. Because I got put glass cover over her. Because I got shelter her with a screen. Because I got kill hampalang caterpillars (except two or three for butterflies). Because it was her I got listen to complain lah, hao lian lah, even diam-diam. Because she is my rose."
Then he went back to the fox:
"Bye bye," he said.
"Bye bye," said the fox. "This is my secret. Simper-simper one: you can see with your heart nia. What is tok kong the bak chew cannot see."
"What is tok kong the bak chew cannot see," the Leeter Tunku repeated so that he buay forget.
"The time you wasted on your rose is what makes her tok kong."
"The time I wasted on my rose is...," the Leeter Tunku repeated so that he buay forget.
"Peepur forgot this truth liao," said the fox. "But you mustn't hor. You are responsible forever for what you tamed. You are responsible for your rose..."
"I is responsible for my rose...," the Leeter Tunku repeated so that he buay forget.
Read
July 30, 2019I love everything related to The Little Prince , how could I resist?
October 6, 2021
Brilliant adaptation by Dr Gwee la!!! Steady Pom pii pii!
I loved it so much, I used it when proposing to my then-girlfriend (now wife). Surrounded by books in the Epigram-Huggs cafe, and reading off the Singlish and English texts of The Little Price juxtaposed beside each other, I went down on my knees to ask for her hand... ❤️
I loved it so much, I used it when proposing to my then-girlfriend (now wife). Surrounded by books in the Epigram-Huggs cafe, and reading off the Singlish and English texts of The Little Price juxtaposed beside each other, I went down on my knees to ask for her hand... ❤️
June 17, 2023
A very difficult read. A lot of the words passed off as “Singlish” aren’t quite what a typical Singlish speaker would use.
November 11, 2019
Re-reading Saint Exupéry’s The Little Prince is always a pleasure, but listening to this Singlish “translation” at the Writers Festival was a pure delight. The author, dressed in khaki jumpsuit and yellow scarf, was accompanied by a little harpist and a long-eared fox who announced the chapter numbers. Wah liao, so shiok one. Great way for a grown-up like me to remind herself of the kid she once was.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews