Novel
Puncak Pertama
Not translated into English
Muslim Burmat · 1988
Synopsis
Ahmad, a fisherman of Kampong Ayer, the water village of the capital, remembers the days of fishing in Brunei Bay with his companions, among them Matyasin, a fisherman and political activist. When the government takes back the district to build a mosque there, he must leave with his wife Urai and their children. Determined to begin a new life, he goes to Seria, a town born of oil, and joins a construction firm working for the Shell company.
Context
The novel came out in 1988 in Bandar Seri Begawan from Brunei's Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. It follows the country's march towards independence and the growing place of oil, through the move of a family from Kampong Ayer to the worksites of Seria and the workers' union struggles. Recent criticism has given it a “petrocultural” reading, and a study has been devoted to it from the angle of happiness. It is translated neither into French nor into English.
Who it is for
For seeing how oil transformed Brunei, at the level of a fisherman and his family.
Prizes and reception
The work of an author crowned by the great regional prizes, studied since by several critics.
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