Novel
Prince of Mount Tahan
Putera Gunung Tahan
Synopsis
The prince of Mount Tahan: two Englishmen, Robert and William, set out to explore Gunung Tahan, in Pahang, to find out whether a hill station can be established there for the British government. On the way, they meet the peoples of the forest. William, accompanied by his wife, reaches the mountain, where he finds Ratu Bongsu, the prince who is its master.
Context
The novel appeared before the Second World War, at a time when freedom of speech was very limited: the author uses allegory to mock the British administration, and also targets the Malay leaders who serve it. A postcolonial reading, published in 2013, shows how it turns colonial clichés about the natives on their head and makes Ratu Bongsu an intelligent and upright character. The book was reissued in Malay in 2000, in 2012 and in 2023, and translated twice into English, in 1980 and in 2019.
Who it is for
A novel in Malay, whose allusions require some knowledge of British Malaya in the thirties; it can be read in English, not in French.
Prizes and reception
Regarded, together with another satirical novel, as one of the two major works of its author.
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