, Asia Center
In the time of COVID-19 pandemic when the world and our daily lives have drastically changed and cross-border travel been restricted, what are the thoughts of Asian authors and what messages do they wish to deliver to their readers?
This has let to a start of the Asian Literature Project “YOMU” (meaning “read” in Japanese) which will feature new stories written by 27 Asian authors from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam in multiple languages. The project will also introduce today’s literary arts scene in Asia by featuring various reports and interviews.
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From Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 14,000 islands boasting a diversity of regional cultures and livelihoods, the project has invited five up-and-coming authors to contribute newly-written works that reflect the era of the “new normal.” These authors include Jakarta-based travel writer Agustinus Wibowo; Azhari Aiyub, a writer based in the autonomous province of Aceh in Sumatra, known for its Islamic government; Faisal Oddang, an author and poet from the island of Sulawesi; Intan Paramaditha, a native of Bandung, the capital of West Java province, who is now based in Australia; and Ziggy Zezsyazeoviennazabrizkie, one of the rising young authors from Lampung, Sumatra. We hope you will enjoy their unique short stories and essays.
Introduction / Foreword
Work(s) in Translation
On Sounds by Faisal Oddang, translated by Rara Rizal
A New World, A New Self by Agustinus Wibowo, translated by Ninus Andarnuswari
