Current science fiction and fantasy is heavily Anglophonic. English is an imperialistic language. I would like to see more science fiction and fantasy, especially from Southeast Asian, written in the languages of the region. For this edition of SEA Quest, I am focusing on two writers who write in Bahasa Melayu(or Malay).
Previously, I wrote about Tunku Halim and Eve Shi who also write in their own language. I would like to highlight Isa Kamari and Hassan Hasaa’ Ree Ali.
Isa Kamari
Isa Kamari is a prominent figure in the Singaporean Malay literary scene. He has received many accolades and awards for his literary work. He writes from a broad range of genres, from script-writing to lyrics. He also writes speculative fiction with The Tower and 1819 being examples. The Tower is translated by Alfian Sa’at into English. The original title is Menara. 1819 is a historical novel with an interesting perspective on the founding of Singapore, focusing on the personalities such as Stamford Raffles.
Hassan Hasaa’ Ree Ali
Hassan Hasaa’ Ree Ali is a graduate from the National Arts Council Mentor Access Project with Mr. Anuar Othman as his mentor. His short story collection Selamat Malam Caesar (Good Night Caesar) was shortlisted for the 2014 Singapore Literature Prize. He came in 1st for Sayembara Nokhta Putih with his science fiction short story ‘Souvenir Dari Angkasa Lepas’ and won the 3rd prize in the 2007 Golden Point Award for the Malay short story category.
Links:
Isa Kamari
His bibliography: http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_991_2010-03-26.html
The Tower (Menara): https://shop.epigrambooks.sg/products/the-tower
Hassan Hasaa’ Ree Ali
His profile: https://alap.bookcouncil.sg/courses/trainer/hassan-hasaaree-ali
