27 Mar Rehman Rashid: For Those Gone Before Me

Once in a while a book comes along that captures the zeitgeist, the defining spirit of the times. Peninsula: A Story of Malaysia by Rehman Rashid lays claim to being just such an offering. It’s certainly a (very) personal memoir – including a loving account of courtship ‘with the enthusiasm of a bower bird’. But it’s also a report (though that should not imply dull worthiness) on the generational changes Malaysia has undergone since independence. In twenty sharply observed chapters, Peninsula examines these transformations – with their roots in the past and with intended and unintended consequences for the future. As you’d expect the narrative is carried by a real love for language, engaging characterisation of those well met (and not so well met), and sharp control of dialogue. Rehman dedicates the book to “those gone before me”. Join us in celebrating the book’s launch and an engaging dialogue between exemplars of two generations of journalists.

SPEAKER The acclaimed journalist Rehman Rashid has spent an award-winning career chronicling and critiquing the Malaysian experience. He was a leader writer and columnist for the New Straits Times before joining Asiaweek in Hong Kong as a senior writer. He has published an autobiographical book A Malaysian Journey (1993/2007), while Peninsula: A Story of Malaysia is published by Fergana Arts. He’s been known to occasionally tread the boards.

DISCUSSANT Jahabar Sadiq is a journalist seeking to explain and inform the world to anyone keen to know. He was last running The Malaysian Insider until it became sidelined as the outsider.

Nusantara Forum  Saturday 2 April 2016, 7.30pm to 10.00pm