Malaysian books as year-end presents

Susan has declared on Facebook Page that all her Christmas presents this year will be Malaysian books!

This is how it started. She sent me a link to a Publishing Perspective story about how Finns (unlike Malaysians) take their home-grown authors seriously, even though theirs is such a small market. I replied saying, “Obviously, the Finns are proud of who they are. Can’t say the same for Malaysians, who either think they are inferior or superior (bodoh sombong) to everyone else.”

Then Ksyatriya Words N Rhymes chipped in, “It’s still very much a feudal mind, methinks. Everything white/Caucasian is celebrated and the idea the local is inferior is very much rooted in that …” (Never mind the native-speaker syndrome.) That’s when Susan decided to do her bit. Good on you Susan, less talk more action is what we need.

It would also help if countries recognised and respect their own writers.

I was in Frankfurt mid-October. I attended as a trade visitor. First, I felt it was way too expensive to take a space at the official Malaysian stand. Second, I preferred the freedom of walking about, observing and learning from other displays, and meeting people.
This year, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore all had stands in Hall 5.0, and next to each other. (Malaysia was in the middle.) Maybe the organisers thought that ASEAN members would like to stick together. They probably didn’t know that ASEAN does not have a common currency like the Euro, but survives on suspicion, jealousy and envy; with the chances of working together on books and publishing (on a G to G level) ranging from zero to nil.

With the three stands next to each other, it was tempting to compare and contrast; to determine winners and losers. The task was easier than I expected. There were simply no winners. So, which country had the worst stand? Without hesitation, I’d say Singapore. What were they thinking? They had Pearson and Marshall Cavendish promoting 'O'-level English and Mathematics textbooks! And a host of others with their own ‘educational’ books.  (They were probably there on national duty.) Okay, Monsoon Books was there as an indie publisher. I couldn’t help feeling embarrassed. “Where are your general publishers, particularly indie ones?  Where were yours authors and their books?  For God’s sake, this is Frankfurt; show off your best."

It’s difficult to take their own home-grown authors seriously, when the government treats them with such disdain. Yes, authors are dangerous; they can say things the government might not like. But, they are the life-blood of a nation.

Score: D- (Very gomen with focus on KPI, not effectiveness. I expected much more.)

As for the Malaysian stand, let me say the good things first. The design (in black) was minimalist and classy. Then they had one wall for displaying the 50 best Malaysian titles (in Bahasa and English) of the year. This was at least in keeping with the spirit of Frankfurt. Then it was downhill. The cost of participation for publishers was up from RM1000.00 last year to RM6700.00, as a result of which there was only one private publisher present, PTS. The others were government bodies, quasi-government bodies, those who got grants from the government or those who (one way or another) didn’t have to pay to get their space. Less than half of those who took part last year were present. It was sad. (But there were several others with independent stands scattered around that floor.)

Then, they had to bring a wayang kulit performer. I have nothing against him, but why? If the MOT wanted a cultural component, then they should have paid for it. At least, that would have made it cheaper for the rest of us. This was Frankfurt, not a MATTA fair! And what did they expect one performer crouched behind a TV-sized white screen, with a back light, to do? I am unsure if I felt more sorry for him (doing his wayang kulit thing for a totally bored audience), or the uninterested audience trying to be polite at the pathetic display.

Then, they decided not to pay for any writer. Children’s book author and wonderful illustrator, Emila Yusof, who had four or five books on display at the stand, paid her own way, while the wayang kulit man's trip was sponsored. (I was told that three years ago, Pak Samad was knocked off the list for a Mak Yong dancer.)

Score: D+. (Also very gomen. I have learned not to expect too much.)
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The Thai stand was on the other side. Well, to start with, they gave out nice little elephant key rings. Most of the exhibitors were private, though they appeared to consist of the usual suspects – the big boys. They had a good selection of books on display, some of them interesting. One would guess that they had done their homework well before coming to Frankfurt, and appeared to have a much better understanding of the market, compared to their two neighbours in the South.  They didn’t promote school text books or workbooks and, like the Singaporeans, they threw a party. (Malaysia didn’t.) But their stand design was rather basic and not particularly exciting.

Score: C+. (Also gomen, but less so. Since they don’t have that ‘English’ albatross thing hanging around their necks, they are less pretentious and willing to learn. They will improve.)

I wish representatives of all three countries would simply walk around Hall 5.0 (and hall 5.1 upstairs) to see the Central European and Latin American displays, some of which were stunning. One common theme they’d see would be the way these countries show off their writers and their works, and how obviously proud they are of them.

(Malaysian officials often wonder about the total lack of interest by the international publishing industry in some the titles, normally from gomen presses, on display in their stand, of which they are so proud – you can guess which ones. What does one say?!)

Raman

The first 1Malaysia bookshop opens

A Bernama report says: “Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today launched the first 1Malaysia Bookstore at the Kuala Lumpur Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) Building, the renamed Pudu Sentral, here.

“The shop is the flagship store, several branches of which will be opened throughout the country, including in Sabah and Sarawak.”

It was a surprisingly low key announcement after all that fanfare leading up to it. Although, we have been expecting it for a while, and many unanswered questions remain. The report in the (print version) of The New Straits Times only mentioned it ‘by-the-way’: “It also houses the Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia, 1Malaysia Textile shop and the new 1Malaysia Bookshop, which was launched yesterday.”  Readers specialising in in-between-the-lines messages must be having a field day.

According to market talk, this is a joint-venture between ITBM (The Malaysian Institution for Translation and Books) and MPH, a well-known local chain, with the participation of several other local distributors, who appear to have been called up for national duty. Rumours also say that books will be sold at 15% below market price, which brings up two questions.

First, book margins are notoriously small; so how is this 1Malaysia bookstore supposed to make money, when Pudu Sentral is one of the least favourite places for city dwellers -- one to pass through quickly, not to hang-out in.  If run on a pure commercial basis, the overheads will eat up any profit made (never mind the leakages). It’s entirely possible that a long-term sweetheart deal on rentals has been negotiated with the the developers of Urban Transformation Centre (UTC). However, one industry source speculates that they’ll make money ‘some other way’, and that will be the return for their national duty. 

The Bernama report’s last paragraph gives a hint: “Besides books, the shop also supplies school and library stocks.” So, is the 1Malaysia bookshop about to monopolise library and school-supply market? Well, the rest of us in the book trade who have grown up in a decidedly dua Malaysia economy for decades, without expecting anything from the government (except for the occasional crumb through sales by third party vendors), are not shaking with outrage (although we should be), but it remains to be seen how those who have been surviving on this largess, will react.

(It would easy to make money if the government bought everything one published, no matter what quality, and bought all its supplies at a premium, too. It’s a no brainer. But a business is about making ends meet on a level playing field.)

Second, stories are circulating that in future Bauchar Buku 1Malaysia issued to students will be redeemable only at these stores. This will certainly affect many more traders than the first, with far more people will be pissed off. One understands how this whole 1Malaysia bookshop thing is really all about politics; but is it good politics?  (Many friends, more cynical than me, do not expect the 1Malaysia bookshop to survive long after the next GE, but let’s see.)

Still, the core question is: why is the government, yet again, competing with the private sector? First, Dewan Bahasa started publishing books (though they didn’t seem interested in selling any). Then, ITNM (funded by the government, but claiming to be private) became ITBM (although they started publishing before that.) More recently, one hears of Kotabuku (the Book City) going ‘commercial’; that is, competing directly with private publishers whilst having salaries and perks paid by the government.

Yes, the Malaysian book industry is budding, but it’s not exactly thriving, not by any stretch of imagination. We are just picking ourselves up after the collapse of the global ‘mega bookstore’ madness. So, while we do not expect handouts, we would appreciate if the government did not give us the ‘pasang kaki’ either.

The government’s job is policy and governance, not business. Stick to it, and do it well. Don’t meddle in business; your track record is not good.

The English language fixation

"The study of literature in the national education system should not only focus on English literature," said Royal Professor Ungku Abdul Aziz Ungku Abdul Hamid, according toa Bernama report datelined 24 August 2012. "He said the education system should instead promote the study of literature in all of the world’s languages."

Interesting, but not at all surprising coming from the good professor. It is a sentiment I share, and have felt this way for a very long time. (Caveat: it has nothing to do with the 'look East' policy, which was really political and, seriously, quite lame).

Do we have an English fixation? Yes, I think we do. Not only that; some of us even have an England fixation. Ever seen Malaysians supporting the England football team? They can be so vociferous that one cannot help but cringe and feel embarrassed for them. Many English expatriates and tourists (in Malaysia) have expressed the exact same sentiments.

Can the colonised mind ever truly be free?

But that aside, let's examine the question: can the colonised mind ever truly become free? Decades ago during my first trip to London, I was astonished at how Roman everything looked. And a trip to the US confirmed my worst suspicions: why are they trying so hard to look British? Indians love everything English, so much so that South Indian restaurants will try to sell you tomato soup as a side order (or starter) to thosai with chutney meal.

One understands influence, but one also immediately smells worship. Maybe it's the seduction of power, nostalgia, romance, an inferiority complex, a memory of more equal times, or all of that. Whatever the reasons, a large number of Malaysians have a fixation about everything English.

From the technological point of view, it makes no sense at all. England has almost nothing to contribute to the world any more. Their car industry is either German, Japanese or Korean. Sure, the London Olympic's opening ceremony was (surprisingly) well done, but it was all about the past. When Tim Berners-Lee was presented as the inventor of the internet, I cringed and felt more than a little embarrassed for them.)  The closest they got to today was in pop culture, even then the best bits were from the past, from about 50 years ago. The Americans? Ditto. They make great iPhones and iPads, but who else in the USA is making great stuff apart from Apple? Okay, it is too early to write off the Americans, but they are surely not the force they once were. Tech wise, our English fixation is a shackle that prevents us from moving forward; from learning from the Germans, Koreans, Japanese, or even the French, Italians, Russians, Chinese, Indians and Brazilians.

In terms of economics, knowledge of English could (theoretically) be useful for the penetration of Anglophone market, but no mastery is required; ask the Germans, Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodians, or anyone else.

Culture wise, there's pop, and there's literature. Regarding the former, there's no a great language requirement (though the Japanese did use The Beatles to teach English in the sixties). As for literature, my opinion is that, this fixation we have with English is a shackle not a boon.

Reading Kafka

The last English novel I read was On Chesil Beach by Booker Prize winning author, Ian McEvan five years ago. (I also read Salman Rushdie's The Enchanteress of Florence the following year, but I'm not counting that because I tend to get this irrational attacks of rushdie-itis whenever his books come out.) And, having had enough of the New Orientalism coming out of the sub-continent, I avoid Indian writers in English. So, all English authors have been off my menu for a while. In the last decade, my authors have largely come from Latin America, Europe, China, and Japan. (I still have customers who declare quite loudly that they do not like to read translations because 'the meaning is lost'. My response? I cannot imagine my life without having read Kafka, and I don't read German.)

Bernama continues, "Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also education minister, had said the government planned to re-introduce English Literature as a subject in secondary schools." Interesting. My question: what's 'English Literature' the minister is refering to? Would that be the literature of the English people? (No doubt, many parents and academics would think that.) Perhaps, he was thinking of the literature of countries that have adopted English as their native language. Or could it be, simply, any literature written in English? Colonial? Post-colonial? Or could the minister simply mean that English will be taught using literature?

It gets quite complicated only when 'literature' is removed from 'people', particularly, when the latter is replaced with 'market'. A literature without a 'people', or country, regardless of what language it's written in, makes no sense (unless, it's a consumer product -- in which case its study belongs in marketing). It is a record of thoughts and ideas of a people who share a common history and culture. With that in mind, one can only hope that the minister was referring to Malaysian literature written in English, because it makes no sense to have secondary school students slog through the literature of a foreign tribe in a foreign land, unless they are working on a doctoral thesis.

Why do 'English language' departments at universities teach literature?

I am in total agreement with Ungku Aziz when he says, “As a Malaysian, we must understand literature not only in English but also other languages such as Russian, Italian and Japanese to understand their cultures.” Let's start with the universities, where the current situation is quite bizarre. Why do 'English language' departments at universities teach literature? Literature is a by-product of a language (just as an automobile is a by-product of engineering, which is a by-product of physics, maths, chemistry and ingenuity). Literature can be used to teach English, but not the converse. It's a subject that's far more about the culture and history of a people, than language. Perhaps, what the universities really mean is: theirs is a Cultural Department specialising in the literature of the people of England and other Anglophone countries. There's nothing wrong if that's what some people want to major in.  But, let's not call it a language department.

Hence, the argument for a Literature Department at our universities, teaching literature from all continents and all countries, and all languages. It can be taught in any language, and those who want go further could opt to read the material in the original form. Considering the number of translated works there are in English, that would be a good place to start. 

As the professor said, let's not fixate on English literature.

Time for an MAFB Fair -- A Malaysia Alternative Frankfurt Book Fair?

Well, we have the KLAB Fair -- KL Alternative Book Fair -- so why not an MAFB Fair?

The Frankfurt Book Fair is on 10 October 2012, and Malaysia's official Frankfurt Bookfair organisational dance drama has started, and is getting quite tiresome. Again. It appears that the Malaysian pavilion at Frankfurt this year is going to become another event comprising of the usual suspects, for the usual suspects, by the usual suspects. For some it will be junkets: air fares and hotel accommodation, and all other expenses.

Like in the case of anything organised 'officially' by Malaysia, the laws of entropy have long set in.

My first year at Frankfurt was 2010. I was there as a guest of the Book Fair and not the Malaysian contingent, and I had my own stand in Hall 5.  (Many were surprised to see two Malaysian stands there!) Anyway, I decided it would be impolite not to visit the country's official pavilion, and I so did. It was humongous, and some would have even regarded it as pretty.  But where were the books? Then I found them; a couple of dozen hidden in the crevices. It felt like a monumental waste of money.

"A book fair should be about books, not about a manufactured tourism culture," I said to one of the organisers last year. "There are dozens of independent publishers in the country, and they are doing fantastic work."

So last year, we had a real book fair stand, and many visitors and inquiries. The theme was Books Enrich the Mind. (I had no part in making that up!) Books by several independent publishers were displayed, and the stand actually looked good, worthy of a book fair.

Unsubstantiated rumours say that the theme for the Malaysian pavilion this year will be wayang kulit. Don't ask. Is the Malaysian Tourism Board going to pay for it? Again, don't ask. While the cost per exhibitor last year was RM1000.00 (for a 2 sq. m. space), this year (according to usually reliable sources), it will be around RM7000.00. Apparently, it has been decided that publishers are commercial entities, and they should be asked to pay more.

So its back to the usual suspects again. This sum is fine if someone else is paying for it, and for big publishers who have already made it. But for the rest of us, independent publishers, who take our work seriously, who have to account for every cent paid out and received, RM7000.00 is a hefty sum. (This sum does not include airfares and accommodation.)

This gets even more glaring when one considers that a 4 sq. m. stand at Frankfurt (with a tables and two chairs) will cost about RM4500.00, which if shared by two publishers will come to RM2250.00 each. Certainly, it will have no 'pavilion' look, but who needs that if it pushes up costs by over three times?

The idea of a kongsi stand is to bring down costs; so more can participate. It's about sharing. There's no point to a kongsi when some get a free ride at the expense of those who struggle daily to barely survive. With airfares touching the RM4000.00 mark, and astronomical accommodation and subsistence costs, while one does not expect handouts, one also does not enjoy being exploited. Was the budget for the wayang kulit pavilion discussed and approved by all the other participants? How much of the budget allocation is going to be used for airfares, hotel accommodation and subsistence?

So is it time to organise an MAFB Fair for publishers who are tired of subsidising unnecessary and expensive pavilions? With just over RM2000.00 a piece (excluding airfares, hotel and other costs) we can set up a handsome modern stand for books, and only books.

Raman Krishnan
Silverfish Books