Jaipong Dancer

Heyya!

I finally finally finished the book, Jaipong Dancer by Patrick Sweeting!

Synopsis:

Set in Sumatra, around 1950s. A beautiful Javanese girl named Yahyu was a popular classical Javanese  dancer who innocently fell in love with a Dutch soldier, who abandoned her after she conceived his baby. Her family arranged her a marriage with a man she doesn't even know. She refused and ended up in a long and not-so-pleasant adventure figuring out life which tested her belief, principle and values.

Favorite Quotes:

"I think it's better to spend life constantly searching for paradise than to find only disappointment." (98)

"...but now I know the world's not like that. Everyone is fighting and everyone is upside down. I don't know any longer what's right and what's wrong." (321, 322) 

My Opinion:

I picked up the book because of the title. As an Indonesian, the title appeals to me the most and I was expecting something similar to Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk trilogy (which is superb! *biased detected*) because I just finished that book when I saw this.

To be perfectly honest, the book might not be enjoyable for teenagers. Good story line? Yes. There are conflicts and resolution. He provided a lot of background information about Sumatra's condition in 1950s. The description about the settings and characters were quite detail. I also like the way he gave us insight to almost each characters. Good stuffs for a historical fiction.

However, I don't really like the resolution of the main character's problems. It seems too easy. *Spoiler alert* I still don't understand how the popular House accept her only for dancing while all the other girls have to do some 'extra jobs'? And at the same time, she's pregnant. It's not logical. And how we never knew about the belando's business with the owner of The House...

All in all, though, if you enjoy historical fiction book, this might be something to start with. (since i haven't read any historical fiction book hahah)