KL Children Book Fair 2010 begins today!
Details:
22-26 December 2010
Tun Razak Hall 3, PWTC, KL
More info at their website http://www.kualalumpurchildrenbookfair.com/
Despite having a few children's books in my wishlist (for my kids of course) which I intend to buy, I don't think I will be going - I'll just wait for next year's Pesta Buku.
Having thoroughly enjoyed two of Malcolm Gladwell's books a few months ago (Outliers and What the Dog Saw), I decided to pick up his other book which was recommended by my friend Bas, titled Blink, at MPH with my vouchers. Their clever marketing ploy worked on me, and I ended up grabbing the Value Buy 3-for-RM79.90 (one book cost RM32.95). I haven't read Blink and The Tipping Point, so that's fine, but I already have a copy of Outliers.
So, I'm offering it up for sale, a brand new book, for RM28 (with postage to anywhere in Malaysia). If you are interested, please email me at emel.siti at gmail.com
What is Outliers about? I'll mention again here that I really enjoyed the book, and I think it was both entertaining as well as educational, inspiring and thought-provoking. It's a non-fiction collection of essays by Malcolm Gladwell on the theme of success. The blurb at the back read: 'Why do some people succeed far more than others?'
Here are the contents:
Introduction
The Roseto Mystery
Part One: Opportunity
1 The Matthew Effect
2 The 10,000 Hour Rule
3 The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 1
4 The Trouble with Geniuses, Part 2
5 The Three Lessons of Joe Flom
Part Two: Legacy
6 Harlan, Kentucky
7 The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes
8 Rice Paddies and Math Tests
9 Marita's Bargain
Epilogue
A Jamaican Story
Image source: MPH Click blog
Alhamdulillah, I have won MPH book vouchers of amount RM60 in their recent giveaway :)
*gleefully rubbing my hands*
Now, which books shall I pick?
The Big Bad Wolf Booksale (by Book Xcess) is back and is starting today!
Date: 12-17 November 2010
Venue: Ground Floor, South City Plaza, Seri Kembangan
Time: 10 am to 9 pm
Adult fiction and non-fiction starts at RM8 only. Last year I spent only RM71 on 8 books. I'm not sure yet whether I'll be going. I still have quite a huge backlog of books that I haven't read yet.
Check out the website. They listed some of the books that will be there.
Angela's Ashes was firt published way back in 1996 but I've only managed to read it recently. It's a memoir of the author's difficult and poor childhood in Limerick, Ireland. It's very sad to read such hardships, and I cried a few times, for example when his sister and brothers died. I had 'Tis with me as well, so I was fortunate to be able to continue reading about Frank's life in his next book. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy 'Tis as much as I had enjoyed Angela's Ashes. In the first book, the author, as a boy, seems to be strong and brave, intent on helping his family survive and get out of the poverty. But in the second book, when he starts having a more comfortable life, and his family is much better, he seems to be a bit confused and at times almost 'aimless'. It is not my intent to judge him, it's just that I felt, his story became an ordinary life story in the second book. Even the part about his teaching career wasn't very inspiring. There were several instances when he shone as an inspiring teacher, but in general he seems quite ordinary in his struggles dealing with uninterested students and low wages. I guess I wouldn't be looking for the third book Teacher Man.
The other thing that ticked me off a bit while reading both his first and second book is the details he went through when describing his 'excitements' and 'adventures'. I thought, what would his wife and ex-wife be thinking and feeling when reading those? On the positive side, I guess it helps me to understand how easily boys get excited and hence appreciate more on how Islam manages this, by giving guides on covering (aurat), behaviours, boundaries etc. I also gain further appreciation of Islam's ruling against drinking alcohol, reading about how the father's drinking habits had such an impact to his family. It's difficult to understand how a father, supposedly the head of the family, could drink all his wages away and let his family starve and beg.
All in all, I'd still recommend Angela's Ashes as a good read. Borrowing a sentence from the Wiki link above, "Despite all the hardships, many passages of the story are told with wry humor and charm."
My personal target is to read 52 books a year (one per week). Let's see how I've fared up to August (see my list below). 30 books in 8 months, equivalent to 45 books in 12 months, so looks like I might fall short of my target if I don't increase my pace. Since I also want to vary my reading between fiction and non-fiction (fiction will exceed non-fiction, but by how much), BM and BI (BI will exceed BM, but by how much), let me try and break down these 30 books into these simple categories.
FI 17
FM 8
NI 3
NM 2
Woops, looks like I haven't been doing too well (in terms of varieties), I'm too heavily prone to English fictions. 25 fictions vs 5 non-fictions (!) and 20 BI vs 10 BM. Hmm... I guess I read more for entertainment rather than for general knowledge. By the way, the numbers 1 to 5 out of 5 given besides the books' title, author, and reading period is my personal rating.
30. The Automatic Grammatizer & Other Stories by Roald Dahl (30-31 Aug 2010) 3/5 FI
29. Kita Hanya di Seberang Jalan (28-29 Aug 2010) 4/5 FM
28. Step on a Crack by James Patterson (21-22 Aug 2010) 3/5 FI
27. The Witch of Portobello by Paolo Coelho (3-7 Aug 2010) 4/5 FI
26. Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (27-28 Jul 2010) 5/5 NI
25. Jaja & Din by Noor Suraya (18 -24 Jul 2010) 2/5 FM
24. M is for Magic by Neil Gaiman (14 - 18 Jul 2010) 3/5 FI
23. Salina by A. Samad Said (10 - 15 Jul 2010) 1/5 FM
22. Detektif Bertudung Hitam by Bahruddin Bekri (5 - 10 Jul 2010) 3/5 FM
21. Strangers and Lovers Revisited by Robert Raymer (4 - 10 Jul 2010) 3/5 FI
20. Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri (1-4 Jul 2010) 3/5 FI
19. Parker Pyne Investigates by Agatha Christie (29 Jun - 1 Jul 2010) 2/5 FI
18. CSI NY - Deluge by Stuart M Kaminsky (26-18 Jun 2010) 3/5 FI
17. By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept by Paolo Coelho (14-15 Jun 2010) 3/5 FI
16. The Regatta Mystery & Other Stories by Agatha Christie (12-13 Jun 2010) 3/5 FI
15. Sinergi by Hilal Asyraf (1-2 Jun 2010) 2/5 FM
14. Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger (28-30 May 2010) 4/5 FI
13. Inspector Singh Investigates: A Bali Conspiracy Most Foul by Shamini Flint (26 May 2010) 3/5 FI
12. What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell (13 - 28 May 2010) 4/5 NI
11. Inspector Singh Investigates: A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder by Shamini Flint (8 - 11 May 2010) 3/5 FI
10. Dark Alchemy by Jack Dann & Garner Dozois (17 Apr - 1 May 2010) 3/5 FI
9. Wang, Anda dan Islam by Zaharuddin Abd Rahman (10 Apr - 5 May 2010) 3/5 NM
8. Perindu Pelangi by Siti Munirah A Rashid (10 - 11 Apr 2010) 5/5 FM
7. Dingin Salju Indiana by Nurulsham Saidin (6 - 9 Apr 2010) 3/5 FM
6. Business Stripped Bare: The Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur by Richard Branson (25 Mar - 5 Apr 2010) 4/5 NI
5. Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult (3 - 15 Mar 2010) 3/5 FI
4. Perubatan Islam dan Bukti Sains Moden by Dr Danial Zainal Abidin (14 Feb - 23 Mar 2010) 2/5 NM
3. The Dark Tower 2: The Drawing of Three by Stephen King (1 - 12 Feb 2010) 3/5 FI
2. Manikam Kalbu by Faisal Tehrani (23 - 29 Jan 2010) 3/5 FM
1. PS I Love You by Cecilia Ahern (2 - 4 Jan 2010) 4/5 FI
Semenjak saya didatangi kesedaran untuk memahirkan diri saya menggunakan bahasa ibunda (saya ingin ceritakan lebih lanjut, mungkin di post akan datang, insyaAllah), saya lebih proaktif mencari buku-buku Bahasa Malaysia untuk dibaca. Salah satu azam saya ialah untuk membaca satu buku tulisan setiap Sasterawan Negara. Bagi Datuk A Samad Said, saya telah sekian lama mencari-cari novel Salina, kerana novel yang ditulis lebih setengah abad yang lalu ini banyak disebut-sebut, dan beberapa orang kenalan saya ada menyenaraikan buku ini dalam senarai buku kegemaran mereka. Akhirnya saya berjumpa dengan buku ini di Perpustakaan Bandar Baru Bangi.
Sejujurnya, saya agak kecewa. Meskipun saya tahu watak Salina merupakan seorang pelacur yang baik hati, saya tidak menjangka hampir keseluruhan cerita berkisarkan mengenai watak-watak yang sebahagiannya tidak baik dan bergelumang dengan maksiat. Ada kisah seks luar nikah dan rogol (walaupun tidak diperinci), minum arak, memukul, mengherdik, menghasut, dan sebagainya. Saya membaca dalam keadaan kurang selesa, ‘panas hati’ dan kadang-kadang rasa seperti mahu menjeritkan ‘arghh!’ (di dalam hati). Kadang-kadang, saya rasakan seolah-olah watak-watak baik tidak berusaha untuk ‘menentang’ watak-watak ‘jahat’. Contohnya, apabilah Nahidah ditekan oleh ibu tirinya supaya bekerja sebagai pelayan (yang dimaklumi akan membawa kepada pelacuran dalam kes ini), mengapa dia cuma menentang dan membantah tetapi akhirnya akur walaupun tanpa rela? Mengapa tidak larikan diri sahaja dari rumah bersama-sama dengan abang-abangnya?
Saya hampir saja berhenti membaca tetapi saya gagahkan diri untuk menghabiskan, pertamanya kerana masih ada rasa ingin tahu bagaimana kesudahan cerita ini dan kedua masih mengharapkan cerita disudahkan dengan lebih positif. Saya silap. Kesudahan cerita ini seperti tidak memenangkan watak-watak baik. Sesetengah bahagian cerita membiarkan pembaca tertanya-tanya. Apa yang terjadi kepada Zarina? Nahidah? Abdul Fakar? Cerita ini lebih memfokuskan kepada apa yang terjadi pada waktu itu sahaja.
Benar, novel merupakan garapan realiti masyarakat dan barangkali realiti ini perlu dirakam. Tetapi saya mendapat kejutan budaya (culture shock) membaca realiti itu. Benar, kehidupan sesetengah kaum masyarakat amat susah dan miskin terutama waktu zaman selepas perang dan sebelum kemerdekaan. Saya kira saya lebih suka mengambil tauladan daripada kisah-kisah yang baik, berbanding menjadikan sempadan kisah-kisah yang tidak baik, walaupun tidak dinafikan kadang-kadang kisah-kisah yang tidak baik itu lebih berkesan dalam memberi pengajaran.
Sebenarnya, novel ini digarap dengan sangat baik, sehinggakan dapat digambarkan dengan jelas bagaimana daifnya kehidupan di Kampung Kambing itu. Ceritanya meruntun hati. Dialog pada zaman itu menarik untuk diperhatikan (contoh ‘hendak’ dieja sebagai ‘endak’). Namun, saya tidak fikir saya akan benarkan anak saya membaca novel ini, sehingga dia betul-betul telah dewasa dan matang.
(Saya ingin memohon maaf sekiranya apa yang saya tulis ini terlalu kritis dan berterus-terang. Ini cuma pendapat peribadi saya.)
Seronoknya terima bungkusan berisi buku! (Buka pun main koyak saja ;p)
Beli?
Bukan, pinjam.
Terima kasih Ummu Auni Afif (UAA).
Setakat ini dah banyak kali juga kami bertukar-tukar buku (book swaps).
Saya lebih beruntung, sebab UAA rajin update senarai bukunya, senang saya nak pilih.
Saya pula, kurang berdisiplin, senarai masih di takuk lama. Tak adil. Maaf UAA :(
Memang berbaloi, sebab kos pos kurang RM1 setiap buku (jika pos lebih 3 buah). (Eh, betulkah Pos Malaysia dah naikkan harga?)
Penerbit/penulis/penjual buku mesti tak suka baca post ni. (Woops, minta maaf :) )
Berikut dipetik daripada laman web PTS. Walaupun dah terlepas 2 minggu, insyaAllah saya mahu cuba untuk 3 minggu yang terakhir ini :) Manalah tahu, ada rezeki boleh dapat buku percuma.
Anda peminat tegar buku terbitan PTS? Anda memiliki koleksi buku PTS yang bertimbun-timbun di rumah?Read more...
Mari kongsikan pendapat, komen, perasaan anda terhadap buku PTS yang sudah anda baca.
Sertai Peraduan Mengulas Buku PTS bermula 27 Jun hingga 31 Julai 2010 ini.
12 pemenang akan dipilih pada setiap minggu berdasarkan 4 kategori ulasan buku. Hadiah berupa buku-buku terbitan PTS menanti pemenang. PTS juga menyediakan 3 hadiah istimewa kepada pengulas yang paling banyak mengulas buku-buku PTS sepanjang peraduan ini.
Cara menyertai peraduan ini sangat mudah. Anda cuma perlu lawati laman web PTS di www.pts.com.my. Kemudian, cari buku yang ingin diulas dan tulis ulasan anda di ruang yang disediakan.
Tunggu apa lagi? Sertailah peraduan julung-julung kali diadakan ini dan jadilah salah seorang daripada 60 orang pemenang hadiah mingguan.
Tempoh Peraduan
Peraduan berlangsung selama 5 minggu bermula dari 27 Jun - 31 Julai 2010. Tarikh ulasan mengikut minggu seperti berikut:
Minggu Pertama : 27 Jun-3 Julai
Minggu Kedua : 4-10 Julai
Minggu Ketiga : 11-17 Julai
Minggu Keempat: 18-24 Julai
Minggu Kelima : 25-31 Julai
Kategori Ulasan Buku
Novel Remaja & Kanak-kanak
Novel Dewasa
Komik
Bukan Fiksyen
Hadiah
Hadiah dibahagikan kepada 2 kategori:
1. Hadiah Mingguan
Setiap minggu, PTS akan memilih 3 pemenang bagi setiap kategori ulasan buku. Hadiah mingguan adalah seperti di bawah:
Tempat pertama - hadiah buku PTS bernilai RM50
Tempat kedua - hadiah buku PTS bernilai RM40
Tempat ketiga - hadiah buku PTS bernilai RM30
2. Hadiah Utama
Sebaik berakhirnya peraduan, PTS akan memilih 3 peserta peraduan yang paling banyak menghantar ulasan buku PTS.
3 hadiah utama seperti berikut:
Tempat pertama - hadiah buku PTS bernilai RM200
Tempat kedua - hadiah buku PTS bernilai RM150
Tempat ketiga - hadiah buku PTS bernilai RM100
* Pemenang boleh memilih sendiri buku PTS tetapi nilai buku tidak boleh lebih daripada nilai yang ditetapkan.
* Kos penghantaran ditanggung oleh PTS.
* Hadiah minggu akan dihantar sebaik PTS menerima senarai buku yang dikehendaki oleh pemenang setiap minggu.
* Penghantaran dibuat menggunakan pos biasa.
Pengumuman Pemenang Hadiah Mingguan
Pemenang mingguan bagi setiap kategori akan diumumkan sebagaimana berikut:
Pemenang Minggu 1: 6 Julai 2010
Pemenang Minggu 2: 13 Julai 2010
Pemenang Minggu 3: 20 Julai 2010
Pemenang Minggu 4: 27 Julai 2010
Pemenang Minggu 5: 3 Ogos 2010
Pengumuman Pemenang Hadiah Terkumpul
Pemenang hadiah terkumpul akan diumumkan pada 3 Ogos 2010
Cara
1) Peserta perlu melayari Portal PTS di www.pts.com.my
2) Cari buku yang anda hendak buat ulasan dengan menaip judul buku pada ruang carian.
3) Klik pada judul buku yang terpapar pada halaman carian.
4) Klik pada tab ulasan pembaca.
5) Taip nama penuh dan e-mel yang sah.
6) Kemudian tulis ulasan dalam ruang yang disediakan.
7) Kemudian klik hantarPanel penilai akan menilai ulasan buku yang dihantar mengikut minggu yang ditetapkan.
8) Pemenang mingguan akan diumumkan pada tarikh seperti yang ditetapkan.
9) Pemenang akan dihubungi melalui e-mel yang diisi.
Syarat
1) Peraduan terbuka kepada warganegara Malaysia berumur 7 tahun dan ke atas.
2) Ulasan buku hendaklah dibuat menggunakan bahasa Melayu standard sahaja.
3) Setiap ulasan buku hendaklah tidak kurang daripada 100 patah perkataan.
4) Staf PTS termasuk ahli keluarga terdekat (ibubapa, anak-anak dan adik beradik) tidak layak menyertai peraduan ini.
5) Penulis PTS layak menyertai peraduan ini tetapi tidak boleh mengulas buku sendiri terbitan PTS.
6) Setiap peserta hanya layak menang satu sahaja hadiah mingguan yang ditawarkan sepanjang peraduan ini.
Beberapa minggu lalu saya ada menulis dengan ringkas mengenai salah satu novel yang baru saya baca iaitu Perindu Pelangi terbitan Galeri Ilmu. Kali ini, saya rasa teruja kerana dapat menemubual penulisnya, adik Siti Munirah Abdul Rashid melalui emel.
Sebelum itu, berikut merupakan biodata ringkas beliau. Biodata ini dipetik daripada blog beliau.
Siti Munirah berasal dari Simpang Ampat, Pulau Pinang. Dia mendapat pendidikan awal di SK Bukit Tambun, dan kemudian menyambung pengajian peringkat menengah di SMKA Nibong tebal. Dia merupakan salah seorang ahli keluarga GEN 7 tatkala menuntut di Darul Quran Kuala Kubu Baru, Selangor dalam Kursus Persijilan Tahfiz DA-UIA. Dia kemudiannya meneruskan pengajian di Pusat Asasi UIAM dalam bidang Sains Fizikal, tetapi di pertengahan jalan, dia membuat keputusan untuk mengubah haluan pengajian. Kini, dia bakal menyambung pengajian dalam bidang perubatan di Universiti Al-Azhar, Kaherah, Mesir pada September 2010. Siti Munirah juga merupakan ahli Usrah Penulisan Angkatan Pemuda Pemudi Islam (API) dan sukarelawan AMANI. Kedua-dua wadah ini di bawah naungan Persatuan Ulama' Malaysia cawangan Pulau Pinang (PUMPP).
Assalamualaikum,
Pertama sekali, saya ingin mengucapkan syabas dan tahniah kerana telah menulis novel Perindu Pelangi dengan begitu baik.
Apakah yang mendorong Munirah untuk menulis?
Menulis bagi saya adalah satu cabang dakwah. Di samping berkongsi ilmu yang ada dan menyampaikan risalah-risalah dakwah, menulis juga saya kira banyak membantu saya mengisi lompong-lompong waktu daripada terbuang dan sia-sia.
Mengapa memilih genre penulisan kreatif berbanding penulisan lain?
Saya memilih genre penulisan kreatif kerana genre ini lebih ramai khalayaknya serta lebih mudah diterima umum. Jadi, saya berharap risalah-risalah tazkirah saya lebih ramai yang mendapat manfaat darinya.
Mengapakah Munirah memilih negara China sebagai latar cerita Perindu Pelangi?
Saya memilih China sebagai latar cerita Perindu Pelangi kerana saya merasakan negara ini menyimpan khazanah sejarah dunia yang tidak sedikit namun jarang diterokai dalam novel. Saya merasakan Islam itu hidup walaupun di bumi mana sekalipun. Oleh itu, saya cuba menampilkan kehidupan masyarakat Islam yang terdapat di bumi berkenaan. Minat menonton drama-drama Cina terutamanya yang berlatarbelakangkan masyarakat lama Cina mungkin boleh menjadi salah satu faktor yang mendorong saya untuk memilih negara ini di samping mewujudkan kelainan dalam novel sulung saya ini.
Boleh ceritakan sedikit mengenai novel kedua Munirah - apakah tajuknya, ceritanya
mengenai apa, dan bilakah novel ini akan terbit?
Tajuknya Qasidah Untuk kekasih. Novel ini saya kira merupakan novel remaja kerana watak-watak yang terlibat adalah para pelajar yang sedang menuntut di pusat asasi. Novel ini bertemakan kecintaan kepada baginda Rasulullah SAW dan bagaimana cara untuk menyalurkan rasa cinta berkenaan terutamanya oleh para remaja. Dalam novel ini, saya turut memuatkan untaian-untaian qasidah sebagai salah satu bentuk berhibur sambil mengingati baginda rasulullah SAW. Novel ini sudah masuk dalam jadual penerbitan dan dijangkakan untuk terbit pada bulan Ogos. Novel kedua ini akan diterbitkan oleh PTS Litera Utama Sdn. Bhd.
Siapakah penulis kegemaran Munirah? Dan mengapa?
Faisal Tehrani. Saya temui kelainan dalam tulisan-tulisan beliau. Saudara Faisal Tehrani membuat kajian sebelum menulis dan dia sangat jelas dengan setiap apa yang ditulisnya. Saya mahu mencontohinya.
Ini gambar-gambar yang diambil sewaktu berkunjung ke PPAS Bandar Baru Bangi tempoh hari.
Ini bilik untuk kanak-kanak. Seronok ada kerusi dan meja comel-comel. Pilihan buku-buku boleh tahan menarik, tetapi sebahagiannya tidak boleh dipinjam.
Ini bilik Audio Visual. Ada bahan-bahan multimedia seperti CD dan DVD di perpustakaan ini tapi cuma untuk tontonan di sini, bukan untuk dipinjam bawa balik. Anak-anak saya sibuk tengok lukisan mural yang cantik di dinding.
Ini pula bahagian dewasa, fiksyen dan bukan fiksyen.
Ada rak-rak buku baru tiba hari itu (bagaimana dengan buku baru?). Ketika saya berkunjung lagi 3 minggu kemudian untuk pulangkan buku-buku yang dipinjam, rak-rak ini sudah dipasang, menggantikan yang lama.
Perpustakaan ini terletak berhampiran dengan Taman Tasik Cempaka dan Bangi Utama. Siapa yang tinggal berdekatan, ayuh singgah!
This post is originally published by Hidayah in her blog One Day At A Time. Thanks, Hidayah, for the permission for me to re-publish this review. This books sound good, and I can't wait to buy one for my children. Here's her pretty blog badge. (I picked the one with books in it, of course :) )
"Children are made readers on the laps of their parents."
— Emilie Buchwald
Did this bus play a role in your childhood?
It did for me! I remember being excited about the dates the bus would visit my school, and I'd spent the entire recess choosing the books to be borrowed.
For awhile, I've thought about how I've been underutilising the library facilities near my place. The nearest public library to us is in Bandar Baru Bangi, under Perbadanan Perpustakaan Awam Selangor (PPAS). So last Saturday, MH and I brought the kids there, motivated by the banner advertising a 'Pameran dan Jualan Buku'. The kids had a hard time pronouncing the word 'perpustakaan' though. Pustaan, puskaan - attempts by my two-and-a-half year old daughter. My four-year-old son fared better - he managed 'pustakaan'. They were so excited to go this place which their mummy has described as 'ada banyaaak buku'.
One of the objective of this visit was to register as members so that we can borrow books. We came armed with a passport-sized photo and copy of our IC. You see, many many months back, I had gone there earlier and took the forms and these were the requiremets as stated in the form. So I was pleasantly surprised when she said photo is not needed. And I also learnt that they have a photocopy machine there, so you can actually just walk in only with your original IC and you'd be able to register immediately - and borrow books immediately! That's another surprise. The form stated that it takes 5 working days to process the application, so I went not expecting to be able to borrow immediately. Boy, was I glad to be wrong. The thing is, they don't use the library card system anymore. We have to use our IC when borrowing (so that's why they no longer require a photo). I'm not sure whether I like this or not, because this means I personally have to be present everytime I want to borrow or return the books.
Membership is free. A member can borrow up to 3 books at any one time, and the books are due in 3 weeks. The penalty for late returns has increased, from 10 sen/day to 50 sen/day! Between MH and I, these are the books that we chose (well, actually I chose 5 and he chose 1 hahaha!). It's actually quite difficult to choose because they were quite a lot of interesting books. They do carry titles by Stephen King, Cecilia Ahern, Jodi Picoult, David Baldacci, Paolo Coelho, Agatha Christie, Joanna Trollope, and of course local titles by Ilham Hamdani, Abdul Latip Talib. These were just some examples. The collection is very limited of course, but I'm glad we're now able to utilise this public resource.
Members can borrow at any Selangor libraries, provided they haven't exhausted the 3-book limit. The state library in Shah Alam is open every day, but the others are closed on weekends except two Saturdays a month (week 2 and 4 - I always get confused which are those). If it were up to me, I'd arrange for all libraries to be open during weekends (not necessarily fully-staffed) and close them on 2 weekdays (say Tue-Wed?). Here are the opening hours:
Here's the link again, to check for their nearest library.
Novel pertama tulisan Siti Munirah A. Rashid ini diterbitkan oleh Galeri Ilmu. Berikut merupakan sinopsis yang diberi dalam katalog buku Galeri Ilmu:
Akil masih terlalu mentah untuk menanggung musibah sebegitu berat. Mujurlah ada tangan yang simpati, lalu dia dibawa pergi. Belasan tahun dia hidup ceria di Guangzhou, China. Namun segalanya berubah selepas perkenalannya dengan Isador, konflik dengan Ho Man, kemelut hubungannya dengan Xiao Wei dan peristiwa tragik sewaktu kepulangan singkatnya ke Malaysia.
Sewaktu kecil, ibu bapa saya sering membelikan saya buku-buku cerita terbitan DBP. Saya masih ingat seronoknya dibawa mengunjungi pesta buku. Saya tak pasti pesta buku yang saya maksudkan itu hanya pesta buku DBP atau pesta buku antarabangsa seperti yang kita maklum hari ini. Barangkali hanya DBP, saya tidak ingat penerbit lain waktu itu.
Sayang, DBP sekarang sudah kurang menerbitkan buku kanak-kanak dan remaja. Atau sebenarnya ada, tapi kurang publisiti? DBP telah menyerahkan hak mencetak dan mengedarkan buku-buku terbitannya kepada Dawama pada tahun 2002 untuk kontrak selama 12 tahun. Khabarnya ramai pihak yang tidak berpuashati dengan prestasi Dawama. Secara peribadi, saya tidak tahu buku-buku apa yang diterbitkan DBP, dan buku-buku DBP juga sukar dicari. Mujur ada pembelian online menerusi laman Dawama. Saya baru terjumpa laman ini dan masih belum cuba membeli. Kalian ada yang sudah membeli menerusi laman Dawama?
Hujung minggu lepas, saya mengambil gambar beberapa buku-buku DBP lama. Sayang, saya tidak berjumpa dengan koleksi Tidurlah Intan, ada berbelas juga siri itu. Waktu itu, harga buku yang mukasuratnya sekitar 100 halaman cuma sekitar tiga empat ringgit sahaja! Hari ini, 20-25 tahun kemudian, harga buku seumpama ini sudah naik tiga empat kali ganda, belasan ringgit kebiasaannya. Berapa agaknya harga buku yang perlu dibayar oleh anak-anak kita untuk cucu-cucu kita, ya? 
Saya senaraikan (tidak mengikut aturan gambar) judul buku, nama pengarang, tahun diterbitkan dan harga (dicetak di mukasurat dalam). Waktu itu, simbol $ masih digunakan, RM belum diperkenalkan.
-Surat Sarina, Saniah Reduan, 1990, $4
-Tebing Tidak Tinggi, Zailiani Taslim, 1983, $4
-Disket Misteri, Admua M.N., 1991, $6
-Keduduk Pohon Larangan, Agus Salim & Mahaya Mohd Yassin, 1978, $2.80
-Teratai Teratak Desa, W. Zalina Razali, 1995, $7
-Bintang Harapan, Abdul Ahmad, 1982, $3
-Janji Bayan Budiman, Khairuddin Ayip, 1992, $8
-Dongeng Rakyat Dunia V, Yulis Haji Alwi, 1992, $4.50
-Anak Seorang General (Antologi Cerpen), 1987, $4
-Diana, Jamilah Alias, 1990, $4.50
-Fadhila, Othman Puteh, 1980, $3
-Misteri Pulau Hantu, Arifin Ngah, 1982, $3
The queue was long, I thought as I looked at the piece of paper with my queue number. The self-service machines KIPPAS were down that day because they were doing some work to addmore units.
So I left the immigration office for the bank. Afterall, I needed to withdraw some cash to pay for the passport application. I didn't wait long before it was my turn. The officer looked at my forms and said, "Eh, ini kena ambil nombor lain. Sistem dia takde kat sini. Maaf ye dik." He looked apologetic. "Takpe, I'm not in a rush," I said with a smile. I went to the ticket machine.
After my business was settled, I decided to have an early lunch first. Afterall, there were 70 people in front of me in the passport application queue. I estimated that I should be there after 70 minutes, allotting 1 minute per application, given the number of counters pocessing.
I was wrong. 60 minutes after I had taken my queue number, I came back to see that I had missed by 15 people. I guess I had underestimated the efficiency of the team and their system.
I went to queue number counter again and told the officer there my story. Perhaps it's okay to approach the next available counter. "Maaf kak, kena ambil nombor balik," she said instead. "Ok, takpe." And I honestly meant it.
Why? Because I came prepared with a book.
I sat down and continued where I left off. It was a rare treat for me. To be able to really plunge into a book, without the need to do something else. I don't remember when was the last time I was able to do this. I'm applying for my passport for a business trip, so I didn't need to take the day off. I had already informed my boss, and there was no looming deadline or meeting. I did consider whether it was appropriate to use 'company's time' to read a novel, but I could hardly open my laptop there to do any work offline, could I?
I felt slightly annoyed when my number appeared for the final process which was the payment. It meant my time is up, and there's only 40 pages left! And the story plot was at its climax! But I consoled myself in thinking, I'd have the time to finish the book the next day, when I come back to pick up the passport. At least now I know I can finish a 280-pages book in a solid two hours.
Dipetik daripada blog Ummu Auni Afif, terima kasih.
From: Nazrul Samsudin
Date: 2010/5/24
Subject: Jualan Gudang Buku PTS - 29 Mei 2010
Assalamualaikum dan selamat sejahtera.
Tuan-tuan dan puan-puan,
Terima kasih kerana membuka dan membaca e-mel ini. PTS doakan tuan dan puan sihat di samping keluarga tercinta.
Sukacita dimaklumkan, buat julung-julung kalinya, PTS Publications & Distributors Sdn. Bhd. (PTS), penerbit buku umum pelbagai kategori dalam bahasa Melayu no. 1 Malaysia akan mengadakan jualan gudang buku-buku PTS sebagaimana berikut:
Tarikh: 29 Mei 2010 (Sabtu)
Masa: 10.00 pagi - 6.00 petang
Tempat:
PTS Publications & Distributors Sdn. Bhd.,
No. 12, Jalan DBP, Dolomite Business Park,
68100 Batu Caves, Selangor
(Berhampiran Pos Laju dan Bangi Kopitiam, Batu Caves)
Klik di sini bagi melihat lokasi PTS: http://pts.com.my/index.php/contact/
Pelbagai buku terbitan PTS akan dipamer dan dijual pada hari itu. Antaranya novel remaja, kanak-kanak, novel dewasa, novel sejarah islam, bisnes, bantu diri, resepi, pendidikan, keibubapaan, islam, kamus, kesihatan, dan banyak lagi.
PTS memberikan diskaun istimewa kepada pembeli sempena jualan gudang ini. Diskaun standard bagi semua buku PTS ialah 25 peratus manakala beberapa judul buku terpilih akan diberikan diskaun sehingga 50 peratus. Jualan dalam bentuk tunai sahaja. Bayaran menggunakan VISA dan Mastercard turut diterima.
Jadi, kepada peminat-peminat buku PTS, jangan lepaskan peluang memborong buku-buku PTS pada harga diskaun sempena Jualan Gudang Buku PTS ini.
PTS turut menjual pelbagai barang merchandise PTS yang cantik dan menarik seperti buku nota, button badge, baju-t muslimah, file folder, mug, baju-t, dan banyak lagi.
Besarlah harapan kami sekiranya tuan dan puan dapat forward e-mel ini kepada rakan-rakan dan saudara-mara yang turut meminati buku-buku PTS.
Kita jumpa di gudang buku PTS nanti. Terima kasih.
Pertama kali nak mencuba nasib masuk giveaway. Maklumlah, hadiahnya buku - jadi mesti cuba. Walaupun agak last minute - tinggal 2 jam giveaway akan ditutup! Giveaway ini dianjurkan oleh Ummu Mishkah - she's a librarian. Tadi sempat berangan jadi librarian kejap hehe..
Dia anjurkan giveaway ni sempena Hari Buku Sedunia bulan lepas.
Slogan: Saya suka membaca kerana di dunia buku, kembara saya selaut ilmu, seluas pengalaman, sealam faham, dan seindah rasa.
KNV, I’m replying to your comment as a post by itself :) In my previous post, she remarked that I’m diversified (my reading, I presume she meant).
Someone who knows me personally would be surprised to know that my favourite genre is crime (or whodunit, as mentioned in previous post) thriller. I don’t like murders to happen in real life, really, just in fiction. What I found interesting about crime thrillers are not in the gory details of the murder itself, but by the puzzle presented – who did it? And how? And why? I try to guess as I read along, but sometimes I just follow the story. But to tell you the truth, I prefer a simple story – where the murder motives are simply money, love or revenge. (Oh, the glory of Agatha Christies’ stories.) Pyschologically-motivated murders somehow is too ‘complicated’ for me.
Aside from crime thrillers, I also enjoy other types of thrillers, science (like Michael Crichton), medical (like Robin Cook), Dan Brown, adventures. But not really legal (like John Grisham), war or politics. I like Jeffrey Archer, though I’m not sure what his genre is called.
I also like drama, people and romance (not necessarily love story – think Jodi Picoult or Paolo Coelho or Habiburrahman El-Shirazy or Bedar Sukma Bisu by Faisal Tehrani or The Time Traveller’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger). What’s this genre called anyway? Occasionally, I go for chick flicks or something light, for when I just want to unwind and not think. I used to read love stories (like Judith McNought) and historical romance back in secondary school days, but I think I’ve grown past that stage now.
Thirdly, I read science fiction and fantasy fiction, too, though this is more MH’s alley. But no horror fiction for me please (or horror movie, for that matter heh).
Those are fiction. For non-fiction, I like to read essays (various topics, general interest/knowledge), self-motivations or personal development, and books on Islam.
What about you? What’s your favourite genre?
OK, I'll start by declaring - one of my favourite fiction genre is whodunits. A whodunit or whodunnit (for "Who done it?") is a complex, plot-driven variety of the detective story in which the puzzle is the main feature of interest. The reader is provided with clues from which the identity of the perpetrator of the crime may be deduced before the solution is revealed in the final pages of the book. The investigation is usually conducted by an eccentric amateur or semi-professional detective. From Wikipedia.
My favourite author for this genre is Agatha Christie, surprise surprise. This Inspector Singh series written Shamini Flint belongs to this genre. I’ve been curious and eager to read this book since I heard about it last year. I’ve just finished reading the first book, A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder, thanks to a friend’s friend who generously lent it to me. My verdict – good! Here’s the blurb:
Inspector Singh is in a bad mood. He’s been sent from his home in Singapore to Kuala Lumpur to solve a murder that has him stumped. Chelsea Liew - the famous Singaporean model - is on death row for the murder of her ex-husband. She swears she didn’t do it, he thinks she didn’t do it, but no matter how hard he tries to get to the bottom of things, he still arrives back at the same place - that Chelsea’s husband was shot at point blank range, and that Chelsea had the best motivation to pull the trigger: he was taking her kids away from her. Now Inspector Singh must pull out all the stops to crack a crime that could potentially free a beautiful and innocent woman and reunite a mother with her children. There’s just one problem - the Malaysian police refuse to play ball?
My friend A agreed to join me for the Times book sale last Friday despite the fact that she already planned to go there during the weekend. Thanks for the company, A, and thanks for the lunch treat too! :)
Overall, I think it’s a sale worth going to. Recent and popular books were sold at 30% discount. You can find most popular authors here for example Paolo Coelho, Jodi Picoult, Cecilia Ahern, Sophie Kinsella, John Grisham, Dan Brown (even his latest book The Lost Symbol is going at 30%), Stephen King, the teenage vampire series – Stephanie Mayers I think (don’t really follow or read this hehe), and many many more. Not much BM books though. These are found nearer the entrance. Farther, you see the 3 for RM30, RM20 orRM10 ones, but the books here are more difficult to ‘sieve’ through, placed with the spine facing up rather than the cover. With the limited time, I didn’t manage to scour the area much.
One thing, I noted the posters there said that the sale is actually until the 16th of May instead of the 9th (as per poster in my previous post),but unfortunately I forgot to take the photo of the updated posters itself! So, there’s still time if you want to catch this sale.
I ended up buying 5 books for myself and MH (ok, maybe for myself only) and 2 for the kids (also at 30%). These 7 books costed me RM160. I said it’s my two months book budget because my annual book budget is RM1000, not that much eh? The total price before discount exceeded RM200, so I qualified for a RM10 voucher.
I’ve read Paolo Coelho’s The Alchemist and I really liked it, so I was pleased to see his other titles there. In fact, I couldn’t make up my mind which one to choose from the many options! I chose ‘The Winner Stands Alone’ because I’ve read someone’s review (can’t remember where/who) saying he/she likes the book. And Malcolm Gladwell, I surprised myself by picking up TWO of his books, despite the fact that I’ve never read any of his works before. I have heard a lot about him and his books though. I guess the copywriters who wrote the book blurbs really did a good job - I’m sold!
And these books, weren’t bought, but borrowed from a friend’s friend (passed through A). Thanks, kak, for lending me the books despite the fact that you don’t know me well. Terima kasih daun keladi!
I have a date tomorrow with a fellow bookaholic at Book Xcess, Amcorp Mall. I’ve been wanting to go since they open their new and bigger store in March. But then, the store can wait, and this Times sale is only up to the 9th, and the number 90% is really tempting me… I think I’ll give her a call to ask whether she'd mind a change in venue :)
Ok, I admit it - I haven't filed my taxes yet. And there's only a few days left! (Panic!) But at least I got my book purchase receipts in one place. You probably already know that we are entitled for relief of maximum RM1000 per person for purchase of books and magazines. I think this is a very good initiative by the Malaysian government and should be continued, because I do know of people who buy more books (than what they would otherwise do) because of the relief.
The net ringgit value depends on your tax bracket. If you are in the highest bracket, say, which is 26%, you would be paying RM260 less if you manage to get RM1000 worth of receipts. Put in another way, you bought RM1000 worth of books at the price of RM740! So, a simple tip is, if you and your spouse are filing your taxes separately, and the amount of books you both purchased didn't reach RM2000, make sure the maximum amount (RM1000) is reported by the the one with the higher bracket.
Sometimes, when a book seller (from a specific group which I would not mention) come to my office and set up their booth at the lobby, they would put in big words there: "Eligible for tax relief!" How annoying! As if the tax relief is only limited to selected books only.
Anyway, here's the e-filing and LHDN links for your reference.
It's World Book Day today! I haven't had much time to scour the net to see what's happening today, except for this news on RM1000 worth of books for 1000 schools.
Book Xcess is having a World Book Day sale from 21 - 25 April (for selected books). PTS is giving away 30% for all books (wow!) via Bookcafe, unfortunately it's only for today. So, hurry! What a pity I just got to know this. I wish I have more time to select which books I want to buy.
I haven't thought about how I will celebrate World Book Day. What I know is, tonight, I will be reading a few pages each of the books I'm currently reading, which are Wang, Anda dan Islam by Zaharuddin Abd Rahman and Dark Alchemy, a collection of short stories of the fantasy genre.
This book is an absolute must-read! I was hooked from the first chapter. The Time Traveller’s Wife was written by Audrey Niffenegger. The story revolves around Henry who could time travel (albeit involuntarily - he had no control) and his relationship with his wife Clare, and their attempt to lead a normal life. Clare first met Henry when she was 6 and Henry was 36. Henry first met Clare when he was 28 and Clare was 20. The main premise promises this to be an interesting story - when one can time-travel, the boundary between cause and effect, between what has already happened or not, between what one knows or not, becomes blurred. Examples of new context of the word when that I found amusing: ‘I wake up and I find that he’s gone. He must be elsewhen.’ And ‘When are you from?’ A warning, this book contains illicit scenes that deems it suitable only for mature readers.
Another interesting bit about this book is, because it’s written in a first-person view for both Henry and Clare, at different ages, the author has taken care to write in a such a way as to show how a 6-year old or 12-year old Clare sees things differently compared to say a more grown-up Clare. I’ve always find it interesting (I think I use the word interesting too many times) with this method of writing. Two other good examples are The Harmony Silk Factory by Tash Aw where the story is told from 3 perspectives, and hence the narrative style differs in the three distinct chapters. The other book is Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, where the protaganist undergo scientific experiments that altered his brain and mind, and this is illustrated indirectly in the first-person narration.
One of the things I learnt (or rather I’m reminded of) is to appreciate my moments more, my here and now. I don’t time travel (duh), but there could still be tendencies to look backward or forward beyond reasonable limits. Not anymore. Here and now. Here and now.
When I really like a book, I usually try to promote it to my family (depending on suitability). To my sister I said: “Nanti saya pinjamkan kat awak, ok?” (not “Awak nak pinjam tak?” hehe, so pushy). She was skeptical. “Hmm.. taste kita tak berapa sama.” I answered, “Don’t worry, it’s a love story! Sure you’ll like it.” When I offerred this book to MHH, he was reluctant “But it’s a love story.” I answered “But this guy time-travels, it’s interesting!” Haha, different pitch for different taste :)
I'm aware that the film made based on this book is out, but I'm not interested to watch it because I already know the story and how it all ends. I'm also aware that Audrey Niffenegger's second book titled Her Fearful Symmetry is already published and THAT - is in my wishlist :)
What a heartwarming story! A lady in Indonesia, who continues to love reading despite having to drop out from school due to financial constraints, now spreads her love of reading to children in the rural areas, first by bringing books for loan on her bike and now by opening a small library. Read more here.
I first heard about this from Bibliobibuli.
I wasn’t actually ready to launch this blog, but I told myself – enough procrastinating! Since it was the book fair week, I thought it’d be good to just go ahead. But the result is – as you can see, this blog looks 'not-quite-finished’. I need to start filling up the columns at the sides with widgets and banners, for example, and I need to find a better header! I want to find something that is related to this blog’s theme which is books, and in case I can’t find one that I like enough, I might need to make my own, and that will take some time because I’m not good with graphics. In any case, I’ll slowly build this blog. My aim to post one or two posts per week, hope I’ll be able to meet my target. Wish me luck!
Update: MH (my husband) has found a nice image for me to use as header. It's the British Museum Library and it's pretty cool :)
I went to the 29th Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair on Thursday the 25th March. I took a half day leave on a working day because I prefer to visit the booths in a less crowded environment. In any case, I only spent 90 minutes there because I had run out of cash by then! There's nothing like sticking to one's budget like bringing just enough cash and refraining from using one's ATM or credit cards.
Here are the books that I've bought. Several novels, one non-fiction and several mini cookbooks for me, and one storybook and two boardbooks for my kids.
And here's one of the photos I took there. Less visitors on a weekday.
Salaam and hello! My name is Siti and I’m based in Malaysia. I love reading, mostly fiction but also non-fiction, in both Bahasa Malaysia and English. In school, I used to get scoldings from my mum because I read storybooks during the exam weeks. In university, I frequented the public library more often that the university library to get my regular dosage of non-academic-related books. I’m lucky to have met a soulmate who’s also a bookworm. Together, we hope to raise our kids (currently 4 and 2) to love reading, too. My dream job is to get paid for reading books (know of any vacancy? :) ). Mesra Buku means ‘book-friendly’ approximately.
Read more...
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