TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post
The knack: Jesse Q. Sutanto has a knack for writing stories brimming with humor, but her greatest strength is her versatility. (Courtesy of Donny Wu)
The knack: Jesse Q. Sutanto has a knack for writing stories brimming with humor, but her greatest strength is her versatility. (Courtesy of Donny Wu)
Books

Jesse Q. Sutanto returns with cozy murder mystery

Slowly but surely building a reputation as one of the most prolific and versatile writers in the industry, Jesse Q. Sutanto’s new book Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers will be released on March 14.

2 years ago
Books

'Mountains More Ancient' sheds light on Indonesian slavery in South Africa

Author Isna Marifa discusses her time with the Cape Malay people and how it influenced her novel Mountains More Ancient.

2 years ago
Books

Understanding the impact of Pramoedya’s 'Buru Quartet'

Leading Australian expert on Indonesia Max Lane recounts late Indonesian literary giant Pramoedya Ananta Toer’s role in inspiring the downfall of former president Soeharto’s New Order regime through his Buru Quartet tetralogy

2 years ago

The Latest

Books

BTS effect resurrects out-of-print book on early death

The leader of K-pop sensation BTS has turned an out-of-print book into a bestseller in South Korea in just days, as fans flocked to get a copy after he was seen reading it.

3 years ago
Books

Driven by design: Indie publishers bring back love for physical books

Indonesian indie publishers reignite excitement in books through unique designs and presentation.

3 years ago
Books

Sleeping on sidewalks: Photobook captures the rambunctious realities of touring punk bands

A new photobook documents the band as they tour Southeast Asia in all its ragged glory

3 years ago
Books

Grim romance: Eka Kurniawan on ill-fated characters and writing what he knows

Writer Eka Kurniawan’s Sumur is a gripping novella filled with forbidding allegories about climate change and its effects on humanity’s relationship with itself and its surroundings.

3 years ago
Books

Walter Isaacson to pen book on Elon Musk

"If you're curious about Tesla, SpaceX & my general goings on, @WalterIsaacson is writing a biography," Musk tweeted late on Wednesday.

3 years ago
Books

Plath love letters to Hughes, wedding rings sold at auction

The online sale of 55 lots from the private collection of their daughter Frieda Hughes had opened on July 9 at Sotheby's in London, and raised more than three times the estimate.

3 years ago
Books premium

'Young Soeharto': Jenkins details potentially formative events in ex-president's early years

David Jenkins' biography of Indonesia's second and longest ruling president, Soeharto, is a comprehensive and compelling read, with at least two more volumes to follow.

3 years ago
Books

UK heritage charity flags Enid Blyton's 'racism'

English Heritage, a charity that maintains historic buildings and commemorates famous residents, had updated its website to say her work has been criticized "for its racism, xenophobia and lack of literary merit".

3 years ago
Books

Recipe for kindness : Australian chef’s book raises funds for Bali-based charities

Chef Dean Keddell sets out to help Balinese people in need and finds himself being repaid with an overabundance of kindness. 

3 years ago
Books premium

On murderous blind dates and aiming low as a writer: Jesse Q. Sutanto’s literary voice

The writer’s recently published novel Dial A for Aunties is a refreshing mix of rom-com and murder mystery – and it is coming to Netflix soon.

4 years ago
Books premium

'The Untold Magellan Story': New nonfiction reveals 1519 global circumnavigation journey in Magellan's words

A newly published book on Magellan's circumnavigation of the globe reveals that a native of modern-day Sumatra had a hand in cementing the Portuguese navigator's place in history.

4 years ago
Books

'Very Hungry Caterpillar' author Eric Carle dies aged 91

Eric Carle, author and illustrator of the beloved children's classic The Very Hungry Caterpillar, has died aged 91.

4 years ago
Books

Not our fate: Researcher unearths roots of racism against Chinese-Indonesians

Writer and researcher Widjajanti W. Dharmowijono looks into her country's history to understand racial tensions.

4 years ago
Books

Book piracy: Cash-strapped and hungry for knowledge, or simply fraud?

Book piracy has been prevalent in Indonesia and the digital era has made it all the more  easy for both buyers and sellers. While book lovers might say they go for pirated books because they're strapped for cash, those in the legitimate industry aren’t buying the excuse. Where do you stand on the issue, and is there a solution?

4 years ago
Books

Eco brick library for Myanmar orphans faces coup delays

Library for orphans in Yangon, built of recycled plastic waste, has been indefinitely deferred its opening by Myanmar's bloody coup.

4 years ago
Books premium

Jakarta makes bid for UNESCO titles in literature

Jakarta is seeking international accolades to brand itself as a city with deep appreciation for literature and the publishing world, but readers and publishers have suggested administrators get a reality check.

4 years ago
Books

More young Japanese look to Karl Marx amid pandemic, climate crisis

The boom has been ignited by a 34-year-old associate professor at Osaka City University who reimagined the theory expounded in the 19th-century German thinker's seminal "Das Kapital" from the perspective of environmental conservation in a bestselling book published last September.

4 years ago
Books

Printing halted after allegations against Philip Roth biographer

In a statement, W.W. Norton said that it will be "permanently putting out of print" the book titled "Philip Roth: The Biography," by Blake Bailey, who has been accused of multiple instances of assault over the past 10 days, stemming from his time as a middle school teacher in New Orleans.

4 years ago
Books

As Kinokuniya and more bookstores close down, book lovers pay tribute

Online bookstores are mushrooming while their physical counterparts are losing customers. As this process of bookstore digitization takes place, The Jakarta Post talks to bookstore owners and avid readers about what is lost and what is gained.

4 years ago
Books

New JK Rowling children's book coming in October

The Scottish author's latest will be released simultaneously in 20 different countries and multiple languages on October 12, French publisher Gallimard said.

4 years ago
Books

Hillary Clinton and Louise Penny to publish political thriller

State of Terror will tell the story of a novice secretary of state serving in the administration of her political rival as a "series of terrorist attacks throws the global order into disarray."

4 years ago
Books

Harvard astronomer argues alien vessel paid us a visit in 2017

That's the premise of a new book by a top astronomer, who argues that the simplest and best explanation for the highly unusual characteristics of an interstellar object that sped through our solar system in 2017 is that it was alien technology.

4 years ago
Books

Kardashian thief recounts Paris heist in tell-all book

Yunice Abbas, one of five men who robbed US media personality Kim Kardashian at her hotel in Paris in 2016, has authored a book detailing the incident.

4 years ago
Books

Spotify tests audiobooks of classics including 'Persuasion,' 'Frankenstein'

The platform known best for its music has used podcasts to drive growth since 2019, and recently began bolstering its audiobook selection.

4 years ago
Books premium

‘Hunting for Muhammad’: Feby Indirani seeks to transcend political polarization

Indonesian writer Feby Indirani attempts to go beyond ideological polarization by presenting the complex nuances of current sociopolitical lives through her work.

4 years ago
Books premium

‘Kisah Kebaya’: Labor of love on Indonesia’s sartorial icon

The 340-page book offers A-to-Z knowledge about Indonesia’s traditional tunic-like blouse, including tips on how to make them at home.

4 years ago
Books

‘Jakarta Tails’: A cat’s-eye view of human flaws

Writer Pallavi Aiyar and her globetrotting cats, Tofu and Soyabean, return for another adventure, this time, in Indonesia.

4 years ago
Books

Epilogue for an era: The story of Aksara Kemang

How a bookstore shaped a culture.

4 years ago
Books

After years in a drawer, Tintin painting tipped to fetch over 2 million euros

A painting of comic book hero Tintin that for years was kept folded in a drawer is to go on sale at a Paris auction house on Thursday with an estimated sale price of more than 2 million euros.

4 years ago
Books

Life as illustrated by Aimée de Jongh

She once called it quits, but Aimée de Jongh returns with another critically and commercially successful work.

4 years ago

Latest Videos