VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Welcome back to Book and Film Review, where we will review Indonesian books and movies. In today's edition, we will review a novel entitled "Claires" written by Valerie Patkar. Valerie Patkar herself, besides being a writer, is a mining engineer. Claires is her first work which was released in March 2018. Before published as a book, Claires had been published online in 2015. For Valerie, her writing inspirations are simple things: strangers on the street, dining table, empty cups, and many others. The other works of Valerie can be found online, namely Nonversation, Loversation, and Deverra which soon to be published. The book is about Claire Paveitria and her love story with Kai Deverra and Ares Nota. Claire Paveitria is an England-Bali descent student who possessess beautiful appearance and a boyfriend named Kai Deverra - an aspiring formula one racer in Silverstone, England. Claire and Kai are perfect pair: both having good appearance; loving, supporting, trusting, and understanding each other. During 4 years of relationship, they never fight. Their relationship is perfect from the outside, but apparently empty inside. Claire and Kai never have revealed what they feel. The long distance relationship began without problem. The meeting of Claire and Ares changes everything. Ares Nota, son of a billionare - Serge Nota, is a 24 year old childish guy who never knows the meaning of love. For him, women are just toys, disposable when he is bored. Their coincidental meeting changes both's lives. Ares who never believes in love, finds comfort in Claire. While Claire learns with Ares that loving must  be happy. From Claire, Ares learns to grow up and to respect love. The closeness of Claire and Ares, as well as Kai still with Claire, force her to decide between Kai - the home she can returnt to which promises perfection; or Ares - the third person who suddenly come, but brings her true happiness. Valerie Patkar presents every character with strong traits. Claire who is matured, loves order, and hates to do childish things; Kai is ambitious, matured, but boring; and Ares is selfish, unpredictable, and childish; they were depicted along with the plot. Every description of every events and or characters' behavior are clear, making it easy for the reader to imagine it. The beauty of Bali Island as the setting incrases the romance between Claire, Ares, and Kai. Although the story starts boring and predictable, the author put a surprise in the middle, making the readers curious about the end of Claire's story. The 377-page novel can play readers' emotion. The diction can truly tell the love between Claire and Ares, and make the readers' cry when Claire, Kai, and Ares are at their lowest point. The message from Valerie Patkar is also conveyed well. All components of the novel complement each other, making it an interesting and entertaining to read. 

"Love those who makes you happy, not those who makes you perfect. Since perfection does not guarantee your happiness. But, happiness can always make your life perfect." 

It was a quote from a dialog between Claire and her father, telling that perfection cannot always present happiness. What is perfection, if there is something to sacrifice or to ignore? Sound selfish, but we can learn from this book that being selfish is not always bad. Sometimes we need to be selfish to be happy. Like two opposing magnetic pole, the book tells that two opposites can create something beautiful. Claires helps the reader to know love from different perspectives and forms. The appeal of Valerie Patkar's work is the qutoes, about loves, family, and many others.  That was our brief review of a novel entitled "Claires" by Valerie Patkar. 

Welcome back to Book and Film Review, where we will review Indonesian books and movies. In today's edition, we will review a novel entitled "Claires" written by Valerie Patkar. Valerie Patkar herself, besides being a writer, is a mining engineer. Claires is her first work which was released in March 2018. Before published as a book, Claires had been published online in 2015. For Valerie, her writing inspirations are simple things: strangers on the street, dining table, empty cups, and many others. The other works of Valerie can be found online, namely Nonversation, Loversation, and Deverra which soon to be published. The book is about Claire Paveitria and her love story with Kai Deverra and Ares Nota. Claire Paveitria is an England-Bali descent student who possessess beautiful appearance and a boyfriend named Kai Deverra - an aspiring formula one racer in Silverstone, England. Claire and Kai are perfect pair: both having good appearance; loving, supporting, trusting, and understanding each other. During 4 years of relationship, they never fight. Their relationship is perfect from the outside, but apparently empty inside. Claire and Kai never have revealed what they feel. The long distance relationship began without problem. The meeting of Claire and Ares changes everything. Ares Nota, son of a billionare - Serge Nota, is a 24 year old childish guy who never knows the meaning of love. For him, women are just toys, disposable when he is bored. Their coincidental meeting changes both's lives. Ares who never believes in love, finds comfort in Claire. While Claire learns with Ares that loving must  be happy. From Claire, Ares learns to grow up and to respect love. The closeness of Claire and Ares, as well as Kai still with Claire, force her to decide between Kai - the home she can returnt to which promises perfection; or Ares - the third person who suddenly come, but brings her true happiness. Valerie Patkar presents every character with strong traits. Claire who is matured, loves order, and hates to do childish things; Kai is ambitious, matured, but boring; and Ares is selfish, unpredictable, and childish; they were depicted along with the plot. Every description of every events and or characters' behavior are clear, making it easy for the reader to imagine it. The beauty of Bali Island as the setting incrases the romance between Claire, Ares, and Kai. Although the story starts boring and predictable, the author put a surprise in the middle, making the readers curious about the end of Claire's story. The 377-page novel can play readers' emotion. The diction can truly tell the love between Claire and Ares, and make the readers' cry when Claire, Kai, and Ares are at their lowest point. The message from Valerie Patkar is also conveyed well. All components of the novel complement each other, making it an interesting and entertaining to read. 

"Love those who makes you happy, not those who makes you perfect. Since perfection does not guarantee your happiness. But, happiness can always make your life perfect." 

It was a quote from a dialog between Claire and her father, telling that perfection cannot always present happiness. What is perfection, if there is something to sacrifice or to ignore? Sound selfish, but we can learn from this book that being selfish is not always bad. Sometimes we need to be selfish to be happy. Like two opposing magnetic pole, the book tells that two opposites can create something beautiful. Claires helps the reader to know love from different perspectives and forms. The appeal of Valerie Patkar's work is the qutoes, about loves, family, and many others.  That was our brief review of a novel entitled "Claires" by Valerie Patkar. 

Welcome back to Book & Film Review where we will review Indonesian books and films. In today's edition, we will review a novel entitled "Dan Hujan Pun Berhenti" or "And the Rain Stops" by Farida Susanty. This novel was the first work of Farida Susanty, a woman who was born in Bandung, June 18 1990. Dan Hujan Pun Berhenti was written when she was in high school and was published in 2007. Until now, that title kept being reprinted. This novel made Farida won the Khatulistiwa Literary Award for Talented Young Writer category in 2007. This novel is about Leostrada Andhika Servorova Ekihara Miyazao or Eko, an Indo-Japan descent, naughty student of 103 or Wahutri High School, who was often summoned by counselor. With four of his friends: Luthfi, Adi, Kevin, and David, they call themselves Bunch of Bastards and often make troubles. However, behind it all, Leo is just a fragile young man. Leo leaves his home, since he cannot bear his family's condition. He feels empty, lonely, traumatic, and distrusts. His life is pitch black. And Leo hates rain, since under it, the world took Iris forever - the only friend Leo had, to whom he trusted all his feelings.Amidst his sorrow, he met Spiza - Spizaeuts Caerina. Both met in an "unusual" way. As if bewitched, Leo finds his Iris in Spiza. Thoughts about Iris guides Leo to keep getting closer to Spiza. Until the two feel comfortable, a bitter reality hits Leo. He must choose: grows up and makes peace with his past, or keeps being haunted by trauma which keeps killing him. Farida created the characters in her novel carefully. Quirky names and strong characterization are presented through every narration and dialogs. They incluude the depressed, deeply wounded Leo who longs for attention and affection; then, Spiza who is innocent, guilt-driven, and fearing betrayal; both selfish parents of Leo; as well as the funny and loyal friends of Leo. With setting in Bandung city, all teenagers' life are well-depicted by Farida. However, long dialogs and many footnones in the middle of the story makes the 322-page novel a little bit uncomfortable to read. Long dialogs in every chapter may exhaust the reader. Very unfortunate if this affects readers' opinion about the book, more overly if they do not finish it. Some conflicts in the novel are also too much for highschoolers, but isn't everything possible in fiction?. The diction used in the novel is still very typical of teenagers, easily understood, and not using too many foreign terms. Up and own plot as well as surprises keep the reades curious. Many messages on family, friendship, and love, and all are well-packaged by Farida.The theme is also very fresh and different from many other teenage novels. Therefore, the original and fresh idea is able to make Farida worthy for Khatulistiwa Literary Award.

"Hey! Why do you hang that?"

“Hei! Kenapa menggantungkan itu?"

"So that the rain won't fall."

"Biar hujan nggak turun."

"So what if it falls?"

"Memangnya kenapa kalau turun?"

"I'll die before I suicide."

"Aku akan keburu mati sebelum aku bunuh diri."

"You want to commit suicide?"

"Kamu mau bunuh diri?"

"Yes, only when it's not raining."

"Ya, asal nggak hujan."

That was a dialog between Leo and Spiza in their first meeting.Suicide and depression tie the two characters. Some characters of this novel are depicted as easily play with death. What intertesting is, such issues are quite common among teenagers yet often ignored. By bringing out suicide and depression in the novel, this hopefully can make people more aware about teenagers' mental health. The novel which have three different covers contains deep moral values. Besides reminding us to care with depression and suicide among teenagers, this book is full of messages. One of them is to make peace with the past; however dark it was, if we want to forgive and let it go, our life will be peaceful. Also, we should always accept God's fate, because everything destined by the God have some values in it. that was our brief review of Dan Hujan Pun Berhenti or And the Rain Stops by Farida Susanty. 

LOMBOK REVIVED

Since the first earthquake 6.4 on Richter scale to 6.9 SR on August 19 on Lombok Island and surrounding areas has caused more than 500 people killed, more than 400 thousand people displaced, and more than 74 thousand units of houses were damaged. The estimated loss would reach Rp 7.7 trillion.

Seeing the impact of the Lombok earthquake, many parties proposed that the situation has to be declared a national disaster. However, the government considers that this is not necessary to decide the Lombok disaster as a national disaster. Then, a lot of people have questioned the government's policy.

Regarding the polemic, Head of the Information Data Center and Public Relations of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency -BNPB, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho explained the matter of determining national disaster. The determination must be based on five main variables: the number of victims, loss of property, damage to infrastructure and facilities, wide coverage of areas affected by disasters, and the socio-economic impacts.

Sutopo believes that the indicators are not enough. There are fundamental indicators that are difficult to measure -the condition of the existence and function of the regional government whether it is collapsed or not. The 2004 Aceh tsunami was designated as a national disaster at that time because the regional government, both provincial and district/city, including the central elements in Aceh such as the Kodam and the Regional Police was totally paralyzed. The government later declared the national disaster. The risk is that all tasks of the regional government are taken over by the central government, including the general government.

With the existence of national disaster status, the door is open as wide as possible for international humanitarian assistance by other countries and the international community. This is a consequence of the Geneva Convention. New problems related to international assistance often arise, because it involves political, economic, social, cultural, defense and security matters. So, there are consequences if the Indonesian government determines the national disaster status. Sutopo added, since the 2004 Aceh tsunami until now, there has been no disaster in Indonesia which has been declared a national disaster. Because, the Indonesian people have learned a lot from the experience of handling the 2004 Aceh tsunami.

Indeed, disasters with casualties are quite likely to be discouraged that the central government establishes a national disaster. Many parties may not understand the disaster management as a whole, including determining the status and level of the disaster. They assume that with national disaster status, there will be easy access to national resources. But the fact is that even without national disaster status, the government has mobilized all national resources. A lot of personnel from central elements such as Indonesian Armed Forces -TNI, National Police -Polri, National SAR Agency -Basarnas, and related state ministries have been deployed on the hit locations. Huge logistical assistance from the government agencies and community has also been sent to Lombok.

The Indonesian nation must be united. Disasters are humanitarian affairs. Let’s get rid of differences in ideology, politics, religion, and others to help the disaster victims. The Lombok community needs the help of all parties. National energy must be united to help the people of Lombok. Without the status of the national disaster, the Lombok disaster is also the disaster of Indonesian nation.