Suddenly the Night
by Sapardi Djoko Damono
Buy on AmazonSuddenly the Night is an anthology of poetry by Sapardi Djoko Damono, one of Indonesia's preeminent poets. As is stated in the introduction to the book, "More than any other contemporary Indonesian poet, Sapardi realizes that poetry is more than convention and that convention is not necessarily a requisite for poetry. Through the language of his poetry and its meaning, sound, and rhythm Sapardi proves himself capable of depicting a highly imaginative awareness of experience.
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"This is a poetry book from a prominent Indonesian poet. Sapardi’s poems were very influential in my early introduction to literature. They taught me a lot about perusing nature as a source of metaphors. Yes, his is a household name in Indonesia—he’s known as the ‘Robert Frost of Indonesia.’ (Frost is also one of Sapardi’s favourites.) I think one of the special qualities of Sapardi was how his work managed to resonate with younger readers. He’s been writing poems since 1960s, but his poems are still quoted by the millennials up to this date. Sapardi is also still very productive, even at his age. He just released another book with Gramedia. He’s also quite active in social media. ‘Aku Ingin.’ It captures love so accurately and beautifully."
The Best Contemporary Indonesian Literature · fivebooks.com