A Few Legends in Brunei Muara District

I first saw the title of this book in a list of references for one article in either Beriga (published twice a year by Dewan Bahasa) or Pusaka (published yearly by the Brunei History Centre), I can't remember which. I thought to myself then, I must find this book. That was about three or four years ago. I could never find it. Sometime last year, I saw this book being sold by Dewan Bahasa in Kuala Belait and I immediately bought it. Being a Dewan Bahasa book, the book is more than affordable. The list price is $4 but Dewan Bahasa sold it for $3.20 which is a 20% discount. The book was originally published in 2003 but Dewan Bahasa rencently republished it.

The reason why I wanted to read this book obviously was the title - A Few Legends in the Brunei Muara District. I wanted to make sure that I know of all the legends. When I finally got to read it, for me I found it greatly disappointing. It is a very short book and about 2/3 of it is spent on the theory of legends etc which would be great if this book was a thesis. The few legends listed in the book are all well known and I did not find any new one. Personally, I was very disappointed. However, since it only cost $3.20, I should not complain.

BUT, if you don't know much or any legends, then this is a worthwhile book for you to buy so that you can bring yourself up to speed with regard to Brunei/Muara legends. Ignore what I just wrote up there as I am reviewing this book from an entirely different perspective. There are eight tales of origin of legend plust maps where these places are.  At $3.20, that is a steal. Available at all Dewan Bahasa in Brunei.

Comments

MAT Raders said…
Maybe kita can share with us about these legends. Im a youth with little knowledge of our own. It could perhaps inspire us to realize how rich our histories are. :-)
Friday, April 06, 2012 11:16:00 PM
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