(Honest) Book Review: "Sempurna" by Aiman Hazziq
Firstly, I just wanted to say hello and welcome to my (abandoned) blog. It has been years since the last time I visited this page as I was busy with studies, music and other things. I hope my return to my blog makes you guys jump with joy.
Anyway, I am here to make a book review of Aiman Hazziq's "Sempurna" for my assignment. I actually came to know this novel because my friend retweeted the author's tweet about the book. I know the author for the novel "Permainan" back in 2016, but I did not know that he has a Twitter account and made a return as a novelist. Thus, I decided to buy it as a show of support to him. When the book arrives at my house on 10th June, I started reading it immediately. Due to my eagerness, I managed to finish the entire book by half a day. Since I need to do an assignment about a book review, I decided to reread the book for the second time.
On the surface, it is about 5 friends named Kurt, Emir, Sid, Liz and Aria. They will do reunions every 2 years. On their 4th reunion, Kurt tells the whole group that he suffers from lung cancer. Since he is in charge for the next one, he left some clues to his friends before he passes away. The clues will lead them to finish off Kurt's final mission in life.
In my opinion, the title "Sempurna" might be interrelated to the "perfect ending" that Kurt wants. The remaining members get to reconcile with a person and solve Kurt's unfinished business. The book cover shows three people who are camping together and they gather around at the campfire. This is a nod towards the camping scene where Emir shows that he had Kurt's journal all along. Inside the journal, there is an address which will lead them to the said person.
Well, let's talk about what I like in the novel first. To compare with Aiman's writing style in "Permainan", his writing on this novel is much more cohesive in this one. The author knows what he is doing this time around and it made his writing much more solid as compared to his previous novel. Though there are a lot timeline switches back and forth in the novel, the author makes it not confusing for readers to fathom which timeline they are on.
Aside from that, the theme of friendship shown in the novel is well executed. Throughout my reading, I can feel the close knit friendship that all five characters have. I thought that their friendship dynamic will change after Kurt's passing, but fortunately they still remain together and this is evident throughout their road trip to Ipoh. This is also an improvement from the author's previous work since he starts to be more cohesive and well-composed in his writing.
Additionally, the choice of setting for the road trip is perfect. The author chooses Ipoh as the location for the road trip and I wholeheartedly agree. I have been to Ipoh once with my friends back in 2015 and I fell in love with Ipoh simply because it is such a calming place with an array of scrumptious food. The mention about "Nasi Ganja" made me smile widely since that is the signature food of Ipoh. Indeed, the rice is addictive like a drug and one plate is not enough for me. Small details like this means a lot for a reader like me since it tugs some nostalgic strings within myself.
The mention of alcohol and sex among Muslims in the novel is a courageous act by the author. Plus, the characters that have sex in the novel are not even married to each other. In Malaysia, these issues are triggering to many people as it is against Islamic ways of teaching. However, it is actually normal for FIXI books to touch about taboo issues as its target market is more towards mature readers. Therefore, readers need to have an open mind before picking up this novel.
Now, off to things that I am not fond of about the novel "Sempurna". Still within the context of taboo issues, I applaud the author's bravery to touch about issues such as LGBT, domestic abuse and paedophilia. Unfortunately, the execution fells short. The issues were addressed only on a surface level by the author instead of going in-depth. If only the author delves deeper into the sensitive topics, it will leave a stronger impact towards the readers. Thus, I feel like this is a missed opportunity for the author.
Another thing I dislike about this novel is the ending. I actually flipped the last page multiple times and went "Are you sure this is the ending?" The cliffhanger ending left me feeling unsatisfied as a reader, but maybe the author wants readers to make their own guess of what happened to Emir or there is a second book coming up. In addition, the novel indeed has a exponential plot twist and it lingers in my mind for awhile. Pretty much like my favourite film "Parasite". Unfortunately, the twist is not that shocking since the secret was revealed beforehand. It is much better if the author reveals the secret after the plot twist happens and readers can jolt with surprise due to the twist.
All in all, the novel "Sempurna" is far from perfect. Nevertheless, Aiman Hazziq has improved a lot in terms of writing and it is shown well in the novel. I like this novel and I would definitely suggest everyone to pick up this novel if they want to read something that is nostalgic and emotional.
P.S.: Speaking of "nasi ganja", maybe I should find for the dish after I am done with the book review. Hahaha...
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