Potions and Paper Cranes - Book Review
Book Review of : Potions and Paper Cranes
Potions and Paper Cranes by Lan Fang is set in Indonesia at the end of WWII. Indonesia was in the midst of a revolution and Potions and Paper Cranes addresses the life and times of the women of Surabaya, East Java. This is a book about war, revolution, but most of all about women. You will meet three--Sulis, Sujono and Matsumi. This is truly a book like no other war book--focus is on women and the trials, tribulations and triumphs they encounter and live through.
Fang does a masterful job with this story. She includes history, great characters, culture, family, etc. The women you meet in Potions and Paper Cranes achieve things during a very difficult time that most would have found impossible.
The western world probably did not and does not today know a lot about Indonesia, their transition from Dutch rule and the traditions and culture that are unique to them.
Fang addresses problems that plague women everywhere--with compassion and a beautiful writing style.
Great Read!!
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About Lan Fang

Lan Fang was born in Banjarmasin, Kalimantan, Indonesia on March 5, 1970, and passed away on December 25, 2011. She was the oldest daughter in the Gautama family of business people.
Despite a law degree from the University of Surabaya, Lan Fang chose to pursue a writing career. Her novel, Lelakon, won the Khatulistiwa Award in 2008. Her short stories have appeared in 20 Cerpen Terbaik Indonesia as a part of the Anugerah Sastra Pena Kencana in 2008 and 2009.
In 2009, the newspaper Kompas published Lan Fang?s ?Ciuman di bawah Hujan? as a serial and in 2010 Gramedia Pustaka Utama published the story as a novel under the same title. Other books by Lan Fang from the same publisher include: Reinkarnasi (2003), Pai Yin (2004), Kembang Gunung Purei (2005), Laki-Laki yang Salah (2006), Yang Liu (2006), Perempuan Kembang Jepun (2006; reprinted 2012), Kota Tanpa Kelamin (2007), and Lelakon (2007). Dalang Publishing will release an English translation of Perempuan Kembang Jepun in 2013.
Lan Fang is known in Indonesia as an accomplished writer, and a philanthropist with deep concern for social welfare. Her beliefs are shown in her writing, as well as through her volunteer work as a mentor for several writing workshops in schools.
Unfortunately, this prolific writer?s life was cut short. Lan Fang passed away at the age of 41 while being treated for liver cancer in Singapore. Her untimely death is a great loss to the Indonesian literary community, and to every reader who appreciates evocative, truthful writing of the heart.
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