KL's Alternative Bookfest setting records 13th time around

 

This year is the 13th edition of the Kuala Lumpur Alternative Bookfest (KLAB) and founder Amir Muhammad was a little unsure over whether there would be a high demand, given the far-reaching effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, he need not have worried, for 54 booths for the festival were snapped within a record eight minutes of being open to the public.

Malaysiakini caught up with the filmmaker/publisher on the first day of the four-day run at KL’s Central Market.

“This is the record number of booths, and it is partly due to the fact that the KL international book fair, which was due to be held at the PWTC, got postponed.

“So there was some improvisation and we put it together very fast. It was done in just over a month,” Amir said.

The four-day event will be ongoing until this Sunday evening and aside from the many booths, it will feature performances from buskers in headscarves, such as Siti Diana Kamila and a number of food trucks, including one selling Kopi Dua Darjat (a jibe at double standards in Malaysia).

KLAB will also host the launch by former Dewan Rakyat speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof of his new book, Parliament, Unexpected, on Sunday.

According to Amir, this is the 13th time the KLAB is being held, with a couple of years being missed out since the event kicked off in 2008.

"In 2020 we didn’t host one. It was supposed to be Publika but it didn't work out because of the movement control order (MCO).

"For many of the earlier ones, we partnered with Art For Grabs, but not for the last two and there is a bit of a shift this year," said Amir, whose own work includes movies such as The Big Durian (2003) and Lelaki Komunis Terakhir (2006) as well as books such as Yasmin Ahmad's Films and Rojak.

Amir explained that while some staple stalls such as Gerakbudaya and his own Buku Fixi were still fixtures at the event, there were many others not present this time around.

"In a way, it is not as diverse as before - these are the companies that survived the pandemic. Smaller companies - the really alternative ones - cannot afford their own booths or maybe have not been that active," he said.

He said that this year's booths included more from the university presses as well as a number of groups like Iman Publications, Merpati Jingga, The Patriots, Jejak Tarbiah, Kedai Dr Maszlee, Ilham Press and Abim Press.

Amir Muhammad in front of Kedai Dr Maszlee

"Central Market was very eager and they want people to come back here. It was interesting to me that many of those hosting booths are young and not from Kuala Lumpur, and unaware of the history and background of this area.

Malay language books on the rise

Amir, whose Buku Fixi store is at Sunway Putra Mall, said that he finds that their audience is getting younger. 

"There are certain trends - we used to do a lot of serial killer books but it seems that it's no longer relevant.

"Also, it is easier to sell established writers - not doing their first book - than to break someone new."

People still buy books but there's a lot of competition, the books have to be attractive, and engaging on tik tok and Instagram is a huge factor," he added.

He said it was amazing to see new writers like Teme Abdullah, who never shows his face and lives in London - "the implication is that he is handsome" - said Amir, who also cited authors Ayman Rashdan Wong and Nadia Khan as others with a following. 

Amir added that the Malay language market for books was still expanding - and that conversely, the one for English books aimed at grown-ups was shrinking.

Two lines of the 54 booths at the book festival

The chairperson of KLAB 2022 and Jejak Tarbiah Books general manager Hafizul Faiz said his company does studies that show that reading is very much alive among Malaysian youth.

"Young readers like to read simple yet deep and meaningful content. This is based on our data in 2021. 

"When people say that young people are not ready to read heavy content I don’t agree. If it's meaningful and can relate to their situation right now, they will read it," he said.

Hafizul has been with Jejak Tarbiah since it was started on 2014 and has seen it grow from a community movement that helped out in the recent flooding.

"This is my first time as director and exhibitor. Before this I just came as a visitor," he added.

Noting that KLAB had made its name as a progressive event but that there were now all sorts of viewpoints represented Hafizul said: "I respect the movement but I prefer to readjust the niche of KLAB to be more inclusive and adaptive to go along with the changes in the book industry." - Mkini

Some of the books on display at the KL Alternative Bookfest at the Central Market