Mysterion, November 2024

“In (Future) Memory of an Absent Father” by A. W. Prihandita

Reviewed by Victoria Silverwolf

“In (Future) Memory of an Absent Father” by A. W. Prihandita takes place in a version of modern Indonesia in which junior high school students are taught to develop what are known as intuitions. These are supernatural powers that allow them to develop special insight into the past, the present, or the future.

The narrator is a boy eager to discover which of these three possible talents he possesses. In order to test his ability to see into the past, his teacher gives him an assignment to delve into the history of his family.

His father is away on a fishing trip, and may have been injured or killed in an earthquake that struck the area. His grandfather left his mother when she was a child. She refuses to discuss either parent or grandparent with her son. He undertakes a journey to a forbidden place in order to discover his talent, as well as learning his grandfather’s reason for leaving.

The need for a fairly lengthy synopsis, which still does not give away too much about the plot, indicates that the story is intricately constructed. The premise is interesting and developed in a logical, convincing manner. Another fantasy concept is introduced later in the text, and this is well integrated into the plot. The resulting work appeals both to the imagination and the emotions. As a bonus, readers from other cultures will appreciate the author’s portrait of her native land.

Victoria Silverwolf has never been to Indonesia.