Author:  M Aan Mansyur 

Summary

Child, there are two things I hate in life: September and the mango tree. September never wants to get out of the house. Content. It’s busy putting hell in all corners. In the living room. On the bed. On the dining table. Even on the chest. The trunk of the mango tree is still knee-deep, just as a stone inscription. It stands eternalizing sins—and sin is a good leader for regrets.

Kukila was the woman who hated September and the mango tree. Her life was beaten by a huge guilt, towards her ex-husband, ex-lover, and children. It was to her letters she would speak and to trees she would hide the past, because secrets, reputedly, would live safely in tree trunks.

Other than “Kukila (Rahasia Pohon Rahasia/Secrets of the Tree of Secrets)”, there are twelve other short stories in this book, told in Aan Mansyur’s sweet, unpretentious, and sometimes teasing words. 

Of course, I like reading Aan Mansyur’s works. This author is great in creating the mystery in stories, then unraveling it in a way that drags the readers to follow the flow until the end. Don’t forget, after all, Aan is a poet. Here and there, words emerge with a breath of poems that more often than not bring more sound to the language of the story. — Joko Pinurbo, poet