Academician pens Malay poetry on unity
By SIMON KHOO
KUANTAN: Many may not have heard of Teo Wei Sing, but in the field of Malay arts and literature, he is a respected educator.
Teo, 27, recently completed a book entitled Kutemui 1Malaysia containing 50 poems with unity and patriotism as the main themes.
Academician: Teo showing his five poetry books in Kuantan recently.
Teo said the book was dedicated to the country’s sixth Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, who had penned a foreword in the book.
“I took about eight months to complete the anthology and printed 4,000 copies for a start.
“I hope the book will be widely accepted to represent a new generation of Malaysians,” he told The Star in an interview.
Teo said the poem Kutemui 1Malaysia was written a day after Najib assumed the premiership and spoke on the concept.
“I watched the news, and the next day, I spent about 15 minutes penning down my thoughts on the concept.
“It took me another week to tweak the poem before deciding to use it as the title poem for the book,” he said, adding that another poem, Dari Bentangan Hitam Putih Itu, was also dedicated to Najib and written two weeks before he took over the premiership.
This lengthier piece took him half a day to complete.
Teo said the book could be adopted as a unity icon to instill a sense of love for Malaysia and the national language.
The poetry book, Kutemui 1Malaysia dedicated to Najib.
He added that plans were in the pipeline to hold a 1Malaysia concert in December organised by a music school and the Pahang Culture and Arts Department, and would feature a song of the same title as the book.
Born in Kuantan, Teo teaches Malay language and literature at SM Teluk Chempedak.
His father, a petty trader, had no objections to his son furthering his studies in Malay language and literature.
Interestingly, Teo started his primary education at SJK (C) Pei Chai.
It was Teo’s Form Six teacher, Mohd Che Ibrahim, at SM Abdul Rahman Talib who boosted his interest in Malay literature.
He continued his studies at Universiti Putra Malaysia under the tutelage of the late S. Othman Kelantan and Associate Prof Dr Lim Swee Tin.
Teo, who has an online blog, said that poor book sales could be a reason why there were just a few Chinese authors in Malay literature.
He has four other published books, namely Dendang Dunia; Suara Anak Pahang; Genting Gaza, Gentingnya Genting; and Ekspresi.
Three of the books were written jointly with a panel of authors while Suara Anak Pahang was a solo effort which sold about 1,000 copies.
Teo said he hoped to get the books endorsed as reading materials for secondary school students taking Malay literature, adding that he planned to write three books a year.
By SIMON KHOO
KUANTAN: Many may not have heard of Teo Wei Sing, but in the field of Malay arts and literature, he is a respected educator.
Teo, 27, recently completed a book entitled Kutemui 1Malaysia containing 50 poems with unity and patriotism as the main themes.
Academician: Teo showing his five poetry books in Kuantan recently.
Teo said the book was dedicated to the country’s sixth Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, who had penned a foreword in the book.
“I took about eight months to complete the anthology and printed 4,000 copies for a start.
“I hope the book will be widely accepted to represent a new generation of Malaysians,” he told The Star in an interview.
Teo said the poem Kutemui 1Malaysia was written a day after Najib assumed the premiership and spoke on the concept.
“I watched the news, and the next day, I spent about 15 minutes penning down my thoughts on the concept.
“It took me another week to tweak the poem before deciding to use it as the title poem for the book,” he said, adding that another poem, Dari Bentangan Hitam Putih Itu, was also dedicated to Najib and written two weeks before he took over the premiership.
This lengthier piece took him half a day to complete.
Teo said the book could be adopted as a unity icon to instill a sense of love for Malaysia and the national language.
The poetry book, Kutemui 1Malaysia dedicated to Najib.
He added that plans were in the pipeline to hold a 1Malaysia concert in December organised by a music school and the Pahang Culture and Arts Department, and would feature a song of the same title as the book.
Born in Kuantan, Teo teaches Malay language and literature at SM Teluk Chempedak.
His father, a petty trader, had no objections to his son furthering his studies in Malay language and literature.
Interestingly, Teo started his primary education at SJK (C) Pei Chai.
It was Teo’s Form Six teacher, Mohd Che Ibrahim, at SM Abdul Rahman Talib who boosted his interest in Malay literature.
He continued his studies at Universiti Putra Malaysia under the tutelage of the late S. Othman Kelantan and Associate Prof Dr Lim Swee Tin.
Teo, who has an online blog, said that poor book sales could be a reason why there were just a few Chinese authors in Malay literature.
He has four other published books, namely Dendang Dunia; Suara Anak Pahang; Genting Gaza, Gentingnya Genting; and Ekspresi.
Three of the books were written jointly with a panel of authors while Suara Anak Pahang was a solo effort which sold about 1,000 copies.
Teo said he hoped to get the books endorsed as reading materials for secondary school students taking Malay literature, adding that he planned to write three books a year.
Salam 1Malaysia,
Tahniah atas terbitan buku tersebut! Nak beli! Ada 5 buah ke? Berapa harga sebuah? Ada jual di kedai buku? MPH Online dah ada ke? Saya biasa beli secara online sahaja.
Terima kasih.
S.A.
Terima kasih atas sokongan yang telah diberikan. mph dah ada, tapi online saya tak pasti. harganya dalam rm12.90