The Definitive Dr M
by Umapagan Ampikaipakan
Finally. This is the book that most Malaysians have been expecting, have been anticipating, for almost a decade. For it is, without a doubt, the most important Malaysian book of our generation. And it isn’t a matter of opinion, but rather a question of history. Because it doesn’t matter if what you have is an undying love or an intense hatred towards the man. Because how you feel about him is irrelevant. Because what you believe about his years in government is inconsequential. Mahathir Mohamad is, and always will be, an inescapable part of the Malaysian experience. An entire generation would grow up knowing no other Prime Minister. His presence, so eternal, so pervasive, so omniscient, in our society, in our politics, that their fates, their fortunes, their futures, would forever be intertwined with his. Their view of the world indelibly influenced.
We expect candour. We expect revelation and, potentially, even surprise. We expect to learn something new. We want a tell- all and everything that entails. But most of all, we want to read something that is truthful. Not by any factual standard or moral quality — something inherently impossible when it comes to the political memoir — but rather an accurate representation of the voice behind the book. What we want is a book that is true to the man, to his personality, and to his character. What we want is a certain Mahathir- ness. And A Doctor in the House does not disappoint. Reading this book feels like you’re sitting in the same room and having a conversation with the old man. And unlike many of his contemporaries, he does not come across as crusty or cantankerous. His intellect is as sharp as it ever was. His arguments — regardless of whether or not you agree with them — are always rooted in logic, though often tempered by everyday realities. His tone is unmistakable. He is immediately engaging.
The 62 chapters in this book are very much the retelling of Malaysian history through the eyes of Mahathir Mohamad. They hit all those important decision points in life and career. They inject his presence into every aspect of our known past. Every chapter works as a self- contained narrative on a specific event. The financial crisis. Ops lalang. Vision 2020. The Multimedia Super Corridor. They are, each one, a sort of time capsule to what happened and why it did. They are breezy. They are racy. They are intimate. They are individual. They are, at times, even emotional. A memoir is, after all, one man’s view of his world; it is his version of history. But this is more than just Malaysia as Mahathir sees it, it is Malaysia as how he chose to mould it.
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Excerpt from The New Straits Times, 15 March 2011
Finally. This is the book that most Malaysians have been expecting, have been anticipating, for almost a decade. For it is, without a doubt, the most important Malaysian book of our generation. And it isn’t a matter of opinion, but rather a question of history. Because it doesn’t matter if what you have is an undying love or an intense hatred towards the man. Because how you feel about him is irrelevant. Because what you believe about his years in government is inconsequential. Mahathir Mohamad is, and always will be, an inescapable part of the Malaysian experience. An entire generation would grow up knowing no other Prime Minister. His presence, so eternal, so pervasive, so omniscient, in our society, in our politics, that their fates, their fortunes, their futures, would forever be intertwined with his. Their view of the world indelibly influenced.
We expect candour. We expect revelation and, potentially, even surprise. We expect to learn something new. We want a tell- all and everything that entails. But most of all, we want to read something that is truthful. Not by any factual standard or moral quality — something inherently impossible when it comes to the political memoir — but rather an accurate representation of the voice behind the book. What we want is a book that is true to the man, to his personality, and to his character. What we want is a certain Mahathir- ness. And A Doctor in the House does not disappoint. Reading this book feels like you’re sitting in the same room and having a conversation with the old man. And unlike many of his contemporaries, he does not come across as crusty or cantankerous. His intellect is as sharp as it ever was. His arguments — regardless of whether or not you agree with them — are always rooted in logic, though often tempered by everyday realities. His tone is unmistakable. He is immediately engaging.
The 62 chapters in this book are very much the retelling of Malaysian history through the eyes of Mahathir Mohamad. They hit all those important decision points in life and career. They inject his presence into every aspect of our known past. Every chapter works as a self- contained narrative on a specific event. The financial crisis. Ops lalang. Vision 2020. The Multimedia Super Corridor. They are, each one, a sort of time capsule to what happened and why it did. They are breezy. They are racy. They are intimate. They are individual. They are, at times, even emotional. A memoir is, after all, one man’s view of his world; it is his version of history. But this is more than just Malaysia as Mahathir sees it, it is Malaysia as how he chose to mould it.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Excerpt from The New Straits Times, 15 March 2011
