Love Hut in the Forest

Author's name: Mahfouz Ikhwan

In the manner of a popular storyteller, the story of a love affair in the forest begins with the arrival of the penniless Warto at the café, where he continues to tell stories in exchange for a cigarette and a cup of coffee from the café's regulars. The passion between Anayaton, the milkmaid, and Dawok, the fugitive, kept everyone interested in listening to Warto's fables.

In the novel, readers can find local wisdom and social issues—not just drama, but also humor and action. At the same time, many social issues are raised, including honor, revenge, and even homosexuality and the obstacles faced by migrant workers in neighboring countries. The complex social issues are woven into the atmosphere of a village slowly moving toward modernization, making readers feel as if they are living in a charming, ancient setting.

On the other hand, this novel seems to be trying, in one way or another, to touch the reader's conscience and to question the logic of everyday life. It is indeed a dark and sad story, yet this sadness is not presented in a monotonous manner, as romance, humor, and revenge are interspersed throughout the story. Furthermore, the plot at the end of the story may make the reader return again to some of the events of the novel to comprehend.

What happened in the end.

Mahfud Ikhwan is an Indonesian writer born in 1980. He began writing after graduating from university. He works as an editor and journalist, in addition to facilitating writing workshops for the Indonesian Literacy Movement. His short stories have been published on cultural websites and in several independent short story anthologies. He has ten books, ranging from short stories to novels. His third novel, "The Goat and the Rain," won the 2014 Jakarta Arts Council Novel Competition.