French author's view of Malayan history is a vital read for Malaysians

This Frenchwoman’s view of history needs to be translated into our national language and be given a place in every home, school, and public library.

When I learned that Cuisinier’s book was about her experiences in Malaya in the 1930s, I became curious – would she be as critical?

As I soon found out, Cuisinier’s book gave me little basis for comparison. Instead, I was struck by the contrasts between the Malaya the Frenchwoman saw and the one the Englishman saw. She wrote primarily about her experiences in Perlis, Kelantan, Pahang and Terengganu, mostly on the East Coast of the peninsula, while he wrote about the West Coast states. They might as well have been writing about two different countries.