It’s been a while since I purchase a physical book. I am guilty of coming to the bookstore only to browse but purchasing the books online. But on my last visit to Gramedia, I was drawn to a book titled Taipan – Lahirnya Para Konglomerat (The Birth of Conglomerates). The book was striking red and yellow. Reading the back cover, I got more interested to read it. I then purchase this book. Physical book this time, I don’t think I can find this book online.

I picked up this book hoping to get a history and business lesson on how the Indonesian-Chinese merchants are able to rise to be an economic power in Indonesia. I am not of Chinese descent myself but I have great respect for them for their wisdom in working and trading. I’ve heard of how the Chinese are taught that it is better to die than be a loser, that success comes from hard work, and much other wisdom that I think is still relevant to this day. I picked up this book hoping to peek closer at the mindset and mentality of successful Chinese-Indonesian merchants.

The book is set in Indonesia during the 1940s when the Netherlands and then the Japanese occupy Indonesia until the period after Japan’s defeat in WW2 which brings Indonesia’s independence. It jumped between the stories of two Indonesian-Chinese characters named Zhou Sheng Ru and Wang Zhen who lived a different life but will come to be some of the richest men in Indonesia in their own way.

In the first few pages, I can feel that this is no ordinary book. It is not a biography, which I originally thought it was. It is more like a novel that is based on real events. In this book, you will find not only wisdom from Chinese merchants but Japanese merchants as well. Not only that, but you will also learn about politics and world war 2 histories. It is truly an interesting book, though I can’t say that it is a page-turner but it is still worth reading.