The wait is finally over. Writer Andrea Hirata is back with a new novel, Ayah (Father).

After a six-year wait, the author of bestselling tetralogy Laskar Pelangi (Rainbow Warriors) has published his ninth novel, which also focuses on human relationships and family bonds.

Andrea explained that the delay had been caused by several things, among them the translation of his other work into other languages.

After being represented by a New York literary agent, Andrea has become a global name, with his book being translated into 34 languages in 120 countries.

'€œIt [the translation work] is time consuming. Working with one editor and one translator is challenging enough, but I have to deal with 34 translators and editors,'€ he said.

After all the distractions, Andrea presented fans with his new book.

To introduce Ayah, he recently held an intimate meet and greet with his fans at Gramedia Matraman, Central Jakarta. At the event, he did not only read the book but also offered a live music performance with him as a
guitarist.

Before the show, Andrea spoke to the media about the new novel.

'€œThis is the first time I have not written in first person,'€ he said of differences in the new novel.

Another thing that makes the novel special, according to Andrea, is that the book is a result of intensive thought and research.

For this novel, Andrea said he needed to adopt a complicated social theory by noted Dutch social psychologist Geert Hofstede on masculinity.

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'€œIt took me almost two years to modify and apply all his work in this book,'€ he said.

 Through Hofstede'€™s formula, Andrea tried to map the interactions between father and child in different cultures.

This map helped him describe the power play between characters in the book.

Thus, Andrea believes Ayah is more than a novel as it also offers detailed cultural observations and research on father and child relationships.

Andrea said that such observations were inspired by his teacher James Alan McPherson, the first Afro-American to win a Pullitzer prize.

Andrea met McPherson in the US when the former attended the prestigious International Writing Program at Iowa University.

For seven months, McPherson was Andrea'€™s mentor in honing his skills in writing.

'€œFrom him, I learned how to conduct cultural research for a novel,'€ he said.

For the inspiration, Andrea dedicated this book to McPherson.

Apart from the research and the different perspective used in the book, Ayah is not that different from Andrea'€™s previous novels.

Andrea became a household name after writing Laskar Pelangi in 2004. The book is part of a tetralogy that follows the character of Ikal and his adventures in pursuing his dreams. Set in Andrea'€™s hometown Belitong, the book is believed to have been inspired by Andrea'€™s personal experience as a poor child struggling to get an education.

The book has sold millions of copies and won many awards, including at the New York Book festival in the general fiction category in 2013.

Ayah is also set in Belitong and explores the same themes of poverty, education, friendship and love.

'€œI always choose simple themes for my novels,'€ he explained.

Content-wise, Andrea'€™s storytelling style has not changed either. His language is still concise yet rich and full of metaphoric phrases. Ayah is funny in some parts but heartbreaking at the same time. Despite carrying complicated social themes, the novel is still enjoyable to read.

Andrea said he was committed to raising four issues '€” education, culture, family values and inspirations '€” in every novel.

'€œThey [my novels] tell about ordinary people and the values of everyday life,'€ he said.

As with previous novels, Andrea revealed that Ayah was inspired by true events but ones that did not involve him personally. '€œThis is no longer about Ikal and his father. This is somebody else'€™s story,'€ he said.

Having a solid career as a writer for more than a decade, Andrea has realized that fiction is the new power.

Such power has been reflected in his previous books, which helped his hometown improve its local economy.

'€œThousands of people have been employed in new tourism ventures because of this work of fiction and the region'€™s revenue has increased 300 percent to reach hundreds of billions of rupiah,'€ he said.

For the past 10 years, Andrea said he had upheld three philosophies in his work. The values comprise writing better, promoting Belitong and inspiring others.

'€œI want needy school children to realize that if I can do it, they can too. I am an author with a mission,'€ he said.

Thus, the author'€™s work is far from done, as Andrea still wants to keep inspiring and empowering others through his work.