The Girl from Jakarta by Hester Keegan: book review

The Girl from Jakarta (2020) is a futuristic tale set in Indonesia from 2021 to 2026.

In 2021, 17-year-old Cintya (Cindy) loves English football and motor cycles, but not boys. Her brother Cornelius lives with their father in London, while Cindy lives with her mother in rural poverty in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

She goes to London to attend college and play football with an all-female team. A reporter reviews the football game and raves about her performance: ‘The kind of skill only seen in a young Diego Maradona or Lionel Messi.’ Halifax Town recruits her to play professional football in England.

Life as a professional football player has it advantages and disadvantages. Cindy loves the game and the practice, but not the racism and sexism. Fortunately, she has her father and brother in London, and grandmother, mother and friends Niar and Ayu in Indonesia, to turn to for support.

This is about Cindy’s rise in the football arena, becoming the first female to play in the Men’s English Premier League for Arsenal. From there, she has the chance to play in the World Cup in 2026 – but for Indonesia or for England? The situation takes a turn when she meets a man that she really likes.

The novel is an easy, game-by-game, and tour-by-tour account of a young girl’s passion for football and the transition from amateur kick-abouts to a professional career. It’s a bit superficial, with a lack of depth in its character development, but overall, it’s a reasonable read. The last sentence is visually great.

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MARTINA NICOLLS

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MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of: The Paris Residences of James Joyce (2020), Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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