Teachers Who Read

An interview with Raja Maheran Binti Raja Ramli

Teacher Raja Maheran and mentor Jinks at SK Pulau Mansok:
Talking about our favourite books.

Jinks: A lot of the teachers I talk to when I visit schools with my traveling library say that they just don't have enough time to read. You read a lot, but how do you find the time?

RM: I find the time in the evenings, or even late at night if I cannot sleep. On weekends, as soon as my work is done (preparing for school and domestic work) I lie on the couch - and read!

Jinks: I see you have chosen a lot of books from the traveling library. Why did you choose these particular books?

RM: Genre. These days, I like thrillers, crime and adventure. I used to like romance a lot when I was in college, and I've always enjoyed stories about magic and magic realism. I have enjoyed reading stories since childhood. I started off reading lots of Enid Blyton books when I was very young (Jinks: me too!). When I went to college I turned to the Mills and Boon series, they were romantic and interesting - and there were lots of them to read! These days I'm more interested in adventure and thriller stories, but I like it better if the plot is easy to follow.

Jinks: Do you find it 'stressful' or 'relaxing' to read in English?

RM: Both! But mainly relaxing. If I come across words I don't know, I just skip them because I am so interested in getting to the end of the story and finding out what happens in the end. Sometimes, if the plot is too complicated, I skip to the end to find out what happens and then after that I can go back and continue my enjoyment of reading the story.

Jinks: Where else (apart from the traveling library) do you get your books from, and what are you reading now?

RM: I like to shop online, and I also like to read online for free. I'm currently reading Isabel Allende's City of Beasts which is full of magic.
Stephen-Peter Jinks (ELC Jerantut)