Bertemu with Marina Mahathir

A Book Reading & Talk Easy Afternoon

Join temu for a personal book reading and conversation session with Marina Mahathir following the launch of her book The Apple and the Tree. Life as Dr Mahathir's Daughter.

3pm, 4th December @ temu house

About the book

This is the question that has perplexed the public about me for the simple reason that I am the daughter of the man who has governed Malaysia for almost 24 years. Do I echo him in his view of the world, or do I chart my own path? Why is it that in my own public life, in my writing and speeches, I express opinions that seem to contradict his?

This book hopes to detail how I have navigated my life as the daughter of a charismatic politician and a loving father, even as sometimes I have chafed at being constantly under his shadow. It talks about how I have struggled to find my own identity, to defend my worldview at times and to reconcile them with his at others. I tell the story of growing up as the daughter of Malaysia’s most influential leader, from the values instilled in me as a child, right up to the day he was forced to step down as the 7th prime minister after leading the historic ouster of the government he used to lead. It is my story, from my perspective and no one else’s. It is, I hope, the answer to that question: what is it like to be Dr M’s daughter?

Book reviews

'The Apple and the Tree' is a riveting autobiography of a woman, writer and activist, a mother and a daughter to the most important political figure in modern Malaysia.'

'At once a gripping insider's account of the most dramatic years in Malaysia's recent history, it is also a story of becoming. Marina is an inspiration to us all.'

Jean Macneil, author, Professor of Creative Writing, University of East Anglia

'This is also a story of the special bond between the father and his "difficult" daughter.'

Tan Sri Johan Jaaffar. Senior journalist and former Chairman of Media Prima Berhad.

'In this memoir, Marina has found this very difficult balance when talking about this always special relationship between father and daughter. My respect for both has only increased.

Dr Peter Piot, Former Executive Director of UNAIDS and former Director London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

About the author

Marina Mahathir is a newspaper columnist and activist. She led an HIV/AIDS NGO for 12 years, served on the board of Sisters in Islam for six years and currently the chairs the board of Musawah, the global movement for justice and equality in the Muslim family. Marina has also produced TV programmes, feature films and a documentary and founded Zafigo.com, a website for women and travel. Currently, she also hosts Hello Zafigo, an online chat show,

and a podcast on books called Busy Reading Books.