Who knows the book "Max Havelaar" ?

Max Havelaar: Or the Coffee Auctions of the Dutch Trading Company (Dutch: Max Havelaar, of de koffi-veilingen der Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappy) is a culturally and socially significant 1860 novel by Multatuli (the pen name of Eduard Douwes Dekker) (1820-1887) which was to play a key role in shaping and modifying Dutch colonial policy in the Dutch East Indies in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. In the novel, the protagonist, Max Havelaar, tries to battle against a corrupt government system in Java, which was a Dutch colony known as the Dutch East Indies.

In the last chapter the author announces that he will translate the book "into the few languages I know, and into the many languages I can learn." In fact, Max Havelaar has been translated into thirty-four languages. It was first translated into English in 1868. In Indonesia, the novel was cited as an inspiration by Sukarno and other early nationalist leaders, such as the author's Indo (Eurasian) descendant Ernest Douwes Dekker, who had read it in its original Dutch. It was not translated into Indonesian until 1972.

Max Havelaar Book

It is one of the books many Dutch have read.

You can find it online in many lanuages.

There is also a very fameous fair trade initiative named 'Max Havelaar'

http://www.maxhavelaar.nl/

This copied already to more then 20 countries outside Netherlands.

It started in 1988 when Mexican farmers were asked by what is best way to help you and the answer was : a fair price for our coffee. And that is when the name Max Havelaar was pasted on this modern initiative - The Dutch book Max Havelaar was written in 1856 already and told the story about bad social conditions due to bad Dutch system in Indonesia in the coffee trade. So in a way many nowerdays know the name Max Havelaar not from the book or movie but from the fair trade brand.