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| Angels and Devils Thai Politics from February 1991 to September 1992 a Struggle for Democracy? by David Murray. With an introduction by Withaya Sucharithanarugse. 1996, 2000, xxvii, 314 pp., 15 figs., 50 b & w pl., 59 cartoons, 21.5 x 15 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-33-3 $23.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-33-4 A detailed account of the events in Thailand from the military coup in 1991 to the elections in 1992, when the democratic forces, or "angels" as they were popularly referred to, won the election and formed the government. The period under review can be seen as an important watershed in Thai political development, with the traditional military/bureaucratic leadership trying to cling to power in an age of increasing internationalism and globalization, and with a growing middle class demanding a more democratic form of government. Although the book very clearly focuses on Thailand, the events described and analysed are placed within the broader framework of the development of democracy in the international setting, and the relevance of various models of democratic development to the Thai situation. "This is a useful book; the narrative is thorough; the material is well organized; the writing is quite lively." (Development and Change) [Read a review] of this book. |
| An Anthology of Buddhist Tantric Songs A Study of the Caryagiti by Per Kværne by Per Kværne 1977, 1986, 2009, xiv, 276 pp., 21.5 x 14 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-34-1 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-34-1 The subject of this study is a small collection of songs known as Caryagiti, 'songs of the mystic path', or literally 'songs of the proper way of action', published by Hariprasad Sastri in 1916. These songs hold a unique place in India's spiritual and literary heritage, yet in many ways they have been imperfectly understood. This study clarifies many points that have hitherto remained obscure and provides a fresh and deeper insight into their structure and contents. The first edition was quickly sold out. The present edition is slightly revised, and the songs themselves are printed in red to distinguish them from the critical apparatus used in analysis and commentaries. New Edition Forthcoming |
| Architecture and its Models in Southeast Asia By Jacques Dumarçay 128 pp., 70 b&w illustrations, chronological table, index ISBN-10: 974-524-027-3 $17.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-027-8 This thought provoking study of the development of architecture, and the impact of architectural models on this evolution, in southeast Asia, draws for its early examples primarily from surviving Hindu-Buddhist monuments in Cambodia and Java. Dumarçay argues that, despite the fact that individual physical locations may merit innovation, new construction nevertheless tends to be constrained by pre-existing architectural models, appropriate to the new situation or otherwise, which are held within the collective conscience of a given culture. This tendency may further be strengthened in the event that an insecure regime seeks to employ architectural monuments to aggrandize its political position. The inappropriate use of models may also occur when architectural styles are transplanted from one culture into another. A break from the models of the past-and thus true innovation-may develop only when a master builder both has sufficient confidence in his own artistic vision and works within a context that allows him the freedom to express this vision. |
| An Asian Destiny By Gwendolyn Chabrier 2006, 268 pp. 12 x 18 cm. Softcover ISBN-10: 988-97764-5-6 $12.95 ISBN-13: 978-988-97764-5-9 Sabrina, a precocious and headstrong child born to a New York socialite and her alcoholic husband in the 1950s, struggles within the confines of her wealthy but dysfunctional family. Her only confidants are her stuffed animals and pets, until Didi, her aristocratic British stepfather arrives. A year with Didi in Burma amounts to an awakening for Sabrina, where she is introduced to Buddhism and blossoms in the rich spiritual culture of Rangoon, the opposite of her life of banality and neglect in America. The idyll ends all too soon. Later, Sabrina returns briefly to another part of Asia as a young mother, with tragic and bitter results. But, remaining true to a clairvoyant prediction during her first sojourn in Burma, her determination to remember and support the Burmese people and by extension her childhood friend, now the embattled leader of Burma's democratic movement, remains unflagging. A fascinating juxtaposition of Eastern and Western culture, written with the authenticity of someone who has seen the best and worst of both. [Read a profile of Gwen from TTOasia Magazine] |
| Before Kampuchea: Preludes to Tragedy by Milton Osborne 2nd edition, 2004. 208 pp., index, 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-044-3 $18.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-044-5 The year that Milton Osborne judges to have been a turning point in Cambodia’s modern history was 1966, a year he spent working in Phnom Penh and travelling widely in the countryside. He recounts many telling—and moving—personal experiences during this time; the corruption and political manoeuvring within capital, visits to the provinces, and, above all, friendships with Cambodians who were to make their own direct contributions to the years ahead. |
| Beyond The Pancake Trench: Road Tales from the Wild East by Tom Vater 2004. 192 pp., 16 colour plates, 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-047-8 $23.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-047-6 Vater’s observations on the human condition, as he experiences it firsthand along the less tourist-beaten paths of South and Southeast Asia, result in a no-holds-barred account of life in the region, distinctly as not described in the glossy brochures. Figuratively and at times literally far removed from the glittering urban centers and pampering resorts—the images of Asia that occur to most—the author presents a keen-eyed vision of the region’s underbelly. Vater observes and records the stories of the hunters and their prey, the marginalized and the mad, from among desperate locals and foreign interlopers alike. For all who want a better understanding of the realities—and surrealities—of the region, but definitely not for the faint of heart. |
| The British Humiliation of Burma by Terence Blackburn 2000. 166 pp., 5 maps, 27 col. pl, 4 b & w plates and 45 illustrations, bibliography, index, 21.5 x 15 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-66-3 $23.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-66-3 This is a richly illustrated book on the outrageous behaviour of the British government, driven largely by merchant and missionary interests, towards the Kingdom of Burma. It is a concise and useful summary of events surrounding and leading up to the three Anglo-Burmese wars (1824-26, 1852, 1885-86), and investigates an issue long ignored or covered up by writers until now—what happened to the fabulous riches in gold and precious stones so shamelessly looted from the Mandalay Palace. [Read a review] by Michael Smithies. |
| Burma's Revolution of the Spirit The Struggle for Democratic Freedom and Dignity (available in English, Thai, and Burmese, see ISBN numbers below) by Alan Clements and Leslie Kean. Foreword by H H the Dalai Lama. Preface by Dr Sein Win. Essay by Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. 1994, 1995, 112 pp., 111 col. pl., 9 b & w plates, 1 map, 29 x 25 cm., softbound. English version ISBN-10: 974-8299-44-9 $25.00 Thai translation: ISBN-10: 974-8299-40-6 $25.00 (Also published in Burmese, ISBN-10: 974-7315-81-5) $25.00 A gripping photographic record of Burma and the ruthless crushing of the democratic opposition in 1988, and the subsequent struggle for democratic freedom and the right to live in peace and dignity. The photographic material has been donated by some of the world's leading photographers, and written material has been contributed by a number of well-known personalities. |
Cambodian Interlude
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| Capital and Karma Capitalism and Hinduism Compared by Øyvind Jaer 1998. 204 pp., index, bibliography, 21.5 x 15 cm., hardbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-02-3 $39.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-02-0 This is a book about cultural translation and comparison between the seemingly incomparable: Hinduism and Capitalism. Some might argue that one cannot compare Hinduism and Capitalism. Hinduism, though undoubtedly first and foremost a religion, is also the institution which organizes Hindu society and economy. And Capitalism is also a culture: a system of beliefs, ideas, values and practices which govern typical modern lifestyles. Both Hinduism and Capitalism can be conceived as cultural logical systems generally influencing the way people think, feel and communicate. Such a comparative exercise brings forth seemingly opposite worlds, as conceptualized in the present work through antinomies like action/inaction, individualism/holism, the economic or the religious project, the activist versus the yogi. Yet there is a common reference point in the concept of the duality of action/Karma--structure/Dharma. It is argued that the duality of action-structure is a particularly fertile 'bridgehead' for cultural translation and comparison between Hinduism and capitalism. Both Hindu and Western traditions have produced sophisticated theories of action and how action relates to agency and structure. The duality of action-structure is implicit in the Karma/Dharma teachings which portray the essence of Hinduism. |
| Cloud Hands: The Essence of T'ai Chi Ch’uan by Tew Bunnag 2009, 112 pp., 7 b&w plates, 21.5 x 14 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-121-0 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-121-3 A series of essays by a T’ai Chi master who has practiced the art for some 40 years and taught it to others, both to those in need of therapeutic help and to future trainers, for over 30 years. Through insightful essays on such topics as the Buddhist and Taoist ‘roots’ of T’ai Chi, on T’ai Chi as prayer, meditation, and martial practice, and on the essential need to combine physical with spiritual practice, Bunnag offers insight into the essence of this ancient and powerful art to all levels of interest. Forthcoming |
Crime and Punishment in Ancient China The Tang-Yin-Pi-Shih is a record of 144 criminal and civil court cases, judged in the courts of ancient China, spanning a period of some 1,400 years of the country's history, commencing approximately 300 BCE. During this period, China's judiciary was chosen from among the ranks of the country's scholar-officials, who, dispatched to various parts of the Empire often with little or no prior training in the legal arts, fulfilled the role of both investigative detective and court judge in the provincial centers of the land. |
| Crucifying the Orient The Colonization of Caucasus and Central Asia by Kalpana Sahni 1997. 300 pp., numerous illustrations and 4 maps, 21.5 x 15 cm., hardbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-50-3 $39.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-50-1 This major work lays bare the willful destruction of peoples, cultures and the environment by a centralized state. It is about the dehumanization of society, of human dignity and human values. The nightmare goes back to czarist times with the colonization of the ancestral lands of the Caucasian and Central Asian peoples. As so admirably diagnosed by Edward Said in his major work ORIENTALISM, it was at that time that the orientalist attitudes surfaced - resulting in the denigration of the conquered peoples who were portrayed as savage barbarians. The Soviet leaders and system largely continued the basic policies and perpetuated the basic attitudes of the czars towards the indigenous peoples of the conquered lands. [Read a review] by Galina Yemelianova |
| The Development of Paper, Printing and Ink in Asia by Berthold Laufer 2009, 122 pp, 3 b&w plates, bibliography of the author, index, 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-110-5 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-110-7 An essay on the development of paper and printing in China, and a history of the development and use of various forms of ink in Asia, reprinted from sources long out of print and now very hard to find. Berthold Laufer (1874-1934) was one of the earliest and most erudite Western scholars of Asian culture. Fluent in many Asian languages, and leader of four major exploratory expeditions to Asia, he was the author of over 200 anthropological studies, books and papers. Includes a summary of Laufer's illustrious scholarly career, and a detailed bibliography of his writings. Forthcoming |
| Dhammayangyi: The Pyramid by the Irrawaddy by Hans W. Finger 1st English edition 2004. 90 pp., 40 colour illustrations, 4 maps and plans, 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-045-1 $17.50 ISBN-13: 978-74-524-045-2 This book is a lively and personal account of a stranger visiting Burma, who travels to its historical centre, the village of Pagan. It describes his encounter with its people and the children of the temple, and through exploring the ancient Dhammayangyi temple, he embarks on a fantastic journey of discovery, deep into Pagan’s and its inhabitants’ history. The narrative reveals the terrors imposed by the temple’s royal creator, and the dark legacy of its construction and continuation, reflected by the myths and legends surrounding it— legends which are still passed on by word of mouth and preserved in the beliefs of local inhabitants, today. |
| Down The Rat Hole: Adventures Underground on the Burma Frontier by Edith Mirante 2005. 192 pp., 3 colour plates, 3 maps, 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-050-8 $21.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-050-6 A new memoir of the author’s journeys among the brave indigenous peoples of some of Asia’s most remote and violent regions. Knowledgeably obsessed with Burma’s struggle for freedom, American artist/activist Mirante breaks laws and infiltrates borders, in impassioned journeys of discovery that take her through China, India, Laos, and chaotic Bangladesh. Down the Rat Hole is a wild and exotic headlong plunge into a hidden world of guerrilla warfare, heroin and jade trading, the AIDS pandemic, rainforest destruction, strikes and rioting, and one of the worst natural disasters of the 20th Century. [Read a review from the South China Morning Post] [Read a review from Irrawaddy Magazine] |
Edible Wild Plants of Vietnam: Since the dawn of human history, people have gathered and consumed wild plants, for both nutritional and curative purposes. Over the course of millennia, our knowledge of the benefits of these plants has steadily grown, passed down from generation to generation primarily by oral tradition. A vast, invaluable body of knowledge on the use of wild plants remains among many traditional communities to the present day. |
Flame Tree: Returning to Burma to teach for a month, Dr. George Daniels and his wife, Vienna, had not expected to get involved in a war. But a renegade colonel disrupts the balance of power between the dictatorship and the insurgent hill armies, flooding the Thai border with refugees. George discovers information crucial to ending the conflict—and his wife is held hostage to prevent his using it—at the Flame Tree truce conference. The story of a man who has spent a lifetime avoiding confrontation, and who now finds himself in a mediator’s role between a dictatorship and rebel armies fighting for survival. |
Frontier Mosaic: In Frontier Mosaic, author Humphries provides first-hand accounts and his own observations of the personalities he encounters, on both sides of the border, as he traverses the length of the Thai- Burma frontier. We are introduced enroute to the insurgent soldier, the mother, the migrant and the artist, among many other typical inhabitants. In tales of hope and dashed dreams, certainties and ambiguities, conflict, exploitation and coexistence, Humphries paints an informative and empathetic picture of life in the region, of interest to specialists and general readers alike. [Read a review from The Japan Times] [Read a review from Irrawaddy Magazine] [Read a review from Mizzima News] |
George Leigh Mallory |
| George Mallory by David Robertson 1969, 1999. 279 pp., 21 b & w plates, 5 maps, 21.5 x 15 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-42-6 $25.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-42-7 On 1 May 1999 an American expedition, searching on Everest for the bodies of George Mallory and Sandy Irvine, found Mallory’s body on a ledge at approximately 27,000 feet. The climbers carefully buried it, with appropriate ceremony, under large rocks at an undisclosed spot. They continued, without success, their search for Irvine’s body and for the vest-pocket Kodak camera that might have yielded evidence that Mallory and Irvine attained the summit. George Mallory’s disappearance on Everest in 1924 secured a place for him as one of the accepted heroes of the 20th century: it tended, at the same time, to overshadow the course of his life as a whole and to obscure the shape and complexity of his personality. In this first full biography, David Robertson - who has had access to all the family papers - follows Mallory’s life from boyhood in Cheshire and at Winchester, through the years from 1905 to 1909 at Cambridge and the years of schoolmastering at Charterhouse. Then on to a happy marriage, service in the First World War, and participation in the Everest Expeditions of the Twenties. Two deep devotions - to the spirit of adventure and to his family and personal friends - were the mainsprings of his life. This book, first published in 1969, shows him not only as a mountaineer of extraordinary skill and action. It portrays a man who developed lively interests in the fields of literature, the arts and the main social and political controversies of his day, and one whose circle of friends included some of his most brilliant contemporaries. Above all, it succeeds in conveying Mallory’s immense but un-self-conscious charm, enhanced by transparent determination to find out what was right - a charm captivating to so many, and so very different, people. David Robertson came to Trinity College, Cambridge, as a Henry Fellow after graduation from Princeton. For several years he was co-editor of the American Alpine Journal. He is now retired from his position as McIntosh Professor of English at Barnard College in New York, and lives in Princeton. |
| A Guide to Colonial Sources on Burma: Ethnic & Minority Histories of Burma in the India Office Records, British Library by Mandy Sadan 2008, 580 pp., 4 maps, indices, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., hardcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-106-7 $50.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-106-0 The India Office Records (IOR) of the British Library, in London, include perhaps the richest scholarly resources anywhere on conditions in Burma in late British colonial times. The purpose of this guide is to provide a general introduction to sources in the IOR for the study of minority histories of Burma. The guide contains extensive lists of references, but it also contains introductory comments on the structure of the India Office Records as a whole, to help researchers make the best use of this wonderful historical resource. The primary focus is on English language sources relating to the period 1824–1948, but there are also brief comments on sources outside this frame of reference. |
| A History of the Ho Chi Minh Trail The Road to Freedom by Virginia Morris with Clive Hills 2006. 196 pp., 107 colour, 24 b&w illustrations, 11 maps, index, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., hardcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-076-1 $29.95 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-076-6 The Ho Chi Minh Trail was a decisive factor in the defeat of American forces in the Vietnam War. At the peak of its 16 years' operation, the Trail ran through North and South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Despite an estimated 4 million tons of US bombs, efforts to stop the transport of essential goods to the North Vietnamese Army over the Trail failed, and by the end of the war over a million tons of supplies had been transported and 2 million troops had traversed the Trail. At its peak there were 120,000 people working on the Trail. Throughout the war around 20,000 died, some 30,000 were seriously injured; the numbers of people affected by chemical spraying and unexploded bombs are still unrecorded. The author and photographer, the first Westerners to traverse the entire length of the Trail, trace the footsteps of the hundreds of thousands who designed, built, used and fought along it. Interviewing villagers along the Trail, as well as key military and political figures on both sides of the conflict, including the mastermind of the trail, Vietnam's General Vo Nguyen Giap, A Road to Freedom presents a balanced and fascinating account of this most remarkable feat of engineering and tactical warfare of the Vietnam War era. Voted on its release as Travel Book of the Week by Frank Barrett of London's Mail on Sunday, 13th August, 2006. [Read a review from the Journal of the Siam Society] [Read a review from NYMAS Review] [Read the foreword by Gen. Sir John Reith] [Read praise for this book from prominent sources] |
| Introduction to Thai Reading: by Rungrat Luanwarawat 2007. 214 pp., 21 x 16.5 cm., includes an audio CD, softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-103-2 $25.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-103-9 Learning to read Thai is the path to a more profound grasp of the language. This book is based on years of experience teaching foreigners to speak and read Thai, and builds on the author's observations in the classroom about which rules of grammar, spelling and pronunciation most commonly impede their progress. Introduction to Thai Reading, designed to be a comprehensive foundation of 24 progressive lessons, will pave the way towards a solid and advanced knowledge of the Thai language. Those who complete the book will have acquired not only essential Thai reading skills, but also the vocabulary and grammar needed for basic Thai speaking. Download an MP3 file of the first CD track (4 MBytes) |
| Khmer Costumes and Ornaments: After the Devata of Angkor Wat by Sappho Marchal (translated from French by Merrily Hansen) First English edition Orchid Press 2005. (1st French edition, 1927) 128 pp., 44 b&w pl., including numerous line drawings, 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-057-5 $16.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-057-5 The artist Sappho Marchal was the daughter of the renowned French conservator of Angkor, Henri Marchal. She spent the early years of her life in Cambodia, surrounded by the magnificent ruins of the Khmers, and produced the present study at age 23. Her fine line drawings present the myriad details of ornament and costume depicted on the stone reliefs of Angkor Wat with a clarity that could not be captured, even then, on film. Since that time, many of the stone carvings have severely deteriorated, rendering Marchal's drawings all the more valuable as a record for present-day students and restorers of Angkor. [Read a review from the www.devata.org] [Read a review from the Journal of the Siam Society] [Read a review from Cambodia Book Reviews] [Read a review from Amazon.com] [Read a review from The Nation] |
| Kingship and Law in Early Konbaung Period (1752-1819) of Myanmar: A Study of the Manugye Dhammathat by Ryuji Okudaira 2009, 216 pp., 4 colour and 1 b&w illustr., 9 tables, bibliography, glossary, index; 24.5 x 17.5 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-117-2 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-117-6 A scholarly study of the Buddhist legal system as it evolved in late 18th century Myanmar (Burma). The author, a specialist in Myanmar’s precolonial legal history, has discovered and analyzed a longforgotten revision, dated 1782, to the country’s then-governing legal authority, the 1760-65 original edition of the Manugye Dhammathat. He reveals the relevance of the revised code in the context of the efforts by the Royal Court to steer the country’s political philosophy in a direction supportive of the legitimacy of the Konbaung rulers and the supremacy of the Theravada Buddhist state under their sovereignty. An important new study on historical Southeast Asia’s most sophisticated Pali-based legal system, of relevance to all with interest in Southeast Asia’s legal and political history. Professor Okudaira, a former Japanese diplomat having served in Myanmar and the United Kingdom, is currently Professor Emeritus at the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. |
| Land of Jade Journey from India through Northern Burma to China. Second, updated edition by Bertil Lintner, photographs by Hseng Noung Lintner 1990, 1996. 404 pp., 52 colour and b & w plates., 7 maps and plans, index, 21.5 x 15.2 cm., hardbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-24-4 $29.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-24-2 In August 1985, "Mr de Souza from Goa", his considerable body wrapped in a blanket, his jet black hair flowing gently in the breeze, and his eyes hidden by huge, dark, stylish sun glasses, arrived in Nagaland. With his diminutive and highly pregnant travel companion, he had slipped past various Indian checkpoints and intelligence setups, and a fantastic journey into hidden Burma began. The book that resulted from this journey has become a classic on recent Burmese history. Bertil Lintner and Hseng Noung spent one and a half years travelling through northern and eastern Burma from 1985 to 1987. Lintner describes with care and deep insight the struggle by the Kachin and Shan ethnic groups against Burmese army rule, and records the decline and fall of the CPB--the Communist Party of Burma. During their 2,275 kilometre trek, at times in great danger, they wrote the history of a 40-year forgotten war, a history which would otherwise never have been committed to paper in such rich detail. Their daughter Hseng Tai was born in Nagaland, India at the inception of the journey. The 1996 edition is updated, and contains a wealth of hitherto unpublished photographic material as well as detailed maps and plans. |
| Languages and History Japanese, Korean and Altaic by Roy Andrew Miller 1996, 230 pp., 21.5 x 15 cm., hardbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-69-4 $35.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-69-3 Summarizing what is known of the history and prehistory of Korean and Japanese, a problem that necessarily involves their possible genetic relationship to the Altaic (Turkic, Mongol, Tungus) languages, the author examines--and demonstrates that it is necessary to reject--arguments now dominant in most Western scholarship that would attribute all similarities among these languages to borrowing rather than genetic relationship. He argues that the now widely accepted truism that "Korean and Japanese cannot be Altaic languages" because "there are no Altaic languages" can no longer seriously be maintained. Korean and Japanese both possess important early written records, until now either ignored or largely misrepresented by those who dismiss the Altaic hypothesis. The author shows that these texts, when approached with proper philological precision, bolster the Altaic hypothesis in much the same way that the discovery of Tokharian and Hittite materials earlier stimulated and clarified Indo-European historical linguistics. |
Let's Speak Lao Loas, blessed with rich cultural traditions, natural beauty and a warm and hospitable population, is still, remarkably, 'off the beaten track' as far as the hordes of tourists one encounters elsewhere in SE Asia. For the new arrival, Lets Speak Lao is the only tool the visitor will need to start to communicate with Lao people. This is a phrasebook / dictionary with a difference-in addition to tackling all of the needed topics from greetings to shopping, food and drink, accommodation and transport, each copy contains a mini-CD ROM containing over 20 minutes of carefully structured pronunciation lessons, presented by the author, a veteran language trainer, together with native speakers. Also a must for visitors to NE Thailand's Isaan region, where the predominant language is Lao. |
Let's Speak Thai For the new arrival to Thailand , nothing seems more impenetrable than the local language. Phrasebooks abound, but how does one begin to master the unique sounds of the language, required of the very first Thai words the visitor attempts? Let's Speak Thai is a phrasebook / dictionary with a difference. In addition to tackling all of the needed topics from greetings to shopping, food and drink, accommodation and transport, each copy includes a mini-CD ROM containing over 20 minutes of carefully structured pronunciation lessons, presented by the author, a veteran language trainer, together with native speakers. Featuring in addition an explanation of basic grammatical structures, all words and phrases in English / phonetic / Thai script and a 140 page dictionary, this is the only tool that the visitor will require to start communicating in Thailand. |
| The Lore of the Chinese Lute: An Essay on the Ideology of the Ch'in by R. H. van Gulik 2009, 291 pp., 2 colour and 37 b&w plates, 8 woodcuts, index, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., hardcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-112-1 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-112-1 The lute, ch’in or guqin is one of China’s oldest and most revered musical instruments. Records indicate that it has been a favourite of the literary classes for more than 2,500 years; Confucius himself was a great lover of the instrument. Over the centuries, it became representative of the life, taste and pastimes of the Chinese literati. In addition to its contributions to solo and orchestral musical arrangements, a wealth of symbolic meaning accrued to the lute, over time. Not only was knowledge of the instrument reserved for the literati, its study was believed to be conducive to meditation and to facilitate intellectual enlightenment. While a significant body of literature has been written on the lute in Chinese, the present monograph is the first to assemble a broad picture of the instrument and its cultural significance in English. The author, a renowned Sinologue and linguist, studied the playing of the instrument under one of the most famous lute masters of his age. Forthcoming |
| Mandarin: A novel of Viet Nam by John Havan 2007. 332 pp., 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-100-8 $17.95 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-100-8 Young Bach seemed to have it all-the first born son of the wealthiest and most powerful mandarin at the Hue court, he grew to be a robust and handsome young man, irresistible to the women in his life, brilliant at his studies and with a natural gift for the martial arts. Bach was a true 'diamond son'. But Bach's was a case of the right birth at the wrong time. The feudal system that had dominated Viet Nam for more than a thousand years was locked in a death struggle with the forces of French colonial exploitation, Japanese imperialist lust and Ho Chi Minh's communist fanatics. The odds were stacked against Bach from the beginning and the mandarin's way of life was doomed in the cataclysmic birth throes of the modern socialist state. An epic tale of love and war, struggle, loss and rebirth, Bach's journey utterly captivates, from its first pages to its climactic finale. [Visit John Havan's Website] |
Mara in the Land of Smiles: Mara in the Land of Smiles is a delightful fable set in a mythical country that vaguely resembles Thailand, hundreds of years ago. It recounts the tale of the epic struggle between Mara, the Lord of Delusion, and the followers of The Great Teacher, for the hearts and minds of the populace. Mara's weapons are fear, jealousy, hatred and greed, spread and stoked by his four wicked agents on earth. As the story commences, only four souls have resisted Mara's siren call the king of the land, an ageing monk, a poor peasant and a wealthy merchant. Mara plots the seduction of these last four virtuous citizens to secure his final victory. |
| Mini Orchids Buddha, Dharma, Sangha |
| This delightful set of three little books outlines in simple (but not simplistic) terms the life of the Buddha, Buddhist teaching, and monastic life in Thailand. The author, a former American journalist, lived in Chiang Mai for many years before his untimely death in 1995. His views are based on extensive reading on the sources of Buddhism, intensive interviews with senior and knowledgeable monks, plus his own religious participation and observations. Written primarily for Westerners, the books are intended to give an understanding of and insight into a religion and its practices; a religion that, twenty-five centuries after the Buddha's death, attracts the adherence of millions and millions worldwide, not only in Asia, but also in increasing numbers in the West. |
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The Buddha's Life Man, Myth, Facts and Fable by Gerald Roscoe 1999. 96 pp., 15 x 10.5 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-43-6 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-43-4 [Read an excerpt] from this book |
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The Monastic Life Pathway of the Buddhist Monk by Gerald Roscoe 1999. 96 pp., 15 x 10.5 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-44-2 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-44-1 |
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The Good Life An Introduction to Buddhism for the Westerner by Gerald Roscoe 1999. 96 pp., 15 x 10.5 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-46-9 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-46-5 |
| Buddha, Dharma, Sangha by Gerald Roscoe 1999. 288 pp., 16 x 11 cm., hard Slipcase. ISBN-10: 974-8304-90-6 $19.95 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-90-8 This is a boxed set of the above three titles. |
| Mi Fu on Ink-stones Translated with commentary by R. H. van Gulik Second imprint 2006 (first edition Peking, 1938). xii, 71 pp., 2 colour, 11 b&w illustrations, map, index, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., hardcover. The original Chinese text of Mi Fu's Yen Shih is also reproduced, alongside the English translation. ISBN-10: 974-524-083-4 $35.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-083-4 The great Song Dynasty poet and artist, Mi Fu (1051-1107), wrote treatises on painting and calligraphy, in addition to the present work on ink-stones, translated here by the eminent Dutch diplomat and Sinologist, Dr. R H van Gulik. In the case of the first two works, the subjects of Mi Fu's deliberations have long since disappeared. There remain, however, numerous surviving examples of ink-stones from the Song and earlier dynasties, enabling us to compare Mi Fu's words with the actual objects he describes. The importance of the ink-stone as an essential tool of the Chinese literati and thus the importance of our understanding its nature to our overall comprehension of Chinese brushwork, is but one aspect of the present work. The inkstone is, in addition to a tool, a work of art in its own right, combining the skill and wit of the sculptor with the ancient Chinese tradition of appreciation of beautiful stones. In Mi Fu on Ink-stones, Dr van Gulik provides not only a guide to the connoisseurship of this essential treasure of the scholar's studio, but also an illuminating glimpse into the mind of this brilliant eleventh century artist. [Read more about the life of R. H. van Gulik] |
| The Naga's Journey: A Novel by Tew Bunnag 2007. 270 pp., 21.5 x 15.2 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-102-4 $16.95 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-102-2 Set in modern-day Bangkok, The Naga's Journey chronicles the unlikely friendship of three people from disparate backgrounds, thrown together by a dramatic event at the cremation of a notorious public figure. The consequence of their response sets in motion their relationship and reveals a past, connected to the dead man, which each of them has tried to avoid confronting. Throughout the novel lurks the dark presence of the Naga, the unpredictable and powerful element of water, potentially both nurturing and destructive. The tale reaches its climax when Bangkok, a city degenerating morally as well as physically, is threatened by a massive flood, an event that ends in tragedy and catharsis for the three friends. The tale's ultimate message of hope and reconciliation will be an inspiration for all who embark on The Naga's Journey. The Naga's Journey is the first novel by Tew Bunnag, author of several books on meditation and the martial arts, and most recently of Fragile Days-Tales from Bangkok, a critically acclaimed collection of short stories and After the Wave, another collection of stories which deals with the post Tsunami situation in South Thailand. 'Flawless in both style and structure. Distinctive prose. Rich in imagination. An enchanting journey for everyone thanks to Tew Bunnag's masterful storytelling. He writes with a magic touch, revealing a glimpse of “unseen” Bangkok that readers will find unforgettable.' Jane Vejjajiva, Thai author and winner of 2006 SEA Write award. 'The Naga's Journey is not an ordinary novel. Tew Bunnag has skilfully recreated the complexity of contemporary Thai society. He enables the reader an understanding of its delicate interdependence by creating his own intricately woven setting of high society, police mafia, prostitution, slum dwelling and ecological devastation.' Sulak Sivaraksa, Thai Buddhist social activist. [View After the Wave by Tew Bunnag] [Read a review from BK Magazine] [Visit the Author's Website] |
| The Peacock's Children: Burma Protests 1885-2000 by Paul Webb 2009, 267 pp., map, notes, bibliography, 21.5 x 15 cm., hardcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-069-9 $23.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-069-8 This book records the struggle for independence and democracy in Burma from the fall of the monarchy to the present day. Research was carried out in the British Library-Indian and Oriental Collection in London for valuable material concerning the British colonial period and its response to nationalist and student protests. Post-colonial material is complemented by extensive interviews in Burma, Thailand and Australia. The account is at times a harrowing one, underscoring the repeated dashed hopes for freedom, and the confusion and contradictions amongst Burmese themselves as to the right path to be followed to achieve true independence. In the Epilogue, the author brings us forward to 2003. Regrettably, little has changed since then; for Burma democracy seems as far away as ever. Forthcoming |
| Pilgrim Tax and Temple Scandals A Critical Study of the Important Jagannath Temple Records during British Rule by Sri Prabhat Mukherjee. Edited by Nancy Gardner Cassels 2000. 160 pp., 6 photos, index, 21.5 x 15 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-72-8 $23.00. In India, 195 rupees ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-72-4 Published in cooperation with the South Asian Institute of the University of Heidelberg, Germany. This is an edited collection of documents which Prof. Mukherjee selected during the very last years of his life for their importance to the history of the Jagannath Temple in Orissa, India, and their relationship with British administrators in the early nineteenth century. The documents represent the archival evidence which formed the basis for the first half of his book, History of the Jagannath Temple in the 19th Century, published in 1977. In this selection he comments on the significance of particular documents, but since he did not live to complete the task, the editor has annexed to the twenty-six primary documents supplementary citations from other sources. The work offers a tantalizing glimpse of Lord Jagannath’s relations with the East India Company. |
| Portuguese Pioneers Of Vietnamese Linguistics Pionniers Portugais de la Linguistique Vietnamienne Jusqu'en 1650 by Roland Jacques 2002 408 pp., bibliography, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-77-9 $36.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-77-9 The development and eventual official adoption of a Romanized script ('Quoc Ngu' or 'national language') to represent the spoken language of Vietnam has had enormous impact on that country's cultural and intellectual development. Replacing an older script based on Chinese style ideograms, the inherent efficiency of Quoc Ngu has been a major contributor to Vietnam's comparatively high literacy rate, and thus to the country's modernization. In linguistic circles, the development of Quoc Ngu has long been attributed primarily to the efforts of a 17th century French missionary to Vietnam, Alexandre de Rhodes. The present study, however, demonstrates that de Rhodes' accomplishment was made possible by his building upon a foundation of the work of the Portuguese missionaries and linguists who preceded him. Drawing on previously unpublished 17th century works in Latin and contemporary correspondence in Portuguese, the author demonstrates the pivotal role played by Portuguese clerics in the development of the script. In doing so, he also explains the many fascinating synergies between Quoc Ngu and written Portuguese. An original and important new work on Vietnamese linguistics, this book is of interest not only to scholars of Asian languages, but also to all with interest, either professional or lay, in the history of medieval Vietnam and its development into the modern state. Bilingual English / French edition. [Lire une revue en français de Collège Érasme] [Read a review of this book from Quaderni Vietnamiti] |
| Precious Materials in Asian History: Essays on Turquoise, Amber, Ivory, Diamond and Gold by Berthold Laufer 2009, 275 pp., 2 col. & 24 b&w plates, index, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-109-1 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-109-1 Essays on the sources, usage, social significance and folklore of some of the most prominent precious materials in the history of China, South Asia and the Himalayas. A rich source of information on the anthropological implications of these materials, and the sometimes subtle links that developed between East and West in the quest for these treasured substances. Berthold Laufer (1874-1934) was one of the earliest and most erudite Western scholars of Asian culture. He was the primary contributor to the great collection of anthropological material now preserved at the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, a collection he curated for some 26 years. A world renowned expert on jade in China, his writings on which remain important references to the present, the current collection of essays summarize his writings on precious substances other than jade. Forthcoming |
Progressive Thai Progressive Thai, the first of a planned new series of language learning tools, is the product of thousands of classroom hours of instruction to foreign students of the Thai language. |
| Religion as History—Religion as Myth by David Snellgrove 1st edition 2005. 160 pp., 21.5 x 15 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-070-2 $18.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-070-4 An eminent scholar's critical examination of the teachings of some major religions, but primarily Christianity and Buddhism, to a lesser extent Islam and Judaism. The author's main thesis is that no religion can claim to be the only true religion without involving human society either in bitter conflict or in merciless persecution. Furthermore the author illustrates how such claims to absolute truth are often based on doctrines which may have little or nothing to do with teachings of the founder of a particular religion and which in terms of present-day knowledge of the history of the human race are no longer tenable. However, the primary interests of the author concern Buddhism, especially as related in its origins in the remarkable mystical insights of early Brahmanical sages. In the last section of this book, he treats the Buddhist and Brahmanical ways of salvation as a quest which parallels and might well usefully inspire the researches of present-day scientists who probe the mysteries of time and space. |
| Samsara by David Adams 2007. 420 pp., 21 x 13 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 988-97764-0-5 $12.95 ISBN-13: 978-988-97764-0-4 Exchanging Western values for far-off Thailand, Gunnar Ray plans to teach in the countryside and absorb the country's ancient wisdom. When monsoon rains rip into logged-over lands above his adopted village, catastrophe strikes. Gunnar's innocence is swept downstream along with hundreds of Thai lives. Spiritually adrift, he washes up in the offices of the Bangkok Times, a crusading reporter hell bent on derailing corrupt officials at war with the Thai environment. He is not alone. a summons from an enigmatic Buddhist monk with rumored mystical powers and a near militant love for the jungle is just the sort of lead that Gunnar thrives on. In a forgotten province, he will test whether his pen is indeed mightier than the military's sword. When the forest-protecting monk of the Northeast is arrested, Gunnar sets off on a cross-country journey to summon support. With the monk's beautiful niece as his guide, he navigates the currents and eddies of remote provinces that few Westerners have penetrated. Gunnar's articles aimed at freeing the first-ever imprisoned Thai monk transform him into a high profile activist-and target. Ultimately he must choose: his growing love for the monk's niece and commitment to the cause, versus the now daily threat of an assassin's bullet. Ecological thriller, love story, spiritual journey-Samsara scratches the bloody underbelly of a nation in conflict. |
| Scrapbook for Chinese Collectors Translated with commentary by R. H. van Gulik Second imprint 2006 (first edition privately printed, Beirut 1958). 100 pp., incl. 84 pp., translation and notes and 16 pp. reproducing the original Chinese text; 3 b&w illustrations, 21.5 x 15 cm., hardcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-081-8 $26.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-081-0 The Shu Hua Shuo Ling-treatise on painting and forgery-was written in the eighteenth century by the relatively obscure Chinese scholar, Lu Shih-hua. It might have vanished from the landscape of Asian art history, had the eminent Sinologue, RH van Gulik, not recognized its essential value to our modern understanding of Chinese connoisseurship. Its worth lies in the intellectual honesty of the author in his description of the artist in traditional China, the artist's motivations and the means by which his work was evaluated. Of particular interest, with the emphasis, at times bordering on the paranoiac, that persists today on the issue of authenticity, is Lu's observations on this matter among connoisseurs of his time. One wonders what chance we have to determine the authenticity of a work now, when even those with profound knowledge of the artists, their styles and work in the eighteenth century were challenged to do likewise. One also leaves Lu's treatise wondering if authenticity, as we define it, matters as much as we might lead ourselves to believe. An important, provocative work of interest to all who wish to acquire a deeper understanding of Chinese painting. ". a collection of memoirs and advice to be relished." Joseph P. Love, Monumenta Nipponica [Read more about the life of R. H. van Gulik] |
| Secrets of Bali: New Light on the Morning of the World by Jonathan Copeland with Ni Wayan Murni 2009, 312 pp., 110 line drawings, 1 map, glossary, bibliography, index, 21.5 x 14 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-118-0 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-118-3 With its dramatic vistas, its attractive, hospitable people and its rich cultural traditions, the magical isle of Bali has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions, ever since visitors from the West began to arrive in the early 20th century. Incredibly, ancient Balinese cultural traditions remain richly intact today, in the face of 21st century modernity and a highly developed tourist industry. Yet few visitors ever really begin to understand the colourful pageantry that surrounds them virtually everywhere they travel on the island. Secrets of Bali is the key to this understanding. From Balinese life, religion, festivals and offerings, architecture, music, dance, textiles, dress, carvings and paintings, masks, manuscripts, meals and much more, this is the one book to which the visitor can turn for the answers. A ‘must’ for foreign visitors, residents, and those everywhere who have fallen under the spell of ‘The Morning of the World’. “Eloquent, enthusiastic, and jargon–free.” Dr Angela Hobart. |
| Siamese Bestiary written & illustrated by Kristiaan Inwood (1978) 2005 Second revised edition, index, 136 pp., 70 b&w drawings, 25.5 x 19 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-058-3 $23.00 ISBN-13: 978974-524-058-2 Thailand. The name evokes images of golden pagodas, emerald rice fields, jungled mountains, a happy, gregarious people. Siamese Bestiary reveals another aspect of Thailand-the intimate co-existence shared by animal and human life in the tropics. Lizards play hide-and-seek on walls and ceilings; frogs colonize bathrooms and crabs doze behind water jars; turtles make nocturnal visits; snakes take short cuts through kitchens; catfish walk from one pond to another... Blending anecdote, observation and humour in this unusual and attractive volume, the author lovingly chronicles and depicts the antics of animal and human characters in and around his Thai home. [Read a review & excerpts from Bangkok Airways In-flight Magazine] [Read a review from The Nation] [Read a second review from The Nation] [Read a review from The Bangkok Post] |
| Sutasoma: The ancient tale of a Buddha-Prince from a 14th century Javanese kakawin Translated with commentary by Kate O'Brien 2008, 294 pp., 22 col. plates & 9 figures, index, 24.5 x 17.5 cm., hardcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-107-5 $45.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-107-7 The 14th century epic poem, Sutasoma, relates the life of a prince, born an incarnation of the Jina-Buddha Wairocana. It follows his spiritual journey to enlightenment, and his temporal journey through marriage, kingship and eventual victory over the mighty, world-threatening demon, Porußåda. Kate O'Brien's new translation delivers to the reader a highly approachable and lively rendition of this Buddhist epic, comparable in both complexity and scale to that of the Råmåyana, yet significantly less known or understood. O'Brien's accompanying analysis reveals a fascinating aspect of the poem, until now not fully comprehended. Aside from its function to elucidate the compatibility of Buddhahood and kingship, it also reveals within its verses what amounts to a literary mandala, as complex and philosophically rich as the beautiful mandala images of Tibetan Buddhism, yet firmly rooted in the Javanese milieu of the Majapahit polity which spawned this version of a very ancient tale. It is this literary mandala that is the path to Sutasoma's enlightenment, and this in turn the key to his success as a World Protector and Universal Monarch. This entertaining and attractively illustrated edition will appeal to readers with interest in the literary traditions of southeast Asia and of tantric Buddhism, and also to a wider audience who wish to understand the foundations, both mystical and practical, underpinning much of Javanese and Balinese society today. [Read a review from TAASA] |
| Thai Law: Buddhist Law Essays on the Legal History of Thailand, Laos and Burma Edited by Andrew Huxley 1996, 2000, 220 pp., 21.5 x 15 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8299-86-4 $18.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8299-86-0 Between 1880 and 1930 Thai law was modernized. Using the French civil code as their model, the kings of Siam recast traditional Thai law into western form. This book describes Thai law as it was before 1880. For at least five hundred years, perhaps a thousand years, the Thai have used written lawbooks. During the last twenty years Thai scholars have systematically searched for these lawbooks through the book chests of monasteries. As a result there is now a very large number of legal manuscripts available for study. In this book six experts describe the new discoveries and assess how much our view of traditional Thai law has to change. The essays have a regional focus, dealing with the Northern Thai traditions of Lanna, the provincial cities of central Thailand, the Southern Kingdom based on Nakhon Si Thammarat, the law texts of Laos, the new discoveries in Burma and finally with Bangkok and its famous Three Seals Code. [Read a review from Griffith Law Review] |
| Thai Reference Grammar by James Higbie and Snea Thinsan 2002, 2003, 2004 450 pp., 24.5 x 17.5 cm. Softbound. ISBN-10: 974-8304-96-5 $39.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-96-0 There are many phrasebooks and course books for beginning-level Thai but until now there has been no book that explains higher-level Thai sentence structure and functional vocabulary. Many students of the Thai language find that basic-level Thai is easy to pick up, but that the language becomes more difficult at higher levels. (For example, there are four ways to say 'because' and eleven ways to say 'only'.) Thai Reference Grammar fills the need for a work that explains high-level Thai sentence structure and vocabulary. The book presents clear explanations of advanced Thai structure, illustrated with examples of typical Thai speech. The authors, an American and a Thai both with advanced degrees in linguistics and language teaching, analyzed thousands of Thai sentences to formulate clear and concise explanations for all the important sentence patterns of the Thai language. The book is arranged by topic for easy reference. Examples are given in both Thai script and transliterated Thai, written in the English alphabet with no special phonetic symbols. Tones are marked with a special font that shows the level of the sound of each word, essential to pronunciation in tonal languages like Thai. [Read a review] |
| Thai Signs and other Writings by Rungrat Luanwarawat and Lucius Heijstee 2008. 138 pp., 17.5 x 10.5 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-104-0 $16.95 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-104-6 This book is intended primarily for non-Thai readers who have encountered language barriers when traveling around Thailand given that many signs, labels and forms are presented in Thai script only. Lots of words and signs are listed per topic, for example signs on doors, at markets, temples, on the toilet, etc. In addition, the book also includes the names of all provinces in the country, most common food orders, useful information shown on labels, as well as general document and form wordings. A must for all visitors as well as foreign residents of Thailand! New |
| The Trial of the Honey Thief and Other Tales from Mandalay by Various 2009, 224 pp., 18 b&w sketches, 21.5 x 14 cm., softcover. ISBN-10: 974-524-122-9 Price to be announced. ISBN-13: 978-974-524-122-0 Mandalay, an ancient center of Burmese culture with rich traditions of music, dramatic and plastic arts and painting, was also, over its colonial period, an inspiration for many foreign writers and poets. Yet seldom have the voices of Mandalay’s own writers managed to have been heard. The present collection of 18 short stories are translated from the original Burmese writings of some of central Burma’s most eminent comics, essayists and authors. They speak eloquently, sometimes humourously and at times philosophically, about the lives of the common people of Burma today—the joys and trials of the young and old, of the denizens of city and country, of wives and husbands and lovers. |
| A Way with Words Language and Culture in Tokelau Society by Ingjerd Hoëm 1995. 232 pp., 30 col. pl., 4 b & w ill., 2 maps, 21.5 x 15 cm., hardbound with dustjacket. ISBN-10: 974-8304-08-6 $39.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-8304-08-3 What is the relationship between language and culture? This book explores this issue through a focus on comparative practice in the atoll society of Tokelau in the South Pacific. Through ethnographic descriptions of 'men's talk' and 'women's talk' what is defined as 'knowledge' emerges. Local attitudes towards language and aesthetics are shown to influence communicative practices. The issue of power is addressed through a perspective that takes the social distribution of knowledge into account. Issues that bear on cultural identity, as they have emerged throughout the last decades, are intimately connected with current communicative practices. |
| Welcome to Burma And enjoy the totalitarian experience by Timothy Syrota 2001. 192 pp., b & w pl. illustrations, bibliography, index, 23.5 x 13 cm., softbound. ISBN-10: 974-524-008-7 $23.00 ISBN-13: 978-974-524-008-7 Hello, this is your tour guide speaking. I'd like to take this opportunity to welcome you all to Burma. As you travel through our beautiful country please do not look beyond the glittering pagodas, do not talk about politics,and please ensure that you do not leave the clearly defined trail. Please acknowledge that our government is working hard to improve the state of the nation and that we do not abuse human rights. Should you not understand this, you are a neo-colonialist axe-handle who works for the CIA. Thank you for your attention and please enjoy your visit.' A joke, yes, but joking in Burma is a criminal offence punishable with seven years hard labour. [Read an article about the author and book] |
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