joanne

I am heading on a trip to SEA this summer and need a great book to keep me company along the way. I love a thick novel set in the areas I am visiting (think Shogun, etc). Like fiction, or historical work. I will be in Hong Kong, Thailand, Laos and cambodia. Any input greatly appreciated!!

John G

Madge, darling, I can recommend a few that I have read myself and enjoyed with enthusiasm.<BR><BR>The SOONG SISTERS, by Sterling Segraves, is about the lives of Madame Chiang K'ai-shek, Madame Kung, and Madame Sun Yat-sen. It is VERY gossipy and tells of the horrible corruption of Madame Chiang and Madame Kung, and the goodness of Madame Sun. (Winston Churchill hated Madame Chiang and referred to her as "Madame Cash-my-check.")<BR><BR>WILD SWANS, by Jung Chang, which tells the story of three Chinese women, spanning from the days of the Last Emporer to the Gang of Four. It is a tear-jerker, in the style of Amy Tan.<BR><BR>A FINE BALANCE, by Rohinton Mistry, which is a novel about a widowed Parsi woman in India, and the two tailors she hires to run a sewing business. I thought this was one of the best depictions of the caste system in India that I have ever read.<BR><BR>Welcome to Asia.

cjw

not a novel but a factual recount of the authors journalistic journey through that region of the world (he and his wifed lived and travel there for many years)<BR><BR>called "Thunder from the East" <BR><BR>will give a person an idea of the social and political influences that the people deal with on a daily basis <BR><BR>and might provide some insight and understanding as to why certain things are the way they are<BR><BR>"Thunder" as in Asian countries are rapidly rising as world economic powers but are still faced with social political and geographical influences that will perhaps limit their sucess<BR><BR>References to the 5 asian dragons<BR><BR>I read it during a 14 day trip to 5 asian countries this past winter<BR><BR>for your trip it would be great cause you will see such a HUGE difference between HK, and Thailand and Cambodia<BR><BR>3 place realatively close to one another yet 3 very differnt worlds<BR><BR>Highly recommended for the trip or when you get back<BR><BR>Safe Travels<BR>Chris

joanne

Thank you so much for the suggestions! Anybody else (I plan to go through at least a couple)?

CR

Try China Wakes by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. They're a husband-and-wife team of NY Times journalists. It's a very interesting historical perspective of China during the last century.

MJS

My husband just finished a novel called "Shanghai" by Christopher New. It was historical fiction similiar to the Shogun books. I believe Christopher New has also written other similiar books.

cjw

Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn are who wrote Thunder from the East: A Portrait of Asia<BR><BR>have a good trip<BR>Chris