Thursday: Sorry for the not-so-estimable recommendation!

Here is one that I read years ago and remember liking well enough; if you have time, perhaps give it a go and see what you think. Tayler has written a few other travel books; I seem to remember that he lives, or has lived, in Russia. He is no Colin Thurbron, though.



http://www.amazon.com/Siberian-Dawn-...964871&sr=1-11

I read this one, too; might be worth taking a look but I will not put either in the "essential' category:


http://www.amazon.com/Murderers-Maus...6965053&sr=1-1

Thanks eks. Murderers in Mausoleums looks like it should be fun. Of course, what I should be doing is rereading "Balkan Ghosts" and "Black Lamb and Grey Falcon" for my next trip...

So, if we are looking for masterful writing on Asian subjects, Colin Thubron may be a fine place to turn next? I have SHADOW OF THE SILK ROAD sitting on my pile. Is there a more beloved Thubron choice?

marya - I'd say "Heart of Asia" - but I just checked his bibliography, and discovered he started writing back in the 1960s! If you're reading Silk Road books, has Peter Fleming's classic "News From Tartary" been mentioned?

Thurbron was never among my favorites, but he certainly is a well respected author. He is a bit too dry for me, most of the time.

He has a new book out on Tibet:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/b...on-review.html

Do not overlook his earlier books, including: WHERE NIGHTS ARE LONGEST: TRAVELS BY CAR THROUGH WESTERN RUSSIA.

A few good reads (novels) about women ex-pats in China:
Foreign Babes in Beijing (pretty funny and astute!)
Nicole Mones' Lost in Translation, A Cup of Light, The Last Chinese Chef.
Also - I read Red China Blues awhile ago - I didn't think it was remarkable...
Anything by Peter Hessler or Simon Winchester is worth the time, I think

Yesterday I went to see the movie "Empire of Silver" set in late 19th century China of a powerful banking empire in Shanxi Province. Beautifully shot, worth watching just to learn the history and culture of that era.

Interesting book review, even if you don't read the book:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/bo...html?ref=books

Thanks, Thursday!

I am going to mention a book I just read that is partly set in Asia. The conceit here is that the writer travels around the world on the most dangerous or uncomfortable conveyances he can find, which include overloaded ferries in Bangladesh and Indonesia, buses in Peru, trains in Mali/Senegal, commuter trains in India, etc etc.

It certainly is not an essential read but might be worth considering for that long train ride!


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...371446092.html

Informative recent "In Our Time" podcast on Shinto:

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/...0922-1100a.mp3

I just finished "Stone of Heaven" by Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark. Fascinating look at the history of jade and jadeite.

New book on Burma by well-respected author; sounds very well worth reading:



http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/bo..._r=1&ref=books

topping for PattyRoth

Thanks, ekscrunchy! I'll look for it!

Amazon alerts me to any books having to do with Burma, and as soon as I saw this, I put it on my wish list. Maybe I should buy it before we go and read it there.

And here is a non-fiction one that I read last week, about India. In the "recommended extra reading" category:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011...tha-deb-review



Also about India is this novel which is very well written' I've just started it and am enjoying. Author won the Booker Prize for his last book.

http://www.amazon.com/Last-Man-Tower...tt_at_ep_dpt_2

Has anyone else read Kissinger's ON CHINA? I am enjoying some of the "inside baseball" accounts, but am chafing unhappily at its careful tone.

Ok, new book. About India this time. This one is in the "essential" category:


http://www.amazon.com/Behind-Beautif.../dp/1400067553

Anyone have any books to recommend on Java? I've been looking for memoirs, fiction, etc about Java and have turned up very little.

Kathie:

The most sustained literary effort, I suppose, would be to read the entire BURU QUARTET by Pramoedya Ananta Toer, who is widely held to be Indonesia's most accomplished writer. I must confess that I have only thus far read book 1: THIS EARTH OF MANKIND. I found it very engaging, but then I needed a break and somehow haven't yet gone back.

When I was visiting Indonesia last year, the British Women's Association was nice enough to let me attend a meeting of their book group to discuss Hella Haasse's THE TEA LORDS, then newly translated from Dutch to English. Definitely do pick up a copy of this story set on Java for both local history and for broader insight into Dutch colonialism in the East Indies.

There are two travelogue-adventure-type books that are dated, but I found them helpful (among slim pickings, as you acknowledge) in my effort to learn something about the country before going there.

AN EMPIRE OF THE EAST: TRAVELS IN INDONESIA by Norman Lewis

DISTANT ISLANDS: TRAVELS ACROSS INDONESIA by Charles Corn

Marmot highly recommended THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY by Christopher Koch. I had seen the film with Mel Gibson/Linda Hunt years prior and I bet that you have also seen it. She said that it contained much more than what the film adaptation captured. Agreed! I did like the book very much.

Have you already read KRAKATOA: THE DAY THE WORLD EXPLODED etc. by Simon Winchester? It is packed with so much science, history, politics...fabulous. Krakatoa is located, as you know, in the strait between Java and Sumatra.

I look forward to seeing what else is recommended.