Asia Books

If the name John Blofeld means anything to you, you've probably been consulting the I Ching. Blofeld wrote a popular translation to the Chinese oracle at a time when the only other version available in English was Richard Wilhelm's groundbreaking but somewhat turgid text.

"City of Lingering Splendor" is an autobiographical travelogue, one of the best ever written. Dedicated to ' the hermits, scholars, youths and courtesans who inspired these pages ' it's a love letter to Peking and the breathtaking greatness of an ancient civilisation at its twilight, about to be extinguished.

While remote jungles still offer anthropologists the chance to chew the fat with stone age peoples, the romantics among us are simply out of luck. Until someone invents a working time machine, Ancient Egypt is gone forever along with Homer's Greece and Imperial Rome.

But in 1934 it was still possible to travel back in time. Back to Old China, to a culture that had remained virtually untouched for thousands of years---and chew Peking Duck with Taoist sages. . .

Wonderful reading.

This is the most sensitive, respectful and intelligent book I have read on traditional Chinese culture. The writing is terrific, on a par with Peter Fleming's, though more from the heart.

It records the author's love affair with the city before WW2 (and includes a return to Beijing after it). While meeting many of its remaining Daoist, Confucianist, Bhuddist and literary leaders and exploring its temples, nightlife and food, we get a last sympathetic, philosophical, tragic glimpse of the splendour decaying under the Republic. Before it vanished under the Maoists.

If you thought there was little more to pre-War China than footbinding, Dowager Empresses, opium and Shanghain greed and degeneracy, this book will even the score a little.

I had no idea when I picked up this book that I had such a pleasant experience in store for me. Beginning in 1934, a young man in his twenties spends "three exquisitely happy years" in a China at the edge of the abyss. Japan had already invaded Manchuria and made no secrets of its intentions of further conquest. The shaky Chinese Republic was ruled out of Nanking; and Peking was still full of memories of the old Dowager Empress, the last of her line.

The streets of Peking were full of Confucian scholars, aging palace eunuchs, adepts of Taoism and Buddhism, starving White Russian refugees, 14-year-old opium addicts, and gentle courtesans and flute girls. Blofeld threw himself headfirst into this world which was on the point of being snuffed out forever. Most memorable are the White Russian hermaphrodite Shura and the Rasputin-like Father Vassily; the decorous Buddhist scholar Dr Chang; Yang Taoshih, the Taoist sage, and his friend known only as the Peach Garden Hermit; the lovely courtesan Jade Flute; and the mysterious Pao, who elopes with a young girl intended for a Japanese colonel.

After Blofeld leaves for a trip to England, the Japanese finally invade. There are two bittersweet chapters at the end where Blofeld revisits the scenes of his youth after 1945. His fragile Peking of the 1930s is now poised between a growingly thuggish Kuomintang secret police and the great unknown of Mao Tse-tung's Eighth Route Army.

Blofeld's Dr Chang says it all: "Decay is inherent in all things, as Shakyamuni Buddha bade us always remember. Death swallows all that has been born; rebirth or re-creation follow in their turn, as spring follows winter. Things rise and wane in unceasing flux."

CITY OF LINGERING SPLENDOUR is recommended to all sentient beings who were ever young once and are now faced with a confused welter of possibilities, none of which seem particularly appetizing.

I have been reading John Blofeld since the 80's. His writing is honest and straight forward. What is special about this work is the time frame. It is a first hand account and we are not brought down by the dreary chronology or dry scholastic jibberish of Western history academics. His introduction warns of his awareness of the flaws of the culture, but he wishes to show the strengths and beauty of a dying civilization. Truly unique, inspiring and thought provoking

Ideal for people who live outside North Korea and wish to learn about North Korea, people who live in North Korea and are confused or for Geoge W. Bush.

Very factual. A good complement to the general news on the subject.

I started reading this book a few days before the July 4th misstle launches. I was glad to get more information on North Korea which was a total mystery to me. Now I understand much more. The book reviews Korean history and how Confucianism has just as much influence in North Korea as communism does. Absolute devotion to the Great Leader is rewarded and the slightest deviation from that is punished by execution. How North Korea will play the nuclear card out is yet to be seen, but I don't think I want them to have nuclear weapons. They will use it for terrorism.

This is a concise and well written modern chronicle of North Korea. There are very few resources available on this "mysterious" country. I found the book to be engrossing, concise and most informative.

This is an outstanding book for understanding why the US military has such problems with confronting insurgency. Counterinsurgency is never easy, but the US has proved monumentally incompetent across generations of command. The book's thesis is that bad counterinsurgency doctrine made a successful intervention in Vietnam impossible, and that the conflict was lost as soon as it began.

The most crucial misconception is that there is no such thing as an organic, self developed insurgency. Insurgency was seen as the policy of a foreign nation seeking to intervene within a country, likely as a prelude to invasion. Insurgencies were dependent on foreign support for supplies, bases and command. Combatting an insurgency required severing the link between the foreign support and the insurgents.

Related to this was a belief that light military pressure, or even just the presence of US forces could compel the withdrawl of insurgent support, because such a presence would signify US resolve to oppose an invasion or intervention.

The application of this logic led to a dynamic where the US pressured North Vietnam in retaliation for VC attacks. North Vietnam interpreted that pressure not as a response to it's own policies but as a direct attack upon it's existence. Consequently it increased rather then decreased supplies and support for the VC, ultimately sending not just supplies but regular troops. In essence the US created exactly the scenario it's policies were intended to prevent.

That this is happening again in Iraq and Iran suggests too few people in command read this book.

I had the great privilege of taking many of Dr. Cable's classes while I was at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Dr. Cable is a true gift to the historical field. His courses were difficult, but his amazing story-telling ability shines both in class and in both of his books (conflict of myths and unholy grail). While reading his books, I can actually still hear his delivery and cadence. As we go further into a time when local squabbles and terrorists will engage the attention of our foreign policy, his writings and experiences are all the more appropriate.

Dr. Larry Cable's experience and intellectual appraisal for the counterinsurgency role of the U.S. armed forces in Southeast Asia are placed into perspective. While not completely supporting all U.S. activities regarding the reduction of irregular forces, Cable examines the reality on the ground that was the wake-up call for American military leaders in Vietnam. An extremely effective and important book that should be read as much for the intellectual value as the historical value.

This book analyzes how the US came to adopt the policy of using conventional tactics to fight the insurgency in Vietnam. It provides a great analysis of the American way of conducting war and gives examples of attempts to fight the war in other means. Author has/had first hand knowledge of what was going on behind the scenes in the 60's. This book is required reading at many military schools which realize our past failures and are trying to teach current military personnel how to avoid similar mistakes in the future.

Interesting. I bought this book to read and learn about Confucius. This book is short and gives you a good idea about Confucius but if you are very interested in the subject get a more detailed book. This one is very short.

This book, while non-fiction, read like a story, keeping it interesting yet providing fact, thought, questions, myth busters, and acknowledgment where facts are unclear or uncertain. Best of all, an entertainment with great messages for living a good quality, vituous life.

I enjoyed this one as an adult, and looking forward to sharing it with the children & teens in my life, as well as other adults.

"More than 2,500 years have passed since Confucius walked the dusty country roads of China, chatting with his disciples, yet his voice still rings clear and true down through the centuries. Those who knew him never forgot him. Those who came after handed down his sayings from one generation to the next, right up to our own time..." So begins Russell Freedman's brilliant and engaging biography of Confucius, a minor government official who desperately wanted to be a political force in ancient China. "Though he offered many bold ideas for reform, his advice was ignored by the rulers of the day. For this reason, he spent much of his time teaching and discussing his ideas with his students." His simple, yet profound thoughts about government, education, and religion were shared with his followers through conversations and dialogues, and finally written down, many years after his death, in a book that has come to be known as the Analects. "This slim volume is the one source where we can most clearly hear the unique voice of the real, living Confucius." Mr Freedman's well researched story is written in an easy to read, conversational style and filled with history, mystery, intriguing biographical details, quotes from the Analect, and fascinating fun facts. Frederic Clement's elegant and evocative Chinese-style illustrations look ancient and authentic, and are rich in emotion, color, and detail. Together word and art bring the great philospher and his times to life on the page. With an enlightening Author's Note, and informative sources and suggestions for further reading included at the end, Confucius: The Golden Rule is an entertaining and inspiring introductory biography that is sure to whet the appetite of kids 10 and older, and send them out looking for more. "And so, after twenty-five centuries, the pros and cons of what Confucius said or didn't say are still being debated. The reason isn't hard to find. He trusted people to think for themselves. He was always ready to offer suggestions, but he insisted that each of us must find answers for ourselves. And he admitted that he himself did not know the truth, only a way to look for it..."

Confucius was a minor government official who desperately wanted to change the government of China. But because of his radical ideas, he was never given the opportunity. He became a scholar who taught his pupils to think. Many years after his death, his ideas were written down and have survived for thousands of years. Tidbits of Confucius's wisdom have even made their way into American fortune cookies. Because little is known of the fifth century B.C. scholar, Freedman makes an effort to establish what information is believed to be fact and what is more likely legend.

The book's beautiful antiquated illustrations complement the text. They are as mysterious as the life of Confucius. I especially like the little details in this book: the quotes from the Analects on the endpapers, the author's note detailing his observations of the celebration in China held for Confucius each year, and the annotated bibliography.

A very good overview of Central Asian folklore and life. Could be used as a textook for courses on the region and for students, businessmen, aid workers, tourists and others who are interested in or will visit the region. Gets behind life in Central Asia and is therefore good in conjunction with a typical guidebook.

Unfortunately, Central Asia remains an unknown part of our planet. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more of this vibrant and intriguing area of the world, especially those interested in the life and cultures of the Great Silk Road. It is a clear and useful reference to the politics, economics, history and fascinating customs of the Central Asian peoples. I wish you a happy journey reading this work which will provide an opportunity for you to feel the ancient spirit and modern life of Central Asia.

Culture and Customs of the Central Asian Republics (Culture and Customs of Asia)
If you have seen little of Central Asia, this book will deepen and expand your sense of having been there. If you know Central Asia as a scholar or as a wanderer (or both), this book will illuminate your experiences. If you haven't been to Central Asia and want to know about it, this book will tell you. In any event, you will enjoy reading Rafis Abazov's book.

So you want to learn more about the Central Asian Republics? This book can provide you with answers. The book does not boringly describe the customs and cultures of the republics. It shows how throughout the history the cultural and religious influences from Greece, Middle East, China and Russia have shaped the modern cultures of the Central Asian Republics. It explains why the cultures of the regions are so diverse; it also discusses their unique and common features. Every topic covered in the book, such as visual and performing arts, archeology, media, cinema, music, etc., is discussed from the ancient times to modern days. Moreover, the book comes with beautiful photographs, selected bibliography and index; and each chapter begins with an epigraph! I think this book could be the right choice to read for anyone who wants an objective account of the regional cultures and customs.

Book is well done - Beautiful photography ! Recommended to anyone that likes great photographs.

Some of the finest modern photography from Japan has been produced by Daido Moriyama. Defying any categories (including the "modern" one I gave him above, Moriyama stretches the boundaries of photography and peers into the dark and blurry places that scare us. The book's comments on each photo are extremely worthwhile also, providing an insight into Daido's work that isn't found elsewhere.

I've seen several books and articles on Japanese photography that seem to feature bad cameras, low resolution, muddy printing/reproduction. This is one of them. However, the pictures are disturbing, affecting. Some don't work for me.

Does it help to say, I lost a copy of this in a fire, and am buying it back?

Or that I recommend it highly to anybody who thinks they need better equipment to take good photographs.

As someone who saw Moriyama's fantastic show at the SF MOMA I had to buy this book. Great gritty black and white photos examining post WWII Japanese Culture. Includes a fairly extensive intro detailing his influences and his career.

The simplicity of the title mirrors the simple approach to what could be a daunting and challenging biography. Marcello's biography follows a straightforward timeline explanation of critical events in the life of the Dalai Lama without delving too deeply into an analysis of the issues. Even though the book follows a relatively effortless structure, the actual events of the life of the Dalai Lama are fascinating enough to quickly carry the reader through the text.
Marcello's effort to capture the Dalai Lama's inspiration, humor, and devotion is validated in her biography of his life. The clean chronology makes it very easy for a reader who knows nothing about the Dalai Lama and Tibetan customs to follow along and understand the basic principles that he has followed. Sporadically throughout the book, though mostly concentrated in the beginning, are sections dedicated to the history behind specific customs. Marcello does a wonderful job explaining the history of the Dalai Lama and the traditions that are associated with the selection of the Dalai Lama, especially since the customs may seem quite strange to most Western readers. Her biography is obviously well researched with full notes at the end of every chapter and direct quotes that help make the events more real and relatable.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the biography was Marcello's ability to intertwine the stories with the lovable sense of humor of the Dalai Lama. Each chapter is sprinkled with either a quote or situation which convinces the reader that, even though he dealt with serious and difficult issues, the Dalai Lama still was a human being at heart, one whose wit and cleverness kept him optimistic. It is an often occurrence for the reader to find him or herself smiling or laughing out loud at the comical situations described, which is appreciated, especially because of the gravity of the other events described.
Although the biography is applauded for its simplicity, it is also one of its shortcomings. Admittedly by the author, the book is aimed at a high-school reading level and has little depth when it comes to exploring specific issues of negotiation with the Chinese, or even explaining the perspectives of other players. There is very little attention to the Chinese outlook, which suggests the bias of the author. Understandably, however, it is a biography of the Dalai Lama, not the Chinese, so it is clear why there is not equal representation of ideas.
Also, one of the most difficult things to over come as a reader was the insurmountable number of strange names and places. There was a constant urge throughout the book to look at a map, yet there is not one provided in the book pages themselves. The timeline and index were helpful, but a map and a list of important names and relationships would have been even more so.
After finishing Marcello's biography, I found myself wanting to read the autobiography of the Dalai Lama published in 1990. Marcello refers to it often and many of the fun stories and inspirational quotes come from that autobiography, which creates a certain attraction to it. It would be fascinating to hear about all the events of his life from the Dalai Lama's point of view. In addition, Marcello's biography, though thorough in its descriptions of Tibetan tradition and the lifestyle of the Dalai Lama, had little description of Buddhist teachings themselves. I understood basic concepts from her text, but found it a little difficult to understand where the Dalai Lama's principles and actions were rooted from. I am glad, however, that I read this biography first. It served as a useful introduction to the life of the Dalai Lama and served to keep me interested enough to want more.

Very well researched and informative. A must read for those interested in the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama was was just a name to me. It was difficult to understand how a 3 year old child could be chosen to lead his people. This book clearly discribes the life and customs of the Tibetan people as well as the difficulties between Tibet and China in an easy to read chronological order.

This biography of the Dalai Lama was both interesting and enlightening. One of the reviews I read felt that the treatment of the Communist Occupation of Tibet showed bias. I disagree. It is evident to me that Ms. Cronin has captured the essence of a truly remarkable man who, like many others, endures despite adversity. He is clearly a holy man. He is an inspiration to us all, and what we can achieve with faith. All of these attributes, come through in this work. I am gratified that the target market, our youth, will be well served with it. Who knows, it may spark the next Age of Reason in World Affairs!
The Dalai Lama resisted oppression and unlike some of our American Academics, he doesn't apologize for it.

This book has affected my way of thinking and living more than any other book I have ever read. While I feel a few things in this book are outdated and can not be realistically applied to todays world the majority of what is written has made me a more accepting person and by changing my expectations I have found that I lead a more fullfilled life.

The Dao is perhaps on of the best philosophical books that I have ever read and it is something that everyone should read at least once.

Contains extensive introductory information, including discussion of recent archeoligical discoveries, and interesting endnotes (although I prefer footnotes - less fumbling with pages).

However, I found this translation to be a bit difficult. One of the reviewers on the back of the book refers to it as "poetic" - well, maybe; mostly I found it a bit of a struggle to make sense of it, and had to read through it with several parallel translations to figure out what Roberts was translating. However, in that situation, read with several parallel translations, this translation provides an worthwhile "spin". I find Mair's translation much cleaner, simpler, and more comprehensible. The two together are nice.

Moss Roberts' fine translation of TAO TE CHING is one of several recent translations based upon the Ma-wang-tui texts of Lao-tzu's reflective book of wisdom. Those texts were discovered in 1973, preserved in the tomb of an official's son. That tomb has been dated to 168 B.C. (p. 4). Professor Roberts' translation also draws from the Guodian LAOZI, discovered in 1993 in a royal tutor's tomb. As such, Roberts' translation could be considered the most definitive translation of the TAO TE CHING presently available.

Roberts is a Professor of Chinese at New York University, and the goal of his work is to assist his reader in understanding Lao-tzu's difficult poem. His book includes a twenty-three page Introduction that offers the historical background of the TAO TE CHING. He then annotates his literal translation of the two-part, eighty-one stanza poem with his insightful commentary. His translation is just as scholarly as Robert Henricks' translation, more literal than Stephen Harrison's poetic rendering of Lao-tzu's TAO, and more challenging than Red Pine's excellent translation.

G. Merritt

In a country where life is generally so ordered it often appears as atrophied as a bonsai,
when individual citizens go astray, they frequently go astray with a passion and conviction as dedicated to their crime as their neighbors are to pursuing the norms. Mark Schrieber's look at the dangerous and shadier faces of Japan seems to me, an American resident in Tokyo for the past 38 years, long overdue in providing readers with a better balanced picture of the world's second largest economy. Some of the stories are truly bizarre; some are frightening; some are somehow humorous or ironic. But all of them offer an extraordinarily keen insight into a society that is often praised for its
lack of crime and its stable social order. A walk on the dark side with Schrieber is an exciting eye-opener and fabulously exotic entertainment as well.

Schreiber's first book, Shocking Crimes of Postwar Japan, was not only as gripping a read as anything penned by Ann Rule or Jack Olsen, it served as an excellent corrective to the widespread notion of Japan as a society free of violence-prone scofflaws. As good as that book was, however, its follow-up is, in many ways, superior--richer in anecdote, more analytical, covering hundreds of years of history. For those readers with an
interest in Japan, *The Dark Side* is, it almost goes without saying, a must-have. But this is also a painlessly instructive volume for those with an interest in the more general, and always fascinatingly complex, subject of crime and punishment. The criminally inclined, like the poor, we have always had with us: thanks to the prodigiously well-informed Schreiber, we learn the myraid ways that one country has dealt with that unfortunate certainty.

The Dark Side is a great book for two reasons. First, it's a good introduction to the history of crime, crime prevention, and criminal justice in Japan that stretches over 400 years. Though it's not a scholarly book, Schreiber's facts are carefully researched and then presented with a light touch. This book is valuable to anyone seriously interested in Japan, supplying background and facts that can hardly be found in other sources (unless the reader wants to retrace the work that Schreiber has done). The author achieves what we look for in a good historian-he's put a human face on the facts.

The second reason I like the book is because of its genuinely interesting stories. Call me offbeat, but I'm fascinated by the details of such topics as Japan's experiments with executions (including the story of a man whose neck was so strong that he couldn't be strangled-he was pardoned because his executioners saw his survival as a sign of divine intervention). The book tells about famous bandits from 300 years ago, love suicides (and the penalties for survivors!), a Tokyo magistrate whose skill puts him in the same league as Sherlock Holmes, and the delightful Sada-san, who anticipated Lorena Bobbitt by about 60 years.

All in all, this book is a fine read and a fine work of popular history.

This book delivers handsomely on its promise to take a reader on an entertaining romp through the dark side of Japanese society. This book's got it all-sex, death, murder, gore, pathos, ingenuity, stupidity, greed, and even moments of personal redemption for Japan's criminals and criminally insane. It traces four centuries of crime in Japan and pulls back the covers on everything from cannibalism to crucifixions, phallic dismemberment a la Bobbit to serial killers, and gangsters to grisly executions.

There's plenty of new stuff here for even the most jaded Japanologist and a treasure trove of exotic and enticing stories for the Japan neophyte. Opening this book is like diving into a box of crime bonbons. Nuts, chews, soft centers, whatever. I could hardly wait to turn the page and find out what unusual fact, character, or story waited for me next. In fact, my only disappointment with the book was that the author didn't provide even more detail and analysis of some of the cases, especially those from Japan's modern period. But that's a small quibble about a book that kept me engrossed and entertained from page one to the end.

This historical book provides individual, personal in depth true accounts of the Dutch and Dutch-Indo's plight during and immediatiately following Japanese invasion and internment in the former Dutch East Indies during World War II. A truly inspiring book of courage and fortitude that gives the reader an opportunity to acquire an understanding of this turbulent period of time in the Pacific theater of war. An excellent and informative read of stories that need to be told.

My family is Indo (Dutch-Indonesian), and our family history has been oral. It was difficult to relay their story to American friends who had never heard of any atrocities of the second World War other than the holocaust. As it's noted in the book, "It is unconcionable to allow future generations to forget what happend in the Indies, just as it is folly to turn our backs on the holocaust in Europe."

Memory fades fast, and it's good that this history is written down to be remembered. I'm involved with some contemporary Dutch organizations, but I look different by my dusky skin, and sometimes I think that this book explains to the "whiter" Dutch what I am, and where I came from. Forgotten or not, I'm part of their culture.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. I've read enough about the American internment camps that the Japanese-Americans were held, and while there is a great deal of sympathy towards them in the United States, what the Japanese did to the Dutch and Dutch-Indonesians shouldn't be forgotten either. I sometimes wonder if it isn't known as much in the US because it didn't take place in Europe.

This book consists of eyewitness accounts of various people, mostly Dutch nationals or Dutch colonists, who were caught up in seven long years of war -- beginning with the Japanese conquest of Indonesia (then known as the Dutch East Indies), the Second World War and the subsequent revolution by Soekarno and Hatta, Indonesian revolutionaries whose drive for independence was given the blessing of the Japanese.

The Dutch received an unfortunate smear -- "Dutch courage" -- as a result of a premature surrender to the Japanese; if what I've read is true, then this smear is undeserved (particularly in light of the British surrender at Singapore). This book should go a long way to rectifying that unearned stigma.

This is history they didn't teach us in school! Jan Krancher has compiled 24 personal accounts from survivors of a brutal -and nearly forgotten- episode of World War II: the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies and imprisonment of thousands of its people. This 3 1/2 year occupation was immediately followed by a bloody revolution and the creation of modern Indonesia.

These deeply moving stories, from civilian internees (including children) and military POW's, give the English-speaking reader a glimpse of what has been called the "other Holocaust", the brutalities of the Pacific War. You won't forget them.

If you liked the film "Paradise Road", you won't want to miss this book.