Malaysia Books

This book is takling about the developments of the Insurance Industries at Malaysia during the 60's till 90's. This book is also telling those people who want to know what had been happened during all of 30 years and lots & lots of things which had happened or changes within the insurance industries. For example: How does the authorities of Malaysia ( Bank Negara of Malaysia) taking steps to take over the Director General Of Insurance to control the whole Insurance Industries ( the Insurance companies, Brokers, and the Agents ? How to improve the quality of the Insurance services by imposing lots of regulations. This book also talking about the latest Insurance Act of Malaysia. Telling us what is the effects of this new Acts to the Whole Insurance industries. Generally, this Books is telling us the history of Insurance developments at Malaysia. Not the future of Insurance industries at Malaysia. This book is suitable for those people who want to know more about Insurance industries at Malaysia. If you want to know more about the insurance industries at malaysia. I mean to those people who is at the Insurance industries or serious reader. You can get the Bank Negara Malaysia (DGI Report) annual report.

This book is takling about the developments of the Insurance Industries at Malaysia during the 60's till 90's. This book is also telling those people who want to know what had been happened during all of 30 years and lots & lots of things which had happened or changes within the insurance industries. For example: How does the authorities of Malaysia ( Bank Negara of Malaysia) taking steps to take over the Director General Of Insurance to control the whole Insurance Industries ( the Insurance companies, Brokers, and the Agents ? How to improve the quality of the Insurance services by imposing lots of regulations. This book also talking about the latest Insurance Act of Malaysia. Telling us what is the effects of this new Acts to the Whole Insurance industries. Generally, this Books is telling us the history of Insurance developments at Malaysia. Not the future of Insurance industries at Malaysia. This book is suitable for those people who want to know more about Insurance industries at Malaysia. If you want to know more about the insurance industries at malaysia. I mean to those people who is at the Insurance industries or serious reader. You can get the Bank Negara Malaysia (DGI Report) annual report.

I only read the Malaysia part. He did provide some insights and accurate account to the "Islamization" of Malaysia. But, when he touched on issues about our ex-vice PM and PM, it's somehow superficial in the sense that he's influenced by western media.

This book was in great condition and shipped very fast...got here in plenty of time for my class! thanks

If I didn't have to buy this for a class, I wouldn't have bought it. This stuff bores me! Sorry, but I'd rather watch my wife's fingernail polish dry! :-)

I was hesitant about purchasing this book but there really is nothing out there on the Malayan insurgency. What makes this even worse is that this is the most often cited counter-insurgency success, and there is nothing written about it. So unfortunately there seems to be no one that knows why it was a success. Here is where this book comes into play, and a good reason to purchase the book.

The book does a wonderful job on breaking down all the players in this war, what they did and why. He also looks at the different ethnicities and their motivations for supporting the Communists or British. I have to disagree with the other reviewer this book was a wonderful read and not boring at all, even for a history book. I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next (i.e. it was addictive to read).

On the negatives, this book was written in the '60's (so a little dated), and it is written with an nostalgia tone of the old imperial Britain and its greatness. It ruffled my feathers a bit in the begging but later he tries to correct this tone and for the time period the author really goes out of his to make a case for the other people that were living in this country at the time, their plight and living standards.

Overall this book does a wonderful job showing why the counterinsurgency in Malaysia was a success. It is unfortunate the circumstances that brought this book back into circulation, but it is a forgotten work that deserves to be recognized for its contribution to the counterinsurgency, insurgency, terrorism and Malayan history. A very good read.

First published in 1971 (the year of my birth), The War of the Running Dogs is a history of the battle between communist insurgents in Malaya and the British government of the time. The timeline of the book runs from 1948-1960.

The text is dry, to say the least, which made the book less than palatable to me. I had a hard time reading this book, but felt that it was an important piece of history that I should digest.

I was right. Many of the ideas expressed by administrators and progenitors of The War of the Running Dogs are still in use today. A perfect example of this is found on page 179 when author Noel Barber discusses a slogan that became famous during the war, "The battle for the hearts and minds of the people."

It is a slogan I've heard bandied about more than once during my own war here in Iraq.
One of the central characters in War of the Running Dogs is Bob Thompson, a highly placed government administrator who comes up with the idea that common people should be able to receive tours of how the war is being conducted. The idea is a very successful one - one that should work again and again throughout the ages. Modern wars are won or lost now based on public opinion more than any other single factor.

Often times, this book is less of a war novel than it is an ode to competent bureaucracy. While bureaucracy is a necessary evil, it isn't a glamorous thing, and I find reading about the exploits of bureaucrats rather boring. On the other hand, the struggle between colonial imperialism leading to a form of capitalism versus communism leading who knows where is historically significant.

The War of the Running Dogs reiterates a point that has been made personally clear to me in recent years - while I might have disagreements with the government in charge, I certainly wouldn't want to trade it for a bunch of murdering thugs who don't even pretend to care about rule of law. Terrorism is not a valid or morally sound form of political expression, and is not a realistic method of toppling a government unless it can maintain popular support from a large majority of the citizenry.

The Communist terrorists in Malaya fail on many levels by combining wanton brutality with bribery, blackmail and bombastic bamboozlers as representatives. This makes it almost impossible for the British government working in conjunction with Malayan sultans and Chinese locals to fail.

Both the insurgents and the reigning bureaucrats promise independence for the nation and in the end, British bureaucracy wins the day. One point that author keeps reiterating is that the British masterstroke was insisting on civilian rule even in wartime (this despite the fact that Churchill chooses a general to run the war).

In the end, the war was won largely because the British offered a better more benevolent method of rule than their would be competitors who time and again proved that they would resort to brutality and horrific acts of violence against the general population of Malaya in order to try and achieve power.

The same cycle seems to be playing out again here in Iraq. The most interesting aspect of War of the Running Dogs has been the parallels between what happened 50 years ago and what is happening now while I watch and participate.

Dry reading, but historically significant, The War of the Running Dogs will appeal to history buffs and government administrators but not many others.

As the title implies this beautiful volume is about Malaysia's incredible natural diversity. The fact that it also covers some of the regions peoples and their affairs is of added interest but it is really a dream for anyone who is interested in nature and ecology. There are a ton of cheap travel guides for those looking to do the average tourist thing so don't expect this to be a guide to the "hotspots". Buy this gorgeous and informative volume and then get the others in the series such as Wild Indonesia, Wild Thailand and Wild India. You will love them all!

This book is not just for reading -- its forte is viewing pleasure. The 400+ magnificient full colour pictures depicting the biodiversity of the Malaysian region enthralls and captivates, the only deficiency being that some of Sarawak's ( East Malaysia ) prominent tourist destinations were given insufficient coverage. There were pictures of the Orang Asli, orang-utans and various other flora and fauna indigenous to the region, but there was scarce mention of the Lambir Waterfalls and the Niah Cave Systems, which, in my estimation, are absolute wonders of nature.

Overall, this book gives one a delightful insight into the cultural, racial, biological and geographical diversity and richness of both the Malaysia peninsular, Sarawak and Sabah. Unfortunately, it concentrates too much on wildlife conservation areas and too little on recreation hotspots. Nevertheless, the magnificient photographs and fluent narrative are ample in guaranteeing one's satisfaction. This book is recommended for those keen on in-depth exploration of Malaysia's vast ecological treasures, particularly those connected with eco-conservation.

The foreword by the late Tunku Abdul Rahman, P.M. of Malaysia says it all, when he comments that the book provides a lucid and simple framework of the problems which have bedevilled Malay and Chinese relations in Malaysia from earliest times. Comber lived in Malaysia for many years, speaks both Malay and Chinese, and deals with the hopes and aspirations of both the main communities in Malaysia in an understanding and sympathetic way.

First of all, I had to admit that I did not intend to buy this book (even if I had some of his other publications). I got the book from a well known bookstore in Kuala Lumpur City Centre so as I could go down to Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, where I interupted his coffee with a friend and got his autograph. The book however was a good read, giving insights to his thoughts which I still find relevant today.

Mahathir Mohamad was the leader of Malaysia for over 20 years. I practically grew up under his stewardship. Is this the reason why some (if not most) of us could not think of another style of leadership?

To quote him "Leadership is about showing the way forward to the people you are leading... he must know where he is going, and how he is going to get there. To lead, he must have authority.... If he is a good leader, he will use his authority for the good of the people he leads."

This book was a result of a marathon interview session by Kohei Hashimoto for PHP Institute. Tun Dr Mahathir (TDM) is known for his frank comments and remarks, often the cause of many arguments (especially in Malaysia), but the fact that currently people still argue about his views shows that his comments are still being sought and heard.

In this book the thoughts were more on `globalisation', and not much on Malaysian politics. He touched on China, Western vs Eastern values, Islam, Radical Islam, Iraq War, & Global Economy.

The remarks he made in 2004 (the year of the interview) are still relevant today as it were then. There will be some differences on opinion, but he had well put his thoughts and arguments to those issues.

I highly recommend this book to those who want & need to see his train of thought, be it if you are not a fan of his leadership style.

When English adventurer, James Brooke, first set foot in Sarawak in 1839, little did he know that two years later he would be ruler of the state, and that for a hundred years, his family would control the small Southeast Asian nation, and expand its boundaries to what it is today. Although the Brookes administered Sarawak as their own little kingdom, and without interference from any western power, they were influenced by British colonial administration in the Malay states. Naimah Talib does a very credible job of documenting the similarities and the differences between the Brooke administration of Sarawak and the British administration of their Asian colonies. Her treatment of the periods of Charles Brooke's rule (1868-1917) and Vyner Brooke's (1917-1941) are excellent, but the chapter on James Brooke's rule from 1841-1868 could have been better developed. This was the beginning of Brooke administration in Sarawak -- the time when the foundation was being built, and it deserved a deeper, more thorough examination. On the whole this is an excellent resource for anyone interested in the how and why of Brooke administration of Sarawak.

Whilst Malaysia may boast many writers, few can be said to have remained productive for long. Many Malay writers make their debut suddenly, briefly enjoy the literary limelight, then disappear from view just as quickly. Shahnon Ahmad, however, is an exception. His published work begins with Bingung, a short story published in Majalah Guru on 24th May, 1956, and ever since that time he has remained a prolific writer, producing works consistently and engaging the attention of the Malaysian literary world. He has written plays, has translated works by foreign writers and has produced short stories and novels. Together, his writings constitute an impressive corpus of works in a career which spans more than three decades. Widely read in Malaysia, his novels have run through several reprints, an achievement for any serious writer, especially in a country where both poor sales and discouraging response to prose fiction are more common place than they should be. This book examines the eleven novels written between 1965 and 1878, a time span and corpus of works shich provide a wealth of understanding and insight into both Shahnon's skill and perception as a writer. It proposes to explore his ideas, their emergene and development, to examine the internal structure and texture of his works and to show that both the structural and perceptual frameworks confirm a rural bias.

It's a great book in terms of the resources - it's comprehensive and covers several aspects of the unique Peranakan community and heritage in Malaysia, such as its customs, language, food, history & origin, and issues pertaining this unique cultural group like its future, assimilation factors and others.

This book has many interesting photographs too. However, many all are black and whites. Some photos are "antique photos" of the Peranakan community which can be hard to find these days.

Suitable and relevant maps, finer details and a comprehensive set of related titles aim to guide the user through this book. Little pre-knowledge is needed to learn more about this fascinating culture before one reads this book since it is rather complete and comprehensive. What it lacks in design, it compromizes in content. And this is what I believe to be the prima donna when choosing a good book to feast one's eyes and mind on!

Definitely an interesting read for one interested in one of Malaysia's famous yet little-known culture group!