Asia Books

For an academic book, "China's Leaders" is very readable; this non-academic enjoyed it on a long plane ride and left the jet feeling like some long-standing questions about China had been answered. It's one of those super-well-organized books so it's easy to skip around and find the stuff you dig: broad-based surveys, focused case studies, whatever.

AND at this point the book is recent enough to be relevant but old enough for Cheng Li to have made some predictions (note: very guarded academic predictions, of course) that have actually been borne out in the several years since publication. That, and his tone and scope, give the whole book a cagey credibility that's refreshing, especially with so many other authors running around making! crazy! predictions! about the next superpower.

Cheng Li does an outstanding job of uncovering the relationships that propel many of China's leaders. Excellent piece of scholarship and the best book I have run across dealing with elite Chinese politics. This is a must read for any person interested in China.

I just finished reading this book, and it is truly a first rate piece of China scholarship. It is a must read book for anyone trying to understand the leadership transition currently underway in Beijing. The book is very well written, and very readable. It also is clearly based upon first rate research and analysis. The entire new generation of leadership is discussed, plus more in depth discussions of Hu Jintao, Zeng Qinghong, and Wen Jiabao. Any journalist wanting to understand Chinese politics needs to read this book.

Taking the old "kremlinology" approach to figuring out Chinese politics, this book organizes each leader's factional affiliation by education, geographic location (the "Shanghai clique", etc.) and others. This approach has always been usable only as a general guide to leadership behavior, but it's all we've got. This book does it as well as any other, but a reader should know that it's not written in a narrative style, but rather in a reference format. Highly useful.

Cheng Li has written a first-rate book on the next generation of Chinese leaders: what backgrounds they are likely to have, where they went to school, what types of qualifications they are likely to have, etc. etc. While much of the first half of the book is a rather dry academic look at educational backgrounds and statistical analysis thereof, the real meat of the book is the chapter on the key roles of mishu or secretary (chief-of-staff is a better translation) and taizi or cadre kids. It is here that Li is able to really shed some light on the nature of the Chinese style of leadership grooming and promition. Drawing on CHinese language sources increasingly available from publishing houses such as mirrorbooks.com in Hong Kong, Li does a superb job of looking closesly at the careers of Zeng Qinghong and Wen Jiabao, two leaders likely to advance at the next Party Congress in 2002. Extensive use of data tables on so-called 4th generation leaders makes the book very data rich...a must read for those wanting to analyze China's leadership in the run up to the major changes likely at the next Party Congres....

Spence and Chin has done a great job compiling these rare photos and recording China's past 100 years concisely but thoroughly. This is a must read, must have book.

This book is an invaluable resource for scholars and amateurs alike. The introductory essay orients the reader, and the photographs tell their own story.

The "reviewer" below this is clearly insane and/or has an ax to grind. As any of their Yale students could tell you, Spence and Chin are both world-class scholars whose passion is narrating the stories of modern China accessibly, entertainingly, and provocatively.

This is a fascinating story of the history of China of the last hundred years intelligently interwoven with 264 rare and entertaining photos that add a unique sense of reality to the history. The authors' in-depth understanding of key historical events in China during the last century, combined with the many well chosen photos interspersed throughout the text (some of a fairly grim nature), make this a much more readable and realistic history book versus the typical history book that usually contains just a few photos crammed together into a center section. This is an oversized 264 page book printed on high quality glossy heavy paper.

It's a surprisingly thorough and sophisticated overview of China in the 20th century for a book that at first glance looks primarily like a picture book. The text is outstanding in itself and the pictures quite original. I recommend it to those with a rudimentary knowledge of Chinese history.

Overall, I found this book to be very informative and fun to read. Being a UCSD student and taking many classes pertaining to Asia, I read many works by Spence. By far, I have enjoyed reading every one of his works. This particular book in my opinion is the best of Spence's works-- though he cooperated with another author. Spence's works is a testament to his ability to present fact in a dynamic way. In this case, Spence uses photographs to augment his work.

And concerning the individual from Grand Rapids, Missouri (2nd Review). This individual is thoroughly ignorant and racist to say that the Chinese people "lost the sense of dignity, creativity, and are still today refusing to advance their own country by isolating from the rest of the world." China has continually engaged in the free market arena since it opened up commercially in the 1980s. According to most experts, China has the fastest growing economy in the world. On another note, this individual fails to note that there is a level of corruption in every country. Yes, we Americans have seen our fair share of corrupt cops and politicians! Overall, this individual's remark does no justice for the merit of Spence's work, and is an unjustified insult to the Chinese community.

Usagi Yojimbo is the kind of quality work that transcends time, genres, demographics, and even age groups. It crafts a delicate and beautiful balance between honor and savagery, cute innocence and dark brutality, simple heart-warming stories and multi-part epics that shape a dense continuity. Whether or not you've ever been a fan of feudal Japanese culture, furry anthro characters, or independent, non-superhero comics, Usagi Yojimbo is a comic that can't help but impress even the harshest critic.

Prior to this volume, Usagi was a fantastic character. Yet, as a seemingly flawless samurai both in spirit and in combat, I always found him a bit hard to relate to. Usagi always did what was right, and he always won. This is perhaps exhibited best in "The Bridge," the first story in this volume. It's my absolute favorite of the early Usagi stories in which he faces an impossible antagonist and not only wins, but wins with great dignity.

However, the four part "Circles" storyline, which begins part way into this volume, blows all of this out of the water. It begins with Usagi, whose premise has always been centered on his warrior's pilgrimage, deciding to finally go home. In attempting to do so, so much of what we've known of Usagi and his back story begins to shatter. From the return of his long lost sensei to a jaw dropping reunion with Mariko and, most importantly, a ground shaking revelation that has its roots in a mistake Usagi made years earlier, it becomes clear that Usagi will never be the same again. Once this volume concludes, he is a far different, more flawed, and far more human protagonist -- the kind of character you can root for while profoundly empathizing with him at the same time. In "Circles," the character of Miyamoto Usagi finally finds his soul.

Additionally, the introduction of Jotoro and the profoundly disturbing return of Jei add to an already thoroughly compelling story while building upon the Usagi Yojimbo universe at the same time. These are two of Sakai's greatest characters, and those qualities shine brightly even in this early adventure.

While Usagi Yojimbo is a title that continually gets stronger through the years, "Circles" is perhaps the earliest adventure that I return to on a regular basis, still absolutely holding its own in comparison to all the amazing stories and developments that came after.

If you ask me, anything touched by Stan Sakai is good, Usagi Yojimbo is my favorite comic, because of the consistency and depth in Stan's story telling. Don't be scared off by the animorphic animals, it just sets the book apart. This is a genuinly good comic, just like every usagi Yojimbo book.

I think this volume is one of the most important turning points in Usagi's universe. You can miss some others but not this one as it says many important things about long-eared ronin. And much, much more..
Stories in this volume evolve about the symbol of homecoming when "heroes meet their past and see how far did they go". Each story is excellent. But the one that stands above others is "Duel" - maybe for the fact that it is absolutely believable story. "Duel" in some whiles overshadows even the ending of this volume where sadness of almost inevitable decision moves my heart every time I read it.
I highly recommend this volume. It is compact with atmosphere, it is foundation of later story arcs and it is truly masterpiece.

To this point, (Shrouded Moon was just published) this is my favourite in the series. Not only are the stories strong, but the book provides a good look at where Usagi has come from and where he is going. Other than beginning the series at Book 1, this is the best introduction you could have to Usagi's world.

There are stories about characters that figure large in Usagi's life. His sensei Katsuichi, his love Mariko, his rival Kenichi, Kenichi's son Jotaro and Usagi's nemesis Jei (what is with Jei!?). There are also a couple nice stories that stand alone well, including "The Duel" which I think is one of the most poignant stories I've seen in comic format. It doesn't include anything about Gen, Usagi's friend and sometime companion, but to make up for that, the next book is called "Gen's Story" and deals almost entirely with him.

Sakai does a masterful job as usual and the stories will have you turning pages as fast as you can read until the end. I stumbled across this book at the library a while back and now I own a complete set. If you can't find Book 1 easily (no surprise, it's been out of print for quite a while), this may be the best way to check whether this series is for you before spending all that time looking for the out-of-print books.

Of all the collections of "Usagi Yojimbo" I have, this one is my favorite, second to volume four (which includes the "Samurai!" storyline). Volume Six has everything that makes Usagi great: tales of derring-do and honor, stories about ghosts and demons, and the return of Mariko, Usagi's long lost love. Stan Sakai's art and scripting can't be any better as he spins an epic tale of a Japan that never was, but really should have been. Plus, it's got bunnies with swords. How can you go wrong?

Obviosly well researched with good photos. Beats the hell out of Cunningham's book.

I just finished reading "Classical Weaponry of Japan: Special Weapons and Tactics of the Martial Arts by Serge Mol", But I know this book wont get covered by dust. The content of this book is so rich that I will just have to return to it again and again. I placed it at my Dojo'd library and my students were very impressed too.

The techniques and weapons in the book are described in clear photos and always followed by fascinating historical and practical explanation. This book together with Serge Mol's other book -"Classical Fighting Arts of Japan: A Complete Guide to Koryu Jujutsu", are now like a treasure box for my practice and study.

This book is nothing short of amazing. Incredibly detailed and thoroughly researched, it is the Magnum Opus on the subject of non-sword weaponry in ancient Japan. Swords have been covered extensively in many books, so it is very worthwhile to give the rest of the arsenal their due.

A history lesson as well as a weapons guide, "Classical Weaponry of Japan" compiles the secret scrolls of the various fighting schools of old Japan, along with the collections of noted weapons-scholar Fumon Tanaka and the authors personal collection of ancient weapons. From these, Serge Mol not only describes the weapons, their fighting styles, their lineage, but also the historical genesis behind the creations.

The sword being the legal property of the Samurai class, and its wearing and use highly proscribed, the non-Samurai citizens of Japan were incredibly creative in their adaptation of daily implements into lethal weapons. Also, each fighting school, in order to attract students, created a unique and secret arsenal of weapons available only to their high-ranking adherents. In this way, a warrior could unveil a weapon that his opponent had never seen, and thus would be unsure as to how to defend against.

The book is divided into seven categories of weapons, such as bladed weapons, small hand-held weapons, truncheon-like weapons, shuriken and shurikenjutsu, and deceptive weapons. Each category then contains sub-categories, with several weapons described. Altogether, more than 100 different weapons are showcased, along with their histories and uses. Most weapons are accompanied by photographs, and several are shown in use. Some favorites include the spectacular Kusarigama (Sickle and Chain), which I have seen used in several films due to its visual flair, and the beautifully decorated Omamorito (Protection Knife) which high-ranking women carried in order to kill themselves should they be "dishonoured" during a castle raid.

A necessary book for weapons and martial arts enthusiasts, it is also a perfect reference book for writers and readers of ancient Japan, including those interested in Samurai films and comics.

At last, a decent book on Japanese feudal weaponry. Sure, there are many good books on the subject, but none of them are in English. If you want to know about the history of a lot of weapons, this is the definitive source. It's almost like looking through a catalog of lethal toys, and many times I found myself stopping to draw diagrams and write out dimensions so I can make some of them myself. As always, Amazon has the best price, so buy it now!

The work is extremely well researched, clear, and comprehensive; describing things I've never heard of in 30+ years of martial arts. The photographs and illustrations complement the wonderful text. While you can never truly learn any martial art solely from a book, no matter how well-written, this is a very worthwhile tome. It offers unique insight into the lessor-known weapons of feudal Japan, including kobuki (small/minor weapons), hibuki (secret weapons), and kakushibuki (hidden weapons).

Weapons addressed in detail include stuff like jitte, marohoshi, chidorigane, shuriken, and kusari-gama. Content includes bladed weapons (e.g., wakizashi, tanto, kubizashi, kama, jitte, marohoshi), small hand-held weapons (e.g., shutogane, tessho, dokko, suntetsu, tekken), truncheons (e.g., kabutowari, tetto, nashi, tetsuniyoi, hanbo, tanbo), miscellaneous hand weapons (e.g., kanamuchi, tamazue, hogu, kakute, kaginawa), chain weapons (e.g., konpi, kusariryuta, mijin, kusarigama, kursaibo, kusarijutte), shuriken (e.g., yarihogata, tanogata, kuji, senban, shiken, kamagata, tetsumari), deceptive weapons (e.g., yatate, shikomibue, tessen, jutte). A brief introduction on the history and use of each type of weapon precedes each section.

The book is easy and fun to read. I'm really impressed.

Lawrence Kane
Author of Surviving Armed Assaults, The Way of Kata, and Martial Arts Instruction

Thailand is a country with many faces and Moore is an artist who paints fascinating portraits. Though I am generally not a fan of deceive stories I am hooked on Moore's Calvino series. Moore has very intriguing way of commenting on life through his characters. Cold Hit is definitely one of Moore's finer works.

Like a great vintage wine Moore just gets better and better.His latest in the Calvino series is a great place to begin your probable addiction to his books.I can only warn you that after reading a few of Moores books you may find yourself on a plane to Bangkok and i guarentee you will be forwarned and better prepared for your adventure than from reading any guide book.

Vincent Calvino is classic noir detective . . . idealistic, tough, incorruptible, unstoppable and realistic. What makes this tale intriguing is its setting, among the "for hire" ladies in Bangkok and those who feed on them. In a nod to the noir tradition of Sam Spade, this novel bridges the Pacific between Los Angeles and Bangkok in an effective way.

Sexual tourists are flocking to Bangkok and some of them are ending up in a coffin. Calvino wants to know what's going on while everyone else ignores these deaths.

Calvino knows that if something sounds too good to be true . . . it surely is . . . but he keeps getting sucker punched in the process because he's on his uppers and needs the cash.

First he's hired to deliver a birthday card for $150. Then he's asked to be a body guard for a thousand dollars a day. Who wouldn't be tempted? Caveat detective!

The story has many twists and turns that are nicely tied together before the book ends. There's no lack of action.

The book positively swims in paid-for sex for exploitive men. I doubt if many women will find this book to be appealing.

The best part of the book comes in its development of Thai psychology. The subtlety and realism of the views are interesting to contemplate.

The story's main weakness is its slow development in the last 100 pages or so. This material was pretty predictable and could have been edited down to good effect.

This book will be most appealing to those who always wanted to take a vacation in a house of ill repute.

Awesome! Christopher Moore has done it again. If you haven't heard of this author, that's because he lives and work in Thailand. This is one of many novels from the Calvino series. I've read his previous Calvino novel Comfort Zone but I enjoyed this one even more. This is a must read book for any one who plan to take a trip to Thailand especially if your visit is not just business but also for pleasure. Christopher Moore seems to have a grasp the understanding of not just the Thai culture but also the Thai psyche. Example of this in the book is the Thai nightlife of the bars and the Ying(s) the book realistically portrayed the sights and sounds and the lights of Bangkok's nightlife in Soi Sukhumvit district. Also,it realistically relates to the sign of time when more and more people are exploring their sexual pleasures through the Internet. It was from this idea that the book start out with the new and innovative way in the technology of the net, which lured the foreign tourists to their deaths. The book takes you from that point on a roller coaster ride adventure through the eyes of an American Private Eyes Calvino. In this book, Calvino and his new found partner LAPD officer Jessada. Officer Jesseda who is Thai but grew up in L.A. joined the finest Police Department in the world... The LAPD. The two characters, through their fate and destiny, became partners working together to solve the mysteries in to the deaths of dth efive tourists and the over lined truth in the evilness of human greed & the profit of ever ending battle in law enforcement...Narcotics.

The author (although living in Thailand) did his research in writing this book by coming to Los Angeles and interviewed various crime fighting cops of the LAPD. You will find this book very enjoyable and hard to put down, not only in the excitment and actions of the story but the fascinating world of the two cultures(East VS West)I.E. The perspective of the Thais point of view as it is compared to the American Sexual psyche.

"Cold Hit" is one of the best books in the Vincent Calvino series and I guarentee that when you pick it up, it definately WON'T be easy to put down!
Vinnie is his usual lovable, cynical-but-caring PI struggling to make a living in Bangkok and live in that unique world where Thai and farang meet. The painful events he has happen to him in the first chapter when he's merely off to deliver a birthday card to a bargirl are the best introduction to both the story and Calvino himself. As expected, the other characters, some based on real expats in Bangkok, are just as believable and just as easy to love or loathe or sometimes do both at the same time; this is indeed a brilliant writing characteristic of Christopher G. Moore. If this book proceeds for you the way it did for me, you'll wipe it out within a day or two but if you're anywhere in Thailand when you do, you might be in a bar, sipping a beer or some Mekhong and feel as though you've transported yourself into the heart of Moore's writing and that Vinnie will be joining you soon for a whiskey himself. If you want fun, fantastic literary work and the most enjoyable means to learn about Thailand, get this book lao-lao. You'll love it!

"Combat Medic Vietnam" is a solid military story. Its 33 chapters are devoted to some 10 Army and Marine medics who served in Vietnam. While "CM" pulls no punches, neither does it belabor or drag the episodes out. Each episode, told in the first person "tells it like it was" and moves on. The result is a highly compact and readable tale with no gratuitous gore and suffering. To the credit of the men involved, there is also no trace of self-pity though the Lord knows they were well entitled on that score. The Afterward reveals what became of the 10 when they returned to "The World"- more power to them all! I enjoyed the Appendix, which encompasses a brief world history of military medics both U.S. and foreign. "CM" has 2 minor flaws common to military books: There are no maps and no glossary of Army/Marine/Navy acronyms or jargon. Their inclusion would have helped. Their exclusion does not detract from the larger story. "CM" represents yet another view, another observation post into the Vietnam War. Both "Combat Medic" and author Roberts earlier work, "One Shot-One Kill" are highly and earnestly recommended.

This is a great book. I couldn't put it down and read the whole thing from cover to cover. It covers the experiences of the medics in the Vietnam war. I know one of the medics featured in the book. His name is Doug Wean, and he is a heroic honorable person. If you want to get the inside story on the Vietnam war this is a book for you.

As one of the ten men featured in this book, it was both an honor and a humbling experience to reveal the most intimate moments of my entire life to the world in print. The experiences of this book are real - recorded from gut-wrenching memories that will never die. Bob 'Doc' Bosma

This book is on the "Recommended Reading List" of Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 295, Indianapolis, Indiana

"Combat Medic Vietnam" is a solid military story. Its 33 chapters are devoted to some 10 Army and Marine medics who served in Vietnam. While "CM" pulls no punches, neither does it belabor or drag the episodes out. Each episode, told in the first person "tells it like it was" and moves on. The result is a highly compact and readable tale with no gratuitous gore and suffering. To the credit of the men involved, there is also no trace of self-pity though the Lord knows they were well entitled on that score. The Afterward reveals what became of the 10 when they returned to "The World"- more power to them all! I enjoyed the Appendix, which encompasses a brief world history of military medics both U.S. and foreign. "CM" has 2 minor flaws common to military books: There are no maps and no glossary of Army/Marine/Navy acronyms or jargon. Their inclusion would have helped. Their exclusion does not detract from the larger story. "CM" represents yet another view, another observation post into the Vietnam War. Both "Combat Medic" and author Roberts earlier work, "One Shot-One Kill" are highly and earnestly recommended.

hands down one of my top 3 "desert island" books. i don't even know what the other two would be, but berg's translations - ikkyu's work - man...these can - without fail - render the reader speechless, at least one or two times in a reading...easily.

Ikkyu is perhaps the most like "normal" humans by any accounting of a Zen master I've encountered in print. One can relate to this guy. Some of his poems are like Michael Jordan putting up a final second shot and touching nothing but net. I wasn't sure I would like his poetry since I'm not that big a poetry fan but this is the kind of book to take on a long run down the Grand Canyon or somewhere you might crave inspiration when space is at a premium.

"Only one koan matters," Ikkyu writes, "you" (p. 67). "Believe in the man facing you now" (p. 21). While meditating on a boat when he was 27, Ikkyu Sojun--also known as "Crazy Cloud" (1394-1482), was enlightened when he heard a crow call (p. 9). As a Zen Master, he was considered sort of an eccentric rake (p. 13), and he never pretended to be much else. He loved sake. He loved women. "The crow's caw was ok," he writes (p. 58), but "a woman is enlightenment" (p. 64). Ikkyu scandalized his Zen community, and his poetry will offend many readers today as well. "Look me up if you want to," he writes, "in the bar whorehouse fish market" (p. 40).

These poems are "frank, naked, sincere" (p. 15), and full of vivid imagery of "erotic renewal" (p. 13). It's enough to say for purposes of this review, Ikkyu lives "in a shack on the edge of whorehouse row" (p. 40). These are the poems of a poet who is "all there" (p. 15), and fully present on his "long pure beautiful road of pain/ and the beauty of death and no pain" (p. 24), whether he is watching his four-year-old daughter dance--"I can't break free of her" (p. 60), watching the "snow moon tangled among black flowers" (p. 39), or "shuttling between whorehouse and bar" (p. 47). Question "flattery success money," he writes (p. 22). "This city these people where I live still are impossible" (p. 30). "Sing until you have no throat then words come by themselves" (p. 55).

I'm not qualified to comment on Stephen Berg's translation of Ikkyu's poems, but I can tell you this book is certainly something to crow about!

G. Merritt

Ikkyu wrote his verses in a four line form which has been reworked into couplets by Stephen Berg. It is important to remember that these are version by Stephen Berg not careful translations from the original - as reworkings often are the most accessible translations.

Ikkyu was not a typical Zen master - the monkish disciplines of celebacy and sobriety were not in his repetoire. While this makes him an oddity, it reinforces the ideal that one who is enlightened is one who is free. This freedom (often seen as indifference or non-clinging) is voiced in this poem "Ikkyu this body isn't yours I say to myself / wherever I am I'm there". His freedom from the disciplines is shown in poems that are explicitly sexual not merely erotic. A very tame example: "don't hesitate get laid thaat's wisdom / sitting around chanting what crap".

Ikkyu is definately a poet that students or would-be students of Zen should read ... in fact, we all should read it for the sheer fun and beauty of it.

This is classic haiku from the 15th century zen master Ikkyu. Ikkyu was a headmaster at Daitokuji before renouncing the hipocritical attitudes of the monks. Ikkyu was far too hearty and robust to endure that fate. He was not afraid to toss a few obscenities into his writing. This is not your Mothers haiku. Ikkyu cussed and swore and ignored the authorities. This collection gives one a generous sampling of his haiku. This is a neglected genius that often is overlooked in favor of Basho and Ryokan. Those two are also brilliant but Ikkyu is the wild man of the group. He is Rimbaud blaspheming, Whitman yowling a barbaric yawp and Bukowksi drunk on the floor in one package. Its a great introductory collection to haiku and japanese poetry in general.

I am not quite sure why I bought this book!

Maybe it was to make sure that the authors (Terry Collins and Derek Bacon) get at least some royalties for their efforts or perhaps the more likely excuse is that I needed to see whether my experiences were the same or similar to others. Then again maybe I bought the book because I just wanted to criticize the characterization or stereotyping of what it is like for us white folk living in Indonesia and particularly Jakarta!

The book set me back some IDR 163,000 from Kinokuniya in Plaza Indonesia. I was in Kinokuniya to buy a cross-stitch magazine for my better half and I happened to see the book and thought, why not? So, I whacked it on the counter and I now have my very own copy!

You might be wondering why a bloke who has spent so long in Jakarta wants to read anything to do with Culture Shock. Well, even after all this time living in Indonesia I am still "hey Mister" and perhaps this is both the beauty and the beast that is Jakarta; no matter how long you might have lived here and no matter how much you have integrated into society, you will never get away from being "Hey Mister!"

The book is well written (at least for my mind) and I found myself smiling and chuckling to myself as I read through it. It is surprising how much of the experience is common and how much we tend to forget of what has happened. It was nice to read and remember some of those long forgotten experiences that were jogged back into the more conscious memory!

I know one of the authors (Terry Collins) and perhaps I should make this as a disclaimer. Nevertheless, those of you that know me would know that I pull no punches. If I thought the book was garbage I would say so in not such an eloquent way! Yet, the book, I have found has been worth the money I outlaid for it, if for no other reason than it reminded me of moments that I have enjoyed during my stay.

Funnily enough most people are reporting that they are not finding this book in the arrival halls to Jakarta but rather in the departure shopping areas. I guess this might afford those on their way out of Jakarta a chance to buy the book for the purposes of answering this question: "what the hell just happened to me?"

I would have thought though that the best spot for this would be in the departure lounges of foreign locales and the arrival lounges of points of entry into Indonesia...but I guess this is why I studied law and not marketing!

But for anyone interested in learning the "ins and outs" of the Jakarta experience then this is perhaps the book for you. The book contains sections on the history and politics of Jakarta, settling in for those of you who might want to be more than tourists, visa and immigration information, business information, food and entertaining, fitting in, and communicating, among a number of others.

I think the most valuable learning tools in the book are the short glossary at the end, the culture quiz, and the "do's and don'ts" section.

So, go out and buy the book as it might just help you understand the experience you are about to have or the experience that you have just had!

I loved the book! I'm going to go live in Indonesia, possibly Jakarta, and the book gives all the tips you would want to know. I would buy this series for any new place that I want to live. It goes over everything from how to pick a house to weather patterns. It give a great description of what the people are like and how they think. A must buy for anyone moving to Indonesia. Priceless information that would take years to learn on your own.

Culture Shock! is the only must-read book on how to survive the confusing "monster" named Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia. Being born and raised there, Jakarta hasn't stopped surprising me to this very day, especially since I no longer reside there in the last decade.

This revised version is more comprehensive and up-to-date, as the co-author Terry Collins is, undoubtedly, superbly skillful in describing and explaining how Jakarta has evolved and will continue to evolve as one of the most unique places on the planet. Overall, it is a great book to read and keep on your bookshelf. Suitable for those who intend to visit Jakarta for pleasure or business for a few days, weeks, months, or even years.

I have been waiting for this book to come out for a few months!

I wish it was available when we first arrived in Jakarta.

This book is a very comprehensive guide to life in Jakarta, it should be compulsory for all new expatriates as it makes life so much easier when you understand whats going on around you. Even after living here for nearly 12 months I learnt a lot.

The book was originally authored by Derek Bacon nearly 10 years ago and has just been thoroughly revised and updated by a renown Jakarta Blogger, Jakartass.

Some of the topics covered:-

* First impressions
* History, Geography and Politics
* Fitting into society
* Settling in
* Food and entertainment
* Culture and travel
* Communicating in Jakarta
* Doing business
* Fast facts

I was very impressed with this book and hope you will be too.

Viewed from a safe distance, it's easy to assume that these days it's just one bad thing after another in Indonesia. How terrible must this place be to actually live in? How on earth do people manage to live there?

It's easy for the outside world to get a distorted view of life somewhere, when all that seems to come from there is bad news. But these are just events, little blips that get reported along the way. It's in the moments between these events where the real picture lies, where day-to-day life goes on, apparently as normal.

If you want to stand any chance of knowing Indonesia at all, you'll need to be there at ground level, with it whizzing all around you.Towering well over 1.83m tall, my co-authoring friend Terry Collins is definitely at ground level. In this reworked version of CultureShock! Jakarta, Terry brings our picture of Jakarta bang up to date.

With 20 years of Jakarta living under his belt, he is well qualified in shifting the story forward. And, crucially, he still has enthusiaism for the Jakarta life. He may of course completely deny this, but it's this very enthusiasm that has helped paint this much fuller picture of the city, and one too that helps guide us through the often confusing decade of change (or non-change) since President Suharto made his dramatic exit in 1998.

So here then is Jakarta today. It's big. It's frustrating. It really is a monster. Don't say we didn't warn you.

A great book if you are interested in old Japanese ways. Well written, but not hard to understand. Would recomend to anyone

Unfortunately, out of print - but seek it out any way you can. A fascinating, wonderful, and truthful account of the life of a daughter of the Samurai class, which had existed for centuries, just at the time when it was beginning its decline. Much of what you read in this book will explain the behaviour of modern-day Japanese. As an American living in Japan, that has proved invaluable. The book is well-written, focused, imaginative, whimsical, and resourceful, just like the author herself. If you can get your hands on a copy, be prepared to fall in love with Etsu-bo!

Unfortunately, out of print - but seek it out any way you can. A fascinating, wonderful, and truthful account of the life of a daughter of the Samurai class, which had existed for centuries, just at the time when it was beginning its decline. Much of what you read in this book will explain the behaviour of modern-day Japanese. As an American living in Japan, that has proved invaluable. The book is well-written, focused, imaginative, whimsical, and resourceful, just like the author herself. If you can get your hands on a copy, be prepared to fall in love with Etsu-bo!

I didn't want this book to finish so soon. I loved the style and became involved in the characters. I want to know how her children re-adjusted back to life in the USA - how did she manage as a single Japanese mother alone in the USA.

Nothing tumultuos happens, no sex, no violence - just a peek into the not-so distant past!

Especially interesting for me since I am a Brit who has lived in the USA and now living in Japan.

Can anyone reccomend more books of this calibre?

I was completely charmed by this beautifully written autobiography! I couldn't put it down! Not only did I learn some rich social history of Japan, but I was able to see into the Japanese heart for the first time. Although many of the customs mentioned are now outdated, they show the foundation that shaped and molded the Japanese people of today. I can now say that I have a much clearer understanding of the Japanese. Apart from what I learned of Japan, I also got a glimpse of America and how we haven't changed much over the years in our attitudes. I saw into the heart of the immigrant and the adjustments and readjustments they must face. I was awed and inspired!

I am delighted that these diaries have at last been published and thus made easily accessible to the scholarly world and all interested readers. They transport us back to a little-known time and place, China just after the turn of the 20th century.

Volume One includes great detail of the acrimonious diplomatic negotiations after the Boxer Rebellion of 1900 which led to the signing of the final protocol between the powers and China on September 7, 1901. Volume Two of the two-volume set includes Satow's observations on and of the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05) and much about the development of railways, the Imperial Maritime Customs Service run by Sir Robert Hart (the Inspector General) and so on.

There is much more to come from the Satow Papers (PRO 30/33 1-23) in the National Archives of the UK at Kew, West London but these diaries have never been published before and will repay careful study.

Ian Ruxton, editor of Sir Ernest Satow's Private Letters to W.G. Aston and F.V. Dickins: The Correspondence of a Pioneer Japanologist from 1870 to 1918 (Paperback), also available on amazon. (For a full list of my books related to Satow and others, click on my name under the title at the top of the page.)

Ian Ruxton has come upon a rich vein of East Asian history, in the form of writings of British diplomat Sir Ernest Satow (1843-1929), and is exploiting it methodically and with due care. I had previously come across Ruxton's "The Diaries and Letters of Sir Ernest Mason Satow" and am very pleased he has now given us Satow's Peking diaries from 1900-1906, in two volumes, complete with an excellent introduction by J.F.Hoare.

That these diaries have had to wait one hundred years for this sort of attention is regrettable, but then they date from a period of Chinese history that itself has been relatively neglected by Western scholars. Given China's relentless rise today as a political, economic and military power, it is all the more necessary that the historical air be cleared, and this is one work that will contribute to that end, all the more so in that they are available in paperback and so should be accessible to students.

The particular value of this work arises from the great astuteness of Satow and the immediacy with which he presents a period that was among the most dramatic in Europe's engagement with the Middle Kingdom (remember this is the time of the Boxer Rebellion). Like it or not, the reader observes first-hand just how voracious European nations were in getting their share of the Chinese pie. Not that the diaries are only about China. Satow perforce keeps a wary eye on all international doings and has much to say on Japan in particular, which he knew so well. Students of the Russo-Japanese War will find here much of interest.

In short, this is history in the making. The history we normally read is frozen in time, the possibility among all others that finally prevailed. Diaries such as these remind us of the open-endedness of each day and each decision, and hence of the imposing responsibility of the diplomat. Satow was a remarkable diplomat and deserves our praise for recording so much of interest and preserving it so carefully for posterity. Likewise, author Ruxton deserves our praise and gratitude for making these diaries available to a wider readership. This may not be one for your Aunty Molly's Christmas stocking, but it is an academic book of much value.

Ian Ruxton, having published the Japan diaries of Ernest Mason Satow, continues his scholarly work with his two-volume collection of Satow's diaries as British envoy to China. Volume 1 begins with Satow's leaving Japan in May 1900 and continues through 1903. While Satow never became the scholar of China that he was of Japan, his keen mind offers acute observations of both the international political situation of the time (e.g. Satow's pre-arrival ruminations on reports of the Boxer Rebellion) and of daily life in early 20th century China.

In going through Volume One of Ernest Satow's Diaries when he was a British Envoy in Peking, I was struck by how progressive Satow was in opposing his former chief in Tokyo, Sir Harry Parkes who believed that force was the best way of dealing with the "Orientals." Satow also favored a polite and less blustering response in punishing China for the Imperial support of the Boxer rebellion. The author, Ian Ruxton, does a excellent job at providing the needed details for understanding this rare and progressive figure; one that most of today's politicians could learn from, no doubt. Also we get a rare glimpse of how his colleagues jockeyed for power in the court of Peking, and how Satow was involved with the Russian-Japanese war. Keeping in mind that this was a incredible time of change, industrialization,and a time in which borders were changed, and new countries and new forms of government were established, we can see that this was a time for great diplomacy! This book has, in short, shown what a great figure Ernest Satow was and how complex the issues truly were.

This latest instalment from the studious mind and prolific pen of Ian Ruxton, brings Sir Ernest Satow, British Diplomat and sometime Minister in a number of important Far East postings, to life ( yet again ) in a way which the unprivileged observer from the great man's own time could never be privy to - but, courtesy of Mr Ruxton's diligence and application, we most certainly are. These (later) extracts from Sir Ernest Satow's diary mainly centering on his later Chinese postings, are a fascinating combination of both the musings on proposed and pivotal official policy and decisions, and their effects during and after the fact - and the more mundane matters such as 'met with..' 'had dinner...' 'cab to...' 'dinner at hotel..' and so on. Sometimes the mostly secretly held opinions recorded in the diaries gradually changed, such as was the case with Satow's opinion on the extreme use of force by British and allied forces during the Boxer Rebellion, which he initally agreed with at the time and in early retrospect; but much later, after settling in to his new and albeit initially vague tenure, ( was he really the Minister or was he an overseeing High Commissioner? ), came to the conclusion that the allies and their gunboats blasting away was entirely the wrong stategy to have adopted. Via assimilation of both the original recorded musings of Satow, and his digital reanimation courtesy of the highly accomplished specialist biographer Ian Ruxton, ( who is also a graduate in both Law and Modern Languages ) I feel as if I or any other reader could easily be on par with the brightest Oxbridge graduates who come out with honours degrees in Oriental Studies. Another great work of preservation and presentation by the aforesaid scribe. Well done.