Asia Books

A great book for those that love traveling and want to learn about some things to look out for when traveling. It is filled with humor and describes the reality of traveling to a remote area. It is a great read for those that have traveled and also for those looking to travel. The elephant polo part is filled with more humor and gives in inside look at a rare sport played by the wealthy.

Antonio Graceffo deserves nothing but kudos for the risks he took leaving his corporate job and New York to spend more time on an adventurous journey for additional perspective with his journalistic eye, the creative craftmanship of his writing, and his backpack. The verdict on his voyage based on the insights derived from his narratives and his publications should give one brief pause before the resounding yes to purchasing his books.

i've been reading Antonio Graceffo's storys and books and i enjoy them all, i really recommend buying this book its really worth it. His adventure is very intresting, many facts and funny conflicts. also check out his book "The Monk From Brooklyn" i say its a very good book... and to mention all the negative post with one star rating is obviously the same person. you can tell by comparing all his/her negative post.

It may be difficult for us to understand why a successful investment banker from New York, chooses to risk death and danger by crossing the world's second largest desert. However, when reading Antonio Graceffo's story, everything starts to become very simple and clear why he'd to do such a thing.

This is a story of one man's own challenge, to cross the Taklamakan Desert from North to South alone, although unachieved by men before. It allows us Westerners to gain insight to not only an experience we may never visit or encounter but also types of cultures and people we never imagined could still exist.

What's appealing about this story by Graceffo is his writing style as being ordinary and informal with snippets of dialogue to assist you in getting the `bigger picture'. For a less intellectual but entertaining read this is ideal. Antonio's genuine character, blatant or funny statements and honest thoughts all provide a fuller engagement with his journey.

Most people love a good story of knowing how a human overcomes something serious or survives danger. This is a story of survival from the extremely high temperatures, constant dehydration and consistent physical pain. This one man isolated, travelling nature's danger zone, riding miles on a strange impossible to ride three wheeler bike is remarkable.

I became so engrossed in this story, my curious self questioning can this guy really make it? Is it really possible for a human to survive such ordeal? Throughout the journey there are times when he feels as if he can't go on. By great will power and determination he becomes a hero and completes his mission.

The descriptions given are detailed enough to provide great visual imagery for the reader and therefore makes the reader feel as if they were encountering the journey with Antonio also. The various types of village people which he stumbles upon his journey provide an intriguing aspect to his story. You just never know what type of person he will meet next, some of these people pretty much save his life, and some of the conversation exchanged between them helps the reader gain insight to a completely unfamiliar culture we likely don't know enough about. It's very thought provoking meeting these characters in the book because it highlights the extreme different lives we lead. e.g. the Ughyur construction foreman Antonio meets randomly while travelling across the Taklamakan. The foreman earned in a month the equivalent to what a pair of sixty US dollar boots would cost. There are many people which appear in Antonio's travels which lead very simple lives living on what we would class as nothing, some are not even aware of what a camera is? It really makes you wonder how we are all a part of the same world.

I recently emailed Antonio and asked a series of questions referring to his book "The Desert of Death on Three Wheels".

He is currently living in Cambodia, writing articles about families and people living in poverty. He wrote the following to me in response to one of my questions:

"In the west we have no idea of true hopelessness and desperation. Most recently I did a story about sick people gathered in a temple where they believed the monk could cure them. They were desperate and poor and ignorant and uneducated and infecting each other. More than one thousand people living on top of each other in an area about three times the size of a football pitch.
What can I say to sites like these? They sadden me. There is so much humour in a lot of my stories. But that is often my way of dealing with the sadness I saw the previous day."

The Desert of Death on Three Wheels also has an added bonus story, it's about his trip to Thailand, where he plays for a team in a rather interesting sport called elephant polo. I won't go into great detail of what happens, or what kind of story to expect but I can guarantee you it is an extremely funny read. Filled to the brim, of course, with Antonio's witty and comic comments in reflection of his experience. Antonio does actually raise awareness for these elephants by fighting in a boxing match. He is a boxer as well as a writer! It is clear from my response from my online interview with him, that he really does care about the places and people he visits from around the world. He has a very unstable financial income writing about poverty, wars and the corrupt governments he encounters when travelling.

The Desert of Death on Three Wheels is an entertaining great story about a man who is compassionate about people and the places he visits. He converts his travel experience into a story overcoming what may seem the unobtainable. Everybody loves a good story don't we?

© Vanessa Hyde Nov 2005

An honest account of an adventure through a place most people would never have even heard of. The bonus story about Antonio's participation in an Elephant polo tournament is also an interesting look at a sport generally only enjoyed by the disgustingly rich. I really enjoyed these stories, and would recommend them to anyone interested in travel writing, because you won't have read anything else quite like them.

Travelling with Michael is to say the least exhilarating, fun, adventurous and a journey of discovery. While many can only dream of actually making the trip, Michael Palins' books are the next best thing. It's not just where he goes, but how he does it and perhaps most importantly: seeing it through his mind's eye, which needless to say can make humor out of nothingness. All you need is to relax and have the urge to increase your imagination. A wild but educative ride!

Michael Palin does it again with Full Circle. Starting in Alaska Michael travels anti-clockwise around the rim of the Pacific Ocean visiting countries as diverse as Russia, Korea, Viet Nam, New Zealand, Colombia and the west coast of North American. He tells of his adventures getting to and exploring some fantastic natural wonders, visiting a Russian gulag with a former inmate, the relief of Japan, the Vietnamese reactions to a westerner, the biggness of Australia and the hardworking people of South America. The section on the United States is short and not always sweet. Palin is taken aback by the physical bigness of Americans, and rush, and loudness. By the time he reaches Canada and attends a "lumberjack" fair (no singing Mounties included!) he really "wants to go home". We also learn a bit about how the series and book were produced, his wife Helen and their children, and that being on a job for the BBC doesn't always mean smooth sailing! Michael's friend Basil Pao took the photographs - he also joined Michael on "Around the World in Eighty Days". I can highly recommend this book and not only to fans of Monty Python - it doesn't end how you might expect!

As always Palin has produced a great travel book and series... this I found better than his "80 Days". The other thing people might find interesting about this travel book is that it takes us to some places which are hard to reach even in this day and age, so this is the only way we can know them.

Also suggested- "Hemingway Adventure"

Full Circle is just as good, if not better then his othertravel/comedy books. It is simply magnificent.

I've seen the 10-part Full Circle tv series, and I had a serious addiction from the start. When it ended, I went through a withdrawl period. I silently rocked myself in a chair in my room repeating "I must get the book,... must find book...must read book." I've got it now and I'm back on a Full Circle high. The book goes into details that they never had time for on the series. It tells you everything that you would have noticed had you been in Japan or Australia or Chile.

Ahh... I can imagine myself right now on the streets of China getting a massage from a blind man.

This is an amazing book, by a wonderful author. I would highly recommend reading it.

What a find! I'm amazed Dervla Murphy is not much better known. She has such an appealing vigor and zeal for adventure, combined with an acute eye for cultural observation and a rich capacity for description. Dervla takes one of the most audacious trips I've ever heard of, and undergoes some of the most harrowing and arduous of trials with non-showoff-y courage, such as when three heavy objects that turn out to be wolves fling themselves at her on a dark deserted road in the Balkans, or she is awakened in the middle of the night to find a "scantily dressed Kurd" standing over her bed. (In both instances her pocket pistol dispatched the dilemma without further ado.) Not only are these accounts riproaring, but she so warmly and affectionately describes the so-called "undeveloped" cultures she grows to know as she passes through remote stretches of Afganistan and Pakistan, that she quite awakens a First World reader to the narrowness of our outlook.

It was by accident I discovered this book, but how fortunate it was! Murphy did not just ride a bicycle from Ireland to India, impressive in itself, but she lived and laughed and played with the Prince's and Peasants she met through out her journey. Her descriptions of the people she meets and the ancient lands she cross are simple and magical.

Some of her experiences seem to belong to fairy tales, other's remind's one of Arabian Nights, and at other times, it seemed Murphy was whisked into Tolkien's land of Middle Earth with fierce and gallant warriors on horseback.

I will quote a couple of passages which highlight her sense of humor and observation.

"...But it was worth it all to rise gradually from that fertile, warm valley to the still, cold splendour of the snow-line, where the highest peaks of the Hindu Kush crowd the horizon in every direction and one begins to understand why some people believe that gods live on mountain tops."

"...when suddenly I came on the most unexpected sight-a playing field complete with twenty-two youths and a soccer ball. I know very little about soccer, but enough to know this is how it is not played. No one ever moved about trotting speed, no one ever tried to tackle anyone else, the referee never used his whistle, the ball was never headed and the two goalies sat crosslegged between the posts most of the time, looking abstracted. The real excitement from a spectator's point of view was caused by the fact that one side of the field had a sheer drop of 200 feet, so that the main object of all the players was to keep the ball from going into the ravine rather than to kick it between the posts."

I first read this book in the sixties in grade school. I bought the reissued edition, rediscovering it by coincidence. Ms. Murphy's journey in the early sixties is, if anything, more fascinating to read today in light of the changes in the Middle East since she travelled there. Her independence and cheerful acceptance of different cultures is refreshing. This book was written prior to the 'me' decade, and while intensely personal, lacks the self-preoccupation that more recent writers practice.

Additionally, unlike so many bicycle travelogues, this book doesn't focus on the author's bicycle! The focus remains on the journey, which renders it excellent reading for all, not just bicyclists.

This is a timeless read and one that can be revisited with pleasure.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Murphy's humor, tenacity and bravery are awe inspiring. She's attacked by wolves (or possibly wild dogs), wakes up in a tent after going to sleep out in the open, fends off an attempted rapist and has many other thrilling adventures. In one instance, when there are nefarious characters about, she is advised to booby trap her inn bedroom's doorway with empty bottles. In her journal, she calmly notes that emptying bottles is the one thing she's really good at.

I couldn't help feeling sad while reading this book. In 1965, when this book was published, most people were probably unfamiliar places like Kabul and Jalalabad. Now, of course, in the wake of the post-9/11 bombing of Afghanistan, Kabul is a household word. Turns out, that city was once breathtakingly beautiful, as well as the country around it. Murphy's trek takes her through Afghanistan at a time when the USSR and the US were vying for control of this country. The Russians were busy providing electricity and importing goods, while the Americans seemed to approach this ancient country with the intent to raze the traditional culture to the ground and replace it with a modern one. One wonders if, if both countries had never meddled with Afghanistan, there might never have been the Taliban? In any event, this book takes the reader back to a truly relevant experience of the not-so distant past.

This is the best book I have read in either Japanese or English that gives a comprehensive, easy to read and balanced overview of the lives of 37 people who contributed into making Japan into what it is today. The book presents people from diverse aspects of Japan: industry, traditional culture, history, modern writers and film directors. The people span from the first ever novelist in the world Murasaki (c.975-c.1025) to Morita Akio, the co-founder of Sony. The biographies are short and concise and are on average 10 pages long. It is not necessary to read the entire book at once, but read one biography and come back to another one at a later time. I have read and reread the book numerous times and have been inspired by the lives of each one of the people profiled.

Much has been written about the history of Japan from the point of view of society and group dynamics. This is understandable given Japan's interdependent culture. Mark Weston's Giants of Japan is one of the first that covers Japan from the point of view of it's great individuals. The subjects of the book range from well known industrialists (Konosku Matsuhita) and leaders (Tokogawa Ieyasu) to lesser known writers (Fukuzawa Yukichi) and directors (Ozu Yasujiro).

The book is good for many different types of people. Those with a deeper knowledge of Japan can pick and choose from the individuals they wish to learn more about. Those newly interested in Japan can read the book cover to cover to gain a broad knowledge of the history and people of Japan.

This book does not attempt to provide a comprehensive Japanese history, or in depth view of any aspect of Japanese society. There are other more suitable books in those genres.

This was the best book I read last year. Very informative and easy to read.

Giants of Japan is a very pleasant introduction to Japanese history, organized in a succession of biographies of the most influential figures in Japanese business, politics, arts and sports. In addition to being well-written, the book offers a good mix of key facts and anecdotes, making the reading both interesting and exciting.

Beyond information about the country itself, Weston takes good care of extracting history lessons from his biographies. For example, it is edifying to learn how (with what vision, strategems, and tricks) Mistui developed from a sake brewry into one of the worldfs largest corporations, with what political purpose tea ceremony was used, and how a single author, Fukuzawa Yukichi, precipitated Japan's westernization.

The book recounts the origins of Shintoism, Haiku, even Aikido (judofs creator, Jigoro Kano, is missing from the book). It depicts the spirit of feudal warriors (both samurais and ronins), and shows how Bushido has survived in 20th century Japan (exemplified by Mishimafs tragic death). It also deals with the dark pages of Japanese history, including Japanese military actions before and during WWII and modern political corruption.

I recommend this book to anyone who has a yet unfulfilled interest in Japan; the biographical structure of the book makes it readable even to a busy audience.

Giants Of Japan: The Lives Of Japan's Greatest Men And Women by journalist and author Mark Weston is an informed and informative biographical survey of great figures drawn from fifteen centuries of Japanese history. Ranging from the internationally famous writer Yukio Mishima and the film director Akira Kurosawa, to historical icons such as Shotoku (the prince who helped bring Buddhism to Japan), and the actress Izumo no Okuni (who created kabuki theater), Giants Of Japan effectively summarizes an eclectic collection of fascinating and remarkable lives revealed in an energetic and raptly interesting presentation. Very highly recommended reading for students of Japanese history and culture.

It's possible I'm biased because of my interest in Central Asia. I'm not sure how this book would be received by someone with no interest in the region, but I suspect it would still be a great read.

For me, this was the first book in a long time that brought out the 'just a few more pages' type of mentality that keeps you reading until the wee hours of the morning (it's a short book though, so start it early in the day so you don't stay up too late!).

One of the greatest parts of this is how each story seems to speak to a different part of me.

I really enjoyed it. And with the used prices below a dollar, I think you'd be missing out not to pick it up.

As I read, I was looking at the structural underpinnings of theses stories. I was interested in what happened to a story that was told in a foreign land. What role does place play in the exotic story? How does a writer balance the need to explain the exotic with the need tell a story? What stories can be told only in an exotic land and why?

And of course, there were no real answers. In some of the stories ("Aral," and to a lesser degree, "Death in Defier") place is integral to the telling of the story. The place is an import part of the plot and is treated as another character that acts within (or upon) the story. Place influences the lives of the characters and their decisions. The movement of the story depends on the place. It is difficult to imagine the story unfolding in any other location, just like it is difficult to imagine the same story with different characters. Change the place and you change the story.

Other stories ("The Ambassador's Son," "God Lives in St. Petersburg," "Expensive Trips Nowhere") are less dependent on place. The real action in the story involves the characters. Although the stories unfold in Central Asia, they could (perhaps) just as easily take place in Africa, Mexico, or rural Alabama. The stories are character driven.

It is also interesting to see how politics are woven into the stories. The characters in "Death in Defier" all hold different political views, and those views are drawn in contrast to the shared reality of life between Mazar and Kunduz.

I also noticed that although place can have some of the same characteristics in a story as character, they are not the same. And even if you have a character that is moving through and engaging with an exotic landscape, it is not the same dynamic as characters interacting with one another. A character interacting with an exotic place is not nearly as interesting, from the perspective of engaging fiction, as characters interacting with one another. Even in the stories that depend on place, it is still the character that carries the story forward.

There is also the issue of back-story. It can really slow the action, particularly in the short story. But back-story seems sometimes vital in developing character and motivation. Bissell does not shy away from back-story, nor does he seem to have a problem with switching POV. In "Expensive Trips Nowhere," the POV switches among the three characters. Back-story stretches across pages and between characters. The main event of the story, an attempted high-country mugging, is actually told as back-story. And I am not sure if it works. This sort of forward, back, in and out, motion certainly does not make for a clean narrative trajectory. And there is some information that is redundant (like the guide's twice told history of service in Afghanistan). But I can also say that I found the story engaging and did not get the sense that it ever stalled.

All in all this is a great collection. And it can be simply enjoyed by an adventure seeking reader, or mined by the beginning writer for craft.

This book touches on a subject of life in the former soviet republics in asia and Afghanistan. It is predictabely grim, yet author tries to make the stories unique and interesting to read. I liked the stories for their exposition of desperation in peoples lives. Having been born in the former soviet union myself I can attest to how alien that world is. There a note in the book that indeed much has happened since the stories were written and it should be noted that oil wealth has changed the situation for very few people but has transformed the main capitals.

From the first few pages of this book, we know we are reading a master who knows the facts in Afghanistan and the smaller new nations just north of it , and south of Russia. Every yarn is unique, some with tons of black humor, others placing you right inside the Afghan war. The first tells of a journalist trying his best to get some penicillin for his malaria sticken pal, including risking his life in a mad rush near the battlesgrounds, to a supposed plant/field that can kill the disease. The end is shocking, and horrific. In "The Ambassador's Son" we are inside the wild west flavor of a new "Istan" nation,including some of the zaniest writing imaginable. To compare this author with Hemingway, Kiplang, and Greene is indeed not a stretch. In fact, I even prefer this short collection to many of the past "Classics" of foreign intrigue and war.

Tom Bissell is fond of sprinkling aphorisms throughout the stories in this fine collection, so let's lay one on him: Only a young man with his entire life stretched out before him could afford to be so pessimistic about life's possibilities.

Granted, he's writing about places it's easy to be pessimistic about, god-forsaken Central Asian Republics spawned by the collapse of the Soviet Empire, places that are a "combo of Soviet paranoia and Muslim xenophobia" as one character puts it. Five of the collection's six stories follow this pattern: take a (young) American; drop him or her into a central Asian country; stir; chronicle the resulting disaster.

The first story, Death Defier, is probably the best. A free-lance American photographer gets caught in a difficult situation in Afghanistan while trying to help a British reporter felled by a virulent strain of malaria. The story poses an interesting question: can you dive so deeply into the mechanics and aesthetics of war that you become immune to death-terror? Bissell grapples honorably with the complex sensibility of war correspondents, people who are voyeuristic and deeply engaged, often at the same time. Aral is about Amanda, an American biologist sent by the United Nations to study the shrinking Aral Sea (a hall of fame ecological screw-up). Amanda consistently misreads the intent of the people around her. She displays that combustible American mix of idealism, aggressiveness and ignorance of the local culture that's served us so well in Vietnam and Iraq.

Expensive Trips Nowhere and The Ambassador's Son are ugly American stories. In an Author's Note, Bissell acknowledges his debt to Hemingway's The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber for Expensive Trips Nowhere, which is about courage or the lack thereof on the steppes of Kazakhstan. The Ambassador's Son is about what you'd get if you dropped the Jay McInerney of Bright Lights, Big City into the capital of Tashkent. It should be noted that Bissell writes well about sex, giving it neither more nor less significance than the situation he's describing merits. The final story, Animals in Our Lives, is the only one set in America. Franklin, a recently returned expat English teacher, and Elizabeth, a med student, spend an afternoon at the zoo and experience the moment when it comes clear they don't have a future with each other. It's a sensitive rendering of the kinds of pain your intellect can't protect you from.

The title story, which won a Pushcart Prize, is about Timothy, a missionary in Samarkand whose faith gets subverted by physical urges. Bissell gets the succumbing to temptation part just right, along with the heartbreaking juxtaposition of sex with hope that pervades the world's downtrodden places. What's missing is a visceral sense of the struggle to hold on to God. God may not live in St Petersburg, but Dostoievksi did, and the master understood that sin gains heft through the hubris of the sinner. Something enormous was at stake for Dostoievski's spiritual criminals; they pitched themselves willingly on to the pyre, inviting and accepting oblivion for their defiance. Timothy settles for the tiny oblivion of orgasm, then sits in a fug of post-coital remorse waiting for God to ring him up. He's simply not a big enough person to carry his part of the argument, so the story falls short of the tragic dimension it tries to achieve.

There's a lot to like about Bissell as a writer. He's willing to engage with far-off, difficult cultures, and willing to wrestle with big ideas like death and sin. He writes a prose that's both erudite and plainspoken, which is hard to do. He can be both trenchant and expansive in his observations, often in the same well-turned phrase. His efforts to describe the ways in which the personal and political infuse and alter one another takes him into territory mined so productively by Graham Greene. While each of the individual stories may not be perfectly realized, it feels like there's something at stake here, maybe something important.

He's an author work rooting for, and I'd definitely buy his next book.

The Second World War completely changed its major participants and exacted some huge sacrifices from all involved. This and other books about the people who did the fighting shows how similar the attitudes were on all sides. The main character changes some of his thinking after the war, but his thoughts and actions during the war are really interesting, especially when compared to the thoughts and actions of the people on other sides.

If ever a book (other than the Bible) showed the divine hand and providence of God, this is it. I wish I could have met the man.

Excellent detailed story of Pearl Harbor's lead Navy pilot who through special circumstances wrought only by God found himself after the war travelling in the USA with Billy Graham and preaching the Gospel in Christian Crusades.

A friend of mine introduced me to this book in April of this year. He told me it was unlike any book about the Pacific war that he had ever read. Although skeptical at first, I sill went ahead and purchased the book. I left it on my book-shelve for several months and forgot all about it. As I began packing up in July to move I noticed this book again, so I picked it up and began reading it. I found the style of writing extremely fluid, and the chapters were concise. This well balanced account of Mitsuo Fuchida life traces it from his days as an Imperial naval aviator to Christian evangelist. 'God's Samurai' is a truly inspirational book filled with numerous accounts of honor, bravery, loyalty, and sacrifice - all the codes of a Samurai warrior. I have enjoyed this book tremendously, and I have just begun reading, 'Midway: The Battle That Doomed Japan: The Japanese Navy's Story' by Mitsuo Fuchida, Roger Pineau (Editor),Masatake Okumiya(Contributor). Both 'God's Samurai' and 'Midway' are 'must-have' books for anyone who is truly interested in the Pacific war and naval battles!

An awesome true story. Definitely one of the three best books I've read in the past decade. In a time like this of Osama bin Labens and shocking inter-civilizational conflict, Fuchida's life story shows how true reconciliation and inter-cultural brotherhood can be experienced. It gives hope in spite of the huge obstacles to inter-cultural understanding. A powerful human interest story. Don't miss it!

This book was produced as he was shown at the Royal Academy in London. I begged the poster at the tourist-board in Stockholm and got my parents to buy the hardcover version at the exhibition. Collecting Hiroshige prints in Stockholm I would have loved to see them in London, but the book is the second best thing. The reproductions are terrific, the text short but informative. All the different subjects of Hiroshige are displayed, landscapes, fan motives, fish, flowers and so on. Get it and then get some real prints!

I recieved this not knowing its large format and the images in full color on quality paper. Informative and accurate descriptions of the work. You will not regret buying this book. Makes me sigh....

I have no experience with art at all, but from my point of view this book is a jewl. Printings are so beautiful and relaxing, and they are numerous in this book. Also the book is well organized with explanations about the paintings.

The text provides the necessary background to facilitate understanding of the fantastic pictures. A great variety of photos provide wonderful insight into the world of Hiroshige. The pictures can be perused for pure enjoyment. Terrific book.

Quick, stop reading this review and buy this Hardcover book in New or Like New condition now, while you can. For, this is one of the greastest modern so-called 'coffee table' art books that I have come across. Too often these days one finds that such art books which should be large, lushly produced, lovingly put together and brilliantly written are unfortunately done with punk production values resulting in poor reproductions on cheap looking paper stock and accompanied by unedifying, often stultifying essays. Not this one. As I said above it is one of the most impressive art books that I have come across in twenty years of buying them. It is printed and bound in Germany which in itself is commendable and noteworthy because it is quite expensive to produce a book there. I am so glad they did because, as good as they are, Italy and Hong Kong, two places commonly used for producing today's art books, just don't do as good a job as Prestel has done in Germany. This book was originally produced to accompany an exhibition at the Royal Academy of the Arts during 1997. As such, it commanded a skilled and erudite staff of authors to craft both an accurate history and an illuminating commentary of the artist and his art. They are: Matthi Forrer, author of a similar book on Hokusai; Suzuki Juzo, the author of the standard monograph on Hiroshige; and Henry Smith a Professor of Japanese History at Columbia U. You will come back to this book many times over the years because there is so darned much information to absorb, visually and intellectually and because the publisher's top notch production values have accurately captured the spirit and beauty of Hiroshige's Woodblock Prints. This is the sort of book that will be actively sought out by art book collectors in years to come. This is why I say, buy it now, while you can at such a low price. You won't be sorry.

THE KILLING SEA is a thrilling book that talks about a tsunami hitting the coast of Indonesia. There are three main characters involved in this fictionalized account: Ruslan, who is an Indonesian, and Sarah and Steve, who are Americans that are visiting the country.

Sarah's and Steve's mom and dad asked to see Ruslan's dad to repair their boat that they needed to have fixed. Ruslan doesn't have a mother because she died a few years ago so he has to work. His dad is a mechanic.

Then a tsunami hits the coast. Ruslan knows that his dad is working on an oil tanker out at sea so he thinks he is okay. Sarah and Steve are on their boat when the tsunami hits. They run for their lives but lose track of their parents.

The book tells you those two stories and what they do after the tsunami. When an exciting part happens, they switch over to another point of view to make you want to read more.

I loved THE KILLING SEA and I hope when you read it you do, too.

Reviewed by: Mike

Ruslan slipped away from the crowd and the curious onlookers. He began to run, not knowing exactly why. But instanced told him to get away from the sea.
INDONESIA DECEMBER 2004

An Indonesian boy, and an all American girl are brought together in the aftermath of the devastating tsunami. The girl Sara has a 15-year-old brother named Peter that is with her. Sara and Peter have lost their mother in the tidal wave but their dad is still alive. But Sara And Peter are separated from their father by all of the rubble on the ground beneath there feet. The Indonesian boy is on Sara's and Peters side the whole time. Ruslan, the Indonesian boy has no mother but has a father but lost him like Sara and Peter. They are living on the ocean side in a tent that one of the tourists had waiting for rescue. Will Sara, Peter, and Ruslan be rescued or will they be there for a while.


Opinion

I thought that this book was the best book in the world and every one should read it. It gets you hooked from the very first sentence. It is a must read.

Richard lewis has through this story portrayed the victims of the asian tsunami as human beings. He has maintained their dignity, this is a rare skill in writing that should be praised. I would recommend this book to those who have spent time helping after the tsunami as well as those who only know of it from the news.
From one who did go to help thank you for telling this important story, it was important for me to read. Thank you Richard Lewis!

Richard Lewis's The Killing Sea is a fast-paced adventure based on the 2004 tsunami in Aceh. Skillfully crafted chapters alternate between telling the story of Indonesian boy, Ruslan, and Sarah, the Western tourist.

After surviving the tsunami (and witnessing a haunting amount of people who didn't), Ruslan begins searching for his father, who he believes has gone to Ie Mameh. After being held hostage by the military and then kidnapped by rebels, Ruslan escapes and eventually meets up with blue-eyed Sarah.

Sarah must also find her father, but first she needs to get her younger brother to a hospital. Peter swallowed a lot of water and is getting sicker by the day. Along with Aisya (whom Sarah pulled out of corpse-ridden waters), the three of them set off in search of medical attention.

A tug-of-war between hope and despair occurs, as they trek over mountains only to find more flattened villages. They are joined by fellow survivors and finally arrive in Calang. There they are told that the hospital has been destroyed and the medicine, washed away.

The Killing Sea is as visually stimulating as watching a movie. It's tastefully written and surely a winner with proceeds going to local Acehnese charities. The most compelling thing about the novel, however, is its sincerity. Even though the book is a work of imagination, Lewis creates a reality. From the water buffalo trying to clamber onto the fishing boat to the detachment Sarah feels upon finding her dead mother, I believed every word.

So glad I'm not alone in giving this wonderful book 5 stars! It a small masterpiece.

Other reviewers have already done a great job of summarizing the plot, so I'll just say that this gripping young adult novel about the tsunami is so much more than a heart-thumping page-turner. It's about family, culture, religion, redemption, love and God. I'm eager for my children to read it, and recommend it to all adults, as well.

-Ellen Meister, author of Secret Confessions of the Applewood PTA

This is the first of two volumes of compelling history; I picked it up after finishing Fehrenbach's This Kind of War (also highly recommended) and it made a great companion read. The format allows for insightful observations by the men who lived the extraordinary months of June to December 1950, fighting a determined enemy who caught the U.S. and its allies flat footed and unprepared for combat in nearly every way. Fortunately, our warriors steeled themselves and, fighting over rugged terrain and in extreme weather , saved South Korea and proved our collective will to prevent communism's unchecked spread. The author skillfully weaves observations that illuminate both tactical and operational level actions and decisions, and he accurately portrays the human dimenson of men fighting for reasons that are both noble and fundamental, most notably, for each other. I greatly enjoyed this effort and highly recommend it along with the second volume, Uncertain Victory by Donald Knox and Alferd Coppel (Knox died unexpectedly halfway through this book); it covers a longer time range (1951 to 1953), but is equally compelling.

I like is book mainly because it gave me a better understanding of the thoughts and feelings the troops had in the different conficts of the Korean WAR.

I have review other books on the subject but I believe this book gives the reader a more personal look at this difficult time. It is worth the time to read and ponder the words. Thank you for a book well written.

The area of the book that I feel can be improved is a better matching of the military troop thoughts and the time frame of the conficts as to the duration of the WAR.

This book was my introduction, appart from what little I was tought in school, to the Korean War. Knox does an excellent job of bringing the Korean War to life by letting the actual soldiers tell their tales. From the initial reaction of the troops in occupied Japan who were first sent there, to the bitter fighting at the Chosin Reservoir, Knox weaves an inthralling picture of what happened through the eyes of the soldiers who were actually there. If you are looking for a good narative that incompasses both the strategic and tactical aspect of the ground war in Korea, this is the book for you.

This is the best military oral history I've ever read, and it's as close as you will get to having been there. Although there are interviews and statements from all ranks, the concentration at the company level made this book especially compelling in giving a sense of the daily combat for those hundreds of nameless hills in korea. It gave a real feeling of life and death to the thousands of men who were wounded and killed. The interviews on the first month of the war on being overrun and then forming the Pusan perimeter are particularly vivid. For anyone who is reads military history this is a must read.

I became interested in the Korean War only after having joined the Army myself. My father fought in the war with the Army, but never talked about his role much, or what he went through. I bought Mr. Knox's book after glancing at it on the book store shelf. The first person accounts bring you right into the war. By allowing the participants to tell the story from the first-person the reader gets a 360 degree view of each battle. The book reads almost like fiction instead of history. I feel the adrenaline rush of battle, the exhaustion of victory and the frustration of grabbing that weapon for yet another 10 mile movement-to-contact without sleep. I feel the loss when one of the "characters" is taken away on a stretcher, knowing that I'll not be hearing from him again. I now have a slightly better understanding of what that dirty little "police action" was like. I don't think I'll be able to find many more books that can match the emotion of this.

Early '80s new York (specifically Queens) is the setting for this loose novel following a 12-year-old Korean-American over the course of two days as he roams the 'hood with his little brother, and two friends. It seems someone broke into his apartment and stole his Atari 2600 and 40+ cartridges, and he aims to find out who. Well, sort of... he actually seems rather resigned to his loss until his friend's continual irritating prodding provokes him into finding someone to blame. All of which makes the book sound a lot more plotted than it is.

The framework is basically picaresque, as Peter, his introverted little brother Steven, the incredibly obnoxious Fatty, and quiet Africa, rove the neighborhood getting in fights, shoplifting, pranking their super, and generally being kids. Along the way, their home lives flicker into view -- and the general sense is of outsiders trying to find their own identity. Steeped in the New York streets, these kids are all about stickball, b-boying, and proving how tough they are. But as busy as they are assimilating the culture of others (for example their little clique is called "The Warriors", after the seminal film), they are perfectly happy to spew racial slurs about blacks, Hispanics, and other Asians. Paradoxically, Peter is utterly contemptuous of his own Korean community, and this self-loathing is reminiscent of much immigrant fiction.

Over the course of the book Peter's anger at himself, his parents, and the world grows less and less interesting, even as it escalates. Peter and Fatty rat-a-tat insults in authentic early-'80s lingo for 180 pages, and yes, it can get pretty funny, but the shtick also gets repetitive. The book does a good job of capturing the foolishness of youth and the heightened sense of frustration adolescence can generate, but it never leads anywhere interesting or unexpected.

Park has done it again. Las Cucarachas is a modern urban masterpiece. From the very first line, his reader is blown away by highly stylized writing and is transported into the mind and world of a 12-year-old boy from Queens. It is amazing that in a book where almost nothing happens it seems that everything happens. Park's voice is incredible and uncomparable to any other writer. This is a wonderful read that has the ablility to pull you in and make you remember what it felt like to be a kid.

LAS CUCARACHAS BROUGHT BACK WONDERFUL MEMORIES OF BEING A KID IN NEW YORK CITY. I REMEMBER BEING YOUNG AND HAVING A SUMMER HOUSE ON LONG ISLAND. THE KID'S IN THAT AREA WOULD WHISPER ABOUT HOW MY FAMILY AND MYSELF WERE FROM "THE CITY." THEY'D ASK QUESTIONS LIKE, "DO YOU RIDE THE SUBWAY?" "DO YOU GET MUGGED FOR YOUR JEWELRY?" "ARE YOUR FRIENDS BLACK PEOPLE? LAS CUCARACHAS TOUCHES ON WONDERFUL IDEAS ABOUT A PLACE THAT USED TO BE HOME. ALSO IT RECALLS THOSE ADOLESCENT ISSUES THAT MADE US WHO WE ARE TODAY. THAT FIRST BEST FRIEND WHO BECAME YOUR FIRST ENEMY JUST SIX MONTHS LATER. OR WHEN THE STREET GETS HOLD OF YOUR FAMILY PROBLEMS AND COLDLY AND INSENSITIVELY THROWS THE CONVERSATION AROUND LIKE YOU'RE NOT IN THE ROOM.
CHARACTERS LIKE FATTY ARE TO NEVER BE FORGOTTEN AND PETER WHO WE HAVE ALL BEEN AND STILL ARE INSIDE. IT IS A MUST READ FOR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO LAUGH, RELATE AND REMEMBER.

Although I probably read more than the average person, I've never written a review before and in fact I avoid reading them in general, particularly before picking up the book or seeing the movie upon which a review is based. I just finished 2 of this author's books, "Las Cucarachas" and "Boy Genius," and out of curiosity I decided to read what others had to say. Interestingly, many of the reviewers take time comparing this book to other books. I'm going to frankly describe what I myself thought rather than make these comparisons.

First of all, both of this author's books are worth reading, and they should be read as a pair. I would recommend reading "Las Cucarachas" and then "Boy Genius," in that order. I was born and raised in New York City, and I'm from approximately the same generation as the main character in "Las Cucarachas;" to me it's incredible how well the author brings to life what my own childhood was like, growing up and hanging out in the streets of New York- not desperately poor, but poor enough so that the kids from what was called the "middle class" seemed rich by comparison, and were luckier than any of them ever seemed able to see. It's as though the author lived this NYC childhood, with all its obstacles, frustrations and pains, freeze dried it, moved on in his own life, and then went back to it and set it down exactly, precisely, missing nothing, not a single thought, feeling, experience or idea. You read "Las Cucarachas" and you experience the raw, real life of a tough, smart street kid in a big city where money is everything- absolutely, totally everything- and where the kid knows that it's not that society wants him to fail; rather, society is so completely and profoundly indifferent that it can't even be bothered to have an interest in his success or failure either way. Nobody from any middle or upper class background can ever truly know the alienation this situation creates, but by reading "Las Cucarachas" they can sure get a good goddamn taste of it. "Las Cucarachas" is the story of a boy that's forced to gear everything around slickness and toughness, and who's trying to make something happen against impossible odds and what seems like an endless stream of jerks and idiots holding him back and getting in his way. When I finished reading "Las Cucarachas" I felt a strange urge to contact the author, congratulate him for making it through, and thank him for creating such an honest, vivid, and truly touching testimonial to youth.

"Boy Genius" should be read after "Las Cucarachas;" in fact it's remarkable to me that "Boy Genius" was actually written by the same author. "Boy Genius" is so completely different, and not just the subject matter, but the whole style of the book as well. "Las Cucarachas" is raw and gritty; "Boy Genius" begins right off the bat with fantastic events that continue unfolding throughout. The narrator in "Boy Genius" gets you to suspend your disbelief so completely that I myself often looked up from the book while reading and felt an embarrassed smile on my face, as though realizing once again that I was the victim of this author's ongoing, intelligent, playful mischief. Bringing this together- the surreal storyline, the narrator's ever present, eccentric, hilarious and intelligent take on things- and you've got a book, "Boy Genius," that once again is not only wonderful, honest and real, but that's also simply enjoyable to read... and that's something that's important to me for any book that I pick up! I'm still a New Yorker, and I know I've got a book I love when I can take that book onto a crowded train during rush hour on my way to work- and lose myself in it totally and completely, in spite of the fact that I'm being jostled and crushed by stressed and impatient New Yorkers who'd prefer I put the book away, hold onto the handrail and stare at the ceilings and walls like everyone else. Both of the books written by this author passed my test, and I enjoyed both of them enough to not only recommend them and pass them on (I've lent out both of my copies) but also, to look forward to reading the author's next book too.

Very rarely can an author capture the range of emotions and epiphanies a normal human being can go through, let alone a child, without becoming verbose and oversentimental. Peter Kim and his gang, the Warriors, live in a tough part of Queens and are bound to each other not by some heart-warming tie of friendship but simply as a means of survival. Does Peter like Fatty, the crass and selfish pathological liar of the bunch? Does he even like his own weakling of a brother Steven?
Ask yourself the same questions about your gang, your family, and your identity and you'll start to scratch the surface of what Mr. Park is able to accomplish in his delightfully brief but infinitely insightful second novel. Especially for those of us who grew up in America as sons and daughters of the lesser represented immigrant community (i.e. Asian, South-Asians, or Arab), the author is able to take the cliche, 'on the outside looking in' and chapter by chapter, peel off the coexisting, but conflicting emotions of community pride versus the self-loathing one feels for being identified with that community; the emotional attachment of family that is continually tested by the faults and shortcomings of those providing for it. Peter's Dad is useless, he lost his store and he is increasingly slothful in Peter's eyes. Yet amidst this pathos, Peter and his buddies accept their respective harsh realites, even embrace them at times, ultimately giving all those who stand responsible for their plight the proverbial finger. Is it fair? No. But does it feel good? Yes. And who doesn't like feeling good? Las Cucarachas reminds us that no matter who's responsible for our misfortunes, whoever stole Peter Kim's Atari, whoever smashed up my bumper in that parking lot and didn't leave thier info, whoever..well you get the point. Yongsoo, thank you for telling it like it is. People, hear this man. Long live the Warriors.
Kesav