Asia Books

Reading these poems is one thing, hearing them sung in person is another. And for those of you who cannot hear him speak, read the gracious words of someone who has seen the worst in mankind, and yet still looks at the world with hope for the future. This is a must read for everyone!

I met the author and heard the poems at UH Manoa in both Khmer and English as they are also laid out in the text. It would be interesting to have an oral form/spoken word for this book. If you have an interest in Southeast Asia, Khmer Rouge,genocide or the human struggle this book offers enormous insight to all.

It is tragically moving in some parts and although I am not much for poetry it is one of my prize posessions.

I know little or nothing about poetry but the flow of the poems are not rythmic or fluid, but the words are essential. The author said he wrote in the style of Walt Witman which was a major shift from traditional Khmer poetry with it's oral and melodic style.

This book is heavily based in myth, spirituality and hardship of a man who's life has seen the most extreme in hills and valleys.

I recommend this book to anyone. For deepar understanding of the life of the author the Three Wilderness memoirs are also good.

This is a stunning collection of poetry presented in a bi-lingual layout that provides an extremely moving and spiritual diary of a poet that witness and survived the savagery of the Pol Pot years. What is more interesting is that the author U Sam Oeur has stretched the traditional and very formal structure of Khmer poetry and brought his own love and admiration of Walt Whitman to create a new kind of Cambodian poetry. I had the fortune of attending a reading by U Sam. His translator, Ken McCullough read the english translation which was followed by the author's sung and chanted rendition of the poem in Khmer. The author told us that when his family was finally able to return to their home in Phnom Penh, while everything else had remained, his entire library of some 2,000 books had been removed and apparently destroyed. The only thing that he discovered from his collection was a single page from a book of poems by Emily Dickinson.

These are poems of downtrodden and endangered people, for whom I once unofficially dubbed U Sam Oeur poet laureate.

This slight Cambodian poet, a survivor of the Pol Pot regime who committed his horrifying experiences to Khmer verse in Sacred Vows, several years ago gave one of the most soulful readings I was ever privileged to hear.

"I am the ambassador of the silenced," he said at the opening of his reading, noting that the Cambodian people remain imprisoned in their own land. He would read first in English (translations by Ken McKullough) and then chant his poems a cappella in a voice as vibrant as it was heart-piercing.

What a lowing my wife put up
when she gave birth to the first twin.
Very pretty, just as I'd wished, but those fiends
choked them and wrapped them in plastic.

This stanza from "The Loss of My Twins" seared my ears as he read the clean, crisp language of loss.

From this voice, one remarkable fact is eminently clear: Indigenous languages can be inhabited even by strangers. John O'Donohue once explained it like this, in terms which themselves danced on the edge of a poem:

Language comes from that restless space between loneliness and experience. It lives through people, but without them as well. Poetry is travel to the inner language, and every poem is a threshold crossing between the ancient and the [now]. Even when one does not understand these languages, the poems speak.

Indeed they do.

--Alyssa A. Lappen

I was fortunate to hear Mr. U Sam Oeur read his poems in person at UW-Madison a few weeks ago and I bought 2 books on the spot, one for my mom and one for myself.

I am so happy that there is someone trying to bring back the art of Cambodian poetry, it would be a tragedy if this art form were to disappear. Mr. U Sam Oeur is a wonderful person and so passionate about his work, his reading (or singing rather) of one his poems was so breathtaking and emotional.

Despite the horrors of the Khmer Rouge period, this book is a testament to the Cambodian spirit in which Mr. U Sam Oeur and others like him seek to re-establish important Cambodian cultural traditions. This will not only benefit the younger generation of Cambodians in Cambodia and around the world, but will also serve to enrich the realm of poetry in general as Cambodian poetry is an important form of oral tradition that is unique and intricate in style and structure.

For those who cannot read Japanese, there are few options with regards to publications and studies on Sakamoto Ryoma. Jansen's extraordinary work simply a 'must have' for all who wish to better understand the Meiji period and one of the most important men in all of Japanese history. Simply phenomenal.

Who is Ryoma Sakamoto? He wasw a samurai in the middle of the nineteenth century. He is considered a hero by his native Japan. His story begins when Commodore Perry brings his American ships to open Japan by force. Many samurai were insulted by this gunboat diplomacy. Sakamoto was one among many who called for the government to expel these foreign interlopers. However, it was more easily said than done. As time passed, Sakamoto came to realize that Japan was in no position to challenge the West because the West had vastly superior weapons. He came to admire the position of strengthing the country through international trade and emulating those institutions that were admirable in the West. For Japan to defend itself, it had to become a strong country and the only was to do that was by modernizing. To modernize, the military government of the Shogun had to be overthrown. This leads to the Meiji Restoration in which the Emperor takes back the power to rule from the Shogun. Unfortunately, in the process, Sakamoto is assassinated, which made him a martyr for the process of modernization.

This book follows the events leading up to the Meiji Restoration, and it especially focuses on Sakamoto's role in setting it up. It provides an overview leading up to this period and shows that there were many factors which lead to the overthrow of the Shogun. Perry's arrival was only a trigger that unleashed years of frustration. To get a better grasp of Japanese politics, I think this book is an excellent source for understanding the founding of the modern Japanese state.

If you really want to understand Japan's amazing journey from feudal swordsman to world power in just 50 years... Then you need to learn something about the Meiji Restoration. If you want to learn about the Meiji Restoration... then you must spend some time learning about the life and times of Sakamoto Ryoma. Ryoma, as he is affectionately known by his adoring cult of fans in Japan, is a true legend in Japan, a sort of "Daniel Boone" of Japan, if you will. In spite of its age, Jansen's work is still the definitive biography in English, and is likely to remain so until America's interest in the outside world rises above its currently meager level. To be fair, doing Jansen one better would require an extensive knowledge of one of the world's most difficult languages, and why try when there are still so many corners of Modern Japanese history that are untouched by Western scholars? Do you want to get inside the head of a truly old-fashioned, "swashbuckling" hero who quite literally changed the world by contributing to Japan's entrance into the modern world? This, then, is still the place to start.

This proves to be one of the better books on the Meiji Restoration movement and Sakamoto Ryoma who was the one of the primary movers of that movement as Japan moved to a more modern government and society. But I would be honest to say that this book is NOT for casual readers since the subject matter is so alien and complex to many English speaking readers. Meiji Restoration is a complex subject matter even for Japanese history students but Jansen should be credited for bringing such a matter to clearer light in his book.

Professor Jansen's book is the first English-language biography of Sakamoto Ryoma, the most celebrated historical figure in Japan today. It is also an in-depth study of the political and socioeconomic situation during the turbulent and fascinating years of the Meiji Restoration, the dawn of modern Japan. When I first read this book fifteen years ago, it struck me as an invaluable college-level textbook for students of Japanese history. It also made me aware of the need in the English language for a more probing analysis of Sakamoto Ryoma, the man. It was then that I began the 7-year process of researching and writing RYOMA - Life of a Renaissance Samurai, which I believe is a true-to-life portrait of Ryoma - blood and guts, heart and soul.

Absolutely awesome graphics. Text is a sort of summary of other books of Turnbull. Anyway this book is very interesting, expecially for "rookies".

The Samurai - in modern society, it's a shallow shell of what it formerly was - exaggeratedly awesome warriors capable of sundering tanks in two with there swords. But who were the real Samurai? "The Samurai Swordsman: Master of War" is an examination of the true Samurai, who dominated Japan during its feudal era, much like Knights once dominated Europe. Going deep into the nature of Samurai as complex individuals and not just swords with legs, it looks at everything - the Samurai statesman, the Samurai artist, and more. Enhanced with full color paintings throughout, "The Samurai Swordsman: Master of War" is highly recommended for community library history and art collections and for anyone who has always had a fascination with this warrior caste.

I have read most of the way through, and am *very* happy with this book. The text is engaging and full of interesting facts and anecdotes, the abundant illustrations make for an excellent collection of Japanese art, and the author's command of the subject matter is apparent. This is one I will read through several times.

I'm not certain why the "Samurai" bug bites readers but in my case I lived outside Yokohama, Japan, on the Kanto Plain for 25 months between October, 1962, and December, 1964. (Please see also my review of Oliver Statler's early 1960's book, "Japanese Inn" for additional detail of this area).

Living only a stone's throw from the ancient Tokaido Road, once capital city Kamakura, and medieval Odawara castle, among many other sites, caused me to this very day to have an avocational interest for Japan in general and the Samurai in specific.

I have several of Stephen Turnbull's books, feeling him to be very well versed in all aspects of this field to the point of being a notable expert in that area. The term "expert" is bandied about these days oft times without substance or merit, but in Mr. Turnbull's case it is well justified.

This particular book is one I purchased a year ago, and for the price was very pleased with its content. Should one look into it a reader would find it a good, comprehensive guide to the Japanese warriors known as 'samurai'. There are specific armor and weaponry illustrations and descriptions, as well as four "see-through vellum sections" where each layer of clothing and protective armour offers insight into the dress of these warriors. The text flows evenly and can readily be understood. Should the reader be new to this area of study this volume would easily serve as a great introductory volume.

This oversize book is amply illustrated in color, and in 256 pages offers magnificently "the story of Japan's great warriors".

Semper Fi.

This book would serve as an excellent introduction to someone who has read little or nothing on the samurai; it covers their history from the days of the Yayoi tribesmen to their overthrow during the Meiji Restoration, and provides much readable detail on their culture, organization, religious beliefs, armor, clothing, and most interestingly, the full range of their deadly arsenal.

Though I have maintained a strong interest in the samurai for several years and have read many books on them, I still learned some things from this book (notably that they used axes in battle, as well as clubs and maces). Anything by Stephen Turnbull can be pretty much guaranteed to be well worth one's money. In short, this book would be especially good for beginners but worthwhile for veterans of Japanese military history as well.

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.

Though this is volume 2 in the Usagi series, this is really the volume where Sakai's masterpiece begins to take shape. "Samurai," which begins with Usagi's classic four part origin story, weaves an almost mythological tale of a young, reckless child growing into a serious adult and becoming burdened by the weight of his honor. We see young Usagi dream, struggle, succeed, fail, love, lose, achieve his greatest honor, face his darkest day, and gradually come to terms with the cards that fate has dealt him. This is a powerful, character-building tale that makes you truly care for the character of Miyamoto Usagi with far more emotional investment than you might care for the more serious looking characters found in those other, non-furry comics.

The volume also includes several other stories from the two issues that followed the four part "Samurai" epic. "The Test" is a truly disappointing story, written by Peter Laird as an attempt to help promote Usagi by including a beloved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, but the story is largely self-serving and makes Usagi look like an utter chump. The rest of the stories are stand-alone adventures that do little to further any sense of continuity or character development, but they are quite fun, action-packed, and often heart-warming. I particularly enjoyed "The Silk Fair" as a story in which Usagi's heroics truly make a difference in the lives of an entire community.

In short, this is a great starting point for anyone new to Usagi. It provides a great entrypoint in the form of Usagi's four part origin story, does much to develop the character from how he appeared in Volume 1, and provides a few classic stand-alone stories as well. I highly suggest beginning here with volume 2. It will definitely leave you hungering for the next installment.

"Samurai" is the second of the collected Usagi Yojimbo books; the bulk of it is comprised of Usagi's origin story, training under a lone master until pledging to Lord Mifune, and then the day he became a Ronin upon Mifune's death. A few spare stories round out the collection.

By now the mythology and history of samurai have become almost as much of a trope in Western culture as in Eastern; it was less so in the mid-80s when Sakai originally wrote this. So any reader is likely to have encountered something akin to the training sequence here before; Sakai handles it well, however, and the fights (barring a oddly stiff duel between Usagi and his childhood friend Kenichi) are vibrantly drawn. The 3 spare stories - an encounter with a Kappa, one with an odd lizard, and the plight of a town trapped by Bandits have a more laid back approach, and are farther away the common samurai stories. Sakai's art - with its use of exaggerated expressions and character design when appropriate - fits well with both.

This is the novel where you really get to know Miyamoto Usagi. The tale beings when Usagi slays a Samurai. He soon meets up with Gen and begins to share the story of his Samurai training. We are treated to the full backstory of Usagi's life including the rivalry with Kenichi and the death of his lord. There are also three bonus stories in which Usagi confronts a Kappa (turtle demon), runs into baby Godzilla, and saves a village from oppression.

This was the first Usagi Yojimbo book that I had ever picked up, and I was glad I did. During the initial 80-90's TMNT boom, I first "discovered" Usagi through the TMNT cartoon. I happened by a local comic book store and saw the graphic novel on the shelves. I picked it up for around $20 (which was a large investment for me at the time!) and never regretted it.

Coming from a Japanese heritage, but with parents who never really shared their experiences, Stan Sakai's incredibly detailed and superbly researched world was like a look into a world which fascinated me, but one that I had never really gotten to know.

Usagi Yojimbo Book Two is sort of like a "Zero" issue in the way of comic book numbering. It tells the back-story of how Usagi came to be both a samurai and ended up being a masterless ronin. If you like Japanese history, are a buff for great storytelling, incredibly detailed art, and just a plain good read, Usagi and Stan Sakai will not let you down.

An essential, and hard to find, addition for the Usagi fan. I myself discovered this wonderful comic only recently. I promptly purchased all the TPBs as quickly as I could, and this particular book eluded me for about 8 months longer than the rest.

It is well worth finding, however, as it fills in a significant amount of information about Usagi's origins and early life. Much that is in later books will make much more sense once one has read this book. Unless Fantagraphics reprints this (and at last check, they hadn't and have no plans to do so) be prepared to buy a used copy for more than the original list price.

"Air Commando pilot Bill Guenon has written the only first-hand account of the incredible 1970 raid to free American P.O.W.s held deep in North Vietnam. Guenon, call sign, "Cherry One" flying his C-130 low, slow...20 knots below landing speed...in the dark of night operating in radio-silence, led six rescue helicopters to Son Tay -- then orbited the scene deploying flares, battle-sound simulators, and napalm bombs for ground beacons. His story is up close and personal with behind-the-scenes anecdotes that tell "the rest of this amazing story", including some surprising details. This one's a must for the keen, aviation book collector.

[...]

The Son Tay POW raid was one of the most daring and adventurous events in the Vietnam War, and sitting in the cockpit of the lead aircraft made Bill Guenon eminently qualified to tell the story as it really happened. The book is well written and filled with details, some heretofore unknown. But there is more. The sensitive account of his return to Son Tay years later as a tourist provides a poignant counterpoint to the story. Secret and Dangerous: Night of the Son Tay POW Raid
is a must read for history buffs and those interested in the Vietnam War Era.

William Guenon's firsthand account of the Son Tay Prison Camp raid deep into North Viet Nam is a book you'll want to read in one sitting and then refer to again many times. His good sense of humor lightens the bittersweet scenes both of the rescue attempt itself and of the nostalgic revisit to Hanoi 24 years later. There is a lot of historical detail on these pages. The saga reminded me of several accounts of the liberation of Los Banos prison camp in southern Luzon in February of 1945, and of the similar rescue of thousands of civilians from the large Santo Tomas prison camp in Manila that same month. Wetmore's *Beyond Pearl Harbor* is a great account of the Santo Tomas experience. Guenon's and Wetmore's books, and one by Wiley (*One Hundred Candles*) are masterful historical records of relatively little known incidents that history buffs may want to own.

I have met the author. I have read the book. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Special Operations and POW matters. This book is an excellent complementry reading to "THE RAID", by Benjamin Schemmer. Son Tay was a technical success, but due to troubles with intellegence compartmentization, it was a practical failure. This book is by a brave man who went and did. It is written on behalf of other brave men who went and did. These were smart and dedicated men of corrage. The book contains many rare photos and drawings. It includes a section for that could be called back to SON TAY. My hat is of to the brave men of The Secret and Dangerous Raid.

It was great to see another book on the Son Tay Raid to complement the other excellent book, "The Raid" by Ben Schemmer. However, "Secret and Dangerous" is the first and only book written by someone who actually went on the raid. I have been reading military books for over 25 years and have a great interest in the Son Tay Raid. Being a commercial pilot myself, it was a real eye opener to read about this night, low level, marginal weather flight over enemy territory. It was very interesting to read about the author's mission both in 1970 to the Son Tay prison and to read about his return trip to the same POW camp in the 1990's. If you have an interest in reading about the military or just a great aviation true story, "Secret and Dangerous" will be a great addition to your bookshelf.

Before this one, many other books often provide one-sided view from Washington by war historians, scholars and analysts (who did not know off-hand the combat and strategic position at the time nor the moral, spirit and willingness to fight by these young, heroic and patriotic Special Branch Commandos). These books were based largely from declassified War Department MACV-SOG material since 1995, with few interviews with actual SB personnel. The sacrifice these Commandos made (in secrecy from 1956 to 1975) were not told the way it deserves in these books.
At Paris, in 1972, hundreds of these Commandos had been betrayed by Henry Kissinger and their American allied. The American team members got released while the Vietnamese are kept 10 years or longer in prisons. Years later, they are still cheated by many books that often lack the acknowledgement of their heroic sacrifice.

Finally this is one of the two books (the other is by Ken Conboy and Dale Andrade) about the secret war conducted by the CIA and Colonel Ngo The Linh's Bureau 45B (or Special Branch). Mr. Tourison interviewed many Vietnamese commandos & case officers and have made great effort to provide a more complete and accurate account of success and failure of CIA & Special Branch and SOG & Coastal Security Service.

Many of these Commandos died in North Vietnamese cruelest prisons, the rest spent between 15 to 22 years in hard-labor. Their stories are now finally told.

I highly recommend this book to everyone.

Thank you Mr. Tourison.

Before this one, many other books often provide one-sided view from Washington by war historians, scholars and analysts (who did not know off-hand the combat and strategic position at the time nor the moral, spirit and willingness to fight by these young, heroic and patriotic Special Branch Commandos). These books were based largely from declassified War Department MACV-SOG material since 1995, with few interviews with actual SB personnel. The sacrifice these Commandos made (in secrecy from 1956 to 1975) were not told the way it deserves in these books.

At Paris, in 1972, hundreds of these Commandos had been betrayed by Henry Kissinger and their American allied. The American team members got released while the Vietnamese are kept 10 years or longer in prisons. Years later, they are still cheated by many books that often lack the acknowledgement of their heroic sacrifice.

Finally this is one of the two books (the other is by Ken Conboy and Dale Andrade) about the secret war conducted by the CIA and Colonel Ngo The Linh's Bureau 45B (or Special Branch). Mr. Tourison interviewed many Vietnamese commandos & case officers and have made great effort to provide a more complete and accurate account of success and failure of CIA & Special Branch and SOG & Coastal Security Service.

Many of these Commandos died in North Vietnamese cruelest prisons, the rest spent between 15 to 22 years in hard-labor. Their stories are now finally told.

I highly recommend this book to everyone.

Thank you Mr. Tourison.

Tourison provides a long overdue account of ill-conceived covert operations which achieved little other than to demonstrate the bravery of the naive young Vietnamese men who undertook these missions. This is a group which suffered some of the worst treatment dished out in the Vietnamese communist re-education camp system. Readers of Vietnamese should seek out the lengthy memoir "Thep Den" written under the pen name Dang Chi Binh, which covers the recruitment, training, mission, capture and inmprisonment of one of these operatives. Sadly, when some of these men arrived in the refugee camps of Thailand during the late 1980s they had trouble convincing the officials screening them for refugee status that their far-fetched backgrounds were indeed true. That some small measure of financial compensation has finally been provided to this group by the United States government is a welcome gesture, but no gesture will erase the guilt of those responsible for dispatching these men to certain death or imprisonment.

I admire Tourison for revealing the truth about the Gulf of Tonkin incidents which led to an escalation of the Vietnam conflict. The book tells of the CIA's Operation Plan 34a which directed commando raids against N Vietnam which resulted in PT boat attacks against American destroyers in the gulf where they seemed to be supporting the commandos. Those attacks resulted in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which gave the president extraordinary war powers which began an all-out war, although it was never declared as such by congress. It was great to learn how the war *Really* began. Sad to say, it was started by us :-(

Before this one, many other books provide the one-sided view from Washington by war historians, scholars and analysts (who did not know off-hand the combat and strategic position at the time nor the moral, spirit and willingness to fight by the young and heroic Special Branch Commandos). These books were based largely from declassified War Department MACV-SOG material since 1995, with few interviews with actual SB personnel. The sacrifice these Commandos made (in secrecy from 1956 to 1975) were not told the way it deserves in these books.

At Paris, in 1972, the Lost Commandos had been totally ignored by Henry Kissinger. Their American team members got released while the Vietnamese are kept 10 years or longer in prisons. Years later, these Commandos are betrayed again and cheated of the praise they deserve in many books by American writers.

Finally this is one of the two books (the other is by Ken Conboy and Dale Andrade) about the secret war waged by the CIA and Colonel Ngo The Linh's Special Branch. Mr. Tourison interviewed the Vietnamese side and have made great effort to provide a more complete and accurate account of success and failure of CIA & Special Branch and SOG & Coastal Security Service.

Many of these young SB Commanods died in North Vietnamese cruelest prisons. The rest spent between 15 to 22 years in hard-labor prisons until 1982.

Their stories are now finally told...

Persian Images, are fascinating to begin with right? However, what brings more interest to this book, is that most of these pictures come from a collection that was purposely destroyed in the early 1900's,by the Iranian government. The stories shared in reference to each photo are as interesting as the pictures themselves. There happens to be a much larger collection both in Iran, and in the states, but sadly they did not make an appearance in this particular book.

If the area of your study or/and interest involves Art,Photography,History of Asia and Near East this is a must have book. Sevruguin went to Iran and stayed there for almost all of his life. This book is a collection of the first photographs from Iran (that of course he took). Through Sevruguin's eyes the reader/viewer is able to discover a new world. Not only this world is new to you if you are a western viewer, but also these photographs reveal yet another angle for a native viewer, such as myself, since many of these photographs have never displayed back in Iran. I think, in a broader sense, as long as one keeps in mind that these are representations of one culture through the eyes of an outsider, this book is useful and interesting.

One of my favorite photo essays on the old middle east. Wonderful collection of photographs and fascinating history.

"Sevruguin and the Persian Image" presents the Smithsonian's collection of one of Qajar Iran's preeminent photographers. In addition to the photographs, the volume contains valuable histories of early photography in Iran, the career of Antoin Sevruguin, and how the collection itself came about. The double entendre of the title refers to how Sevruguin's art was informed by and catered to the Orientalist tastes of a Europe in which he was educated. Yet as an Armenian Christian who was born, lived, died and was buried in Tehran, he presented a different image of Iran than the typical Orientalist photographers of the day. "Sevruguin and the Persian Image" is both a solid examination of a photographer's art as well as a thoughtful analysis of the Western image of Iran in the late nineteenth century.

this is a great collection of some excellent photos of iran at the turn of the last century - it chronicles everyday life, including peasants, and the aristocracy and monarchy - there is a great picture of tehran's bustling main street, with horse-drawn, rail carriages, and the throngs of crowds, some of whom are temporairly mesmerized by the photographer perched on some rooftop. A must-have for iran-history-nastalgic buffs. Only wish there was more...

This book by Narendra Singh Sarila is a true eyeopener. Many commonly held beliefs about the history of the Indian subcontinent are disputed and in some cases heartily debunked. The author was the ADC to Mountbatten and thus comes with the imprimatur of "being on the scene".

I remember reading various sources like Wolpert wherein it was emphatically stated that Gandhi was always against partition. Well here Sarila reliably infers that at the end Gandhi thought partition was a necessary evil. Jinnah AND certain Hindu hotheads played the religion card to the hilt appealing to the lower angels of human nature via the fear route. Arguing that muslims would never get a fair shake in a Hindu Congress and nation Jinnah shrewdly played the fear card. The Congress on the other hand made no credible effort to include Jinnah early on (1929-30?) in a viable leadership position thus breeding distrust. Of course thirty million muslims who were not in the demarcated areas as proposed by Jinnah were left high and dry.

In talking to some of my Pakistani friends I am told that Nehru's "affair" with Edwina Mountbatten predisposed the memsahib to lobby her husband for a decision favoring India. I personally think that partition was the result of the lack of true STATESMEN in the situation. The whole concept was predicated on the belief that Hindus and Muslims could not co-exist. There was not sufficient give and take. Yes, Gandhi made the effort but his ideas were so impractical as to be dead on arrival. The partition need not have taken place. A great tragedy for both sides.

What is truly sad is the low opinion that Churchill had about Indians in general and Hindus in particular. Yes in those days it was quite common to view Indians as a cacaphony of peoples incapable of governing themselves, but Churchill's animosity seems to have been beyond the bounds of reason. Too bad because Churchill truly was the man of the hour during WW2 and helped save Western civilization. In my eyes the greatness of Churchill is tangibly abased by the vile alloy of racism.

Sarila recounts, in detail, the behind the scenes machinations of various players mostly to the detriment of a united India.

A sad commentary on a lamentable period of the Indian subcontinent. Highly recommended.

This book is a significant contribution to the understanding of the fateful events surrounding the independence and partition of India and the players involved. The book presents the events in a cogent manner with insightful analyses into the events and personalities. It is a must read for any student of Indian history and politics since it gives insight into the situations affecting the national security and political decisions made even today. We all have heard so much about the "Divide and rule" policy of English. The reader is able to witness that policy in action in this book.

Key features that one learns from this book are: i) the British determination to hold on to India as long as possible, and in the event that this becomes impossible, secure the northwestern portion of India to thwart any real or imagined Russian adventures, ii) The naivety of Indian National Congress leaders, especially Nehru, about the survival of an independent India in a predatory world, iii) the aging of Gandhi and weakening of his faculties and judgment in dealing with the changing political environment, iv) Even though Mountbatten contributed to bringing the princely states into the Union he also did double cross Nehru in dealing with Kashmir, and v) Hunger for power at any cost on the part of Jinnah who died regretting what he had done with his life.

The role that President Roosevelt played in pushing Churchill towards Indian independence and the US gesture to be the first country to send an ambassador to India is neither appreciated nor known among the India's polity nor did the historians pay much attention to the subject. Better management of the relationship with US early on might have paid dividends and the world history could have turned out to be totally different than what we have witnessed.

The author has to be specially commended for his assessment that Indian independence came not because the British had an enlightenment about egalitarianism or human rights but because the empire was economically not tenable any longer, and even more important, the events of the second World War and its conclusion created an environment in India where they could not even count on the loyalty of the Indian army any longer. The "awe" with which the ordinary Indian looked at the Englishman had ended. The bluff that worked for two hundred years stopped working.

The author worked from 1948 to 1985 in India's Foreign Service. He uses primary sources in this excellent book to show how from 1906 to 1947 the British state allied with Islamists to defeat India's majority-supported Congress Party.

The Aga Khan and some Bengal landlords founded the Muslim League in 1906 and at once petitioned Viceroy Minto to introduce separate Muslim electorates, a sure way to split a country. Lord and Lady Minto immediately welcomed this: she wrote that it would mean "Nothing less than the pulling back of 62 million people from joining the ranks of the seditious opposition."

Churchill too played the Muslim card, lying that the real problem lay in Hindu-Muslim differences about India's future and not in Britain's rulers' unwillingness to accept Indian independence. Viceroy Linlithgow forged an alliance with Jinnah's Muslim League Party. Linlithgow's successor Lord Wavell produced the 1946 blueprint giving the strategic prize of North-West India to Pakistan.

Jinnah called a `Direct Action Day' for 16 August 1946. The British governor of Bengal knew of the League's intention, yet the British brigadier in charge of law and order in Calcutta ordered his troops confined to barracks for the day. 5,000 people were killed. Wavell's blueprint was implemented when the British withdrew from India in 1947, even though it was kept secret to avoid any impression of a British hand in the division of India.

Sarila summarises, "Once the British realized that the Indian nationalists who would rule India after its independence would deny them military cooperation under a British Commonwealth defence umbrella, they settled for those willing to do so by using religion for the purpose. Their problem could be solved if Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the leader of the Muslim League Party, would succeed in his plan to detach the northwest of India abutting Iran, Afghanistan and Sinkiang and establish a separate state there - Pakistan. The proposition was a realizable one as a working relationship had been established between the British authorities in India and Jinnah during the Second World War and he was willing to cooperate with Britain on defence matters if Pakistan was created."

Imperial policy was and is divide and rule - whether setting Muslim against Hindu in India, Bosnian Muslims against Serbs in Yugoslavia, Sunni against Shia across the Middle East, Protestant against Catholic in Ireland, or Scottish against English in Britain. As Sarila notes, "The successful use by the British to fulfil political and strategic objectives in India was replicated by the Americans in building up the Islamic jihadis in Afghanistan for the same purpose, of keeping the Soviets at bay."

An interesting and detailed analysis based on historical documents that sheds light on the british machinations to encourage, even engineer the partition. lots of other fascinating facts and details are brought to life as well.

The Partition of India is one of the great un-studied subjects of modern times, especially in light of the great ethnic-cleansing that it caused, it is suprising it is ignored and its refugees forgotten. This book however is not about these crimes but about the politics and also the prejudices that brought about partition. It mostly focuses on the British decision to assist Ali Jinnah and his attempts to form a Muslim state. The British had long supported Muslims in India, both as civil servants and administratively, allowing them to keep Shariah law while suppressing Hindu traditions.

As the Great Game ended in 1905 and world politics changed the British continued to cultivate loyal Muslims in India and used them to split India, eventually using them to create Pakistan, and using Pakistan against Soviet Russia, which would have reverberations in the 1980s and even today.

This is a very interesting and new point of view. Few authors have tackled the subject of British pro-Islamic politics in their colonies and this is an important contribution.

Seth J. Frantzman

As another reviewer of this particular Karl May travel and adventure story, I was mesmerized by his stories when I was growing up in Luxemburg. It is shame that he is virtually unknown in North America. I've started my great nephew (who unfortunately does not know German) reading the stories in translation. I hope that he will get a greatly expanded view and understanding of other peoples, ways, mores as I did; and that he just plainly will enjoy the stories, because they are SUPERB.

I'm the translator of this unabridged first volume of Karl May's Orient Cycle, a six book series of adventures that detail a journey and exiting adventures through many Middle Eastern countries.

Karl May's 73 novels are still being published today in numbers that are astounding. Yet whilst his works have been translated into about 30 languages, he is virtually unknown in North America.

Given the current events in the Middle East today, it is amazing how much insight he had into the psyche of the people he wrote about. In reading his work you will discover that little has changed over the last 120 years since he penned the original narrative. You will also discover a wealth of pertinent facts about the people and their religious beliefs.

I consider Karl May's travel narratives a body of text that has been well researched and whilst some of the information contained therein may not be entirely accurate when compared to the facts as we know them today, they represent nontheless a very clear insight into the customs of the local inhabitants of these foreign lands.

My wife and I have enjoyed the often frustrating task of rendering Karl May's work into English and we hope that you too will enjoy the tale as it unfolds.

This book is a gripping tale of adventure and suspense that left me unable to put it down especially towards the end. I was drawn into the characters and found myself laughing at their antics. In reading this story I felt like I was traveling through the land alongside the heroes of the story.
I especially liked Halef who was a very important part of the story and I can't wait to see if he continues his journey in the next book.
Even though the book was written more than a hundred years ago the customs and traditions of the Arabs have not changed through to the present day.
Not being an avid reader, a book must be exciting to keep my attention and this book met and exceeded my expectations.
Growing up in my grandmothers house who was from Germany I know the German language can be very difficult to understand and with many of the translations from German to English the true meaning of the prose is often lost.
It is obvious that a great deal of time and effort went into this unabridged translation of this adventure story.
This is the first Karl May book that I have had a chance to read and I can't wait for the next book to be translated.
To the translator I say, 'Great job!'. I highly recommend this book to readers of adventure stories and to children - most enlightening.

The Shadow of the Padishah

This book is a step into the world of Shaharazhad and a little beyond. Our Hero, the Frank, Emir Nemsi, is a German writer on an odyssey into the realm of the Padishah, of Arabian Knights and the rich culture of the Middle East, in search of adventure. He travels with a native companion, little Halef, a devoted servant, bent on converting his beloved Master to the True Faith of Islam. It is interesting to note that our hero becomes a Muslim against his will, all the while remaining a devout Christian, an interesting twist of events. The series of adventures, beginning with the discovery of a murder victim, through the Hajj to Mecca to the victory against the Haddadihn leaves the reader panting for more and more, until you are dropped on your head with a cliffhanger. I feel much like the Shaharazhad? sultan, I simply must know what happens next.

I was quite surprised to find out that this story was actually written in the late 1800?s, as it has a fresh and modern feel. I especially liked the author?s use of the Arabic words, with the translation right behind. It gives the story an exotic cast, without sacrificing the meat of the Tale.

The story is an honest portrayal of this world, with only a slight European smugness, but much less than most of the literature of the day. The Arab Culture is not portrayed as barbaric or savage; rather we are shown its depth and richness.

I am waiting less than patiently for the next installment of my hero?s adventures.
HURRY UP!!!!

I grew up in Germany, and that means I grew up with Karl May. I probably read more than 20 of his books and I even brought some of them with me to the U.S. Unfortunately nobody I talk to here knows about this great author, and my children can't read German well enough to share my experience. I was therefore delighted to find this unabridged translation. I sure wished more of Karl May's books were available in English.

". . . medieval sources do not allude to specific Shaolin fighting methods, Indeed they neither mention how Shaolin monks fought, nor which weapons they employed in battle. Attributing their descendant's martial arts to Tang Shaolin monks would be anachronistic." (The Shaolin Monastery. M. Shahar, pg. 52)

This is a serious, academically critical, look at Shaolin Monastery, and a
good critic of what is being practiced at Shaolin today.

Rik Zak
[...]

This is a deep and throughly researched book detailing the true aspects of Shaolin history and it's strange but interesting link between religion and martial arts.
Everything you needed to know about ancient Shaolin that can be found in ancient records is detailed here.
Other books do not come close and even lie.

A much more readable book than the previous review suggests, desoite its thoroughness, and a welcome antedote to the self-serving mythology that passes for history in most book about Shaolin. Meir's discussion of the roots of some of the most familiar Shaolin-based styles of will be especially absorbing for fans of kung fu movies.

I came to this work as both an academic and a practitioner of a Shaolin style of pushing hands. The evolution of the Shaolin arts from staff fighting to unarmed styles is explored in great detail from a variety of sources (many of which are primary and have been translated here for the first time).

This is one of the first books I've read that makes a scholarly attempt at explaining how the Buddhist monks of Shaolin successfully negotiated the cognitive dissonance caused by commitment to Buddhist principles of non-violence on one hand and mastery of martial arts on the other.

The book also succeeds in recognising and clarifying the role of Daoist thought and cultivation practices (namely the Dao Yin) in the development of Shaolin Gung Fu.

Some of the conclusions (especially in relation to the unarmed styles) lend some support to Nathan Johnson's (2000) thesis 'Barefoot Zen'. After long and careful study of the forms of Shaolin Gung Fu and Karate Kata, Johnson contended that these arts were never intended for fighting (whereas Shahar would likely contend that fighting was not their sole purpose, p.180 and p.200).

Meir is the foremost expert outside of China (and possibly even within China) on the history of the Shaolin Temple. An academic book by an amazing scholar, and a must read for anyone serious about learning the in-depth history of Shaolin, and martial arts, as he traces the history back 1500+ years. Scholarly, well written, peer reviewed, with loads of annotations...

A great book if you're seeking insight of the origins of Kung Fu If you are not seriously interested in martial arts, and their Shaolin China roots, this book is probably not for you.