Asia Books

Most of us understand far too little about Indonesia and yet surely this is a nation that very much matters and does warrant understanding. Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population and in fact is the 3rd most populous country in the world. It is rich in natural resources and in history and mostly well justifies it's National motto "Unity in diversity."

Three years ago a then pertinent - and perhaps today even more important and timely book was published - A very readible biography, but more than that, a book that tells the story of this nation, built about the eventful life and perceptiveness of its last founding father, H Roeslan Abdulgani.

"A Fading Dream" is full of anecdotes and first person observations that likely could only have been written by its author, Retnowati Abdulgani - Knapp, one of the daughters of this outstanding 20th century figure. The author is an investment banker, law graduate and business women who well understood her father and the context of events in the time in which he lived and acted. You know quickly that this is no desultory narritive. Rather, "A Fading Dream" is a comprehensive socio political survey that considers the period from Dutch colonial rule virtually to the present.

Dr. Abdulgani, who passed away age 91 in July, 2005, was very much an insider and a key player in Indonesi's so called "old order" and even before. He remained a principal advisor throughout Sukarno's tummultuous years and by the late 1960s he was his country's window to / from the UN at the start of the so-called "new order" under Suharto. Since then for a further generation and then for yet another generation, he was very much listened to as a wise man and a political authority during a period that was characterised by some as a time of "no order".

Dr. Abdulgani (Roeslan) was there at the creation of modern Indonesia and remained a respected part of his country's leadership for three generations and more. At his deathbed in Jakarta, tributes came from all the leaders of his nation including Suharto and the current leadership.

Roeslan was one of the very few to successfully bridge the Sukarno and Suharto regimes by positioning himself as a somehow non political politician, as a wise man in both administrations, no mean feat for Sukarno's Minister of Information charged with responsibility for the development of a revolutionary spirit among the people of Indonesia. Later he was to be Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Advisory Council, Foreign Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the Bandung Conference of non Aligned Countries, Indonesia's UN Ambassador and counselor to all of his countries governments.

In his daughter's most readible book, Roeslan comes through as a man of reason and vision even more than as the revolutionary fighter that he had been as well. He is portrayed as someone who grew with grace and who always celebrated life. Everyone trusted him, perhaps since,as was recently said of him, "he never spoke ill of anyone."

From post war 1945 to post Bali 2002, we can now look back through his memories as related to his daughter and at her well presented contextual commentary. The sadly aptly named biography and history, "A Fading Dream", presents a well organized, personal look at the amazing shifts in the attitudes and choices taken by this country's leaders, of which Roeslan Abdulgani most certainly was one.

Like Javanese shadow puppet plays, Wati Abuldugani's biography of her father, Roeslan Abdulgani, should be viewed at many levels.

It is the life of an exceptional man, and his wife, who despite the travails and personal risks rose to the circumstances of their time to make a positive, and important impact on their country. It is the story of the birth of a modern nation, its struggle to free itself from colonialism, both European and Asian, and to become part of the community of nations. Dispersed throughout the book are insights in the social mores of Indonesia, and in particular of the Javanese, helping to provide a frame of reference for both the new and old student of Indonesia.

It is a timely book for reflection at this time of political, social and economic uncertainty in Indonesia. The concerns the writer and Roeslan Abdulgani express for Indonesia, is evident in the scope of the first chapter, which deals with the present rather than the past: Urging the current leaders to put aside personal gain for the benefit of the country, and the need for a strong leader to lead the country in the new millennium.

As a 20th century story of Indonesia, this book should not only be a required reading in Indonesian schools and universities, but also for students of Asia politics and culture.

Dr H.Roeslan Abdulgani, as he was known when I first met him, as Minister for Information, was a man whose clear-thinking views and wonderful personal demeanor were as consistent in 1965 as they were for any of the years straddling 1945 to 2003.

When Indonesia was in turmoil, Ruslan was taciturn and cool, delivering clear messages of support and elucidation. When Indonesia faced financial turmoil, Ruslan shared the trials of the poor. And when cycles of great economic prosperity arrived, Ruslan Abdulgani was one of the few who maintained his economic, simple lifestyle.

Western observors and diplomats never ceased to be amazed by his work ethnic, his tirelss writing and speaking agendas and his unfailing good manners and sense of humour.

A Fading Dream includes some wonderful surprises for even experienced Ruslan watchers. The stories of his early years in Surabaya, his anguish that Arab and Chinese traders, supported by the Colonial Dutch, were given unfair advantages, and the pen sketches of his role in early nationalist movements, are delightfully told. The book is highly recommended for those interested in Indonesia and Asian History.

review by Pat Price
> University of Indonesia Fellowship student in 1965
> Observer and student of Indonesian politics in the modern era.

A Fading Dream is not only about a great man, Roeslan Abdulgani, who is the only surviving founding father of Indonesia, but is also about Indonesia's political and cultural history, including that of recent years.
Dr. Abdulgani's daughter, Retnowati, has written a fascinating, incisive, and intimate picture of Indonesia through a combination of biography, history, political science, anecdotes, observation, and opinion.
If you were to read only one book on Indonesia, this is the one I wholeheartedly recommend.

This is a very important book by one of Indonesia's most influential, level-headed, ardent Republicans. As the years roll out, Roeslan Abdulgani's works over the past sixty years will be seen in historic context as indispensable and fundamental to the nation's survival.

It is more than the story of Roeslan Abdulgani, written by his daughter Retnowati. The early chapters discuss modern problems in Roeslan's friendly but forthright manner.

Roeslan is not the only voice now raising concerns about the Republic's wishy-washy leadership, but he is a man whom history may record as the nation's greatest Republican, even greater than founding President Soekarno, with whom Roeslan worked side-by-side to keep the young Republic afloat, to keep the diverse ethnic and geographic forces abound into a single nation with a single language and an agreed philosophy.

In October, 1965, when the Republic faced its greatest challenge from a rising, Chinese-backed Communist party, it was Roeslan's voice which clearly defined the actions of 30 September (in a
radio broadcast from Bandung, where this writer was present) as a coup d'etat, an illegal act that must be overturned. For days the nation had waited for a clear signal from other leaders, including Soekarno himself, but none came.

And now it is Roeslan who is reminding the nation that clear thinking leads to strong leadership, yet he occasionally despairs that clear thinking seems absent.

In my student days (1962-63), Ruslan's 1958 book "Pantjasila" (today written Pancasila) was the indespensable text for all young people wishing to know how and why their nation came into
being, and why Indonesia's founding fathers wisely decided Indonesia was never to become an Islamic state. (You can do an amazon search for Roeslan Abdulgani to find this and other of his books)

The wisest minds studied the constitutions of those states who chose Islam as their operating philosophy: Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Yemen and Lebanon, and later
Pakistan. None of the above examples were considered successful (and the case persists today) as social or economic successes.

"The ideology of Islam (strongly rooted in our society) has not succeeded in solving the problems of a modern society...

"In the economic field, too, we (Indonesian leaders) have not come across an example where a country which has adopted Islam as its basis has succeeded in spreading justice and prosperity

evenly among the people."

Thus Rouslan and the founding fathers saw the dangers of alienating the entire Hindu-Balinese populations of Bali and Lombok, the Protestant Christians of the Moluccan Islands, the Catholic Christians of Flores, as well as random pockets of both Christian, Buddhist, Pagan and local religious followers.

Roeslan is arguing that to abandon the founding principles of Pancasila, the world would be a less colourful, less richly cultured and less peaceful world if Arabist sects were to be allowed - through shilly-shally leadership - to take a greater foothold within Indonesian society.

What a stark, moonscape would Indonesia be without the Borobodor and Prambanan Balinese temples,the diverse colourful arts, literature, architecture, sculpture, the fascinating regional
traditional dress. Impossible? One may have thought so until madmen got control of Cambodia and Afghanistan, sending their nations and their societies back into the Iron Age.

Roeslan Abdulgani is trying, with all his living breath, to infuse strength and clarity into an Indonesia whose leadership he feels has lost its way, whose youth has drifted from their
historic and social moorings, and whose citified bureaucrats and business people have too often crossed the line between honour and corruption, self and state interest.

And on current issues: "Just as the West maintains a distorted view of Muslim society, so too are Western values misread by our society...the mixed bag of impressions about the West, especially those obtained through American soap operas and films, bear little relation to what life is really like in the West."

Sadly, one of the greatest of Indonesia's founding fathers, is depressed as he assesses modern Indonesia. There are 50 laws and ordinances deemed discriminatoryon the grounds of ethnicity on
the books, with no move to lift them. The new leadership's inaction on acting to aid the poor during and after the disastrous 2002 floods became a symbol of the government's incompetence and corruption and the meagre share of export revenues given the provinces surely will spell trouble in Aceh, Irian Jaya and the Moluccan Islands for decades to come.

Roeslan remains deeply concerned that the officer class still has in its ranks officers who have political ambitions, refusing to take their proper place as a servant of the people.

Thus A Fading Dream is an apt title as a reflection of this important leader's state of mind as he watches his beloved Republic attempt to cope with problems of over-population, diverse and self-interests, poor infrastructure and corruption.

But perhaps more importantly, a leadership he feels has forgotten the advice of the founding fathers, leaders who do not use the compasses bequeathed them to find their way to stability and harmony, and social justice.

A very important book, A Fading Dream was not intended as literature, and is so diverse in its coverage that readers will want to know more of Ruslan's life and his thinking. History will treat kindly both the man and his work.

ends Review

Review by Frank Palmos, senior Jakarta based news correspondent 1964-1972.
> President and founder of the Jakarta Foreign Press Club.
> Opened the West's first permanent newspaper bureau (1964) for the Melbourne Herald-Sun Sydney Morning Herald group. >Contributing to The New York Times, Asahi Shimbun, the Times, the Economist, Groene Amsterdammer, the Washington Post, Vrij Nederland.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!

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!

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.

This is an interesting book. The author brings together a great many sources to present a historical analysis of Saudi Arabia. But it is very flawed in fudemental ways. Far too often, the author substitutes his opinions and analysis for a factual/historical presentation.

The economic and social analysis is full of broad conclusions made to fit a narrative. That material, no matter what window-dressing it is given, ends up being nothing more than opinion.

The analysis of Wahhabism and the Saudis is overly simplistic. Presented is the familiar narrative of the "partnership" that conquered arabia. Neglected are the losers and alternatives that were in competition with the Saudis in Arabia. This is very much as the title suggests a history of "Saudi" Arabia rather than Arabia itself.

The book could have been better. It needed to focus more attention on the non-aaudi narratives within arabia: Turkish, British, the western gulf states and the Hashemites. The tendancy to allow the Saudi narrative to dominate the history of Arabia needs to be challenged and re-thought.

This is an excellent book on the history of Saudi Arabia, but not a staring place for the casual reader. Serious scholars should love it. Vassiliev provides a comprehensive account of the Saudi Royal family and their alliance with Wahhabi Islam, telling the story of how Saudi Arabia came to be established as a state in 1932. Anyone who has not had any prior exposure to Islam or Saudi Arabia had better start elsewhere, but if you are looking for details on Wahhabi Islam, the Bedouin, or the Saudis, Vassiliev will have many answers for you. In the latter half of the book he become somewhat dry and statistical, but overall this is a very solid presentation on the history of a very important, and little understood country.

That's for the moment the best available book on Saudi Arabia. Exceptionally documented, it stages the history of the most mysterious country of the Middle East from the beginning of the eighteenth century until 1998, coping with the socio-economical backgroung of that ideology which is named "wahhabism". It reverses the usual order of analyse, deniyng "islam" to be the only cause of the current shape of Saudi Arabia. A great work.

The biggest fault in the book is the absence of maps and pictures. It is annoying to have to open an atlas in order to follow a campaign that is otherwise described in such detail. The section on the last decade and the conclusion are generally anemic and provide no great insights into what the future may hold. But if you want to gain some idea of how Saudi Arabia came to be, what tremendous obstacles were overcome (or what great opportunities were lost, depending on your point of view) this is the book to own.

If you want one authoritative work about Saudi Arabia and its history, this is the book that you should buy and read.
Vasiliev not only thoroughly documents the history of the kingdom since ancient times and through the rise of preaching radical Wahhabi Islam in 1745, he couples this puritan movement with the socioeconomic trends of the Arabian peninsula resultant of its unfriendly desert weather.
Even for readers familiar with the history of the region, the author makes striking remarks saying that people should understand the Saudi modern history as the function of a unique event in history. Saudis had the most archaic society on the face of earth at the time they received the biggest fortune ever.
Readers might be also surprised to learn that the ruling Saudi family is almost exclusively composed of the sons of the founder and their sons. Another surprising remark the author makes is that, even with the huge budget this kingdom manages, it still has no treasury department.
Not very surprising, however, is the typical third world behavior of Saudi rulers who squandered their suddenly generated fortunes either to buy political loyalties or for self luxury.
The reader might be amazed at how many chances the Saudis have missed to modernize their country and make use of their once unparalleled wealth. Instead, they protected anti-modernization fundamental groups on which the stay of the regime itself depended.

We took this with us for a 9 day trip to Beijing and it had more information, and more information that no one else publishes, than all the other guidebooks put together. The sassy essays scattered throughout are fun as well as informative, and the listings are amazingly complete and with the kind of details you want when you are figuring out how to choose from among similar sounding shops or restaurants or galleries. It is too involved to be your only guidebook, you'll want something less intense to give you more of an overview of Beijing, but it is perfect for drilling down into something that intrigues you.

For someone like me who has spent a few days at a time in Beijing but visit there two or three times a year this is a great find. Lots more detail than the average travel guide with a few key features... great map detail; the inclusion of Chinese characters for site names and locations -- so you can just pop into a cab, show it to the driver, and get there; and interesting alternatives to the usual and customary tourist sites -- although they are also exhaustively covered. I'm particularly taken with the article on galleries showing contemporary art.

The book includes a series of articles that describe the experience of being at many of the destinations. I found these articles to be engaging and, for the sites that I had visited, accurate and insightful. Updated in 2008 (and, apparently, annually), this is a "don't leave home without it" if you are in control of your own time in Beijing.

-- Bill Tysseling

I've been living in Beijing for almost ten years. My wife and I live by this book, and our visitors from abroad use this as their comprehensive reference for their Beijing visits as well. Great book for expats and tourists alike!

A great book, with tons of "insider" information that you won't find in other travel guides. And the many "color pieces" that are scattered throughout the book are quite wonderful.

On the other hand, it is really designed for people who are spending signficant amounts of time in Beijing. There is lots of assumed knowledge that the casual traveler doesn't necessarily have.

For example, very little information is given about where all the listed stores/restaurants/sites/etc. are actually located beyond their address. The assumption is that you'll have a detailed map of the city, or some other method, for figuring out the general area of Beijing where this address is located.

Also, would be very useful if they included even an abbreviated phrase book.

Would definitely recommend as one of a number of resources for travelers, but would caution folks against using it as their sole guide book in Beijing.

How else are you going to tell the cabbie that you want to go to the Kerry Center Hotel? I speak Mandarin, but didn't know the Chinese names, not to mention the Chinese addresses to the restaurants, bars, and touristy things that I wanted to get to! Unless you have an iPhone (and can use the hoodhot Beijing taxi guide app), this is essential for navigating Beijing!

In this highly readable and informative history Martin Gilbert highlights the history of the 3000 year old City of David, from 1900, when it was a small provincial Ottoman town (with a Jewish majority since 1840) until the 1990s.
In 1900 Jerusalem had a population of 70 000 made up of 45 000 Jews and 25 000 Arabs.
British census reports show that the increase in Jerusalem's population between 1921 and 1933 amounted to 20 000 Jews and 21 000 Arabs. These Arab immigrants came, like the Jews, from distant lands, including Morocco, Algeria, Libya, and Yemen, as well as Syria, Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon.
It has been proved beyond doubt by documentation and records that Arab immigration into the Palestine Mandate was indeed greater than Jewish migration into the Holy Land during the British Mandate period.
This was documented and apparent long before Joan Peters gathered and displayed these findings in From Time Immemorial: The Origins of the Arab-Jewish Conflict over Palestine.

The author documents how even at the beginning of the twentieth century Jews, including children were attacked in the streets by Moslem and Christian Arabs and, as recounted by a Christian visitor to Jerusalem in 1904, a Mrs Freer, "Jewish children, girls especially have to be protected mainly from the other children, Christian and Moslem. On the way to and from school; one frequently wonders at the patience- the heritage of centuries- with which Jews ignore the insults shouted after them in the streets, and considering how much they contribute as citizens of Jerusalem, it is sad that large sums of money should be paid for permission to pray beside the western wall of the Temple enclosure, to the villagers of Siloam for not disturbing the graves east of the village, and to the Arabs for letting alone the Jewish share of the tomb of Rachel on the road to Bethlehem".


Gilbert recounts the capture of the city by the British in 1917, and the triumphant entry into Jerusalem by General Allenby.
He recounts the crude anti-Semitic statements of the " Executive Committee of the Haifa Congress of the Palestine Arabs" which cannot be distinguished in it's statements about the Jews around the world from The Protocols of the Elders of Zion or from German Nazi propaganda.

He recounts the Arab pogroms in which Jews were attacked and murdered and Jewish women and girls raped in Jerusalem, during the Arab pogroms of 1920, 1921, 1929 and 1939-1939.
The British reacted each time by restricting Jewish immigration into the Palestine Mandate at a time when Jews were under threat from Nazism ,in Europe.
He also recounts how the Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al Husseini turned the issue of the Temple Mount from a religious one into an explosive racial and political one by the use of crude propaganda including faked photographs depicting Jews hosting the Star of David flag from the Temple Mount and even Jews with machine guns attacking the Dome of the Rock.
The Arabist anti-Israel lobby, especially the international media has through the years perfected these techniques, the highlights perhaps being the staged blood libel falsely blaming Israel for the death of a young Arab, Mohammed Al Dura in 2000, who it was subsequently found could not have been hit by Israeli fired bullets and was probabely not killed at all, and a faked massacre of Arabs which never took place, at Jenin in 2002.
In response to the White Paper preventing Jews from entering their ancient homeland, Winston Churchill speaking on the 23 May 1939, in the House of Commons opposed the new policy of allowing the Arabs to exercise a veto on all Jewish immigration after five years.
'He knew that since the publication of his own White Paper in 1922, more Arabs had emigrated to Palestine than Jews, despite that White Paper's declaration that Jews could enter Palestine virtually without restriction. Emphasising the point Churchill declared " So far from being persecuted, the Arabs have crowded into the country and multiplied till their population has increased even more than all world Jewry could lift up the Jewish population. Now we are asked to decree that all this is to stop and all this is to come to an end. We are now asked to submit, and this is what rankles most with me, to an agitation which is fed with foreign money and ceaselessly inflamed by Nazi and by Fascist propaganda".



The author records the bloodshed of the last years of the British Mandate and the War of Independence.
It is worth noting that millions around the world have been brainwashed with the image of Arabs being 'expelled from their homes by the Jews" while the destruction of Jewish homes, suburbs and villages, in areas taken by the Arabs is airbrushed out of history. For example how many people know of the destruction of Jewish synagogues in East Jerusalem, including the Hurva, after it was captured by the Arabs in 1948.
Similarly we are continually reminded of the King David Hotel bombing by the Irgun freedom fighters and the death of Aabs after the Irgun and Lehi fighters captured the Arab outpost of Deir Yassin, which had been used as a base by Iraqi and Syrian soldiers to murder Jews on the roads.
But we hear nothing of the Ben Yehuda Street bombing, the bombing by British terrorists helping the Arabs (shadows of today's International Solidarity Movement) of the Palestine Post, the attack of the Hadassah medical convoy to Jerusalem in 78 doctors and nurses were butchered.
Gilbert also details the great building of the city by the Jews and Israel from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem at Mount Scopus dedicated in 1918, the many hospitals and homes, including the Hadassah hospital of whcih the first cornerstone was laid in 1934, and the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial set up in 1953.
He also records the dire poverty of the Jews of Jerusalem in the early years of statehood and the absorption of hundreds of thousands of destitute Jewish refugees from Arab countries.
But the world hates Israel because she lifted her people from the dirt of poverty into a a first world nation?
He go's on to describe the Six Day War in which Israel survived a war forced on them by Egypt, Syria Iraq and Jordan and how so contrary to the Arabs the Israelis, even in the thick of the fighting took care to avoid damage to any Christian, Moslem or Jewish holy places.
He recounts the reunification of Jerusalem and the return of Jews to the East of the city, as well as the care taken to protect the welfare of the Arab inhabitants of the city which has mainly been answered by Arab terror against Jews, in which thousands of Jews have died.
The book ends on the note of the failed 1993 Oslo Peace Accord and the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
The beginnings of ruthless homicide bombings carried by terrorist gangs are written about.
They had began soon after Israel signed the Peace Accords with the PLO which Arafat would so cynically break on every point.

I really enjoyed this book. This book has given me a clearer idea of the history behind what is happening in the news. Thank you Mr. Gilbert for taking a complex subject and history turning it into something that most anyone can begin to understand.

Is Jerusalem all that special? Does it compare with London, Paris, or Honolulu? Well, whether it does or not, here is an excellent book about Jerusalem in the twentieth century.

The book opens describing a city of about 70,000 people (45,000 of them Jews). And I found it interesting that the Jewish percentage of the city did not change all that much during the century, even though there were all sorts of political changes: World War One, the British Mandate, World War Two, Israeli independence, and the reunification of the city.

Some of the stories are fascinating, such as how on December 17, 1902, during a severe drought, Muslim authorities permitted Jews to pray for rain at the Tomb of David. Within hours, there was a huge rainstorm.

There's plenty of interesting historical material as well. We find about about King and Crane, and their report (they said that Jews ought not be given guardianship over Christian or Muslim holy places). We learn about the riots of April, 1920, in which Arab mobs attacked Jews, explaining that the Jews were their dogs. And we see how everyone fared in the period prior to World War Two, and how more Arab violence led to the scuttling of the Peel Plan to create a small Jewish refuge in the region to which European Jews could have fled. And how that violence then led to the infamous British White Paper of 1939, which very severely limited Jewish immigration.

One of the best parts of the book is the comparison between the Jewish and Arab parts of the city from 1948 to 1967, when the city was divided.

Probably the weakest part of the book is at the end, where there is some mention of attempts to achieve peace between Arabs and Jews in the city. I think no one has the perspective to discuss this very well right now. Those who boast of compromising words and predict that peace may be in the offing are taking a serious stand. And that stand, while it may have been tossed out casually, has been disproven by events. Most of the talk about peace from known Arab terrorists has been insincere. Nor has this insincerity been a surprise to most historians. I think Gilbert would have been better off to simply admit that there has been recent violence and recent peace proposals. And that it is possible that in the future, we'll all see that some of the violence was historically very significant, or that some of the peace proposals were actually significant. But that now, it is too early to say anything of the sort. And that would have been a good way to avoid overdramatizing any of the most recent happenings in the city.

Still, this is an excellent book, and I strongly recommend it.

Gilbert is magnificent in his ability to take a complicated history of events and tell them to the reader in a concise, readable text. He also refrains from editorializing the content towards one side of the struggle. I believe this book is essential for grasping the current unrest in the Old City and throughout Israel. As a recent visitor to Jerusalem, I only wish I could have read Gilbert's work prior to my trip.

This is another meticulous study by Sir Martin Gilbert, one of the most prominent, knowledgeable and admired experts in the Middle East. Here he provides a remarkable insight into the history of the City of Jerusalem during the 20th Century.

The author commences with a description of Jerusalem at the dawn of the 20th Century, as a small provincial town in the Ottoman Empire, comprising of a population totalling some 70,000 people. The majority being Jews (45,000) and the remainder mostly Arabs (25,000). The Century approaching it's end with the City's population being more than half a million, the majority Jewish but with some 25% being Arabs.

The book documents Jerusalem under Ottoman rule until their defeat by the British during the First World War. The writer then continues to illustrate the City under British rule through the Mandate period. Appropriate attention being paid to the Arab riots of 1929/36, describing many of the horrific incidents, the role of all the entities involved and the ensuing casualties. Many factors & commendable detail so often overlooked are included here.

The author analyses the City during the Second World War and how the latter affected it's occupants. It is clearly shown that the coming of peace to Europe did not bring peace to Jerusalem.

Indeed, from 1945-47 the writer describes Jerusalem as a City in turmoil, with the imminent end of British rule and the intended UN partition. A partition which unbelievably intended to leave the Hebrew University and the City's 99,000 Jews (one sixth of the total number of Jews in Palestine) outside of the intended borders of the Jewish state. The author describes this and the resentment that this intended move caused.

The ensuing conflict of 1948 is recounted including the siege of Jerusalem and the horrors suffered by the inhabitants. This extends to the 1967 Six Day War with detail also provided of the fighting for the Old City between Israel and Jordanian forces. Indeed, the author omits nothing, extending through the Yom Kippur War on to the Palestinian `intifada' of 1987/89 and the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.

Numerous maps and photographs are provided in abundance. Notably inclusion is a photograph of the often ignored & forgotten bombing by British Army deserters of the civilian thoroughfare in Jerusalem's Ben Yehuda Street in February 1948, which killed over 50 innocent Jews. (A captured British soldier apparently boasting of his involvement, but complaining that he did not receive the £500 promised him & his colleagues by the Arab Mufti).

The carnage and destruction in the Ben Yehuda photograph rarely receives the light of day with most `neutral' sources tending to highlight the attack on the King David Hotel by the Stern gang. Photographs are also included of the devastation inflicted on Jerusalem's synagogues by Jordanian bombing in the 1948 conflict.

The writer concludes this excellent work by declaring that Jerusalem can be the `essence of peace' or the `source of conflict'; `the scene of riots' or `of reconciliation'; the `focus of celebration' or `of protest'; of `religious devotion' or `religious hatred'; of `quiet contemplation' or `loud exhortation'. Those who know the City of Jerusalem will know that indeed this City is unique. I highly recommend this book.

I also highly recommend a work covering the City's most recent political altercations by David Bar Illan entitled `Jerusalem; The Truth'. Coupled together these two books will provide a thorough grounding in the background to the City. Those with an interest in the City's Biblical history and it's prophetic element will enjoy John Hagee's `The Battle For Jerusalem' which includes a detailed coverage of the Palestinian `intifadas'.