Southeast Asia category: 1948 books

Observations on Cambodia’s last days of peace, the Khmer Rouge genocide, and the nation’s troubled present—from a Pulitzer Prize–winning correspondent.   With a controversial election won by the ruling party of Prime Minister Hun Sen—extending his more-than-thirty years in power—Cambodia...

After the brutal suppression of an unarmed national uprising, which cost thousands of lives, Rory MacLean seized the chance to visit Burma. Travelling from Rangoon to Mandalay and Pagan, into the heart of the Golden Triangle, he heard stories of freedom fighters, government censors, basket weavers,...

Island of Bali is now available with a foreword by Professor Adrian Vickers which puts the book into context for a modern audience. First published in 1937, Island of Bali is still regarded by many as the most authoritative text on Bali and its fascinating people. Included is a wealth of information...

On a hot August afternoon in 1811, an army of 10,000 British redcoats splashed ashore through the muddy shallows off Batavia (the former name of Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital) to conquer the Dutch colony of Java. They would remain there for five turbulent years. Drawing on both British and Javanese...

Under the Volcano is dramatic history written by a master storyteller. Travellers come to Bali looking for paradise. Nehru called it "the morning of the world". Yet this small island has seen much bloodshed - from the ritual suicides of Balinese warriors fighting the Dutch, to the massacres...

Originally published in 1909, "Through the Malay Archipelago" takes the reader on a journey by steamship into the colonial era in the Dutch East Indies in the early years of the 20th century through the eyes of a female passenger of that period. Emily Richings was also the author...

Sir Stamford Raffles was a British colonial trader who, in 1819, founded the island city-state of Singapore. Today, Singapore is a world alpha city ranked alongside London, New York, and Tokyo. In this intriguing book - part history, part travelogue - the author revisits the places that were important...

There can be few people in the world that do not know the name, location and recent history of Vietnam. Yet beyond the period of US involvement in what Americans call the 'Vietnam War' how much is really known? Almost no Vietnamese bear a grudge against the USA, but this is less true for China,...

Not many Glaswegian schoolgirls have grown up to become revolutionary heroes of distant, eastern nations but Muriel Stewart Walker did just that. Under a multitude of different names – ‘K’tut Tantri’ and ‘Surabaya Sue’ being the best known – this Scottish-born, self-proclaimed Hollywood...

This is the first and most important book about the Island of Java and is essential reading for anyone interested in Javanese history and culture. Originally published in 1811, Island of Java was the first popular work in English to describe what for many centuries was the most important island...

Example in this ebook   As will be seen, this work is compiled from the private letters of M. Mouhot to his family and friends, and from his journal. I had also the benefit of the paper destined by my brother for the Archæological Society of London, on the interesting ruins of...

A Geek in Thailand is a light-hearted but perceptive look at one of the world's most visited countries from the viewpoint of a young foreign resident. More than just a Thai travel guide, it offers a concise but insightful take on Thailand for tourists, expats, would-be expats, and others—anyone,...

Isabella Lucy Bird (15 October 1831 – 7 October 1904) was a nineteenth-century English explorer, writer, and a natural historian. Due to having her works published in a variety of magazines and in book form she was a household name in the 19th century. In 1883 she detailed her journey...

On Easter Day, 1967, American businessman and founder of the modern Thai silk industry, James H.W. Thompson disappeared while supposedly on a stroll in the jungle-clad Cameron Highlands, central Malaysia.The circumstances were unusual, and led to a massive search and investigation. Neither...