SOUTH ASIA
Sri Lanka   |   READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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Essential Books These 4 items are available for $64, including
U.S. shipping, a 15% discount (Item no. EXSRL06)		  
What the Buddha Taught  •  Walpola Sri Rahula
RELIGION •  1972 •  PAPER  • 151 PAGES
A classic account of Theravada Buddhism by a respected monk and scholar from Sri Lanka. The venerable Walpola Sri Rahula, who taught at Northwestern, was instrumental introducing Buddhism as it is practiced in Burma, Thailand, Laos and Sri Lanka to the United States. First published in 1959 (and still widely taught), the book introduces Sanskrit and Pali terms, and provides translations from relevant original texts with explanations for Western readers. Drawing on the words of Buddha. (SEA41, $14.95)		   What the Buddha Taught
Running in the Family  •  Michael Ondaatje
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1993 •  PAPER  • 207 PAGES
This hypnotic short book powerfully evokes grand society in post-colonial Sri Lanka and, especially, Ondaatje's impressively eccentric grandparents. Written by the author of The English Patient, this book is hard to categorize: it's as much fiction as family memoir and travelogue -- and wonderful. (SRL04, $15.00)		   Running in the Family
Insight Guide Sri Lanka  •  Insight Guides
GUIDEBOOK •  2010 •  PAPER  • 296 PAGES
This handsome guide gives a profusely illustrated overview of the region, featuring concise essays by well regarded authors on history, politics and culture, hundreds of photographs and maps and some limited travel information. (SRL02, $23.99)		   Insight Guide Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka Map  •  Nelles
MAP
A detailed, colorful map of the island, at a scale of 1:450,000. Two Sides. 20x31 inches. (SRL08, $13.95)		  



Also Recommended

Bradt Guide Sri Lanka  •  Royston Ellis   • GUIDEBOOK  •  A detailed overview of Sri Lanka, its history, wildlife, culture and major attractions, geared for the independent traveler. (SRL17, $23.99)
 		  
Culture Smart! Sri Lanka  •  Emma Boyle   • GUIDEBOOK  •  A concise, no-nonsense guide to local customs, etiquette and culture with a short overview of the land and people along with practical travel advice. (IDA537, $9.95)
 		  
Lonely Planet Sinhala Phrasebook  •  Lonely Planet   • LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS  •  A pocket guide and dictionary to the language of Sri Lanka for travelers. (SRL12, $8.99)
 		  
Mangoes & Curry Leaves, Culinary Travels Through the Great Subcontinent  •  Jeffrey Alford  •  Naomi Duguid   • FOOD  •  In this latest book the roving, food-loving authors (Hot Sour Salty Sweet) travel the seven countries of the Indian Subcontinent: Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, collecting not only 200 recipes but also engaging tales of the people, history and adventures. With color photographs of food and places throughout. (IDA320, $45.00)
 		  
Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God  •  Jonah Blank   • CULTURAL PORTRAIT  •  Blank's entertaining portrait of contemporary India and Sri Lanka mixes reporting, anecdote and myth as he travels, sometimes in the footsteps of India's great hero Rama. (IDA250, $18.00)
 		  
Modern South Asia: History, Culture, Political Economy  •  Ayesha Jalal  •  Sugata Bose   • HISTORY  •  This scholarly, brief history of India up to the 1990s is particularly good at its coverage of the post-Independence political landscape. It's a popular textbook, co-authored by a Pakistani and an Indian. (IDA192, $37.95)
 		  
The History of Sri Lanka  •  Patrick Peebles   • HISTORY  •  A concise history geared toward students and general readers that focuses on recent events, including ethnic conflict and the 2004 tsunami, and includes an appendix with brief biographies of key figures. (SRL22, $45.00)
 		  
The Spice Route, A History  •  John Keay   • HISTORY  •  John Keay draws on ancient logs, traveler's accounts and maps for this rousing history of trade in cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, pepper, gums, resins and other costly goods from antiquity to the 17th century. (ASA52, $24.95)
 		  
Not Quite Paradise, An American Sojourn in Sri Lanka  •  Adele Barker   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  A deft, nuanced account of an American's year-and-a-half teaching stint. Baker weaves information about the history, traditions and daily life of Sri Lanka with reports on the 30-year war between the government and the Tamils, as well as the devastating 2004 tsunami. (SRL20, $18.00)
 		  
The Great Hill Stations of Asia  •  Barbara Crossette   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  A modern tour of the mountain enclaves of colonial Asia -- appreciative, magnificently researched and engaging. (ASA13, $16.00)
 		  
A Tale Told by Moonlight  •  Leonard Woolf   • LITERATURE  •  Based on Woolf's experiences in Ceylon, these stories are a brilliant depiction of colonial life. (SRL19, $15.95)
 		  
Funny Boy  •  Shyam Selvadurai   • LITERATURE  •  Building a complex portrait through detail of family, society and place, this prize-winning novel is a gay coming of age story set in contemporary Sri Lanka. Splendidly written. (SRL01, $14.00)
 		  
Reef  •  Romesh Gunesekera   • LITERATURE  •  This slim novel tells the story of modern Sri Lanka through the eyes of a servant and his oblivious master. Haunting and atmospheric. (SRL05, $14.00)
 		  
The Sri Lanka Reader, History, Culture, Politics  •  John Clifford Holt   • ANTHOLOGY  •  A lively, literate sourcebook with selections ranging from historical accounts to newspaper articles, essays, poems and modern analysis. Includes photographs of art and architecture, maps and more than 90 classic and contemporary texts by Sri Lankans and foreigners. (SRL23, $34.95)
 		  
A Field Guide to the Birds of Sri Lanka  •  John Harrison   • FIELD GUIDE  •  The fully revised second edition of this compact, comprehensive field guide features 49 stunning color plates by Tim Worfolk covering all 426 species in Sri Lanka. (SRL24, $49.50)
 		  
A Photographic Guide to the Birds of Sri Lanka  •  Dr. T. S. U. de Zyla  •  D. Warakagoda  •  Silva Wijeyeratne   • FIELD GUIDE  •  A convenient, pocket-sized guide to 252 species with color photographs, range maps and brief descriptions. It includes Sri Lanka's 26 endemic species and notes for the birder. (SRL11, $15.95)
 		  
Birds of India  •  Richard Grimmett  •  Carol Inskipp  •  Tim Inskipp   • FIELD GUIDE  •  Thoroughly revised, with 73 new plates and many others updated or repainted, the second edition of the masterful Birds of India now features all maps and text opposite the plates for quicker and easier reference. (FG43, $39.50)
 		  
Sri Lankan Wildlife  •  Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne   • FIELD GUIDE  •  A concise, illustrated field guide to the plants, animals and habitats of Sri Lanka in the popular British series. (SRL18, $23.95)
 		  
 
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