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We feature a handpicked selection of travel guides, maps, literature, books on art, nature and culture, all designed to help you get more out of your travels to Laos . Order an essential package, and we'll ship any additional items for free.

Item EXLAO5. Buy these 4 items as a set for $61 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
With free shipping on anything else you order.

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Lonely Planet Laos

by Justine Vaisutis | Andrew Burke

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2010
• PAPER
• 332 PAGES

This practical guide to Laos by Lonely Planet features maps, a 60-page overview of culture, history and nature and plenty of information on excursions, accommodations and sightseeing. (LAO02, $23.99)

A Traveller's History of Southeast Asia

by J.M. Barwise | Nicholas J. White

• HISTORY
• 2012
• PAPER
• 352 PAGES
• COMING IN JUNE

A compact history of the region, including the Khmer and the various ancient kingdoms that produced Borobudur, Angkor and other architectural marvels. (SEA36, $14.95)

The Mekong, Turbulent Past, Uncertain Future

by Milton Osborne

• HISTORY
• 2001
• PAPER
• 320 PAGES

A cultural history of the great river from prehistory to European exploration, colonial tensions and modern challenges. It's an engaging introduction to the history of Southeast Asia. (SEA28, $16.00)

Laos Map

by Periplus Maps

• MAP

A traveler's map of Laos, with topographical relief at a scale 1: 600,000. Prepared by the World Mapping Project. (LAO11, $9.00)

 

Also Recommended

Mekong River Map

by Odyssey Maps

• 2011
• MAP

This color map-guide shows the course of the Mekong from mountains to the sea on one side and a detailed map of Laos on the reverse. (LAO28, $14.95)

Ancient Luang Prabang

by Denise Heywood

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2006
• PAPER
• 224 PAGES

An illustrated guide to the sacred art, traditional architecture and colonial legacy of this UNESCO World Heritage Site, capital of the Kingdom of Laos. With 300 color photographs. (LAO24, $30.00)

Culture Shock! Laos

by Robert Cooper

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2011
• PAPER
• 211 PAGES

A practical guide to Laotian customs, etiquette and culture, perfect for the business traveler, casual visitor or resident. (LAO13, $15.95)

Eyewitness Cambodia & Laos

by Eyewitness Guides

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2011
• PAPER
• 304 PAGES

Sumptuously illustrated, up-to-date and with excellent maps and site plans, this Eyewitness guide covers history, culture and attractions. (CBD74, $25.00)

Footprint Laos Handbook

by Jack O'Tailan

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2008
• PAPER
• 344 PAGES

A sturdy practical guide in the British Footprint series, featuring in-depth practical information, 42 sketch maps and an overview of history and culture. (LAO10, $23.95)

Insight Compact Guide Laos

by Insight Guides

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2000
• PAPER
• 96 PAGES

A slim illustrated guide. (LAO15, $7.95)

Lonely Planet Lao Phrasebook

by Lonely Planet

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2008
• PAPER
• 228 PAGES

This handy pocket phrasebook includes pronunciation, basic grammar and essential vocabulary. (LAO25, $8.99)

A History of Laos

by Martin Stuart-Fox

• HISTORY
• 1997
• PAPER
• 256 PAGES

A comprehensive, scholarly history of the country, focusing on the modern period and emergence of Laos as a modern nation state. With chapters on the early kingdoms and French Laos. (LAO06, $41.00)

Shooting at the Moon, The Story of America's Clandestine War in Laos

by Roger Warner

• HISTORY
• 1997
• PAPER
• 436 PAGES

Soldiers, diplomats, Hmong villagers and CIA strategists are all depicted fully in this engrossing, well-reported history of the secret war in Laos. (LAO05, $24.95)

The Politics of Ritual and Remembrance, Laos Since 1975

by Grant Evans

• HISTORY
• 1999
• PAPER
• 216 PAGES

Social anthropologist Evans looks at the transformation of Laotian society since the 1975 revolution in this important book. (LAO14, $22.00)

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down

by Anne Fadiman

• CULTURAL PORTRAIT
• 1998
• PAPER
• 352 PAGES

The editor of American Scholar, Fadiman gracefully documents the encounter between two worldviews, in an intimate portrait of a Hmong refugee family in California. (VNM31, $15.00)

Tragic Mountains: The Hmong, the Americans, and the Secret Wars for Laos, 1942-1992

by Jane Hamilton-Merritt

• HISTORY
• 1999
• PAPER
• 608 PAGES

A portrait of the Hmong, their role in America's clandestine war in Laos during the Vietnam era and their persecution and plight in Laos since being abandoned by America in 1975. (LAO12, $35.00)

What the Buddha Taught

by Walpola Sri Rahula

• RELIGION
• 1972
• PAPER
• 151 PAGES

A classic account of Theravada Buddhism by a respected monk and scholar from Sri Lanka. Provides translations from original texts with explanations for Western readers. A good foundation for any visitor to Southeast Asia. (SEA41, $14.95)

Arts of Southeast Asia

by Fiona Kerlogue

• ART & ARCHITECTURE
• 2004
• PAPER
• 224 PAGES

A handsome guide to the art, architecture, textiles and crafts of Southeast Asia. (SEA45, $16.95)

River Road to China, The Search for the Source of the Mekong, 1866-73

by Milton Osborne

• EXPLORATION
• 1999
• PAPER
• 247 PAGES

An excellent modern account of a 19th-century French expedition 4,000 miles from Vietnam and Cambodia into unknown regions of China in search of the source of the Mekong. (SEA29, $16.95)

A Dragon Apparent, Travels in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam

by Norman Lewis

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 2003
• PAPER
• 358 PAGES
• FAVORITE
• HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE

A classic account of travels and adventure during the last years of French Indochina, strong on atmosphere and including wonderfully detailed descriptions of local cultures and archaeological treasures. First published in 1951. (SEA40, $33.95)

The River's Tale, A Year on the Mekong

by Edward Gargan

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 2003
• PAPER
• 352 PAGES

A personal, probing chronicle of a 3,000 mile journey on the river from its source in China through Tibet, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia to the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. (SEA33, $15.95)

Travels in the East

by Donald Richie | Stephen Mansfield

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 2007
• PAPER
• 180 PAGES

The unmatchable, exuberant Richie (who winningly writes "New countries are like new clothes") muses on Egypt, India, Bhutan, Mongolia, China, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Borneo, Thailand, Yap, Korea, and Japan in this kaleidoscope of travel essays. (ASA63, $14.95)

Adventures and Encounters, Europeans in Southeast Asia

by J.M. Gullick

• ANTHOLOGY
• 1996
• PAPER
• 336 PAGES

This anthology offers a diverse selection of European accounts of Southeast Asia. The writers range from 16th century explorers and mariners to 19th century naturalists and modern literary travelers. (INS20, $60.00)

Collected Short Stories, Volume 4

by W. Somerset Maugham

• LITERATURE
• 1995
• PAPER
• 464 PAGES

Maugham can evoke turn-of-the-century colonial Asia like no other. This collection of stories features many set in Malaysia. Borneo and other southeast Asian locales, including the well-known tale "The Letter." (SEA01, $18.00)

Curse of the Pogo Stick

by Colin Cotterill

• LITERATURE
• 2009
• PAPER
• 240 PAGES

A pogo stick brings a curse on a Hmong village (which our hero, the septuagenarian national coroner Dr. Siri is improbably asked to remove) in this thrilling fifth quirky mystery set in Laos. (LAO18, $14.00)

Lao Folktales

by Stephen Jay Epstein

• LITERATURE
• 2005
• PAPER
• 113 PAGES

These Aesop-like fables provide sharp insight into customs and traditions in Laos. (LAO29, $12.95)

The Coroner's Lunch

by Colin Cotterill

• MYSTERY
• 2005
• PAPER
• 272 PAGES

The first in Colin Cotterill's wonderful Dr. Siri Paiboun Mystery series follows the septuagenarian national coroner of Laos as he navigates both the criminal underworld of communist Laos and the spiritual world of his ancestors. (LAO21, $13.00)

Soul of the Tiger, Searching for Nature's Answers in Southeast Asia

by Jeffrey A. McNeely | Paul Spencer Sochaczewski

• NATURAL HISTORY
• 1995
• PAPER
• 432 PAGES

A meditation on the role of animals and nature in the societies of Southeast Asia. With dark humor, the authors wax philosophical about conservation issues throughout the region. (SEA02, $18.99)

Birds of Southeast Asia

by Craig Robson

• FIELD GUIDE
• 2005
• PAPER
• 304 PAGES

This authoritative, masterfully illustrated guide, featuring 140 color plates covering 1,270 species throughout the region, also includes Malaysia, Burma, Borneo and Indonesia. (SEA49, $35.00)

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