INDOCHINA (VIETNAM, LAOS & CAMBODIA)
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Adventures and Encounters, Europeans in Southeast Asia  •  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. Complemented by engravings and archival photographs. (INS20, $60.00)
  Adventures and Encounters, Europeans in Southeast Asia
The Age of Wild Ghosts: Memory, Violence, and Place in Southwest China  •  Erik Mueggler
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2001 •  PAPER  • 361 PAGES
A groundbreaking ethnography of the Yi, 7 million of whom live in China's Yunnan province. It's also an illuminating study of the wages of communism on China's minority peoples. "The age of wild ghosts" is how, in popular parlance, the Yi refer to the last 40-odd years, from the Great Leap Forward of 1958 (and the resultant famine) to the present day. The author, a professor of anthropology, focuses his discussion on the Yi's collective sense of loss, guilt and sadness. (CHN168, $28.95)
  The Age of Wild Ghosts: Memory, Violence, and Place in Southwest China
America's Lost War: Vietnam, 1945-1975  •  Charles E. Neu
HISTORY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES
A history of the Vietnam War based on the popular course by recently retired Brown University professor of American foreign relations Charles E. Neu. (VNM69, $26.95)
 
An American Requiem: God, My Father, and the War that Came Between Us  •  James Carroll
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1997 •  PAPER  • 279 PAGES
Winner of the National Book Award, this is the tragic story of an American family whose beliefs and familial bonds are shattered by the raging Vietnam war. Novelist Carroll recounts growing up under the auspicious shadow of his father, the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency throughout most of the war. Carroll's decision to become a priest thrills his father, but when he sides with the liberal Catholics and draft resisters, his family relationships are jeopardized. (VNM38, $15.95)
 
Angkor and the Khmer Civilization  •  Michael Coe
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2005 •  PAPER  • 240 PAGES
A concise, illustrated survey of the society, culture and monuments of the Khmer civilization. An interesting footnote to Coe's many investigations and books on the Maya. With 130 well-integrated engravings, maps, tables, site plans and photographs, 22 in color. (CBD39, $24.95)
  Angkor and the Khmer Civilization
Apocalypse Now, The Complete Dossier  •  Francis Ford Coppola
2006 •  DVD
In Coppola's classic adaptation of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, a battle weary captain is sent on a top secret mission to "terminate the command" of renegade Colonel Kurz in the jungles of Cambodia. This new two-disc collector's edition features both the original 1979 version and the 2001 "redux" version, as well as commentary by Coppola, never-before-seen footage and several documentaries on the making of the movie. (CBD51, $19.99)
 
Argument Without End, In Search of Answers to the Vietnam Tragedy  •  Robert S. McNamara
HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 512 PAGES
The result of a series of meetings with North Vietnamese leaders from 1995-1998, this book with analysis and introductions by McNamara, draws on transcripts and recently declassified documents. (VNM75, $17.00)
 
The Arts of China  •  Michael Sullivan
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2008 •  PAPER  • 352 PAGES
A comprehensive survey of Chinese visual arts -- and culture -- through the ages. It's a lively overview, thoroughly illustrated and accessible, covering bronzes, lacquer, ceramics, painting and architecture, from the Neolithic to the modern. With 380 illustrations, half in color. This is the fourth edition of Sullivan's popular textbook, equally appropriate for the serious traveler or general reader. (CHN16, $39.95)
  The Arts of China
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress  •  Sijie Dai  •  Ina Rilke
LITERATURE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 208 PAGES
A charming, unexpectedly witty, tale of two teenage boys in China sent off to the countryside during Mao's Cultural Revolution. This slim novel celebrates the power of stories and literature and the imagination. (CHN159, $13.95)
  Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
Beneath Buddha's Eyes  •  Tony Anthony
LITERATURE •  2002 •  HARD COVER  • 296 PAGES
In this compelling second novel, a love story set in the midst of war, reporter Peter Hill tells of his affair with a colleague in Vietnam, clandestine missions, corruption and making your way during the chaos and horror of the war. The author Tony Anthony was drafted into the Army and assigned to the infantry as a Combat Correspondent in Vietnam. (VNM52, $25.00)
 
Bradt Guide Yunnan Province  •  Martin Walters  •  Stephen Mansfield
GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES
A compact, practical guide to Yunnan for the traveler with detailed sketch maps, a few color photographs and excellent information on where to go and what to do. (CHN73, $23.95)
  Bradt Guide Yunnan Province
Angkor Cities and Temples  •  Claude Jacques  •  Michael Freeman
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 319 PAGES
One of the nicest books of its kind, this is a gorgeous, oversized portrait of the monuments, temples and exquisite sculptures of Angkor. Claude Jacques, who directed much of the site excavation, writes with authority about individual temples, inscriptions and Khmer culture. (CBD18, $80.00)
  Angkor Cities and Temples
A Bright Shining Lie, John Paul Vann and the Americans in Vietnam  •  Neil Sheehan
HISTORY •  1989 •  PAPER  • 861 PAGES
A political history of the war as seen through the story of one of its soldiers, this prize-winning book is a hard-hitting expose on the failure of American foreign policy in Southeast Asia. (VNM27, $19.95)
  A Bright Shining Lie, John Paul Vann and the Americans in Vietnam
Brother Number One, A Political Biography of Pol Pot  •  David Chandler
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1999 •  PAPER  • 264 PAGES
The definitive history of the Pol Pot era by the author of the History of Cambodia. (CBD23, $43.75)
 
Buddhist Art and Architecture  •  Robert Fisher
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1993 •  PAPER  • 216 PAGES
A wide-ranging, illustrated survey of Buddhist art, architecture and iconography in the excellent World of Art series. It includes examples from throughout Asia. (ASA30, $19.95)
  Buddhist Art and Architecture
The Buddhist Handbook  •  John Snelling
RELIGION •  1992 •  PAPER  • 345 PAGES
Subtitled, "The Complete Guide to Buddhist Schools, Teaching, Practice and History, " this even-handed book is a concise primer covering the history, philosophical foundation and practice of Buddhism. It gives a basic overview of the teachings and practice of Buddhism, including a who's who of contemporary teachers and list of useful addresses around the world. (ASA08, $19.95)
  The Buddhist Handbook
Cambodia  •  Michael Freeman
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2004 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES
A political and cultural history of Cambodia by writer, photographer and keen observer Michael Freeman. (CBD40, $27.00)
  Cambodia
Cambodia Map  •  Gecko Maps
2005 •  MAP
A full color map of Cambodia for the traveler at a scale of 1:750,000. With useful inset city and area maps of Phnom Penh, Angkor, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville with restaurants, hotels and attractions. Two Sides. 26x36 inches. (CBD17, $18.95)
  Cambodia Map
Cambodia Now, Life in the Wake of War  •  Karen Coates
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2005 •  PAPER  • 382 PAGES
A scholarly account of the lives of modern Cambodian citizens of all walks of life, from beggars to royalty, told through personal interviews and color photographs. Coates examines how the scars of the viscous Khmer Rouge regime and the subsequent twenty years of civil war still affect the region today. (CBD50, $39.95)
  Cambodia Now, Life in the Wake of War
Cambodia's New Deal  •  William Shawcross
HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 106 PAGES
A scholarly survey of Cambodia's political and economic climate. (CBD14, $9.95)
 
Cambodia, A Shattered Society  •  Mark W. Mcleod  •  Marie Martin
HISTORY •  1994 •  HARD COVER  • 383 PAGES
A political and cultural history of post-Pol Pot Cambodia for a scholarly audience. (CBD22, $65.00)
 
Cambodian Culture Since 1975  •  May Ebihara
HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 194 PAGES
A scholary collection of articles on Cambodian culture since the violence of Pol Pot's regime in the 1970s. (CBD21, $22.95)
 
Catfish and Mandala, A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam  •  Andrew X. Pham
TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 344 PAGES
Much more than the story of a road trip, this book combines the author's family history with his many and often-gritty adventures by bicycle through foreign lands including Mexico, Japan and, notably, Vietnam. Winner of the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize. (VNM50, $16.00)
  Catfish and Mandala, A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam
CDC's Complete Guide to Health Travel  •  Charles Ericcson  •  Kent C. Davis
GUIDEBOOK •  1997 •  PAPER  • 432 PAGES
Solid advice for healthy travel around the world by the Center for Disease Control. (TRV01, $15.00)
 
Child of War, Woman of Peace  •  Le Ly Hayslip
LITERATURE •  1993 •  PAPER  • 388 PAGES
Further memoirs from the author of "When Heaven and Earth Changed Places." (VNM78, $19.00)
 
Children of Cambodia's Killing Fields: Memoirs by Survivors  •  Dith Pran  •  Ben Kiernan  •  Kim DePaul
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1999 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES
A series of eyewitness testimonies of the Cambodian genocide of the 1970s. Dith Pran, the photojournalist whose story was told in the film The Killing Fields, compiled 29 accounts, all told by people who were children during Khmer Rouge's reign of terror. (CBD33, $19.50)
  Children of Cambodia's Killing Fields: Memoirs by Survivors
China Adventure Map  •  National Geographic
2011 •  MAP
A double-sided, full-color map of China, at a useful scale of 1:4,375,000, which shows roads and cities. Printed on tear- and water-reistant paper. Two Sides. 39x27 inches. (CHN06, $11.95)
  China Adventure Map
China South Map  •  Nelles
2005 •  MAP
A detailed travel map of Southern China, from Taiwan to Hong Kong and the Yunnan Province, at a 1:1,500,000 scale. With city maps of Hon Kong, Macau and Guilin. Two Sides. 20x40 inches. (CHN27, $13.95)
  China South Map
Chinese Art  •  Mary Tregear
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 216 PAGES
A quick, but surprisingly thorough survey of Chinese art, including calligraphy and painting, sculpture and ceramics, as well as garden design, architecture, and various crafts. Part of the "World of Art" series, it is illustrated throughout. (CHN153, $19.95)
  Chinese Art
The Chinese Kitchen  •  Eileen Yin-Fei Lo
FOOD •  1999 •  HARD COVER  • 452 PAGES
An authoritative and delightful book about food and cultural practices in a very food-oriented culture. "Have you eaten yet?" the Chinese traditionally ask each other when they meet by chance in the street, and here Eileen Yin-Fei Lo has written a cookbook which doubles as an introduction to China itself. It's a compendium not only of recipes (of which there are hundreds, all authentic, all clearly explained), but also of lessons in Chinese history, folkloric tales, and reminiscences of the author's childhood in Guangdong province, where she learned to cook at her grandmother's side. With chapters on Chinese tea and how to stock a Chinese pantry, plus a recipe for the 28-ingredient feast dish known as "Buddha Jump over the Wall", this is a book -- in English! -- that any Chinese cook would want. (CHN134, $39.95)
  The Chinese Kitchen
Chinese Rugs: A Buyer's Guide  •  Lee Allane
GUIDEBOOK •  1994 •  PAPER  • 144 PAGES
A guide to the history, techniques and variety of carpets produced throughout China, including typical motifs and materials. It features a practical guide to price and quality for the prospective buyer. (CHN30, $15.95)
  Chinese Rugs: A Buyer's Guide
Close Quarters  •  Larry Heinemann
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  AUDIO CD
Philip Dosier views and participates in the skirmishes, battles, noise, obscenities, marijuana highs, battlefield racism, spirit of atrocity and other ingredients of the war in Vietnam and returns home to make his own peace on the banks of the Wabash River. (VNM94, $26.95)
 
Collected Short Stories, Volume 4  •  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 and other southeast Asian locales, including the well-known tale "The Letter." (SEA01, $18.00)
  Collected Short Stories, Volume 4
Consuming Urban Culture in Contemporary Vietnam  •  Mandy Thomas  •  Lisa Drummond
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2003 •  HARD COVER  • 227 PAGES
In this scholarly collection of essays, diverse contributors -- many Vietnamese -- examine everyday life and popular culture in contemporary Vietnam. The editors, who provide a historical background for current developments, include contributions on television, dance, political cartoons movies, short fiction and social issues. (VNM65, $195.00)
 
A Cook's Tour, Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines  •  Anthony Bourdain
FOOD •  2002 •  PAPER  • 274 PAGES
In this deliciously funny book, Bourdain eats his way around the globe on a quest for the perfect (or perfectly odd) meal. From fried Mars Bars in Glasgow to cobra hearts in Cambodia, there's nowhere this wise-cracking chef won't go and nothing he won't try. (TVL90, $14.99)
 
The Country of Memory, Remaking the Past in Late Socialist Vietnam  •  Hue-Tam Ho Tai
HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 284 PAGES
A collection of essays by diverse authors on modern Vietnamese culture and society. (VNM60, $28.95)
  The Country of Memory, Remaking the Past in Late Socialist Vietnam
Culture Shock! Laos  •  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)
  Culture Shock! Laos
Culture Smart! Vietnam  •  Geoffrey Murray
GUIDEBOOK •  2008 •  PAPER  • 168 PAGES
Take along this concise, well-illustrated and practical guide to local customs, etiquette and culture. (VNM87, $9.95)
  Culture Smart! Vietnam
Culture, Ritual and Revolution in Vietnam  •  Shaun Kingsley Malarney
HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES
This is a recently published monograph by an associate professor of cultural anthropology at International Christian University in Tokyo, Japan, who has written on a variety of topics including transformations of wedding and funeral practices, local politics, commerce and entrepreneurship. Based on both field work in northern Vietnam and archival materials, the study looks at the impact of the revolutionary campaign to transform Vietnamese society. A volume in the Univeristy of Hawaii Press Anthropology in Asia series. (VNM61, $49.00)
 
Dispatches  •  Michael Herr
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2009 •  HARD COVER  • 296 PAGES
Robert Stone introduces this Everyman's Library edition of Herr's impressionistic, affecting memoir of his time as a war correspondent in Vietnam, called by the New York Times the best book yet to be written about the war. From its opening pages to its final eloquent words, Dispatches makes us see, in unforgettable and unflinching detail, the chaos and fervor of the war. (VNM03, $24.00)
  Dispatches
Distant Road: Selected Poems of Nguyen Duy  •  Nguyen Duy  •  Kevin Bowen  •  Ba Chung Nguyen
LITERATURE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 257 PAGES
A selection of poems, including those about the Vietnamese War. Born in Thanh Hoa in 1948, Duy served with distinction in the North Vietnamese Army. (VNM76, $15.95)
 
Earth and Water, Encounters in Vietnam  •  Edith Shillue
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1997 •  PAPER  • 234 PAGES
A meditative account of experiences and encounters in Vietnam as a teacher and traveler in the 1990s. IN this lovely memoir, Shillue, an English professor, reflects on the people, culture and history of the country, interweaving her time living with a family and teaching in Saigon with her travels to Nam Ha Province (where she taught in a village school) and journeys throughout the country. (VNM79, $24.95)
  Earth and Water, Encounters in Vietnam
The Ends of the Earth, A Journey to the Frontiers of Anarchy  •  Robert D. Kaplan
TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 476 PAGES
Kaplan, a veteran foreign correspondent and wonderful writer, journeys though much of the third world in this far-ranging, insightful report on sociopolitics, the future and other big topics. Organized geographically, he hops from West Africa to the Nile, Balkans, Central Asia, China and Southeast Asia. Two large sections are devoted to Iran and the former Soviet republics of Central Asia. (WLD26, $16.00)
 
The Ethnography of Vietnam's Central Highlanders: A Historical Contextualization, 1850-1990  •  Oscar Salemink
HISTORY •  2003 •  HARD COVER  • 368 PAGES
In this scholarly monography Salemink examines representation of the Montagnards since 1850, tracing changes in ethnography over a key period. Salemink, an anthropologist who collected oral histories in the Central Highlands for this study, is program officer for social sciences and humanities at the Ford Foundation in Hanoi. A volume in the University of Hawaii Press Anthropology of Asia series. (VNM64, $52.00)
  The Ethnography of Vietnam's Central Highlanders: A Historical Contextualization, 1850-1990
The Explorer's Garden, Rare and Unusual Perennials  •  Daniel Hinkley  •  Roy Lancaster
NATURAL HISTORY •  2009 •  PAPER  • 380 PAGES
Legendary proprietor of Heronwood Nursery in the Pacific Northwest, author of its willfully eccentric catalogue and renowned plant-explorer, Daniel Hinkley introduces some of his remarkable finds in the Himalayas, Yunnan and other exotic locations around the world in this handsomely produced tour of his nursery and garden. With 250 color photographs and an introduction by fellow plant-explorer Roy Lancaster. (NAT28, $24.95)
 
Fields of Fire  •  James Webb
LITERATURE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 360 PAGES
The first novel from former marine and Vietnam vet James Webb, a harrowing story of a platoon deep in the Vietnamese jungle. First published in 1978, it remains one of the most realistic and challenging novels on the war. (VNM68, $19.95)
 
Fodor's See It Vietnam  •  Fodor's
GUIDEBOOK •  2009 •  PAPER  • 304 PAGES
A compact, well-illustrated of Vietnam and its attractions. With good information on what to see and where to eat, sleep, and shop. (VNM84, $24.95)
  Fodor's See It Vietnam
The Fog of War  •  Robert S. McNamara  •  Errol Morris
HISTORY •  2004 •  DVD
Morris keeps a tight focus on the haunted and candid Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara in this riveting examination of the U.S. in Vietnam. The 95-minute film won an Oscar in 2003 for best documentary. (VNM83, $14.94)
  The Fog of War
Footprint Laos Handbook  •  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)
  Footprint Laos Handbook
A Fortune-Teller Told Me, Earthbound Travels in the Far East  •  Tizanio Terzani
TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 371 PAGES
Grounded for a year, the peripatetic journalist (Italian-born, writing in German, and based in India) sets off by any other means to complete his rounds through Laos, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, Mongolia, China, Japan and other far-flung destinations. The result is this warm, anecdotal account of the character of the region. It's got to be the book most recommended to us on contemporary Asia. (SEA35, $16.00)
  A Fortune-Teller Told Me, Earthbound Travels in the Far East
Fragments of the Present, Searching for Modernity in Vietnam's South  •  Philip Taylor
HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 237 PAGES
In this wide-ranging anthropological study, based on a field work in a Mekong delta village, Taylor looks at southern Vietnam's postwar history, economic and social change and the contrast between urban and rural life. (VNM62, $34.00)
 
Full Metal Jacket  •  Stanley Kubrick
2004 •  DVD
Kubrick follows a young marine from boot camp to the 1968 Tet Offensive in this two-segment Vietnam epic. (VNM97, $19.96)
 
The Gate  •  Francois Bizot
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2004 •  PAPER  • 304 PAGES
In this chilling account Bizot, a French ethnologist married to a Khmer woman, tells of his remarkable, terrifying years during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. Bizot is the only Westerner imprisoned by the Khmer Rouge to have been released alive. (SEA48, $14.00)
  The Gate
A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain  •  Robert Olen Butler
ANTHOLOGY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 249 PAGES
Winner of the 1993 Pulitzer Prize, this collection of 15 short stories -- each told from a different point of view -- captures the spirit of Vietnam. American and Asian perspectives are juxtaposed in these stories, which jump back and forth from wartime Vietnam to rural Louisiana. (VNM21, $14.00)
  A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain
The Green Berets  •  Ray Kellogg  •  John Wayne
2004 •  DVD
A grizzled army colonel assembles a team of elite Green Berets in South Vietnam to capture a Viet Cong general in this gung-ho thriller starring John Wayne. (VNM99, $12.97)
 
Heaven and Earth  •  Oliver Stone
2006 •  DVD
Oliver Stone's film of a young Vietnamese villager who marries a U.S. marine after the war, based on the memoir by Le Ly Hayslip (When Heaven and Earth Changed Places). (VNM100, $19.97)
 
Hindu Art  •  T. Richard Blurton
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1993 •  PAPER  • 239 PAGES
A beautifully illustrated large paperback of excellent quality, this book is a good introduction to the complexities of Indian painting, sculpture and sacred architecture. The author is a curator at the British Museum. (IDA35, $35.00)
  Hindu Art
A History of Laos  •  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)
  A History of Laos
Ho Chi Minh, A Life  •  William Duiker
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2001 •  PAPER  • 695 PAGES
Dissident, revolutionary, communist, Ho Chi Minh returned from exile to lead North Vietnam's defiant break with colonial France. Duiker charts in convincing detail Ho Chi Minh's long march from the son of a scholar in the rural provinces to idealist student in heady 1920s Paris to rebel and determined revolutionary. Ho Chi Minh died in 1969. The book is hard going, not enlivened by much in the way of anecdote, but definitive -- and well worth the effort for travelers interested in the fundamentals of the Vietnamese drive to oust the French from Indo-China. (VNM45, $19.99)
 
In Pharaoh's Army: Memories of the Lost War  •  Tobias Wolff
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1995 •  PAPER  • 221 PAGES
A vivid memoir of his tour of duty in Vietnam, Wolf deploys his characteristic wit and insight on the experiences of a hapless young man over his head in a strange country under sometimes horrifying circumstances. He interweaves telling anecdotes, personal history and meditation. Part three of the book is a telling acount of returning home. (VNM34, $15.00)
  In Pharaoh's Army: Memories of the Lost War
In Search of Southeast Asia: a Modern History  •  David P. Chandler  •  David J. Steinberg
HISTORY •  1988 •  PAPER  • 590 PAGES
Written by seven historians of Asia, this scholarly overview of the social, economic and political history of Southeast Asia is an excellent introduction to the region. A popular text for courses on modern Southeast Asian history, the organizing theme of the book is the region's cultural adaptation to change. Parts 2, 4 & 5 are organized by country. (SEA18, $34.00)
  In Search of Southeast Asia: a Modern History
Insight Compact Guide Laos  •  Insight Guides
GUIDEBOOK •  2000 •  PAPER  • 96 PAGES
A slim illustrated guide. (LAO15, $7.95)
  Insight Compact Guide Laos
Insight Pocket Guide Hanoi  •  Insight Guides
GUIDEBOOK •  2005 •  PAPER  • 96 PAGES
A handy full-color guide to the city with a pull-out map. Features recommendations for dining, shopping and sightseeing with an overview of the city's highlights. (VNM71, $13.95)
  Insight Pocket Guide Hanoi
Insight Pocket Guide Vietnam  •  Insight Guides
GUIDEBOOK •  2006 •  PAPER  • 104 PAGES
A slim illustrated guide and separate pull-out map. (VNM86, $13.95)
  Insight Pocket Guide Vietnam
It's Easier Than You Think, The Buddhist Way to Happiness  •  Sylvia Boorstein
RELIGION •  1997 •  PAPER  • 145 PAGES
Boorstein -- a practitioner of Buddhist meditation, psychotherapist and Jewish grandmother to boot -- here relates the basic tenets of Buddhism in her warmly engaging, anecdotal style. It's a good introduction to Buddhist teachings by a self-deprecating master. (GEN264, $13.00)
  It's Easier Than You Think, The Buddhist Way to Happiness
Jewelry of Southeast Asia  •  Anne Richter
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 304 PAGES
An in-depth analysis of Southeast Asia's jewelry tradition that spans from the Neolithic and Bronze Age to the present, complemented by 350 full-color illustrations. Richter showcases more than 300 prized pieces and provides insightful commentary. (SEA25, $75.00)
 
The Killing Fields  •  Roland Joffe
1984 •  DVD
Haing S. Ngor won an Oscar for his role as Dith Pran, the Cambodian assistant to a New York Times reporter who experiences the horrors of the Khmer Rouge. Based on a true story, it's a harrowing portrait of Cambodia in the early 1970s, where political unrest and the specter of the Vietnam War ultimately led to genocide . (CBD42, $19.98)
 
The Killing Fields  •  Roland Joffe
2001 •  DVD
The Academy Award winning true story of New York Times reporter Schanberg and his Cambodian assistant Dith Pran and their time in Cambodia during the war years. Expelled from the country, Schanberg is unable to secure safe passage for Dith, who is imprisoned by Pol Pot's brutal Khmer Rouge. (CBD52, $19.98)
 
Laos Map  •  Periplus Maps
MAP
A traveler's map of Laos, with topographical relief at a scale 1: 200,000. Prepared by the World Mapping Project. Two Sides. (LAO11, $9.00)
  Laos Map
Lonely Planet Cambodia  •  Lonely Planet
GUIDEBOOK •  2010 •  PAPER  • 376 PAGES
A comprehensive practical guide to Cambodia in the hallmark Lonely Planet style featuring maps, a good overview of culture, history and nature and much nuts-and-bolts information on excursions, accommodations and sightseeing. With a section of color photographs and excellent travel information. Geared for the independent traveler. (CBD04, $23.99)
  Lonely Planet Cambodia
Lonely Planet Discover China  •  Lonely Planet
GUIDEBOOK •  2011 •  PAPER  • 448 PAGES
Focusing on must-see and memorable places and experiences, this all color guide by the discerning editors at Lonely Planet, featuring hundreds of color photographs and maps, includes suggested tours and itineraries along with not-to-be-missed places to stay, eat, shop and see. (CHN674, $27.99)
  Lonely Planet Discover China
Lonely Planet Laos  •  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. With color photographs and excellent travel information by the intrepid Joe Cummings. (LAO02, $23.99)
  Lonely Planet Laos
Look What Came From China!  •  Miles Harvey
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1999 •  PAPER  • 32 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8)
A slim guide to China, its products, animals, food, tools, crafts and inventions, with color photographs and accompanying text. For children ages 4-8. (CHN155, $6.95)
  Look What Came From China!
Lost Soldiers  •  James Webb
LITERATURE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 464 PAGES
A sequel to the novelist (and Vietnam Vet) James Webb's Fields of Fire. (VNM70, $7.99)
 
The Lover  •  Marguerite Duras
LITERATURE •  1998 •  PAPER  • 117 PAGES
A haunting tale of coming-of-age in Indochina during the 1930s, beautifully evoking the period and place and the complex emotions of a young girl, her family, and her wealthy Chinese lover. (CBD09, $12.00)
  The Lover
My Detachment  •  Tracy Kidder
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2005 •  AUDIO CD
An unromanticized portrait of a young man coming of age in the controversial Vietnam war. (VNM95, $29.95)
 
The Naked Tourist, In Search of Adventure and Beauty in the Age of the Airport Mall  •  Lawrence Osborne
TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2007 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES
"It came upon me suddenly," Osborne reports, "like a mental disorder unknown to psychiatry: the desire to stop everything in normal life, to uproot, leave." And so he does, taking off on a six-month journey from Dubai to India, Bangkok, Bali and Papua New Guinea on the "Asian Highway." Osborne is not just interested in travel, but also in the reasons why we travel, layering his own entertaining adventures with ruminations on Shangri-La, The Grand Tour, the exotic and primitive. (SEA50, $20.00)
  The Naked Tourist, In Search of Adventure and Beauty in the Age of the Airport Mall
National Geographic China  •  Damian Harper
GUIDEBOOK •  2012 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES
A generously illustrated guide to China with the usual National Geographic attention to maps and photographs, covering the big cities and the Yangtze, as well as southern, western and northeastern China in unusual depth. Harper writes with authority in a lively, opinionated style; no surprise, since he is also the co-author of three guides on the region for Lonely Planet. With a 50-page appendix of practical travel information. (CHN163, $27.95)
  National Geographic China
National Geographic Vietnam  •  Jim Sullivan
GUIDEBOOK •  2009 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES
This guide to Vietnam, published in National Geographic's attractive visual style, features hundreds of photographs, full color maps, and good information on history, nature, culture and travel in Vietnam. (VNM93, $22.95)
  National Geographic Vietnam
Novel without a Name  •  Thu Huong Duong
LITERATURE •  1996 •  PAPER  • 304 PAGES
From celebrated dissident author Duong Thu Huong, this lyrical novel tells the story of a North Vietnamese solider who clings to memories of his childhood in the hard times of war. (VNM23, $15.00)
  Novel without a Name
The Other Side of Heaven, Postwar Fiction by Vietnamese and American Writers  •  Truong Vu  •  Le M. Khue  •  Wayne Karlin
ANTHOLOGY •  1995 •  PAPER  • 420 PAGES
Writers from both sides of the Vietnam War have contributed to this anthology, which offers insight into understanding the divided nation. It's also a good opportunity to read contributions by writers not generally translated into English. (VNM42, $19.95)
 
Passions of the Cut Sleeve, The Male Homosexual Tradition in China  •  Bret Hinsch
LITERATURE •  1992 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES
A well written, scholarly survey of the traditions of same-sex male love across 3,000 years of Chinese literature -- much livlier than the title would indicate. Hinsch draws from dynastic histories, erotic novels, popular Buddhist tracts, love poetry, legal cases, and joke books in this fascinating overview. (CHN167, $26.95)
 
Perspectives on the Yi of Southwest China  •  Stevan Harrell
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2001 •  PAPER  • 334 PAGES
A scholarly, cross-disciplinary study of the Yi people, noteworthy for its comprehensive ethnographic approach and for the diversity of its contributors, who are of western, Yi and Chinese backgrounds. (CHN169, $29.95)
 
Phantasmatic Indochina, French Colonial Ideology in Architecture, Film, and Literature  •  Panivong Norindr
HISTORY •  1997 •  PAPER  • 205 PAGES
An academic examination of "Indochina" as a fictive and mythic construct, a phantasmatic legacy of French colonialism in Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Laos). Norindr uses postcolonial theory to demonstrate how French imperialism manifests itself not only through physical domination of geographic entities, but also through the colonization of the imaginary. (SEA78, $22.95)
 
Phase Line Green, The Battle for Hue, 1968  •  Nicholas Warr
HISTORY •  1999 •  PAPER  • 255 PAGES
A powerful and personal account of a U.S. Marine's experience in the Battle of Hue, a brutal, month-long battle to capture a strategically important North Vietnamese citadel. Nicholas wrote this account in 1983, 15 years after the events described. Available in this print-on-demand edition only. (VNM36, $19.00)
 
Photographic Guide to Birds of the Himalayas  •  Bikram Grewal
FIELD GUIDE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 144 PAGES
A pocket guide to 250 birds found from the foothills up to high elevations ranging from the Hindu Kush and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh in the Eastern Himalayas. With brief descriptive information, maps and 260 full-color illustrations. (HML31, $15.95)
  Photographic Guide to Birds of the Himalayas
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Vietnamese  •  Pimsleur Language Method
LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  AUDIO CD
Four audio CDs with eight 30-minute lessons in basic Vietnamese, covering elementary vocabulary and phrases used in travel and everyday situations. The Pimsleur method emphasizes the use of listening skills without reading materials (so there isn't a book to follow along). It's advertised as "Totally audio: hear it, learn it, speak it." (VNM81, $19.95)
  Pimsleur Quick & Simple Vietnamese
Platoon, Special Edition  •  Oliver Stone
2005 •  DVD
Oliver Stone's semi-autobiographical masterpiece depicts the horrors of the Vietnam War in gritty realism through the eyes of a young recruit. This special edition features commentary by Stone and the film's military supervisor as well as a documentary and a photo gallery. (VNM98, $14.98)
  Platoon, Special Edition
The Politics of Design in French Colonial Urbanism  •  Gwendolyn Wright
HISTORY •  1991 •  PAPER  • 389 PAGES
Exploring how urban policy and design fit into French colonialism, Wright focuses on three French colonies -- Indochina, Morocco, and Madagascar -- that were the most discussed, most often photographed, and most admired showpieces of the French empire in the early twentieth century. (SEA77, $35.00)
 
The Politics of Heroin, CIA Complicity in the Global Drug Trade  •  Alfred McCoy
HISTORY •  1991 •  PAPER  • 634 PAGES
An expanded version of McCoy's groundbreaking "The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia." This second edition includes the relationship between drug merchants, and intelligence and law enforcement agencies from Southeast Asia, to Central America and Afghanistan. The author is a professor of history at the University of Wisconsin. (LAO09, $32.95)
 
The Quiet American  •  Phillip Noyce
2003 •  DVD
A subtle and beautiful adaptation of Graham Greene's novel. Michael Caine stars as Thomas Fowler, a British journalist stationed in Vietnam in the 1950s, on the cusp of the Vietnam War. His friendship with the seemingly quiet American Alden Pyle (Brendan Fraser) takes a turn for the dangerous when Pyle falls in love with Fowler's young Vietnamese mistress (Do Thi Hai Yen), and his political motives become clear. (VNM59, $29.99)
 
Religions of China, The World as a Living System  •  David L. Overmyer
RELIGION •  1998 •  PAPER  • 125 PAGES
This brief primer, geared for a general audience, covers the religions of China from early beliefs to Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. (CHN154, $16.50)
 
Religions of Tibet in Practice  •  Donald S. Lopez, Jr.
RELIGION •  2007 •  PAPER  • 421 PAGES
A collection of 36 essays and translated texts by scholars of Tibetan Buddhism, including selections on prayers, pilgrimages, death and ritual. It is a scholarly overview of the culture and religion of Tibet, organized thematically and accessible to the general reader. (TBT16, $28.95)
  Religions of Tibet in Practice
Reporting Vietnam, American Journalism 1959-1975  •  Ward Just
ANTHOLOGY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 858 PAGES
A riveting selection of contemporary newspaper and magazine reports and books by American journalists. This paperback edition draws from the original two-volume Library of America hardcover edition. (VNM77, $35.00)
 
River Road to China, The Search for the Source of the Mekong, 1866-73  •  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. With a selection of 19th-century engravings and color illustrations from the expedition. Originally published in 1975. (SEA29, $16.95)
  River Road to China, The Search for the Source of the Mekong, 1866-73
Rough Guide Cambodia  •  Beverley Palmer
GUIDEBOOK •  2011 •  PAPER  • 376 PAGES
A practical, comprehensive travel guide to Cambodia in the British series. Features a detailed look at Phnom Penh and Angkor, tips for traveling to the rural villages, an overview of the country after the fall of the Khmer Rouge and 24 maps. (CBD34, $21.99)
  Rough Guide Cambodia
Rough Guide Map Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos  •  World Mapping Project
2006 •  MAP
A detailed travel map of Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos. Two Sides. 27.5X40 inches. (SEA56, $13.99)
  Rough Guide Map Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos
Sanctuary, The Temples of Angkor  •  Steve McCurry
ARCHAEOLOGY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 144 PAGES
A selection of 100 stunning color photographs of the monks and the monuments of Angkor, the extraordinary carvings, and the forest surrounding the temples by a popular Magnum photographer. John Guy provides an introduction. (CBD28, $35.00)
  Sanctuary, The Temples of Angkor
Shadow of the Bear, Travels in Their Vanishing Country  •  Brian Payton
NATURAL HISTORY •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 256 PAGES
Payton recounts the journeys he made on four continents to view all eight remaining species of bears. (NAT100, $25.95)
 
Shadows and Wind  •  Robert Templer
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1999 •  PAPER  • 398 PAGES
A British journalist based in Vietnam, Templer cuts through myth and legend to offer a lively, opinionated portrait of contemporary Vietnam. (VNM43, $17.00)
  Shadows and Wind
Sihanouk: Prince of Light, Prince of Darkness  •  Milton Osborne
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1994 •  PAPER  • 304 PAGES
Osborne follows, with a critical eye, the roller-coaster career of this important Asian leader -- from king to exile to king again -- and shows him as an energetic and determined, but also self-absorbed, individual. (CBD20, $17.95)
 
The Sorrow of War, A Novel of North Vietnam  •  Bao Ninh
LITERATURE •  1996 •  PAPER  • 213 PAGES
A powerful novel by a former North Vietnamese soldier, this short book captures the appalling conditions of war, alternating vivid scenes from the front lines with flashbacks from the protagonist's rural youth. (VNM07, $15.00)
  The Sorrow of War, A Novel of North Vietnam
Soul of the Tiger, Searching for Nature's Answers in Southeast Asia  •  Jeffrey A. McNeely  •  Paul Spencer Sochaczewski
NATURAL HISTORY •  1995 •  PAPER  • 432 PAGES
A wide-ranging meditation on the role of animals and nature in the complex human societies of Southeast Asia, originally published in 1988. The authors wax philosophical -- and sometimes blackly humorous -- about conservation issues throughout the region. They argue for effective community-based conservation building on traditional relationships between people and the environment (SEA02, $18.99)
  Soul of the Tiger, Searching for Nature's Answers in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia in the New International Era  •  Clark Neher
HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES
A good general history of the entire region and its place in the world. Written by a seasoned scholar, the book is now in its third edition. (SEA17, $39.00)
 
Southeast Asia, A Concise History  •  Mary Somers Heidhues
HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 192 PAGES
A lively, illustrated history of Southeast Asia, covering the politics, economics, society and culture of Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines. With 131 black-and-white illustrations and 11 maps. (SEA26, $19.95)
  Southeast Asia, A Concise History
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down  •  Anne Fadiman
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1998 •  PAPER  • 352 PAGES
The title refers to the Hmong explanation for seizures. It's the story of a child with epilepsy, the daughter of Hmong refugees in California and a tragedy wrought by cultural mistranslation. Fadiman, the editor of American Scholar, got to know her loving family and the hard-working doctors that cared for Lia, and gracefully documents the clash between best interests. It's a sympathetic look at the Hmong culture, history and worldview that reveals much about ours as well. (VNM31, $15.00)
  The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down
Stay Alive, My Son  •  Pin Yathay
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2000 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES
A harrowing account of life in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge and particularly the evacuations of Phnom Penh, written by an engineer for the Ministry of Public Works. (CBD44, $24.95)
 
Street Without Joy  •  Bernard B. Fall
HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 408 PAGES
A vivid account of the French defeat in Vietnam, originally published in 1961. (VNM18, $27.95)
 
The Tale of Kieu, Bilingual Edition  •  Huynh Thong
LITERATURE •  1987 •  PAPER  • 211 PAGES
A masterpiece of Vietnamese literature, written in the early 19th-century by a Vietnamese ambassador to the Chinese court. This edition, translated and annotated by Huynh Sanh Thong, renders the narrative poem in modern blank verse. The much-celebrated poem, based on a Chinese novel, shows East Asian classical and Vietnamese folk influences. (VNM22, $22.00)
  The Tale of Kieu, Bilingual Edition
Three Ways of Thought in Ancient China  •  Arthur Waley
RELIGION •  1982 •  PAPER  • 216 PAGES
An elegantly written, classic introduction to traditional Chinese philosophy. Waley, who provides lyrical translations, discusses three great threads in this slim book: Daoism, Realism and the writings of Meniscus (closely related to Confucianism). Originally published in 1953, Waley's entertaining anecdotes, evident humor and aphorisms, enliven the text. The first section is entitled In the Realm of Nothing Whatever. (CHN164, $18.95)
 
The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Liberation from Understanding the In Between  •  Robert Thurman
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1994 •  PAPER  • 275 PAGES
A key text as presented by Robert Thurman for a western audience. This edition of the Tibetan guidebooks to dying or "the between" -- written in the 8th or 9th century by Padma Sambhava -- is introduced and translated by Thurman. It's is a spiritual guide to the afterlife, helpfully augmented by Thurman's commentary as well as an overview of Tibetan history and beliefs. With a chapter on Tibet, its history, Buddhist traditions and present plight. Part Two of the book is a translation of prayers. (TBT06, $18.00)
  The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Liberation from Understanding the In Between
To Hanoi and Back, The U.S. Air Force and North Vietnam, 1966-1973  •  Wayne Thompson  •  Richard P. Hallion
HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 360 PAGES
A detailed history of the American air campaign in the Vietnam War. (VNM57, $31.95)
 
To What End?  •  Ward Just
HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 208 PAGES
Reports from Vietnman in 1966-1967 by the Washington Post reporter and novelist, reissued on the 25th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. (VNM73, $14.00)
 
Tragedy of Cambodian History: Politics, War and Revolution since 1945  •  David Chandler
HISTORY •  1993 •  PAPER  • 408 PAGES
A scholarly history of Cambodian politics and society from World War II to the late 1970s, covering the Vietnam War and the rise of the Khmer Rouge. The author, a professor and noted historian, draws from his own experiences as a foreign service officer in Phnom Penh. (CBD45, $28.00)
 
Tragic Mountains: The Hmong, the Americans, and the Secret Wars for Laos, 1942-1992  •  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. The author, a reporter during the Vietnam War, has worked for decades on behalf of the Laotian mountain people. (LAO12, $35.00)
  Tragic Mountains: The Hmong, the Americans, and the Secret Wars for Laos, 1942-1992
The Travels of Marco Polo  •  Marco Polo  •  Ronald Lantham
TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1975 •  PAPER  • 380 PAGES
The memories of a 13th-century journey to China along the Silk Road, maybe the most famous travel account ever, as edited by Ronald Lantham. Describing exotic plants, birds, precious gems, silks, and spices with a merchant's eye, this superb geographer recounts his 20 years of travel and return to Venice in 1295. (CAS05, $15.00)
  The Travels of Marco Polo
The Treasures of Angkor  •  Marilia Albanese
GUIDEBOOK •  2006 •  FLEXI-BOUND  • 288 PAGES
A compact, illustrated guide to the history, art and architecture of Angkor. With suggested itineraries, site plans and notes on visiting individual temples. (CBD48, $24.95)
  The Treasures of Angkor
Up Country  •  Nelson Demille
LITERATURE •  2003 •  PAPER  • 880 PAGES
A Tom Clancy-Style military thriller, rich in historical detail, geography and intrigue. Demille, a Vietnam veteran, follows the fate of his career army protagonist (also the main character in "The General's Daughter") on a trip back in 1997. (VNM46, $7.99)
  Up Country
Vanishing Histories, 100 Endangered Sites from the World Monuments Fund  •  Colin Amery
ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 207 PAGES • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE
A stunning portrait of 100 threatened archaeological and cultural monuments around the world from Angkor, Pompeii, and Mesa Verde to lesser known buildings and sites, all listed by the World Monuments Fund. Organized geographically, each building or site gets at least a full page, usually two. Founded in 1996, the New York-based organization is dedicated to publicizing, preserving and protecting endangered examples of historic art and architecture around the world. (GEN219, $60.00)
  Vanishing Histories, 100 Endangered Sites from the World Monuments Fund
A Viet Cong Memoir  •  Truang Nhu Tang
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1986 •  PAPER  • 350 PAGES
A candid, revealing story of a revolutionary life, wonderfully free of cant. This telling memoir by the former Viet Cong Minister of Justice, now living in exile in Paris, gives a detailed report from the inside, as much about his life as about the Viet Cong campaign. Not only does it provide a unique perspective on the war, the book is a compelling personal tale. (VNM11, $15.95)
  A Viet Cong Memoir
Vietnam Map  •  ITMB
2005 •  MAP
A sturdy, double-sided map of Vietnam, at a good scale (1:1,000,000), including Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh and the Hue region. With index. Two Sides. 39x25 inches. (VNM05, $12.95)
  Vietnam Map
Vietnam Now, A Reporter Returns  •  David Lamb
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2003 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES
An insightful portrait of contemporary Vietnam by an experienced reporter (The Africans, The Arabs). The author interweaves stories of Vietnam today with his own experiences and memories as a young reporter for UPI during the war. Lamb, who reported from Vietnam in 1968, returned in 1997 as a correspondent for the Los Angeles Times. (VNM47, $17.00)
  Vietnam Now, A Reporter Returns
Vietnam Today: A Guide to a Nation at a Crossroads  •  Mark Ashwill  •  Thai Ngoc Diep
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2004 •  PAPER  • 188 PAGES
A practical guide to politics, culture and getting along in contemporary Vietnam geared for both business people and travelers. With short chapters on geography, demographics, politics, economy and business, history and changes since the war, cultural differences and tips for working with the Vietnamese, nd how the Vietnamese view us. (VNM80, $27.95)
  Vietnam Today: A Guide to a Nation at a Crossroads
Vietnam, A History  •  Stanley Karnow
HISTORY •  1997 •  PAPER  • 768 PAGES
This blockbuster book by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author is history at its best: masterfully researched, well written and comprehensive. In this magisterial work, Karnow draws on interviews and archives to put the ordeal of the Vietnam war into perspective, offering clarity, analysis and focus. (VNM10, $22.00)
  Vietnam, A History
Vietnam, The Necessary War  •  Michael Lind
HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 314 PAGES
A reinterpretation of America's most disastrous military conflict by Michael Lind, a political journalist and fellow at the New America Foundation. Lind challenges received wisdom, suggesting that the disaster in Indochina was a just and winnable war. (VNM74, $20.99)
  Vietnam, The Necessary War
Vietnam: A Natural History  •  Eleanor J. Sterling  •  Martha Maud Hurley  •  Le Duc Minh  •  Joyce Ann Powzyk
NATURAL HISTORY •  2007 •  PAPER  • 448 PAGES
A serious, thorough study of habitats, wildlife, human influence and conservation in Vietnam, featuring a handful of color photographs (VNM85, $22.00)
  Vietnam: A Natural History
Vietnam: Journeys of Body, Mind, and Spirit  •  Nguyen Van Huy  •  Laurel Kendall
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2003 •  PAPER  • 303 PAGES
A marvelously illustrated portrait of culture and society in contemporary Vietnam. The book, published in conjunction with an exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History, features informed essays by diverse contributors with accompanying color photographs. Produced in collaboration with the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, where Nguyan Van Huy is director. Laurel Kendall is curator of the Asian Ethnographic Collections at AMNH. (VNM66, $50.00)
  Vietnam: Journeys of Body, Mind, and Spirit
Vietnamese, A Language Map  •  Kristine K. Kershul
LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2002 •  PLASTIC CARD
This durable foldout card, featuring 1,000 words and phrases, works as a quick reference for travelers. (VNM82, $7.95)
  Vietnamese, A Language Map
Vietnamese, Start Speaking Today  •  Language/30
LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  AUDIO CD
A 90-minute crash course in Vietnamese with a CD and phrasebook packaged in a vinyl sleeve. Geared for travelers, the course follows the foreign service method -- which focuses on dialogues and useful sentences instead of individual words. In each case, an English phrase is spoken once, and repeated in Vietnamese twice. Topics include introductions, transportation, business and health. (VNM58, $24.95)
 
Voices from S-21: Terror & History in Pol Pot's Secret Prison  •  David Chandler
HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER
The story of a secret prison in which over 14,000 Cambodian men, women and children were slaughtered as political prisoners between 1975 and 1979. A striking study of the viscous methods of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. (CBD49, $25.95)
  Voices from S-21: Terror & History in Pol Pot's Secret Prison
Waiting  •  Ha Jin
LITERATURE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 308 PAGES
A spare, haunting story of of an ineffectual military doctor who tries for 18 years to divorce his peasant wife so he can marry a more sophisticated nurse at his military hospital. Along the way, the story is greatly evocative of quotidian life in China during the Cultural Revolution and after. Though the main characters are not all that likeable, and the story is somewhat tragic, Ha Jin succeeds utterly in communicating the travails of finding love in China during these years. Winner of the National Book Award. (CHN80, $15.00)
  Waiting
War Letters, Stories of Courage, Longing and Sacrifice  •  Robert Kenner
HISTORY •  2002 •  DVD
Produced for PBS, this hour-long documentary dramatizes letters home from the American Revolution to Persian Gulf, Directed by Robert Kenner and narrated by Joan Allen, Edward Norton, Bill Paxton, Giovanni Ribisi, David Hyde Pierce among others. (WAR77, $19.98)
 
When Broken Glass Floats, Growing Up Under the Khmer Rouge  •  Chanrithy Him
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2001 •  PAPER  • 330 PAGES
Chanrithy Him, who as a girl lost her parents and five siblings to the Khmer Rouge, explains that she wrote this moving account in an effort to "be worthy of the suffering" that she and her family endured. (CBD32, $15.95)
  When Broken Glass Floats, Growing Up Under the Khmer Rouge
When Heaven and Earth Changed Places  •  Jay Wurts  •  Le Ly Hayslip
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1993 •  PAPER  • 368 PAGES
The author recounts her personal experiences of the horrors of war. She maintains a profoundly humane perspective throughout her ordeals, never succumbing to the temptations of blame, self-pity or cynicism. It's a moving account of life in a Viet Cong village, struggling to survive in the Saigon black market and adjustment to life in the United States, where she founded the East Meets West Foundation. (VNM41, $17.00)
  When Heaven and Earth Changed Places
The Wisdom of the Buddha  •  Jean Boisselier
RELIGION •  1994 •  PAPER  • 191 PAGES
A pocket-size primer of Buddhism, this book is an illustrated history of the sixth-century Indian prince and his quest for enlightenment. With 207 illustrations, 160 in full color. (IDA55, $12.95)
  The Wisdom of the Buddha
A Woman's Asia  •  Marybeth Bond
ANTHOLOGY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 310 PAGES
These thirty-five personal, often hilarious accounts of women's adventures from China to Sri Lanka to Turkey to Bhutan, not only illuminating the everyday, oft-overlooked cultural practices of Asia, but also giving a glimpse into the thoughts and feelings of the female traveller. Featuring selections from Jan Morris, Pamela Logan and Alison Wright. (ASA49, $17.95)
  A Woman's Asia
World Religions: Eastern Traditions  •  Willard G. Oxtoby
RELIGION •  2010 •  PAPER  • 515 PAGES
A clear and insightful introduction to Eastern religions by a team of scholars. It's a handsomely produced concise overview of Hindu, Jain, Sikh, Buddhist, and East Asian traditions, as rewarding for the general reader as the student. This second edition features additional suggested reading, photographs, glossary and thought-provoking review questions. (ASA07, $84.95)
  World Religions: Eastern Traditions
Yangzi River Map  •  Richard Perry Hayman
2003 •  MAP
A full-color, comprehensive map of the Yangzi River from its source in the Himalayas down to Shanghai and the East China Sea. Ten maps are featured in all, including orientation maps of all China, several detailed maps of the Three Gorges area plus the cities of Shanghai, Chongqing, and Wuhan. The 4,000-mile-long course of the river is broken into two main maps of the Upper and Lower Yangzi, each at a 1:1,000,000 scale. The double-sided map, which features hypsometric shaded relief derived from USGS data, unfolds to 27 x 39 inches. Two Sides. 27x39 inches. (CHN177, $14.95)
  Yangzi River Map
Zen Keys, A Guide to Zen Practice  •  Thich Nhat Hanh
RELIGION •  1994 •  PAPER  • 198 PAGES
An overview of Zen Buddhism as practiced in Vietnam, including 43 koans from the 13th century Vietnamese master, Tran Thai Tong, and an opening chapter on daily life in a Zen monastery. Originally published in 1974. (VNM72, $14.95)
  Zen Keys, A Guide to Zen Practice

 
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