Thailand - Bibliography Page 2
The following are some more of the books I have read about Thailand along with a brief description.
The King's birthday speeches are always worth analysing. There is rarely a dull moment in Thailand and it is interesting to hear him talk from his heart once a year to find out his take on events. He is passionate about land, water and flood management and many of his ideas have been put into action such as 'Monkey Cheeks' for flood prevention and his 'Sufficiency Economy' theory.
In the transcript of his speech you will notice the word (laughter) in brackets a lot where he jokes. He doesn't so much joke; he highlights nonsensical things about the world.
He is a man of the people who, for example, upon seeing a problem while being driven along in Thailand, will stop the car, get out, analyse the problem and then get something done to fix it. It is not difficult to understand why the Thai people love and respect him so much.
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The author has also used this work to attack Anna Leonowens who he describes as a 'perfidious and mendacious governess' who did harm to King Mongkut's memory. It's a valid point. I was unable to find an ISBN number but the book was published in 1972 by Asia Pacific Press Pte Ltd, Singapore.
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Like a typical tourist, I was completely ignorant of what was going on around me in Thailand and oblivious to the major celebrations that were about to take place. The book contains photos, information and facts about King Bhumibol's reign. If a few more politicians followed the King of Thailand's example, this world would be a much more pleasant place in which to live.
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She came from humble beginnings and lost both parents by the time she was nine years old. She took up nursing where she met her husband, Prince Mahidol of Songkhla, a doctor. They had three children. Her husband died when she was just 29.
More tragedy was to follow when she lost her eldest son, King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII) in 1946. Her younger son - Thailand's current monarch King Bhumibol (Rama IX) was invited to accede to the throne, thus she became the mother of not one, but two Thai kings.
She never forgot her humble origins and worked tireless to help Thailand's poor, most notably up in the northern areas around Chiang Rai and it is in this region where much of her legacy still exists.
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This is a very well researched book that gives lots of interesting insights into the belief systems that exist in Thailand that have nothing to do with pure Buddhism.
Marlane has written other books and is currently researching and writing about the southern Thai culture of Nora dance.
It's a good pictorial account of the King's life and of the many environmental projects he has involved himself with. My only criticism is the weight of the book which made my arms ache carrying it back from the library!
I didn't start following Thai politics until I moved to Thailand so my knowledge of the subject prior to 2003 is scant. As I read through this account of events which led to the Coup of 1991, I got that deja vu feeling.
Corrupt and self-serving politicians, no political ideology, rich businessmen entering politics to acquire power, prestige, positions and financial rewards. The electorate being of absolute no consequence in the political games being played out. As the report says, "The people are not even pawns in the political game!"
In essence, the events that led to the 1991 Coup were no different to the events that led to the 2006 Coup. It makes you wonder what lessons were learned in the 15 years between these two coups and the answer appears to be nothing. It also makes me wonder whether things will ever really change in Thailand? They will, of course - eventually - but that time is still a long way off.
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Portrait of Bangkok falls into the latter category. It gives a fascinating account of the fall of Ayuthaya and the capital's move to Thonburi and then to Bangkok. It is packed with wonderful black and white photos. When visiting Bangkok these days, it is almost impossible to imagine how the city used to be.
It was once the 'Venice of the East', a fascinating, exotic Southeast Asian capital full of Buddhist temples and waterways. All it will be soon is a mass of high-rise condos and shopping malls with a culture of KFC and Starbucks. Thank you America.
This book is highly recommended.
This book is quite charming. It was published in 1968 and is written in the active voice as if the author was just writing a personal journal. James Kirkup has a love of Asia and a deep fondness for Thailand and the Thais. He is very generous with his praise for the Thais, especially when comparing them to the Malaysians and Japanese.
He is a free-spirited traveller who likes to travel alone, meeting strangers and making his own discoveries. He says there is nothing worse than going to a strange, new, fascinating land and being shown around by an expat. I agree. The way he describes his style of travelling is how I like to travel.
Mr Kirkup was obviously impressed with the physical attractiveness of the Thais (both sexes) but there are times when he gets a little carried away, reminding me of Les Dawson's 'Cosmo Smallpiece' character on British TV from many years ago.
"When one is floating along the canals one often sees men and women and children taking a dip in the scummy water: a pretty young Thai girl descends the steps of her house, decently clad in a sarong tied tightly above her breasts instead of around the waist. Those little Thai breasts - how firm, fresh, silken they are!"When he gets like this I want to grab him by the lapels and tell him, "Jai yen yen."
His observations are very keen, and his knowledge of Thai culture extensive. I liked his remark that the Thais are nature's anarchists - I know exactly what he means. It is now impossible to experience Bangkok as James Kirkup did 40 years ago which is a great shame but at least there are many far-flung provinces in Thailand that haven't suffered the same fate as the capital.
The writing style is evocative and romantic, if a little flowery at times, but I found the book thoroughly readable.
The opening chapter poses lots of questions and makes lots of references to a work titled States and Social Revolutions by Theda Skocpol; a work that seems to have influenced the author very much.
I stopped reading and was reluctant to pick it up again. However, flicking through to later chapters I found the section about the position of the monarchy in Thai society quite interesting. There is some good stuff in the book but it is heavy-going and doesn't make for great bedtime reading.
This book is a scholarly research project looking at the relationship between the two countries which includes several polls posing such questions to various groups of Laotians as, "Has Thailand or Have the Thai People Performed Any Friendly Conducts towards Laos, or Not?"
As the title suggests, most opinions are based on perception. The bottom line seems to be that both countries are vitally important for each other but there isn't a huge amount of trust. Probably the same could be said for neighbouring countries all around the world.
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He starts the book with a huge name-drop by paying tribute to his friend who is a Mom Rachawongse (a Thai royal title). Throughout the book we hear lots more about Denis's fame in Thailand and his many and varied discoveries.
Then again, who am I to criticise when some people probably think the same about this web site?
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Written in the style of a daily journal with hand-drawn sketches and charts, it's an interesting account of Thailand during the Golden Age of the Ayuthaya period before the city was completely destroyed by the Burmese 30 years later.
While doing research, M.L. Manich Jumsai - an interesting author - discovered documents concerning King Mongkut (Rama IV) and Sir John Bowring, he of the famous Bowring Treaty, a political and commercial agreement signed between Siam and Great Britain in 1855.
Both were remarkable men. Bowring was a superb diplomat and an extraordinary linguist. I was aware he could speak Thai but I had no idea before reading this book that he could also speak French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Russian, Serbian, Polish, Bohemian, Magyar, Arabic and Chinese!
The book also makes another case for Mongkut as being perhaps the greatest of the great Thai kings. In an era when no one in Siam could speak English, he could. He reformed Buddhist practices, introduced modern science, and started the modernisation of the country that was continued by his son, King Chulalongkorn (Rama V).
In his reign, which lasted just 17 years, he achieved a remarkable amount. The book also makes clear the respect and fondness that these two remarkable men had for each other.
It contains lots of information about Thai history, culture, language, literature, rites and ritual; delving into Buddhism and the ancient animist and spiritualist beliefs of the Thais.
When I first visited in 1987 it was rare for people to go to Thailand and no one I knew then had been before. Published in 1979, this book gives an interesting perspective on Thailand before the onslaught of mass tourism and the Starbucks and MacDonalds culture that now pervades throughout the country.
Pictures of Bangkok show it as a city operating on one level - without roads and trains in the sky - and Mr Khem Klaihangwa, a Bangkok tuk-tuk driver aged 34 from Roi Et featured on page 222, looks as if he has never seen a farang tourist in his life, let alone ripped one off with a Bt10 tour of the city.
If only I could turn the clock back... Unfortunately, the Thailand I yearn to see again has all but been relegated to old books like this one, apart from a few provincial areas that remain almost untouched for the time being.
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(Incidentally, Thai Muslims aren't restricted solely to the south. There are almost a million Muslims in the central region with 570,000 in Bangkok alone.)
This is a well-balanced book that provides historical context to explain the 'Muslim problem' in Thailand.
Actually, with the vast majority of Muslims in Thailand there is absolutely no problem at all, which is quite surprising considering how they have been treated in the past.
Other gems include, "Do not scratch here and scratch there," "Wear a party dress for afternoon tea party or cocktails," "When stirring your tea or coffee, do not let your spoon touch the side of the cup or it will make a lot of noise."
The book reminded me of the occasion when Borat met Lady Chelsea for English etiquette tips. The people who write this kind of stuff have completely lost touch with the real world.
It wouldn't be a bad idea though to get the book translated into Thai for the benefit of Thai people. "Do not pick your nose, your eye or your ear in front of people," "If you have a terrible cold with plenty of phlegm to spit out, do so quietly in a rest room. Do not spit in any public place or in the home in the presence of other people or they will be shocked," "There should not be an audible sound in food chewing or soup drinking," "Turn off all kinds of communication devices (performances and cinema)," etc etc.
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They won't thank me for saying this but the majority of Thais are not good Buddhists. Buddhadassa Bhikku exposed all the nonsense associated with so-called Thai Buddhism; amulets and talismans, blessings with holy water, magic love potions, etc.
He did not seek donations to build ornate temples, nor did he attach himself to politics. He upset a lot of people but at least he made people sit up and think about what Buddhism is really about.
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The Japanese believed they were racially superior to all other races and they also believed that it was dishonourable to be taken as a prisoner; better to commit suicide than to suffer that fate. For both of these reasons they treated Allied POWs with utter contempt and brutality.
But even understanding how the Japanese soldiers felt, it is still difficult for me to comprehend the level of inhumanity that was demonstrated. Seriously ill POWs - suffering from dysentery, cholera, beriberi, tropical ulcers, and other diseases - at half their normal weight were forced to work relentlessly in the tropical heat until they died.
This is not mediaeval history but occurred only about 15 years before I was born and some of the survivors are still alive today. Japanese people always seem so polite and shy whenever I meet them but theirs is a complex culture indeed. It was a terrible episode in Japan's history.
I have included a few extracts from the book here. As I read through the book, I was struck not by how different things were then, but by how little has changed regarding the nature of the Thais.
This book, whose author was born in 1912, promised a lot but didn't deliver quite as much. The first few pages include some great photos from the late 19th and early 20th centuries but the prose that follows is far too flowery and sentimental for my liking when what I actually wanted was factual accounts of life in the country during that time.
One Southeast Asian country alone has the fourth highest population in the world (Indonesia) and the region accounts for 8% of the world's population. When we consider that China and India are the most populous countries in the world, Japan has a population of around 125 million, the Philippines over 90 million, Thailand around the same as France; it shows just what a powerhouse Asia is.
Not only does Indonesia have the world's fourth largest population but it is the biggest Muslim country by population, and Islam is just one of many religions in the area. Along with all the other economic and political problems faced by the region, there has probably never been a more perilous time in human history as a result of problems between the Muslim and Christian worlds - thanks to America.
Before WW2, with the exception of Thailand, the entire Southeast Asian region had European colonial masters before Japan stepped in temporarily during the war only to be followed after the war by the United States, whose style of Imperialism has been slightly more subtle but just as effective.
At one stage of economic development, countries in this region were described as Asian Tigers, but the old problems of massive corruption, exploitation, dictatorships and huge poverty gaps persist; and Communism still has a hold in certain countries. Whatever your views on the region, it is not a part of the world that can be ignored.
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Elections are held in Thailand (just as they are held in Zimbabwe and Burma) but Thai politics is a nasty business and that nastiness reached its zenith under Thaksin Shinawatra's brand of 'democratic' dictatorship and corruption.
Naive people believe that in political systems where elections take place, it is the people that hold power. That is not true anywhere on earth - the United States included - and it is most definitely not the case in Thailand.
This book, published in 1979 by Thammasat University - the centre of political thinking in Thailand - is just as relevant today as it was then and explains where the balance of political power in Thailand really lies. And let me tell you, it's not with the peasant farmers and the rural masses who turn up at the local school or temple at election time to cast their vote.
The majority of rural Thais, due to low education and the strong culture of patronage, are incapable of making decisions on their own. As the book explains, "There is a concept of the strongman/saviour (phunam) figure who is a guardian of the national will and whose decisions are to be followed and obeyed by a grateful public."
"The position of the citizenry has been relegated to secondary importance having duties to perform for the glory and survival of the state," and one of those duties is voting for whoever their village headman tells them to vote for. (In addition, significant monetary handouts - in the form of hard cash and, in Thaksin's case, economically unsustainable populist policies - also help to make the process flow smoothly.)
Under the right leadership, this system can work but the leader needs to have a strong sense of moral duty. Under the wrong leadership where a leader has no morals, it can be a disaster, as was demonstrated under Thaksin.
In 2001 - while Thailand was still reeling from the shock of the 1997 Asian financial crisis - Thaksin seemed to have all the right credentials to become the national strongman/saviour figure. There was an overwhelming belief that he was the only man capable of getting the country back on its feet.
This feeling was so strong among all Thais (including those who would probably deny it now) that even as a result of being tried for asset concealment immediately after coming to power, the Constitutional Court let him off the hook despite overwhelming evidence proving his guilt.
He should have been found guilty then and banned from politics for five years, thus preventing him ever from coming to power. As it was, Thailand chose to ignore his crimes but it proved to be a fatal mistake which would come back to haunt the country for many years afterwards.
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