5 comments about Coming Home Crazy: An Alphabet of China Essays.

1. Bill brings back memories of life in China and the amazing difficulties people deal with daily.
   My time in Guangzhou in the south only varied by climate with Bill's Xian existence, and his wish to return to these education-loving students is familiar as I observe the attitudes of American students falter. I could smell the baoudze and see the Overseas Chinese tai chi in the parks just from enveloping myself in the book on my Metro train. Missed a few stops, too. Thank you Bill for your caring rendition of the life and I wish you continued travel to China.



2. If you are looking for the "definitive China book," this is not it. Read something else. But if you are interested in how Americans cope with a year or two's posting as a teacher in a Chinese university -- or if you have been, or will be, on such a posting yourself -- you may well enjoy this book.
   
   It's organized as a series of vignettes which average five to ten pages. The vignettes are kind of like diary entries. They describe daily life, bureaucracy, teaching, food, travel, friends, housing, and so forth. This kind of information can be hard to find. Of course the author went to China in the late 1980s, and a lot has changed since then.
   
   This is not a book that was buffed and polished, edited, re-edited, and beautifully designed by a big publishing house looking to make it into a best seller, like Peter Hessler's "River Town." The up side is that it is very genuine and lacks the slightly annoying preciousness of "River Town." It's more like going to a slide presentation at the house of your neighbor who just came back from China, and being handed a photocopy of the journal they kept.



3. Travel stories of teaching English in Japan have almost become cliche. This story of a Minnesota native visiting China was an interesting twist on the old tale. It was enjoyable reading Mr. Holm's adventures (and misadventures - those always seem to be more enjoyable) as he visited China, before it became the trendy Giant. Another variance on similar works is that Mr. Holm is a legitamite college teacher, not a wanderer using education as a visa. As such, his writing is of a higher quality than usual in the genre, and he is more qualified to speak of the educational environment.
   
   The observations are very interesting, especially as the experience is pre-Tienneman. What's it like when the communists are watching your every move? How do is teaching in China different than Minnesota? What's Mickey Mouse mean over there? The story meanders in alphabetic manner, perhaps also suggesting that our trip memories don't always follow a linear logic.
   
   As the title would suggest, the strongest pieces of the book are the chapters of the return. It is hard to identify personal tranformation in the midst of the journey. You notice it when you come home crazy.



4. I have three, soon to be four adopted kids from China so I read as many books as I can about China. I was really looking forward to this book as some fellow adoptive parents had given it good reviews. I did enjoy the book and there were certain sections that were more entertaining than others but the main problem I had with it was parts of it were too literary and intellectual for my taste. I was looking more for a good fun read but unfortunately I don't share the same enthusiasm for literature and was lost of some of the references. China has also changed quite a bit since his visits in the 80s but it was interesting to see his perspective as an English teacher when access was certainly not what it is today. My favorite chapter was the Swiss Army Knife chapter and I got some real chuckles out of it and I am now seriously considering a new Swiss Army knife for my husbands birthday so he will have one for our next trip to China. I think Peter Hesslers book River Town overall is an easier read but the nice thing about Mr. Holm's book is you can just pick it up and read any chapter since its not sequential. Its a good book to read when you only have a few minutes at a time and you won't feel lost when you get a chance to come back to it.



5. As an expat currently living in China, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I find myself hoping to read other books by him as well.

5 comments about Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa.

1. Japan has always fascinated me; its history, culture, cuisine, sights and sounds. For me, there is a familiarity, yet an ever-present mystique about the country. I had the opportunity to visit Japan twice, however, such short, touristy 2-week jaunts could never yield such a revelatory look into Japan, as author Karin Muller has provided in her travelogue, Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa. She writes with such candor and honesty, engaging in activities, meeting people, and experiencing things that most of us could only dream of. If you have even a remote interest in Japan, I highly recommend this book. Muller's engaging storytelling and enchanting writing style whisks you through her adventures in Japan like a speeding Shinkansen. A definite must-read for any Japanophile or anyone wishing to experience Japan vicariously.



2. I wanted to read this book after catching the Japanland series on PBS. I have always been fascinated with Japan, and the television episodes interested me. I thought that by reading the book, I might get some information that was left out of the series.
   
   Although the book has some neat and interesting information, I was disappointed with the book as a whole. To be sure, I liked the information about different cultural institutions, but the core of the first two hundred pages was more focused on the author's self confidence issues in a foreign land. This seems like a situation where the reader might feel sympathy for her, but I felt none. I felt that while she wrote that she was trying to be accepted, she was only being stubborn, and trying to express how superior her own ideas were; there were many situations where she asks a native something like, "why would you do that?" or "I did this instead, since what they said didn't make sense to me."
   
   The last one hundred pages were more enjoyable because she stopped focusing on herself, and wrote more about the different cultural institutions. The last few pages in which she tries to bring the whole experience together and claim that she finally gleamed some understanding did not seem authentic. Rather, I could not get rid of the impression that she was more interested in writing a book and filming a documentary than actually finding some sort of `wa,' since that is all that she seemed interested in during the end of the trip. Thus, the central premise of the book did not seem to hold, and because that lacked, so did any sympathy for the author. It all seemed just too phony.
   
   Because I am not Japanese, I cannot attest to the errors regarding her interpretation of certain customs. In fact, I have read in other books things that seem to confirm some of these errors that others have pointed out; perhaps I have read the same out of date books as Muller.



3. Karin Muller describes her year in Japan as a search for "wa" or inner harmony. This is a literary construct--an entirely unconvincing one-- designed to tie together a series of travel stories that are really defined by restlessness, not harmony, as Muller and her camera bounce from one unusual festival or cultural practice to another. Then there is the motif of the Rules and Regulations that Muller keeps bumping into, which usually lead to her being Rejected. This happens with the host mother, Yukiko, most notably, and with each encounter I began to feel a little more sympathy for Yukiko, esepcially when Muller attempted to improve the family garden with a vegetable patch. (Yukiko is referred to as Muller's "nemsis" on the paperback cover blurb--a good way to sell the book, I guess.) Muller may be a good filmmaker (I have not seen the PBS series), but she's not a particularly good writer. She tells her stories in the present tense, evidently to give a sense of action and immediacy, which is wearying after a while and leads to way too many sentences that begin "I + verb". Check out page 205, for example, and just count them, if you doubt me. Muller also has a weakness for the unfortunate simile; when she described being cold after a naked swim in the sea as "I feel my body stiffening like a piece of roadkill after the sun goes down" I almost gave up on the book altogether. Occasionally Muller must supply historical background to explain what has drawen her to a particular place, but each time it has the awkward feel of a sidebar. Finally, there is her tendency to make sweeping generalizations ("courtesy is bred into their DNA," and so on) that makes you realize that Muller doesn't really like Japan or the Japanese very much.There are some interesting stories in this book, but I would not recommend it as a guide to Japan. I should say in all fairness that I read this book right after finishing "Oracle Bones", Peter Hessler's wonderful book about China. Hessler, in addition to his scholarship and years of living in China, has what I call a quiet eye. He's wonderfully observant and skillfully brings just enough of himself into the narrative to convey his personality and interests. Muller's "Japanland" is too frantic and self-absorbed to convey much that's truly interesting or new about Japan. Maybe the country needs a Peter Hessler.



4. Karin Muller's memoir/travelogue of her year spent in Japan is almost two books in one. The first half of the book describes her failed relationship with Yukiko, the perfect Japanese housewife of the host family in Tokyo that took her in. Muller's story recounts the differences between American and Japanese culture and the societal roles expected in Japan that can make or break a relationship. As an unmarried, free-thinking, American traveler and writer, Muller is anything but Japanese when placed in a society that demands sacrifice based on society's expectations. Finally, after months of struggling, Muller left her host family and moves into what is described as an alley in Japan's second-largest city, Osaka.
   
   That is where the travelogue portion of her book begins. In an effort to create a documentary on Japan, Muller travels the country to find the lost Japan of centuries ago. Her writing style is engaging and her thoughts are often insightful. Her portrait of Japan would be helpful to any beginner of Japanese studies and culture, but is most valuable, if not more entertaining, to those already familiar with the culture, language and the people.



5. I would recommend this book to anyone that wants to know more about Japan or wants to visit Japan-not only would it make a great tourist guide, it also would tell you how to act (or how NOT to act) in any given situation so as to not insult the natives. She makes her experiences in Japan so real that I felt I was there; I felt like I was her. When her host mother delivers the most stinging insult to Ms. Muller, I felt as badly as if she'd insulted me personally. When she experiences the purest generosity from strangers, I was crying, too.
   For the first time since I had a superficial friendship with a Japanese woman, I felt like I was actually coming to begin to understand how the Japanese think. The one thing I still have a question about is Ms. Muller's statement that it is illegal to employ woman over the age of 30; they are expected to be married and settled down to have kids and care for the home by 30. But my friend was an entrepeneur-granted, she was under 30, but she owned her own clothing store and even when she was engaged to marry an American, they planned on running her store together while he taught English on the side after they married. Her parents, wealthy business people, did not seem to have any problem with her marrying an American or continuing to run her store after wedding him. Perhaps they were more modern than the average family?
   I don't know, but her novel left me thirsting for more-more of her witty observations and self-deprecating humor. She tried harder than anyone I've ever known to fit in and experience each event and moment to it's fullest. She never stood by as an observer, she was always leaping, head first, right in to learn and help-sometimes to her own chagrin or detriment. This was an excellent read and I could not wait to get back to it every chance I got. I'd happily recommend it to anyone who has a thirst for knowledge or curiosity about Japan.

5 comments about Across China.

1. This book is written from the viewpoint of an American with little knowledge of China. I think it is an entertaining book about new and unique experiences. It is not intended to be a deep study about China.

   I'm just finished the book (it's now 2003). I believe Peter's trip to China took place in 1984. I'm sure things have changed a great deal in the last 19 years!

   I would recommend this book.




2. This book is disappointingly adolescent. The writing is stale, especially given the imagination-stimulating possibilities when encountering a new culture, but its worst failing is the barely hidden--and quite possibly even written unawares--xenophobia. Much of the description is insulting--meant to be amusing, I suspect, but Jenkins comes across as a man who is determined to vaunt America and disparage Chinese history and culture. From the very beginning, still in the States, when he describes one of his "favorite waitresses" as having "a perm and wears tight pants", I squirmed. Did a teacher never help him distinguish between `telling detail' and pointless detail? More disturbing here, perhaps: is he unaware of the negative implications of this description? I wouldn't want to be any favorite of his. It's dated, yes--his never having met any "Orientals" (his description), say--but beyond this, the picture is flat, strained in its sentimental description, and the narrator comes across as self-absorbed and unsympathetic. For a far more comprehensive and thought-provoking picture of China in the 80s, and beautifully written, try Colin Thubron's, Behind the Wall.



3. this is an exciting and easy read. i couldn't put it down!



4. Have read most of Peter's books, his walks across America, his boat trip around the Gulf of Mexico, his adventures to Alaska and find this book to be in keeping with his personna as a traveling author. His writing style is a bit folksy and down to earth. In his books, you do feel like your traveling alongside him, meeting the people and experiencing the trip. Through the books, you come to know a lot about his life and family as well as wherever he is traveling. Certainly his books will not go down as a marvel of literary accomplishment, but I do enjoy simply sitting back seeing new places and experiences though the eyes of someone who has taken the initiative to travel places and write about it for us readers. All in all his books are good, comforting reads. And I'd recommend this and any of his books if you're looking for a story of one's travels to places we otherwise may never visit. Lastly, it's probably worth noting that China has radically changed since this book was written, so it's somewhat dated, yet looking past that, it's a glimpse into another place, another time.



5. I picked up this book at a book sale, and it wasn't worth the 50 cents I payed for it. but that's about it. It reads like the author is describing a story that someone else told him, and describing it badly. The writing is patronizing, assuming we don't know how to pronounce city names like "Lhasa", and explaining what a crevasse is. the characters are flat, and the adventure isn't exciting. This is an example of someone who got a book just because they did something that unusual, and maybe who they knew, not on their writing abilities. I would recommend that you do not read this book. Rather pick up Colin Thurbrons "Shadow of the silk Road" The pages he's in china paint an infinitely better picture of China this this book does.

3 comments about Japan.

1. Hiroji Kubota takes the reader on a wonderful visual feast of Japan. His photos cover all aspects of Japanese life, from the very ancient to the very modern. The captions for the photos are at the back with an accompanying black and white print of the photo.
   A beautiful coffee table book.



2. I have sent 7 emials and made 5 phone calls and I still haven't received the book - its a month overdue and every emial I try and send you bounces back - your help page on the website doesnt work with my IE latest version browser - when I click on your customer service page it closes my browser everytime.
   
   You suck - I used amazon several times and there are always problems - I want my money back and go elsewhere



3. These photos cover so many facets of daily life in Japan. I traveled through Japan last year, even visiting a few of the places depicted in the book, and these photos evoked the same kind of emotion I had while being there. From the sumptious food and diverse culture to the juxtaposing of modern and ancient Kubota captures it all. If you love or are fascinated with Japan, then you will not be disappointed with this book.

No comments about Time Out Mumbai and Goa (Time Out Guides).

5 comments about In the Footsteps of Alexander The Great: A Journey from Greece to Asia.

1. I'll keep this as brief as possible. The book is a well conceived mixture of the history Alexander the Great's Asian conquests and the story of author Michael Wood's quest to follow Alexander's voyage throughout Asia and film it all for a BBC miniseries. He not only draws on the traditional sources such as Arrian and Plutarch, but also on local legends in the areas Alexander captured. The photographs are beautiful, and the maps help give a geographical perspective to the reader. An easy, interesting read, the book can be read in one evening by devoting full attention to the book.
   The only criticism I have is one that is unavoidable by Wood. There are parts that tend to drag a bit, by giving casualty estimates and exact military strategies that would most likely not appeal to the average reader. The best aspect, however, is how Michael Wood gives insight to a brutal, raging alcoholic treated all too kindly by Arrian. It is worth the money to someone genuinely interested in history, but don't waste your time if you're not willing to give the attention this book deserves.



2. The story of Alexander The Great remains just as relevant today as it did when the "Alexander Romance" was published many centuries ago, consider that many of the areas he conquered such as Iraq and Iran are still international hot spots today when it comes to the current state of the world. Michael Wood's "In The Footsteps Of Alexander The Great" is an entertaining read because it plays like a cultural travelogue, documenting how the story of Alexander is still passed down from generation to generation in Greece and the Middle East. In some places he is a heroe, in others a ruthless barbarian, even a devil. Woods writes about his journey down Alexander's trek with vivid details, providing fascinating insights into other corners of the globe and the customs found therein. For readers who enjoy learning and reading about other countries and their traditions this will prove to be a fascinating trip. However, the only thing that makes Woods' book not the gem it should be is that in his actual writing of Alexander's history he subscribes to much of what has already been dismissed as propaganda by historians like Robin Lane Fox and authors like Mary Renault. It is no surprise that since Woods is after all making a TV program here, he indulges in the more wild, ear-catching legends surrounding Alexander such as the burning of a temple for the sake of doing something fun when drunk (eventhough Alexander, as was common in Macedon and Greece, enjoyed wine to excessive lengths) and the killing of Betis by dragging him from a chariot to imitate Achilles (this is ridiculous considering Alexander always honored opponents who fought bravely). Woods apparently likes using information gathered from writers like Cleitarchus, who is notorious for writing fictitous accounts with exaggerated numbers, events and even Socrates made fun of the guy for his flights of fancy. Luckily Woods is not writing a biography here but an account of the current state of the lands Alexander conquered and it's peoples. As a journey through these areas and as a look at how potent the image and story of Alexander are today there is no better book. But for an actual reading of the life and times of Alexander The Great, I recommend "Alexander The Great" by Robin Lane Fox and "The Nature Of Alexander" by Mary Renault, two others who write with a more serious sense of scholarship.



3. This is an outstanding book that covers the DVD of the same title.The pictures are wonderful.The reading itself is fascinating.It is divided into several sections that takes us step by step through Alexander's conquests, with ancient cities and today's actual names.
   Mr.Wood is a natural in writing ancient history.I hope he continues exploring and taking us with him,in places we cannot go.



4. Wood's book is problematic in a variety of ways, but it's predominant flaw is that it examines the actions and personality of a man who lived 2300 years ago through the prism of a thoroughly contemporary morality. Wood is fond of passing judgement, and does so with all the political correctness (and all the ancestral guilt) of a 21st century Anglo-Saxon man. To impose our world view on the world of Alexander and on the man himself is to disfigure them both. Behavior that seems odd, irrational or morally reprehensible to us had a completely different significance in Macedonian society (and Persian society) at that period in history. Alexander was acting within his reality -- he was a man of his time, and to lose sight of this leads Wood to misinterpret. He enjoys it rather too much for the account to feel balanced.
   
   The depth of his research one cannot vouch for, but however extensive it might have been, the story he presents to the reader is incomplete and his exploration of the material is shallow. The 'facts' he presents are sometimes incorrect, and when they are events whose truth remains in doubt, he fails to mention it unless it suits his agenda. He dispatches significant events in Alexander's life in a sentence or two, yet spends entire paragraphs on his own feelings about the journey and in freely imagining for the reader what a man from another culture was feeling and thinking over 2000 years ago. He takes account of biases in the source material rather selectively, and often does not even identify his sources.
   
   I have read better researched and better considered books on this subject. The photographs that accompany the book are excellent, and the maps quite good and easy to follow, but the content is best passed over.



5. If you pick this up, don't expect any in-depth or informative analysis of Alexander's life, conquests, tactics, motives or personality; expect a Junior High School reading-level synopsis of the route traveled by Alexander's army with brief, sporadic, uncohesive glimpses of major events along the way. The pictures add a bit of life to dehydratated and uninspired prose.

4 comments about GROOVY BANGKOK MAP 'N' GUIDE.

1. If you are traveling to or through Bangkok, do yourself a favor and get this guide! It highlights key places, has helpful hints to get around, and is laminated in a handy pocket size. We just moved to Bangkok and this map (and the pocket sized thai phrasebook) never leave my husband's pocket. So far all of the recommendations and hints on the map have been very accurate and good. By the way, an all-important aspect of this is it's in ENGLISH. Some maps aren't.
   
   
   (You can read more glowing reviews for the older version of this map but BUY THIS EDITION! The updates make it worth it!)



2. This groovy map is the key to opening the amazing city of Bangkok. Unfold the map and you have the tour guide who doesn't get in the way, the buddy who knows all the right places to go, and the time of your life in the city that never sleeps. This map was everything I needed to know and all the places I wanted to go laid out in detailed, cartographic format. Use it with my book: Foreign Relations: A Comic Guide to Thai Ladies and be ready for a good time.



3. I can't really understand the other reviews praising this map and guide. The map is a good one, yes. But the "guide" part is so highly opinionated that if you don't "groove" in the same track as the author, it's of no use. There is NOT a Thai phrase guide as indicated by another reviewer, only "Hello" and "Thanks"! There are also no monetary amounts (in any currency) attached to the pricing guide for restaurants (just a number of "$" with silly expressions like "You call this a bill" and "I got the last one"). What's expensive, or cheap, to one traveler might not be to another depending on the meaning of the symbols. Buy it for the map, but not for the guide!



4. This Groovy Bangkok Guide was brilliant. The reviews are to the point but also witty and I like the fact that the author lives in the city and has done all his life so you feel like he really knows where to go and whats right to do when you are in Bangkok. Most places are where he would take his own friends when they are in town. The best was the listing of all the shopping spots for stuff you want to buy but dont know where to go (silver, silk, jewelry, good gifts, markets) and also a pretty good listing for beauty salons and spas.

No comments about Singapore Complete Residents' Guide.

5 comments about Short Walk in the Hindu Kush, A.

1. Unlike other critics, I had a hard time dealing with Newby's commitment to sticking to the facts and his telling the story free of any detours into what it meant to him or what he had learned about himself or his countrymen along the way. Perhaps an appreciation for his style comes after one has read enough travel books that he/she sees the kind of wistfulness for which I had hoped as useless, cliched BS. But, being a relative novice to the genre, I lacked that kind of cynicism and, consequently, did not enjoy the book as much as I had hoped to.
   
   Also, my lack of familiarity with central Asian geography and history hendered my enjoyment of the book. Newby usually relies on an assumed foreknowledge of the reader, so he doesn't spend much time explaining things. This made it hard for me as I oftentimes had to go back a few pages to figure out where he was or what particular tribe with which he was currently encountering.
   
   Furthermore, I personally have a hard time with large, Moslem names, so it was very hard to remember who all of the locals were, what their jobs were, what their personalities were like, and how they had already interacted with Newby. This may have been more due to my laziness than Newby's writing, though, so it's hard to fault him on that front.
   
   I was somewhat disappointed with this book; however, I can see why many people enjoy it and why it has garnered critical acclaim. For seasoned travel book readers or those with a high familiarity with central Asia (especially around the Pakistani-Afghan border), though, I think this book would be right up your alley.



2. "A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush" by Eric Newby (1958) is a minor classic among travel books that was, recently for me, a true pleasure to read. It's new info, insightful, light but not shallow, humorous, yet apropos to current events. Its preface by one of my favorite 'snobs' (Evelyn Waugh) was enough recommendation for me. An amateur British mountain climber with his sidekick in the wild mountains of North-east Afghanistan. Very subtle, very English. Eric Newby died in 2006. I'm happy he was a writer.



3. I got this book on the recommendation from the book Afghanistan: A Companion and Guide, which described it as "among the best travel books ever written". Having read the book, I would have to agree.
   
   This book could be a humor book almost as much as a travel book. Newby's style of writing is, at times, felt like watching a Monty Python sketch in its dry British humor and the unexpected places that one constantly found it coming up.
   
   Eric Newby starts the book as a man working in the fashion industry after World War II, who realizes that he's in the wrong job. He calls up a friend who worked for the foreign service in Afghanistan and asks him if he wants to go to Nuristan in northeast Afghanistan. He quits he jobs, does four days of mountain climbing in Great Britian, and heads off.
   
   I will not spoil the adventures he has just in getting there but will say that they are amazing, unexpected and fascinating. You really get the sense of a seat-of-your-pants road trip in the way that he almost blindly goes into what would be anyone's trip of a lifetime.
   
   His description of Afghanistan and its people who he meets and who guide him is wonderful and accurate to everything I have seen in this country myself. To anyone who likes travel books or simply wants to read a fascinating adventure, you need to read this book.



4. I love this book, his humor and imagination, the descriptions. It's his best!
   Highly Recommended!



5. Ok, I have read the reviews about this book, most of which have "got it" and some of whom have not. Firstly get a map or even better a globe (a kind of round map) and see just how far London (England) is from Afghanistan. Now try and imagine driving there in a family car, not one of those road going ocean liners known I believe as "SUV's", through countries, some of which are considered too dangerous for westerners to enter.
   
   Remember that even at the time of writing, Britain was still recovering from the effects of WW2, indeed rationing continued until 1954, and those who had the money to travel might have considered a trip by train to Blackpool (a seaside resort in the north-west of England) quite an adventure. So the idea of on a whim jumping into the family jalopy and driving 2/3 of the way around the world might be considered a tad eccentric. The 2 adventurers are total amateurs, if I remember rightly; they are stuck on a glacier half way up the mountain, and have to refer to their mountain climbing textbook on how to get off it!
   
   Imagine 2 gentlemen after having a couple of gliding lessons deciding to build a rocket in their back garden and go into space? That's the sort of order of magnitude of adventure that Newby and Carless embarked on. Also one has to bear in mind that in the 50's, Afghanistan was to all intents and purposes cut off from the "modern" world and quite literally the back of beyond.
   
   As a Brit, I am aware of the issues of our colonial past, but I still retain a soft spot for the pith helmeted "gentleman adventurer", the sort of people who in the 20's might have climber Everest but turned back when they couldn't get the grand piano and rowing boat past the 5th base camp at 27,000 ft.
   
   It's hard to describe in these days of Google earth how large the world was in those days. Its been many years since I read this book, and I am writing this review because I have loaned it to a friend who is going to Kathmandu for a wedding and wanted to give to her a book to read on the plane that would make her laugh.
   
   This book is unlikely, and funny, and I feel the world is a little sadder for the loss of the generation of men who could attempt such whimsy.

No comments about Illustrated Catalog of Chinese Coins, Vol. 1: Gold, Silver, Nickel and Aluminum (Illustrated Catalog of Chinese Coins).