5 comments about High Adventure: The True Story of the First Ascent of Everest.

1. It seems to me that Hillary's account of his Everest summit is honestly written. I found his writing style engaging, not because it was good, per say, but because it seemed to be a normal guy saying what he felt needed to be said. His style and opinions were very 1950's, and I don't think he meant any harm to anyone, sherpas and whatnot. I liked it. The fact that Hillary never saw a mountain until he was 16 makes me think I have a shot at Everest someday...



2. HIGH ADVENTURE is Sir Edmund Hillary's engaging and somewhat self-effacing account of the first recorded successful Everest ascent in 1953.
   
   An earlier reviewer describes Hillary as "a bigot," I suppose because he describes the Sherpas he worked with as "coolies." Of course, HIGH ADVENTURE was written in 1955, when attitudes were much different. And Hillary, far from being self-aggrandizing, seems to shun the spotlight.
   
   Certainly, Hillary makes fairly little of his pre-Everest climbs, although they undoubtedly made him a splendid mountaineer. His lyrical voice for settings and experiences is fine, though never as poetical as Peter Matthiessen in THE SNOW LEOPARD, who traversed much of the same ground.
   
   One of the shortcomings of this book is the lack of an Afterword in the new edition. One has to wonder what Hillary thinks of Everest's now chintzy, clockworked guided climbs. For a view from today's polluted top of the mountain read Jon Ktrakauer's INTO THIN AIR.



3. (I read the hard-cover edition which is not in stock at Amazon at the time of writing this.)
   
   The outcome of the adventure - the first successful summit climb of Everest - is a well-known fact. However, Hillary's telling of the story makes a gripping tale, well worth reading. Sometimes the matter-of-fact narration makes you think those climbs and hazards were really easy. A look at the black and white photos (in the paperback edition I have, these are separate plates) of the ice walls and crevasses dispels such fantasies! Even following well-trodden routes up the Everest is no mean task; it is awe-inspiring to read about the route-finders' story in first person.
   
   The book talks about not only the actual climb of Everest, but events leading up to it for the previous two years. Some of these are amazing feats of strength and courage, and give an understanding of the spirit of the original pioneers. For instance, Hillary and his friend ford various rivers in full monsoon strength - they not only ford it once, but ferry across terrified porters with massive loads, multiple times. They spend days together fording such rivers and helping porters across with their luggage. All this only to reach the foothills of the Himalayas, this is only the precursor to the actual climbing. Then almost as an aside, Hillary talks about rafting down a river and being caught in a whirlpool.
   
   The tone of the book remains light and easy. Hillary describes reaching the summit as a moment of quiet satisfaction, nothing over-dramatized. The story talks for itself I guess, there's no need for adding drama to it.



4. This is Hillary's engaging first person account of his Everest Summit.
   
   Overall impression: The first and latter chapters are by far the best. The second and third chapters contain surveying narratives which didn't engage me all that much. I read the book in two days whenever I had a moment to read it... I had it with me at all times because I was dying to read the next page. Great book.
   
   What I loved about it: By the time you get to the final two chapters, you feel like you are summitting with them. I knew they would make it, of course, but while you are reading you have this suspention of reality and there are moments where you just don't see how they can possibly make it. The description of what he was thinking in these unchartered regions kept me glued! Also, the description and map of the Khumbu icefall left my jaw dropped. These were very brave men!
   
   What I didn't like about it: The descriptions of the treks between the camps on everest (back and forth, back and forth) tended to blend together. I felt like he could have cut some of that narrative (i.e. going back for more supplies, checking on people, etc..)
   
   Conclusion: You won't regret buying the book. I can't help but think his goal was to include everything he could remember just to get it documented, even if some of the information doesn't necessarily advance the story you were expecting to read. It's 70% thrill and 30% redundancy or extranias information. Still a great book.
   
   Here is one thing that nags me though. THE BIG QUESTION: Hillary was competitive. He admits he was happyt to hear that the Swiss team did not summit. He was not assigned to be the first of his team to summit, yet he does not tell us he was dissapointed by that decision! C'mon! He MUST have been. Also, when the first team failed, he didn't admit that a part of him was happy that he had his shot to be the first! That seems like normal human behavior and also fitting with his previous comments. The fact that he didn't talk about his emotions during those events tells me he doesn't want to come off as a bad sport.
   
   Add the book the your library!



5. The funny thing is that people probably eschew this book, thinking it's written in "old fashioned" terminology or it's "just another summit book."
   
   Nothing could be further from the truth. Hillary's enthusiasm for mountain climbing punctuates every page (literally; I don't think there's a page in the book that lacks an exclamation point). He talks about the technicalities of climbing with ease and in accessible language, and he regards the mountains as beings in their own right, worthy of respect and awe.
   
   In addition, the edition of the book I read, despite being a paperback, was illustrated not only with line drawings reminiscent of Arthur Ransome's books, but with simple maps and diagrams showing exactly where the various glaciers are or the path through the Khombu icefall (not nearly as simple as later books/authors make it seem!). These diagrams add even more personality to an already-fascinating book, and give the reader a real sense of what these explorers faced.
   
   This is an enthralling book that goes along at a great pace and it was definitely over too soon. Give it a try: it's worth at least a dozen of the whiny 70's mountaineering books!

2 comments about Zheng He: China and the Oceans in the Early Ming Dynasty, 1405-1433 (Library of World Biography Series) (Library of World Biography).

1. The table of contents, which I've reproduced at the end of this, gives a good idea of the book's coverage and organization. Dreyer is a professor of history at the University of Miami, where he teaches Asian history, Chinese history, and military history. His previous publications include studies of early Ming political history (based on his 1971 Harvard dissertation) and China's experience of war in the first half of the 20th century.
   
   The author surveys the secondary literature and draws upon some earlier reconstructions which he finds credible and consistent, particularly in the matter of the voyages' itineraries. However, he relies on the primary sources (and a smattering of archeological evidence) in every respect. Indeed, at the end of the book he provides his own critical translations of the key primary sources.
   
   He works through the background and issues in a methodical manner, carefully evaluating the evidence in light of his extensive knowledge of early Ming history. Naturally this does not make exciting beach reading, but Dreyer does a good job of making the exposition clear and straightforward. The glossary provides brief entries for all of the places and people mentioned, in the event one loses track.
   
   The only lapses I could see seem to be in his knowledge of European history, where he repeats a few obsolete views: "[W]hat drew the Western powers into the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia in the first place was the wealth they could gain by controlling the seaborne trade of the region." (p. 8) "[B]roadside firing and line ahead tactics ... only began in European waters almost two centuries after Zheng He." (p. 56) These are minor issues of degree that do not materially affect the value of the book.
   
   One very welcome surprise is Dreyer's judicious and well-informed evaluation of the design of the ships of the Treasure Fleets.
   
   Dreyer does not address the speculations and assertions of Gavin Menzies regarding far-flung voyaging, except to remark dryly on pages 29-30 that they rest on an assumption that exploration was a major purpose of the voyages (an assumption Dreyer demolishes quite thoroughly) and on pages 182-3 that it is very unlikely that the ships could have gotten far along Menzies' track before coming to grief. Surely the Chinese, with their nautical knowledge and skills, would have gone about exploration in a very different manner, had they had the intent.
   
   Throughout, the author is skeptical in the best sense, carefully examining and weighing the evidence on each point, unswayed by preconceptions. This leads him to many conclusions that diverge from those of previous authors, always convincingly. Unless and until new evidence appears (possibly from marine archeology) this is likely to remain the definitive treatment of this interesting and revealing facet of Chinese history.
   
   One of the best services Dreyer performs is to cut through the layers of projection and romance that have been overlaid on these voyages in respect of their purpose, conduct, and consequences. He insists, with strong documentary support, that the purpose was "to enforce outward compliance with the forms of the Chinese tributary system by the show of an overwhelming armed force" [p. 163, and passim] as a means of bolstering the Yongle emperor's political position and perhaps self-esteem. Dreyer scotches the notion that these were voyages of discovery or exploration in the European sense, adventurous though they were in their own terms. He makes clear their astronomical expense and how they contributed to economic pressures on the empire, and stresses that there were very real practical reasons (in addition to the undoubted cultural and political ones) for the opposition to them expressed by many senior scholar-bureaucrats. And he shows that far from being peaceful and amicable diplomatic missions they involved heavy measures of coercive force. It certainly lay within China's power to have constructed an Asian maritime empire much as the Europeans later did, but not within China's powers of conception. It equally was open to the Chinese to have gone exploring at least as widely was the Europeans were to, but that also was unthinkable in Beijing. And no one in China could do such things without imperial command.
   
   The book is modestly but well produced, with good binding and stock. There is one overall map, a diagram showing Dreyer's concept of the design of a "treasure ship," and a few relevant illustrations. Oddly the house style seems to eschew source notes, but it is usually possible to identify sources in the general notes at the back of the book. Overall, the publishers deserve thanks for a valuable and high-quality monograph issued at a reasonable price.
   
   TABLE OF CONTENTS
   
   I. The Enigma of Zheng He.
   
   The Chinese Tributary System and the Purpose of Zheng He's Voyages.
   
   Traditional Chinese Interpretations of Zheng He's Career.
   
   Zheng He's Voyages and Western Imperial Expansion.
   
   Zheng He's Voyages and the Course of Chinese History.
   
   Historical Problems in the Interpretation of Zheng He's Career.
   
   II. Zheng He's Early Life and His Patron Emperor Yongle.
   
   The Fall of the Yuan and the Rise of Zhu Yuanzhang to 1368.
   
   The Reign of Emperor Hongwu, 1368-1398.
   
   Civil War, 1398-1402.
   
   Yongle's Reign as Emperor, 1402-1424.
   
   III. China and the Asian Maritime World in the Time of Zheng He.
   
   The Purpose of Zheng He's Voyages.
   
   Patterns of Trade in the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.
   
   The Malay-Indonesian World in the Hongwu Era.
   
   Southern India and Ceylon in the Time of Zheng He.
   
   IV. Sailing to India: Zheng He's First, Second and Third Voyages.
   
   The First Voyage, 1405-1407.
   
   The Second Voyage, 1407-1409.
   
   The Third Voyage, 1409-1411.
   
   V. Sailing to Africa: Zheng He's Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Voyages.
   
   The Fourth Voyage, 1412/14-1415.
   
   The Fifth Voyage, 1417-1419.
   
   The Sixth Voyage, 1421-1422.
   
   The Last Years of the Yongle Reign, 1422-1424.
   
   VI. The Ships and Men of Zheng He's Fleets.
   
   Dimensions and Displacements of the Treasure Ships.
   
   Masts and Sails.
   
   Shipbuilding Notices in the Taizong Shilu.
   
   Shipbuilding Costs.
   
   Numbers of Ships in Each of the Voyages.
   
   Personnel.
   
   VII. Zheng He's Career after 1424 and His Final Voyage.
   
   Ming China in the Hongxi (1424-25) and Xuande (1425-35) Reigns.
   
   Zheng He's Career from 1424 to 1430.
   
   Zheng He's Inscriptions at Liujiagang and Changle.
   
   Zheng He's Seventh and Final Voyage, 1431-1433.
   
   VIII. The Legacy of Zheng He.
   
   Appendix. Translations of Primary Sources.
   
   Zheng He's Biography in Mingshi 304.2b-4b.
   
   Zheng He's 1431 Inscriptions.
   
   Glossary.
   
   Note on Sources.
   
   Index.



2. Edward Dreyer's book on Zheng He is a disappointment. I had known about Zheng He through Louise Levathes' When China Ruled the Seas and the PBS documentary, "1421: The Year that China Discovered America?" as well as a previous book by Dreyer about Ming China. I had never believed in the far-fetched theory that Zheng He discovered America, but I did feel that his missions were a tremendous achievement which were good for China and that it was a tragedy that they were stopped. Dreyer trivializes Zheng He's accomplishments. He denies that he furthered trade while giving example after example of how he did so. His only real contribution is to show that Zheng He's ships were less seaworthy than is generally believed because they were built on a river (the Yangzte) and had a very shallow draught. But then, they did not have to be capable of sailing far on the open ocean in order to travel the trade network between China and the Near East. I believe that these productive and promising voyages were halted because of the Emperor Yongle's other projects, such as the wars in Vietnam and against the Mongols, and his building of the Forbidden City in Beijing, which conflicted and competed with them for money. Dreyer denies this theory but says nothing to disprove it.

1 comments about Time Out Hong Kong: Macau and Guangzhou (Time Out Guides).

1. Good book, easy to follow and a ton of info. I'd buy it again.
   
   Pros: has a good, easy to locate layout. Info seemed accurate if you assume that historical sights never seem to disappear but I rarely use guidebooks for restaurant/food/bar recommendations specifically but typically go by local websites and travel forums. Maps were also very good, I thought. Less "biased" stances such as politically related info that other guidebooks tend to incorporate within their books by omitting one thing vs. another due to some biased historical stance.
   
   Cons: Should include some Shenzhen info. This is the city directly opposite Hong Kong and while it's not really that special considering HK is a great "world city" and many cities in China have caught up to the luster of Shenzhen, it's just really just another Chinese city now. However for someone who has never been to the Chinese mainland, it's worth the day or two unless you need a full $130 visa (which Americans do). It does have Guanghzou which is a 70mile or so hike up the Pearl River but they're vastly different places.
   
   Could include more bus-related info as well as some of the best parts of HK still are not connected via the MTR. Plus, the top of a double-decker bus is a great way to "see" HK, if you ask me. Could also talk about the two checkpoints at Lok Ma Chau/Huang Gang if in China and if you're stuck at the bus terminal vs. the bridge, should invest the $$ in buying a bus back to your destination as the MTR does not stop there! This is a common mistake made by Shenzhen taxi drivers I had no idea about this setup at all. I just happened to stay near there in Shenzhen.

No comments about China, Portrait of a Country.

1 comments about China A to Z: Everything You Need to Know to Understand Chinese Customs and Culture.

1. China is changing fast. Opening up to the West, morphing into an economic power house; ever so many foreigners continue journeying to this exotic and extraordinary destination rich in history, unique cultures, and remarkable sites. Multitudes of guidebooks published about the country today emphasize logistical details, facts, and figures, giving little heed to the nitty-gritty of culture and customs ever-so-important in a traditional society.
   
   Fortunately, May-Lee & Winberg Chai have produced a book acquainting readers with the intricate details of culture, customs, and etiquette that most travel books scantily touch. Listings from A to Z introduce readers to everything about China from current customs, contemporary and pop culture, to geography that outsiders are most likely unfamiliar with. Instructions on how to address people, the meaning of different colors used by the Chinese, attitudes toward bargaining, how to respectfully visit a Chinese home, how to avoid eating unbearable critters, proper chopstick etiquette, and the Chinese concept of "face" are all among the valued wisdom to be found in this book.
   
   Though some of the topics' practicalities and significance are questionable: The "Gay & Lesbian Culture" chapter is double the size of "The Great Wall" section. Not to mention any section that recounts the country's complex history falls short- the "History" timeline is only incidents where the Chinese have been victims in the past and I unfortunately wasn`t able to locate the whole history of the communist party which includes murdering over 30 million people, though the character of Chiang Kai-shek is repeatedly scorned and the entire account of the Civil War is often prevaricated altogether.
   
   Nevertheless, the overall aim of the book- to provide insightful, crucial knowledge for foreigners is accomplished quite effectively. The cultural "Do's & Don'ts" alone make this the perfect companion to any China travel guide.

No comments about The City of Heavenly Tranquility: Beijing in the History of China.

5 comments about Moon Living Abroad in China (Living Abroad).

1. This book gives information that I wanted to know about everyday life in the new moved-in city, as well as lots of info about the preparation.
   
   Really what I needed.



2. After reading almost every book available on the topic of China and living in China, this was by far one of the very best. I really appreciated how the Strother's candor and personal experiences added to the book. The book is so interesting, I was actually able to read this book cover to cover in about a weekend. All the tips and pointers allowed my husband and I to feel more prepared for our visit to China prior to our actual move. While visiting China, we met with expatriates currently living there and their comments echoed what I read in this book, making me feel much more comfortable about being prepared for the move. This book is a must have for anyone considering a move to China!



3. Enjoyed reading this book due to his openness and the flow of the writing. Jam packed with practical information and presented in a positive way. It is a definite keeper which I'm sure I will go back to again and again.



4. I was impressed by the positive comments and the honest description of what life is really like for a foreigner in China. I'm reading the book with a highlighter and I'm sure I'll be able to put many of the suggestions into practice. It even helped me understand more about Chinatowns in my own country. I can't wait to go to China!



5. We read Living Abroad in China while we were on our fact finding trip to China in the Summer of 2007. We found the book to be incredibly helpful as well as easy and fun to read. I can't imagine planning a move to China without this book.

5 comments about Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story of Tibet.

1. Xinran's book is as good as a fictional classic! it protrays death, love, and hope wrapped into a short non-fictional novel. There is no comparison to this incredible book.
   A married woman's husband is sent to Tibet, but her connection by post is cut off, and she is informed of his death. Due to the manner in which she was informed of his death, this woman leaves China to search for her husband, and finds herself living with a Tibetan family for over twenty years. in war torn Tibet, she finally discovers the honorable sacrifice her huband made for the truth, that many lose in the face of war.



2. This sweeping love story takes place in a terrain of harshness. That landscape/political climate reflects the angst of love and closure that is being pursued. Excellent.



3. A friend of mine whom I lovingly refer to as the Uberlibrarian once recommended a book to me that I thought was a total stinker. So when she began to rave about Sky Burial, I was skeptical. After all, the last book she was very enthusiastic about was The Smoke Jumper--which was the aforementioned stinker. Could she be trusted again?
   
   Oh, yes. This is a very slender volume of a woman's search for her husband who was reported dead by the Chinese government shortly after their marriage. As they were both doctors, the woman left her home and volunteered her service to the Chinese army, traveling to Tibet in search of her love, hoping he was not dead. Abandoning the army (in a hopeless situation of invasion and occupation), she was adopted by a Tibetean family, changed her way of life and along the way found the truth about his remarkable fate, so much more than the Chinese government had even known. Her journey--which took nearly three decades--is not to be missed. It is a great story written by a female journalist who met this amazing woman and took her story down over the course of two days.
   
   Might I add: this is a fantastic book if you are traveling. It is slender and can be read in full on a cross-country flight. You will be so engrossed you probably won't notice when they ask you for coffee or tea or peanuts or whatever.



4. Amazing story - I didn't want it to end as you can't beleive the committment shown.



5. Sky Burial is based on a true story as it was told to the author, Xinran, by the principal character, Shu Wen. Wen's young idealist husband is an Army doctor in 1950's China, sent to Tibet during the time of China's "liberation" of Tibet. They had only been married three weeks when he left, and around 100 days after his departure she received a letter stating he was dead. The lack of explanation of death gave her a hope that perhaps he really wasn't dead, just lost, and she joined the Army as well, in her husband's unit. Herself a dermatologist, they were only too glad to of her request to be sent to Tibet--doctors were much needed on the front. Shortly after reaching Tibet, however, Wen is separated from her unit and spends the next thirty years wandering with a family of nomadic Tibetans, never giving up hope that she will find the answer to her husband's disappearance.
   
   The writing is sparse and without a lot of descriptions, and whether it is intentional or because Xinran is in fact a journalist and not a novelist, it works wonderfully for both the untamed Tibetan landscape and the slowly unfolding, sometimes bleak but always beautiful, story.
   
   The reader follows Wen, amazed at her tenacity as the years go by, at her unwillingness to give up against such odds. As she becomes more and more comfortable in her Tibetan ways, the reader sees Wen falling in love, unknowingly, with Tibet--and does the same, openly embracing this wild country. Like Wen, the reader can not give up hope, knowing there will be an answer to Wen's search, because such determination and love does not go unrewarded.
   
   Subtitled "an epic love story of Tibet", Sky Burial is just that--a love story of a woman for a country as well as her husband; a love story of the reader for Tibet, for Wen, and for Xinran for giving such a gift.

5 comments about Walking the Gobi: 1,600 Mile-trek Across a Desert of Hope and Despair.

1. Helen and Bill Thayer, in their sixties and seventies respectively, walked across the Gobi Desert accompanied only by two camels. This book chronicles their journey.
   
   It's fascinating to read about the Gobi, one of the harshest environments on the planet, and the wildlife that survives there. The pack camels are a surprise -- intelligent animals with distinct personalities.
   
   It's depressing but instructive to read about the crushing poverty of the native people and the Orwellian militarism of the Chinese border stations.



2. In 2001, at age 63, the author achieved her life's goal of crossing Mongolia's Gobi Desert, accompanied by her 74-year-old husband and two camels. They walked 1600 miles in 126-degree temperatures - and WALKING THE GOBI recounts their adventure, which was undertaken without the usual support team, sponsors or even radio contact. The people and cultures of the Gobi desert come to life in this fine adventure read, a pick for any general-interest library where adventure travel is prized.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



3. "You're going WHERE?"
   
   "WHY?"
   
   These are the questions Helen Thayer is asked by the people she meets in Mongolia's Gobi Desert.
   
   The answer to the first question is--walking across the Gobi Desert from west to east at its widest spot. One thousand six hundred miles in 81 days, to be exact.
   
   The answer to the second question is more difficult to answer:
   Because it's never been done before.
   Because Mongolia has at last been opened to travelers, after nearly 80 years of isolation under Soviet rule.
   Because there is no better way to challenge yourself (at age 63) or your husband (at age 74).
   Because the Gobi is one of the least hospitable places on earth.
   Because its people, few as they are, are among the MOST hospitable on earth.
   
   Already established as one of the greatest explorer-adventurers of our time, Helen Thayer, with her husband Bill, travel across the world's second-largest desert with only two intransigent camels as companions. No radio contact, no support team; just a single local pilot whom they must meet at pre-established coordinates every twenty days for resupply. Over 81 days of hiking, they must encounter border guards, smugglers, wolves, thirst, scorpions, giant spiders, and sandstorms. In return, they meet perhaps the kindest and most gentle people on earth, who are more than willing to share what little they have with strangers.
   
   Alternately sad, incisive, moving, and exciting, Helen's narrative keeps you turning the pages until--too soon--the journey is over.
   
   Now what do we do? Go there ourselves?--no, few of us could survive that. So we do the next-best thing and read her older books--and eagerly await her next one.



4. Modern day adventurers do exist. This is the first thing the reader will realize wehn reading "Walking the Gobi" by Helen Thayer. Ms. Thayer brings the reader with us as she traverses one of the most dangerous places on earth, the Gobi desert. It details a journey she and her husband made across the Gobi desert. From page one, I could not really put the book down. With her we meet Mongolian tribesman, smugglers along the Chinease border, rare Gobi bears, desert scorpions and the occasional Mongolian bureaucrat. Throughout, Ms. Thayer never lets the reader forget how truly amazing and beautiful this part of the world is. Any expedition like this would be a challenge for any healthy individual, but Ms. Thayer manages her journey with an injured leg throghout most of the book. Through sheer mental fortitude Ms. Thayer wills herself to complete her journey across one of the most hostile environments on earth, on step at a time. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys the spirit of adventure.



5. I want to invite Helen Thayer over to dinner. Mainly I want to hear her stories again, and more of them. As soon as I closed Walking the Gobi and set it down on my kitchen table, I felt at the same time winded and awed, but hungry for more.
   
   If you're reading this review, I'm sure you've read the synopsis: two people over age 60 decide to walk across 1500 miles of one of the least-studied deserts in the world. And they do it in the summer.
   
   When Helen Thayer sat down to write this real-life adventure story, she must have known that she had something good. After all, the idea itself is impressive; it tugs at the ear and challenges the imagination. But Thayer does much more in Walking the Gobi than recount a long trek in a string of stories or patronize the reader by giving only summary and analysis of the journey's meaning.
   
   Thayer's descriptions are careful and organized, educated and intuitive. She gives us the gift of recreating each day so we can experience them with her. Each day is numbered and recorded with useful detail- pointing out the unique moments that set it apart from the rest and reinforcing the monotonous heat, wind, and regional dangers that made the journey long and at times overwhelming.
   
   Helen Thayer accomplished a truly great feat when she crossed the Gobi, but what's even better is that she wrote a book about it.
   
   Happy adventuring!

5 comments about Hearing Birds Fly: A Nomadic Year in Mongolia.

1. Nice book - for once a travel author who isn't full of her (him)self and bores us with the difficulties of adaptating to a different culture or who has to show off her/ his magnificent sense of humor. Simple and well written and most importantly captures the magic of the place and its people. Thanks!



2. This book gives an inside look at how other people, nomads in Mongolia, live. They work hard but enjoy their life. Even in a small village, different ethnic groups stay apart and distrust each other. If you find this book interesting, you might also enjoy 'The Places In Between" by Rory Stewart. He's a young man from Scotland who treks through a remote section of the mountains in Afghanistan in 2002, after 911. Every little village he goes to gives him shelter and food. He does it in the winter and you keep thinking he is crazy and lucky not to die of cold. He meets a dog and does most of the trip with a dog-it almost feels like animal abuse-it's so hard on the dog and he never chose to be this crazy.



3. This is a book by a woman, who goes to Mongolia, discovers how much she likes the country and then goes back to it years later, lives there for two years, then teaches in a remote village of nomads. the book is about her time spent in the village of nomads teaching them English. she describes life in the village and the people there and how it was for a foriegner, who grew up in London, to be totally surrounded by such a foreign and alien environment. very good read. i highly recommend it.



4. Louisa Waugh went to live in a village in western Mongolia, to teach English, where she learned more than she thought she would. She learned about religion, lush summers, dusts storms, hard winters, loneliness, fear, happiness, yummy horse meat and dealing with death. For all the information in the book it reads pretty swiftly and I finished it within a couple of days, when not working, sleeping or eating. It really is a hard book to put down and a lovely one to add to my library of Asian books. I really felt sorry for her sometimes.



5. My husband is a Mongolian-American and I was so amazed to find how the customs have carried over to the community here. Great book. Well written.