Question: What was one of the best things about Thailand?
Answer (from the peanut gallery): The hookers? The transsexual “Ladyboys”?
No, shut up.
Answer: Books.
Yes, Thailand has one the largest selections of English-language books in South East Asia. New, used, mint, or nearly destroyed, The Kingdom of Thailand has them all, ready to be read by the literature-starved, China-based expatriate.
There’s a lots of books in China. Funny though, they’re all in Chinese. This makes reading them difficult for me as I recognize about 100 characters. Note: You need to know about 2000 characters to be able to read a Chinese newspaper.
Buying used books in Hong Kong is a pricy venture. Those Honker bastards like to flaunt there superior salaries by pricing things out of the range of real adventurers. Another reason I hate Hong Kong.
Question: What did you buy, Stevo.
I’m glad you asked. Nothing earth-shattering. Nothing profound. No literature. Candy and fluff really, for a starved mind.
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
I wanted to buy this when it was first released. At the time I had no access to bookstore (living in the wilds of Northern Ontario, Canada). When I moved back to the city I didn’t have the requisite funds to purchase said tome. So, a trip to Thailand was the answer. I’ve already finished it. As we are bloggers, writers and scribes of sorts, I recommend this to everyone. It’s packed full of information and humorous anecdotes.
‘Salem’s Lot
Yes, mind candy. Salem’s Lot is my all-time favorite novel. It was the first King I read and it scared the life out of me. I’ve read it many times since.
Danse Macabre is King’s non-fiction treatise on the history of horror fiction. I started it years ago but never finished.
Black House is the sequel to The Talisman, written with Peter Straub. The Talisman is a mythical adventure in a parallel world. Black House follows the main character years after the original.
The Rape of Nanking
In December 1937 the Japanese army attacked the ancient Chinese capital of Nanking. More than 300,000 civilians were tortured, raped, and killed during the infamous event. Two movies are being released about Nanking, one American and one Chinese. I’d like to know more about this, and maybe understand a little better why the Chinese bitterly hate the Japanese. On a personal note: Mrs. Stevo’s grandfather had his head lit on fire by Japanese soldiers. You don’t have to look very far to find a personal story related to The War of Liberation Against Japanese Aggression.
Lonely Planet Hong Kong & Macau (Lonely Planet Hong Kong and Macau)
Self-explanatory.
The Best American Travel Writing (2000), Edited by Bill Bryson
A way to see other cultures, in my own backyard and beyond, and learn more about my craft at the same time.
Lost Cities of China, Central Asia and India (The Lost City Series)
I remember learning about an Aztec city discovered in the middle of the jungle, in junior high. Since then I have been a lost city sucker. Indiana Stevo?
I’ll keep you updated on my progress with these books. Things are about to get busy for me again. Maybe I have enough reading material to last until my next vacations.
I have the first King book, but haven’t read it yet. I think I’ll bump it up the pile and read it next.
The Talisman is one of my favorite books. I’m a sucker for mythical adventures.
The other books sound interesting as well.
I never would have thought of Thailand as the place to go for books. I learned something new today.
Robin’s last blog post..A pony
Some great choices… I, too, have been wanting to read King “On Writing”. Let me know what you learn. 🙂
pmousse’s last blog post..Latest Excuse
As one who is residing in the land of the true north strong and free, please feel free to send me requests. Postage is sort of expensive but going to the post office is a fun adventure. Well…it’s fun if you’re me and I happen to be me. So, everything works out nicely.
Blurry Amoeboid Smile’s last blog post..On Being Too Nice
What, no Raymond Chandler? No Hammett? Are the Thais detective noir-deprived?
Kidding aside, it looks like an excellent list. and I agree with you on the Hong kong connection.
I once found a nice hardback copy of Catch-22 in a bargain bin at Green Apple in SF and when I opened it at home the print job was terrible, unreadable. Copyright page was done in Chinese characters — it was an illegal copy.
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Robin: I should have bought The Talisman too, just to read the series.
PP: The King book is very good, maybe I’ll write a synopsis.
BAS: The Post Office is my favorite place. They put me at the front of the line.
Ben: I searched (every store I found) for Chandler or Hammett. I found a beat up copy of Farewell, My Lovely which isn’t Chandler’s best work. Have you read Poodle Springs the Chandler novel that Robert Parker finished? I’d be interested in your thoughts.
I used to like it more than I do now. There used to be a young woman who had an eyebrow piercing but postie regulations meant she couldn’t have it on display. So, each day she wore a different nifty coloured bandaid over it. And, her personality matched. So, mailing stuff was extra fun.
Blurry Amoeboid Smile’s last blog post..On Being Too Nice
I’m glad you found something to nourish your starved mind!
By the way, I can send you pdf novels. I have King and others. Let me know and I’ll be happy to send them away.
Corina’s last blog post..Los Gatos
It looks different ’round here.
And oops… it just changed again. Darn. I liked the floating lily things. It looked like Loy Krathong.
Hey, some of that sounds like literature to me.
amuirin’s last blog post..pretty good words
This post made me smile. I had the same problem when I lived in China. English books were like gold, and I traveled to Beijing (a 13 hour train journey) to stock up on reading material every three months. I was in heaven when I landed in Thailand. I hadn’t been in a proper bookstore in ages. Luckily, I was traveling with a group of teachers from my school and we all stocked up and started a used book collection in Changchun. Looks like you’ve got a good start on reading material for the new year!
Taiwan has numerous bookstores, all comparable to bookstores back home in Canada. I spend an awful lot of time there on weekends.
I’ve read most of King’s novels. I’m especially partial to his older work though. The Stand is still one of my favorite books of all time. I also liked some of the books and short stories he wrote under his pen name, Richard Bachman. The Long Walk has always stood out (for me) as one of his best short stories.
Carrie’s last blog post..The Royal Palace Museum of Luang Prabang, Laos
Gecko Books in Chiang Mai, Thailand is huge with a few smaller branches. It is like a used bookstore in the U.S. or England with lots of new titles and high quality used literature. Check it out if you are up there.
Just think I should mention Angel Tomorrow. It’s website is http://www.angeltomorrow.com. Owner say she started the used book warehouse for over 2 years now. Lots n lots of books in many different type there.
Gecko Books in Chiang Mai, Thailand is huge with a few smaller branches. It is like a used bookstore in the U.S. or England with lots of new titles and high quality used literature. Check it out if you are up there.