February 2004
 ...has
just finished reading Thai Gold by Jason
Schoonover, a trashy adventure story set in South East
Asia featuring opium smugglers, priceless Buddhist treasures,
beautiful girls and steamy sex, speed boats, sharks gun
fights in the Himalayas , the whole lot….I loved it,
even though there was barely a believable paragraph in the
whole thing. But then again I love novels set in Asia and
particularly historical Asian Fiction. So for any of you
looking for a good book (and if you aren't, why not?) I've
decided to note down some of my favorite novels about Asia
(we'll leave non-fiction for another time.) Of course I
realize its highly subjective and don't imagine Thai Gold
for example is for everyone but what can I do? Lets kick
of with one of the best books written about anything, anywhere:
A Suitable Boy by
Vikram Seth. This is a monster of a book, the longest
in the English Language I believe and one you just hope
will never end. In three sections it details a mother's
search for a husband for her daughter. Doesn't sound like
much does it? But woven round this plot line is a trove
of cultural information delivered almost poetically. Not
so surprising from a poet I suppose. If you've been to India
it will make you want to return and if you haven't, make
you want to go. So vivid is the writing you can almost smell
the incense as they enter the temple in….If you decide
to read one book on the list, make it this one.
Midnights Children
by Salmon Rushdie. If you've read the guy before
and aren't a boffin then you know its sometimes an effort
to get into his books. For this one, make the effort. Funny
and clever, I imagine he is too and I'm sure I missed a
lot of what he was trying to tell me but it was full of
flavor, evocative and moving.
Shogun, Taipan, Noble House
and King Rat by James Clavell are all
excellent reads if you like adventure stories intertwined
with historical facts and information. Of the four, Noble
House is probably my favorite, set during the seizure of
Hong Kong, its hero is Straun (I think its Straun) who is
the manest man around. He fights with pirates, negotiates
with ministers, always gets the girl, has the fastest, most
beautiful boats for his opium and tea trade and as an aside
changes the course of history. Tai-Pan, the sequel to Noble
House is good but not as good, set once again in Hong Kong
but modern day (then, about 20 years ago.) King Rat is an
excellent portrayal of man at his most base when British,
Australian and American soldiers are ill-treated in a Japanese
prisoner of war camp. A very clever book. Shogun is an excellent
account of a European sailor captured during Samurai times
in Japan. You'll learn a lot about Japan and the Samurai
if you try this one. What I like about all of Clavell's
books is that as well as having a rip roaring good read,
you learn a little as well. I suppose however I'd be well
advised to remember that it is fiction and all facts should
be verified before I bring one up at the minister's tea
party. Oh the shame….
The Far Pavilions
by M.M Kaye. A romance adventure story spanning
the continent of India but with an emphasis on the North
West Frontier. This epic details the adventures of Ash,
orphan, army officer, dashing adventurer, princess saver
and all round good bloke. Written by a lady who obviously
knows her stuff and grew up in the Himalaya it has a whiff
of the colonial about it but again gives much insight into
the sub-continent and its culture and ways.
The Quiet American
by Graham Greene. Maybe you've seen the movie already,
now read the book. Kind of a whodunnit I suppose, written
in Greene's inimitable style its an easy read and not set
during the Vietnam War thus giving a different perspective
to a country on which a plethora of Vietnam war era books
have been written. To my mind not as rich in information
about culture as it could have been but who am I to judge
the great man. I've read the book twice and am sure I'll
pick it up again one day.
Kim by Rudyard
Kipling. I read this book on the train from Madras
to Calcutta and all I wanted to do when I arrived was eat
the curry Rudyard had described in the book. Not any curry,
but the exact one he described. How can he give such life
to a plate of food? I'm in awe of the guy. Following his
mentor, a Tibetan Monk around the country, Kim is a boy
unwittingly caught up in the Great Game being played out
between England and Russia with India its playground. This
is surely Kipling's finest Novel.
Flashman and the Dragon
by George McDonald Fraser. If you know Flashman
then you'll know what this book will be like. This one's
set in China. If you're not familiar with Fraser's work
then Flashman is the bully from the Tom Brown's schooldays
series. Still a bully, a coward, he's added sexism and racism
to his list of admirable traits and always seems to come
out on top. Not for everyone but many, including me, find
them fun and funny.
The Tesseract by
Alex Garland. Ok The Beach was kind of ground breaking
but also a rip of Lord of the Flies so I didn't expect much
when I picked this one up but was pleasantly surprised with
his knowledge of The Philippines and its culture. The book
follows several lives that eventually intertwine through
the actions of a western assassin.
Are you Experienced?
by William Sutcliffe. This is a very clever book.
Not a hard read. Just an account of a pre-uni guy's journey
around India. If you've traveled around India then there's
more than a 50/50 chance that you'll recognize some of the
characters in this book. Maybe even yourself. Very very
funny
The God of Small Things
by Arundhati Roy. Not easy to get into by any means
but worth the effort if you do. This book has been critically
acclaimed and is the story of a family living in the south
of India and more importantly their twins, Siamese twins
but born apart. A tragic but moving story. Not the best
on my list (for me of course, think it might have won a
Booker. Maybe a bit too high- brow?) but there was something
about it that kept me thinking long after I'd put the book
down. Usually the sign of a good book?
Bombay Ice by Leslie Forbes. A
difficult book to describe but I suppose it is again a kind
of detective novel. It takes part in Bombay and for the
most part takes part in the almost surreal world of Eunuchs
and Bollywood. Disturbing and entrancing both, it, as all
good novels should, transports you to its setting.
The Sorrow of War
by Bao Ninh. Superb. Written by a North Vietnamese
soldier, its not actually a novel, but written as one. If
there is a better account of the Vietnamese war told from
a Vietnamese perspective then I'd love to read it.
The Blue Eyed Shan
by Stephen Becker. A weird one. I wasn't too sure
what to expect when I picked it up second-hand of a street
seller in the Old Quarter but was pleasantly surprised.
It's an adventure story spanning the years from 1939 to
1949 and if nothing else then you'll come away with some
knowledge of a part of the world few know too much about,
that is the Burmese/Chinese border area. You'll also probably
learn a little of the Shan, again a people not often talked
about unless connected with the words, Opium, Khun Sa or
Rebel attack.
So there you have it. I'm sure I've
left some of my favorites out (this feeble old mind you
know) and I'm even more sure that there are more great Asian
Novels out there. If only Keroac or Hemingway had gone east
as young men, there'd be a few more. Anyway Asia Hotel Bookings
would love to hear and tell of your favorite novels set
in Asia.
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