River Books

This pioneering insight into contemporary Thai folk culture delves beyond the traditional Thai icons to reveal the casual, everyday expressions of Thainess that so delight and puzzle. From floral truck bolts and taxi altars to buffalo cart furniture and drinks in a bag, the same exquisite care, craft and improvisation resounds through home and street, bar and wardrobe. Never colonised, Thai culture retains ...

Designed to assist the adventurous visitor to the region, the book is also an armchair traveler's introduction to many of the most historic and visually engaging monuments across seven nations: Indonesia,Vietnam, Cambodia,Thailand, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), and Malaysia. In addition to background on and descriptions of individual sites, the guide provides essential tips for travelers and an extensive reading l...

With over 150 photographs from late 19th century China, including stunning landscapes, architecture and city scenes, intimate portraits of Manchu brides in full wedding costumes and Mandarin officialsin government attire. THIS REVISED EDITION IS IN A NEW MORE ACCESSIBLE FORMAT.

The first edition of Ancient Luang Prabang was published in 2006, and a critically acclaimed revised edition appeared in 2008. This current edition is a substantially revised and updated work, with new sections added as well as additional photographs and the latest research and traveller information. The sections on the temples in Luang Prabang has been revised and updated and the book now includes other cu...

First appearing in 2005 and quickly selling out, this fully revised edition of 'Thailand's Political History' continues in the same style as the first but with its scope dramatically widened. Starting earlier than the old edition, 'Thailand's Political History' discusses the development and evolution of the Siamese state from the early Sukhothai period through the fall of Ayutthaya to the rise of the Chakri...

Yangon Echoes is a popular history of buildings used as homes in Burma's bustling, former capital, charting social space and urban folklore and linking past to present via living memories. This anthology records everyday life through domestic connections to old places and explores the present day significance of Yangon's rich inheritance of built form. Our storytellers speak of joy and tragedy, simple pleas...

This lovingly crafted first novel by former 'Washington Post' correspondent John Burgess revives the rites and rhythms of the ancient culture that built the temples of Angkor, then abandoned them to the jungle. In telling her tale, Sray takes the reader to a hilltop monastery, a concubine pavilion and across the seas to the throne room of imperial China. She witnesses the construction of the largest of the ...

Dramatic new archaeological discoveries over the past ten years demand a new look at Thailand's past. Drawing on his previous work, Prehistoric Thailand, this book with over 40% new material, covers the history of the kingdom from the first human settlement to the earliest civilisation and gives a fresh appraisal of early hunters and gatherers, and of the rice farmers. A new chronology reveals the dynamic s...

Legendary Scottish photographer and travel writer John Thomson (1837-1921) set off for the East in 1862 and over the next ten years undertook numerous journeys to various countries including Siam, Cambodia and China, becoming the first person to photograph Angkor Wat, Cambodia. The photographs from these journeys form one of the most extensive records of any region taken in the 19th century. The range, dept...

"Rosalind Russell has written an extraordinarily beautiful, comprehensive and compelling story of Burma in a remarkably human way - essential reading for anyone interested in understanding Burma today." Benedict Rogers, author of Burma: A Nation At the Crossroads. "Burma's Spring is like nothing else written about Burma - compelling, charming and unique. No other book I know of has got under the sking of su...

Within the context of Tai cosmology and numerology, Therevada Buddhism and spirit religion, this lavishly illustrated book examines how good and bad spirits are formulated to bring good luck and protection or to cause bad luck. Extensive field-work studies over a period of four years were conducted in the Shan States (now part of Burma/Myanmar) and in northern Thailand. Using her field notes and photograph...

Evocative and incisive, Bangkok Found looks deep within traditional culture to discover how Bangkok is like no other contemporary city. It's the book you read after you've seen the temples and enjoyed the nightlife - and then start to wonder where the mysterious appeal of Bangkok really lies. With wit and a wealth of anecdotes from Kerr's thirty years of experience in Thailand, Bangkok Found, sequel to his...

Based in Bali, Diana von Cranach has always been a well-known local food explorer and creator of the most incredible food. A few years ago, she took her dedication to good food a step further and decided to begin a journey into the world of raw food using only locally sourced ingredients. Her idyllic and very personal resort Puri Ganesha Villas in North Bali, is one of only a few hotels worldwide to offer a...

The Khmer civilisation centred on Angkor was one of the most remarkable wonders of the ancient world. From the 8th to the 13th centuries, a succession of Hindu and Buddhist kings created magnificent temples in stone, adorned with elaborate carvings. The temples of Angkor have recently been listed in the top three World Heritage Sites by members of the public and all the key temples of Angkor are included he...

Burma/Mayanmar has opened up to tourism in the last year or two and record numbers are now visiting this beautiful, mesmerising country. All visitors to Burma will visit the ancient kingdom of Pagan (now called Bagan), along with the Inle lake, it is the most visited place in Burma and captures the heart and imagination of all who see the sun set on this beguiling landscape of temples and stupas. Pagan is t...

A lavishly photographed cookbook and historic travelogue, tracing contemporary and colonial Burmese dishes over the past century. With its rich traditions of empire, The Burma Cookbook highlights the best of present-day Myanmar, including foods of its immigrant populations - from the subcontinent, down the Malay peninsula, and Britain itself. The authors spent some ten years researching the book, while orga...

Born two years before the invention of daguerreotype and the birth of photography, Thomson first travelled to Asia in 1862 where he set up a professional photographic studio. The local culture and the people of Asia fascinated him, and in 1868 he made his second trip, this time settling in Hong Kong. Between 1868 and 1872, Thomson made extensive trips to Guangdong, Fujian, Beijing, China's northeast and dow...

An unforgettable adventure story of two journeys, one hundred years apart, into the untravelled heart of Burma. Part travelogue, part history, part reportage, The Trouser People is an enormously appealing and vivid account of Sir George Scott, the unsung Victorian adventurer who hacked, bullied and charmed his way through uncharted jungle to help establish British colonial rule in Burma. Born in Scotland in...

When this book was published a century ago, the French, through the l' Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient, were responsible for the temples of Angkor and its environs. At that time, the temples were magnificently photographed by Piere Dieulefils and expertly documented by Louis Finot. Now Angkor is once again seen as one of the world's most magnificent sites, it is fascinating to compare past and present in t...

Following the great success of "Khmer Mythology" which examined the narratives and symbolism behind the relief carvings of Angkor Wat and other temples, the author returns to Angkor Wat to focus in depth on the wealth of information contained in the almost 1,000 square metres of magnificent bas-reliefs, the corner pavilions and the pediments.