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Daunt Books Children's Short Story Competition 2013

Asia

• Subcontinent
• East Asia
• Southeast Asia

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  Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo

  Price: £9.99    Add to Basket

  Easily one of the best books of 2012, Katherine Boo's expose of life in the slum of Annawadi (sandwiched between Mumbai's main airport and the 5-star Hyatt Hotel), will without a doubt leave you enraged, hopeful and never anything less than fully engaged and fascinated by this harrowing portrait of life among India's underclass. Written in a flowing narrative style that at time jars with the true life subjects Boo followed over the course of 9 months living by the sewerage lake at the centre of the slum, this remarkable book begs to be red in one wondrous, reflective sitting.

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  The Mongols by David Morgan

  Price: £23.50    Add to Basket

  The best work on the Mongols since its first edition publication in 1986, this revised 2nd edition of David Morgans essential work is the essential starting point to learning about histories greatest land empire and dispelling the myths of the Nomadic Mongols as barbarians. A student of Middle East studies luminaries such as Anne Lambton and Bernard Lewis, Morgan guides us through the empire, from its formation on the steppes of Central Asia to its dominance, in the forms of the Golden Horde, Ilkhanate and Yuan Dynasty (in Russia, the Middle East and China respectively), of the majority of Eurasia. A must-read.

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  Pax Britannica by Jan Morris

  Price: £9.99    Add to Basket

  The second volume of The Pax Britannica Trilogy about the rise and fall of the British Empire in India. Continuing where Pax Britannica left off, Jan Morris focuses on the empire at its zenith.

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  The Siege of Krishnapur by J. G. Farrell

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  Shortlisted as one of the best of 40 years of Booker prize-winners, J. G. Farrell's modern classic is the blackly humorous account of an isolated Indian colonial town under siege during the mutiny of 1857. As conditions deteriorate, the British colonials struggle to keep their stiff upper lip absolutely stiff and the locals watch on with palpable glee.

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  Empires of the Indus by Alice Albina

  Price: £12.99    Add to Basket

  Alice Albinia's remarkable voyage along 2,000 miles of the Indus River. A combination of traveller's tales and fascinating history, she traces the river from Karachi, through Pakistan, into India and then up into Tibet. Highly recommended.

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  In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  Eight carefully woven tales set in the Punjab, which tell the story of the Harouni family and their cooks, drivers, gardeners and servants. These hypnotic stories of love, longing and loss rise up and sink back into a background of modern, chaotic, turbulent Pakistan.

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  Beyond the Sky and the Earth by Jamie Zeppa

  Price: £13.99    Add to Basket

  A "rich, romantic, lushly descriptive memoir" of three years spent in Bhutan. Zeppa, a young American writer, tells her tale with great skill. Highly recommended.

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  The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen

  Price: £8.99    Add to Basket

  Novelist, environmentalist and founder of the Paris Review, Peter Matthiessen travels to study the wild blue sheep of the Himalayas. Matthiessen is also hoping to catch a glimpse of the rarely seen snow leopard and, as a Zen Buddhist, to make a spiritual journey of self-discovery. He will find one perhaps as elusive as the other. Winner of the National Book Award, this is a wonderful book of mysticism, magic and mountaineering.

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  The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  This epic, colourful narrative encompasses 100 years of history from the British invasion of Mandalay in 1885 until the present day. Through the intimate stories of 3 different families, across 3 different generations, Amitav Ghosh's intoxicating story wonderfully evokes the sights and smells of both old and modern Burma.

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  Vietnam: A History by Stanley Karnow

  Price: £25.00    Add to Basket

  Written by an American journalist who spent over 15 years living in Vietnam, this is the definitive single volume history of Vietnam. Gaining access to secret documents, conducting hundreds of interviews, Karnow has written a brilliant history for which he won the Pulitzer Prize.

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  A Dragon Apparent: Travels in Cambodia, Laos & Vietnam by Norman Lewis

  Price: £12.99    Add to Basket

  Published in typically beautiful fashion by Eland, Lewis describes his travels through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos in the late 1940s. He speaks to French colonists, slaves, emperors and peasants on the eve of massive change and widespread devastation to the land, its architecture and its people. Fascinating, insightful and deeply poignant. Probably our favourite of Lewis' books.

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  The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  The first in Colin Cotterill's Dr Siri series, this amusing, sophisticated detective story is set in Laos against a backdrop of vividly imagined, eccentric characters and a unique culture.

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  The Mughal Throne by Abraham Eraly

  Price: £15.99    Add to Basket

  A richly-patterned, gripping history of the Mughal Empire considered to be the definitive book on the subject.

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  Rajasthan by Footprint

  Price: £14.99    Add to Basket

  The most detailed and comprehensive guide to the state. Good practical, cultural and historical information.

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  Love Bangalore by Love Guides

  Price: £22.00    Add to Basket

  The creme de la creme of guides, beautifully designed by local craftsmen, printed on hand made paper and placed inside a silk bag. Inside, hand-drawn illustrations sit beside the best recommendations from Bangalore locals.

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  Pakistan by Granta

  Price: £12.99    Add to Basket

  Beautiful art work and interesting, fresh writing - this is a joy to read and a must for anyone keen to read new work. By collecting together the work of Kamila Shamsie, Mohammed Hanif and Daniyal Mueenuddin, among others, Granta has also succeeded in capturing a momentary snapshot of the country on the brink of a cultural explosion.

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  Season of the Rainbirds by Nadeem Aslam

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  A bag of letters lost in a train crash nineteen years earlier mysteriously reappears and brings to light forgotten secrets. Combines a description of provincial life while alluding to the political corruption, fundamental religious control and violence in historical as well as contemporary Pakistan.

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  On Wings of Diesel by Jamal J. Elias

  Price: £29.99    Add to Basket

  A fascinating look at one of the most arresting and unique features of Pakistani culture, this book examines the art of truck decoration. It has often been described as 'art on wheels' and this book is perfect for anyone who has travelled to Pakistan, or who is interested in art as a popular cultural phenomenon. Exhaustively researched, and highly recommended.

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  Sri Lanka by Bradt

  Price: £15.99    Add to Basket

  Written by a resident, this excellent guide will give you plenty of historical and cultural information as well as practical tips that will take you off the beaten track.

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  The Village in the Jungle by Leonard Woolf

  Price: £12.99    Add to Basket

  Still the best-selling English novel set in Sri Lanka, this tragic and deeply sympathetic story was written after Leonard Woolf spent seven years serving as a District Commissioner in Sri Lanka. Not only a damning indictment of colonialism based on first-hand experience, but a lyrical, sensory evocation of the country.

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  Reef by Romesh Gunesekera

  Price: £6.99    Add to Basket

  A sensual novel set in Colombo in the 1970s that reflects the social and political upheaval of the time. Eleven year old Triton is sent to be a cook and house boy to an eminent marine biologist but, just as in the city outside their windows, the peace and contentment of the household begins to disintegrate. Shortlisted for the Booker prize.

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  China by GeoCenter

  Price: £5.99    Add to Basket

  Small scale, topographical road map of China with full index of places.

  Map scale: 1: 4 000 000

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  China by Eyewitness

  Price: £19.99    Add to Basket

  A pictorial guide to China with beautiful colour photographs and bird's eye graphic. Perfect as a sightseeing companion.

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  Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie

  Price: £7.99    Add to Basket

  It is the Cultural Revolution and two boys from intellectual families are sent to be 're-educated' by the State. They are kept in good spirits by their good-natured friendship, the appearance of a pretty, local seamstress and the discovery of a suitcase full of highly subversive Western, nineteenth century literature. A delightful and clever novel about the awakening of passion, set against a fascinating historical backdrop.

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  Beijing by Time Out

  Price: £12.99    Add to Basket

  Time Out guides are consistently reliable with great recommendations for restaurants, bars and activities and excellent maps. For the mid-range traveller this is the perfect guide to Beijing although hotel listings in this example could be a little more detailed.