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Mekong region Cambodia Laos & Vietnam Africa - travel guides Africa - picture books Eastern Europe Medjugorje Other strange places General travel information |
I receive Email every day from people asking me practical questions about the places I traveled to. Things change very quickly, so asking me the best hotel to stay or the best elephant to hire might not give you an accurate response. The best thing is to see these things as you go along. But no one wants to set off without anything. I have listed a few (mostly Lonely Planet; they are simply the best) books that have proved to be extremely helpful to me and others for practical, no-nonsense, up-to-date information. I also included some background books. If you don't find nothing in this list, try the above search forms.
Click on any title that might interest you. Either click on the top where the title of the book is indicated, or further down if you don't want Amazon US. For the least shipping costs, make sure you choose the Amazon site closest to you. I indicated direct links for every book. A new window will pop up and provide you with all the details (cost, reviews from editors and readers, etc). You may then return to this page and select other titles that are of interest to you.
Lonely Planet: South East Asia on a Shoestring (10th edition, August 1999)
List Price: $21.95
Amazon
US Price: $17.56
You Save: $4.39 (20%)
The classic if you plan to visit several countries in South East Asia.
Invaluable if your travel plans are not fix and your freedom may just take you
somewhere... The Cambodia part is updated with some less-known regions. Order at Amazon USA. Portofrei
bestellen bei 
Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos Handbook - by Michael Buckley (2nd edition, September 1998)
The only thing that can compare to Lonely Planet. Michael has also very
considerable background information. The 1st edition was very helpful to me
during my first trip through the three
countries in 1997. Order at Amazon.com. Portofrei
bestellen bei Amazon.D/CH/F.
Lonely Planet Travel Atlas Thailand, Vietnam, Laos & Cambodia (August 2000; orders already possible)
Raise the Bamboo Curtain: Vietnam, Cambodia, and Burma (VHS, US/Can format)
South East Asia Map - Harper Collins (October 1998)
Collins
South East Asia Map: Featuring Bartholomew Mapping (March
1997)
Amazon
D/CH/F also has it.
Lonely Planet Cambodia - by Nick Ray (3rd edition, May 2000)
List Price: $15.95
Our Price: $12.76
You Save: $3.19 (20%)
Cambodia has become safe for traveling since 1998. One of Lonely Planet's
authors was in Cambodia at the same time as me, so this book is an ideal supplement to my travelogue - and of course much more
and better than that. Absolutely indispensable for any trip to one of the most fascinating
countries in the world. This brand-new book is by far the best thing available
on the market right now. Order it at Amazon US. Oder hier portofrei von
Political
Transition in Cambodia, 1991-99: Power, Elitism and democracy - by David W.
Roberts (2001)
Very dedicated and professional scholar (whom I met in Cambodia when he was
doing research) who is critical with "democratisation" in Cambodia and
elsewhere.
Portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Off
the Rails in Phnom Penh: Into the Dark Heart of Girls, Guns, and Ganja - by
Amit Gilboa (July 1998)
The title almost says it all. I should maybe say that it's about foreigners
in today's Cambodia - more exciting than a fiction-writer can imagine. Click on
the link and check the reviews. The methods of research were not quite fair, but
the result is an extraordinary book.
Brother Number One: A Political Biography of Pol Pot - by
David Chandler (February 1999)
Any visit to Cambodia will confront you with the reality of Khmer Rouge rule 25
years ago. Little is known about the man responsible for the death of 1.7 mio.
people between 1975 - 1979. David Chandler is arguably the best man to put
together a political biography about the man who tried the most extreme
transformation of a society ever attempted. Most people describe Pol Pot as a
nice, warm person. The book was my travel companion, and I read it more than
once. I wish I had had the revised edition. Available
here from Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
A History of Cambodia - by David Chandler (December 1999)
If you want to go beyond Pol Pot - this book summarizes the history of
Cambodia between 1953 and today. The Australian historian draws a lot from
primary sources. Order from Amazon US. Oder portofrei von Amazon D/CH/Ö.
A Cambodian
Prison Portrait. One
Year in the Khmer Rouge's S-21. (October 1998)
Tuol Sleng used to be a high school but was made into a torture center. It
will undoubtedly feature on your itinerary if you go to Phnom Penh. Many of the
14'000 faces scared to death will look into your eyes. One of the very very few
people who survived the S-21 security prison, as it was also known, was Vann
Nath. He has published his account of the year he spent in that a place of
absolute horror - I had a chance to meet him during the presentation of the
book. A first-hand account of what human beings are capable to do to human
beings. Only available from Amazon US.
Angkor
: An Introduction to the Temples (Angkor (Odyssey), 3rd Ed) - by Dawn F.
Rooney, Peter Danforth (Photographer), Peter Danford
The most excellent book about Angkor that I have read. Writers very-well chosen.
Order at Amazon
US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon
D.
Colloquial Cambodian: A Complete Language Course (Book and 2 Cassettes)
Lonely Planet Laos - by Joe Cummings, 3rd edition (October 1998)
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei
bestellen in D/CH/F.
Lonely Planet Laos Travel Atlas (January 1997)
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Fore a large selection of background books on Vietnam, click here.
Lonely Planet Vietnam - (5th
edition, April 1999)
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei
bestellen bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Lonely Planet Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Guide - by Robert
Storey (coming up October 2000)
Order already now from Amazon US. Portofrei
jetzt schon bestellen bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Lonely Planet Hanoi - by Mason Florence (August 1999)
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei
bestellen bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Lonely Planet Thailand - by Joe Cummings (August 1999)
From Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Lonely Planet Africa: On a shoestring (8th edition, January 1998)
List Price: $29.95
Amazon
US Price: $23.96
You Save: $5.99 (20%)
Believe it or not - every single country of that vast continent is covered with
all essential information. Get it if your itinerary is flexible, if you want to
get a general impression of Africa, or if you go to a really strange place. But
if you read the Zaire or Nigeria entry, you might find it
preferable to give these places to miss. Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei .
Lonely Planet Africa: The South: Travel Survival Kit (October 1997)
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D.
Lonely Planet Malawi, Mozambique & Zambia - by David
Else (July 1997)
List Price: $15.95
Amazon
US Price: $12.76
You Save: $3.19 (20%)
We got this book a little earlier than all others thanks to LP, and were the
first to actually use this book during our Africa in a Beetle trip, which started in July of 1997.
Like with all LP guidebooks, it is so accurate you are wondering if these guys
still have fun traveling while they write their books. Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei
Guide to Zambia - by Chris McIntyre (January 1997)
The only excellent English-language guide book for self-drivers. Covers all
regions of Zambia. A bit dated by now, but in Zambia, the wheels turn slowly. Order from Amazon US. Oder portofrei von Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Travel Guide Mozambique - by Mike Slater (November 1997)
So far, you must take what little there is about Mozambique. And that's what we
had with us. This book, despite being dated, covers all of Mozambique, also
for self-drivers. Don't be disturbed by Mike's English problems. Order from Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon D.
This is Mozambique - by Ian Michler (September 1999)
The best up-to-date guide for all of Mozambique available at the moment. I wish
we would have had it at the time.
Order already now at Amazon US.
Lonely Planet South Africa, Lesotho & Swaziland (4th edition, April 2000)
Order already now from Amazon US. Portofrei
jetzt schon bestellen bei Amazon D.
Lonely Planet Zimbabwe, Botswana & Namibia (3rd edition, January 1999)
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D.
Lonely Planet Healthy Africa - by Isabelle Young (February 2000)
If you have had twice malaria, typhus, and bilharzias (ask Sandra), you wish this book had been
published in 1997.
Order from Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Here is a list of books equally divided between believers and non-believers in the apparitions at Medjugorje. Click on the title to learn more, then return to this page.
Medjugorje, the 90's - by Sister Emmanuel (November 1997)
The Final Harvest: Medjugorje at the End of the Century - by Wayne Weible (June 1999)
The Visions of the Children: The Apparitions of the Blessed Mother at Medjugorje - by Janice T. Connell (January 1998)
The Medjugorje Deception: Queen of Peace, Ethnic Cleansing, Ruined Lives - by Michael E. Jones (December 1998)
Medjugorje: Facts, Documents, Theology - by Michael O'Caroll (March 1988)
Medjugorje:
Religion, Politics, and Violence in Rural Bosnia - by Mart Bax (August
1995)
All the books from the following series are wonderful picture surveys. We found them all in Southern African bookstores and are happy that they are now partly available over here. No matter how long you try to get that elephant in the right light, you can never beat these professional photographers. Furthermore, a lot of good, easy-to-read background information is provided in every book. For armchair as well as real travelers.
This is South Africa - by Peter Borchert (January 2000)
You can always try here at Amazon US, but you are more lucky here with Amazon UK.
This is Zimbabwe - by Gerald S. Cubitt (January 2000)
Try to order here at Amazon US, but they seem to have problems. Definitely available here
at Amazon UK.
This is Botswana - by Daryl Balfour, Sharna Balfour (July 1997)
Try to order here at Amazon US. Definately available here at Amazon UK. Versuch es portofrei bei
Amazon D/CH/Ö
This is Namibia - by Gerald S. Cubitt (January 2000)
Again, Amazon US has problems. Definitely available here at Amazon UK.
This is Zambia - unfortunately not available anywhere
Lonely Planet Eastern Europe
(6th
edition, 2001)
Proved to be extremely valuable on my 1999 Bosnia
trip. Actually the only book
where travel information about Bosnia is available at the moment. Covers the whole of Eastern
Europe. Highly recommended.
Order from Amazon USA. Portofrei
bestellen bei
Lonely Planet Croatia - by Jeanne Oliver (1st edition, April 1999)
Order at Amazon USA. Portofrei
bestellen bei Amazon D.
Sarajevo Survival Guide (1993,
out of print but try the used books network)
This is the book that made me decide to go to spend the summer of 1999 in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. Written in the style of a Michelin guidebook, it fights
with humanism against the terror of a European city that has been laid under
middle age style siege for three years. It tells you why to drive fast over
crossroads (snipers) and "how to cook something out of nothing". This
book proves that the human spirit can survive the most extreme of
circumstances. "Sarajevo makes Mad Max 5 possible". Try to order at Amazon US.
Letters from Sarajevo: Voices of a Besieged City (May 1994)
The desperate voices of war victims of all nationalities, carried by
journalists and expatriates to the save part of Europe. This book profoundly
touched me and was one of the reasons why I wanted to go to Bosnia and
Herzegovina myself. Find it here at Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon D.
As Long As Sarajevo Exists - by Kemal Kurspahic (February
1997)
"I cannot promise that you will be alive when the siege is over",
Kemal Kursphahic, the editor-in-chief of Oslobodjenje, said at the
beginning of the siege of Sarajevo. "Nor can I promise you that you will
get any awards or promotions. But I can promise you this: As Long As
Sarajevo Exists, this newspaper will publish every day". You'll read
this book in one day - wanna take a bet? Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Yugoslavia: Death of a Nation - by Laura Silber and Allan
Little (January 1997)
List Price: $13.95
Amazon
US Price: $11.16
You Save: $2.79 (20%)
Indispensable as an introduction to the dissolution of Yugoslavia in the first
half of the 1990's. Based on a BBC documentary with a lot of primary sources.
Covers the period before the Kosovo airstrikes. Find
it here at Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei
Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History - by Robert D.
Kaplan (March 1994)
The classic. Order it here in the US. Oder portofrei in
D/CH/Ö.
The Ends of the Earth: From Togo to Turkmenistan, from Iran
to Cambodia, a journey to the Frontiers of Anarchy. - by Robert Kasplan (February 1997)
A bit dated when it comes to the actual stories, but absolutely
passionate to read and the definite proof that reality is more exciting than
fiction. Just have a look at the reviews at Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Lonely Planet Antarctica (2nd
edition, September 2000)
When a mission to Mars is in planning, why did you think you can't go to
Antarctica? You can already order this book even no it will be published not before
September.
Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
Lonely Planet Bhutan (1st
edition, November 1998)
One of the last places in the world where people live their traditional
lifestyle. My big dream is to go to this Himalaya mountain kingdom once. What's
lacking is the spare money.... Order from Amazon US. Portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
International Travel Health Guide (10th edition, June 1998)
Get it at Amazon US. Oder portofrei bei Amazon D/CH/Ö.
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