Focusing on chars—the part-land, part-water, low-lying sandy masses that exist within the riverbeds in the floodplains of lower Bengal—the authors show how, both as real-life examples and as metaphors, chars straddle the conventional categories of land and water, and how people …
A portrait of the thirteenth-century explorer, adventurer, and global traveler follows Marco Polo from his youth in Venice to his journey to Asia and role in the court of Kublai Khan, to his return to Europe, and discusses his influence on the history of his era.
This magnificent volume brings to life the great and ancient drama of the world's holiest city. Mining the rich evidence of this remarkable history, the world-renowned authors gathered here conjure the Holy City as it has appeared in antique Hebrew texts; in the testimony of Jew…
A portrait of the city of Jerusalem, discussing its history, people, politics, architectural features, and how it came to be the holy city of three religions; and looking at its depictions in art and literature.
"Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, is a former colony of the British Empire which today prides itself in being a multicultural society par excellence. However, the Islamisation of the urban landscape, which is at the core of Malaysia's decolonisation projects, has marg…
A distinct European perspective on Asia emerged in the late Middle Ages. Early reports of a homogeneous "India" of marvels and monsters gave way to accounts written by medieval travelers that indulged readers' curiosity about far-flung landscapes and cultures without exhibiting …
The religion of Java
by Geertz, Clifford, Geertz, Clifford
fromPhoenix books (Chicago, Ill.)
There is nowhere else in the world quite like Chungking Mansions, a dilapidated seventeen-story commercial and residential structure in the heart of Hong Kong's tourist district. A remarkably motley group of people call the building home; Pakistani phone stall operators, Chinese…
Thirty years after covering the Vietnam War as a combat correspondent, the author returns to Hanoi to explore modern Vietnam, examining the people, the land, the history, the culture, and the legacy of the war.
