Narisa Chakrabongse

Thailand: Buddhist Kingdom at the Heart of South East Asia by Narisa Chakrabongse is an excellent introduction to Thailand for those who haven't been and a great reminder of its beauty and culture for those who have.

I spent some time the past couple of days reading several coffee table books. I use them as decoration but with an eye toward being conversation starters. So while attractiveness is important, for me, the information offered is just as important. I usually want a nice mix of illustrations and either good captions or short sections of text that only refer to one or two pictures. In other words, I want to put the pictures and the information together easily, unlike, say, a history book that may have a number of illustrations but they may not even be on the same page as the part of the chapter that refers to them. So…

This book, like many of Amber Books' titles, is set up perfect for my taste. A brief introduction for each chapter about the region covered, then informative captions for each photograph telling the reader what they are looking at as well as some background. The history, culture and, especially, the juxtaposition of the modern and the ancient are captured wonderfully in the photographs and captions. Plus just seeing some of the photographs makes you feel you're there.

I would definitely recommend this for those with an interest in Thailand as well as those who simply enjoy nice photography. As for gift giving, I think coffee table books make wonderful gifts, but I usually pick books on topics I know the person likes rather than guessing whether they might be interested. I don’t want them to feel like they have to set a book out because I might be dropping by. For the right person, this would make an excellent gift.

Some of the books in the Visual Explorer Guide series are smaller (the Flexibound versions), roughly the size of the old large postcards one bought on vacation. I like those as end table, rather than coffee table, books. This one (hardcover), however, is full size, roughly the size of standard printer paper (8.5”x11”) turned landscape.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.… (meer)