A pacy, fresh and surprising portrait of Japan and the Japanese - from David Pilling, award-winning writer and Asia Editor of the Financial TimesDespite years of stagnation, Japan remains one of the world's largest economies and a country which exerts a remarkable cultural fascination. David Pilling's new book is an entertaining, deeply knowledgeable and surprising analysis of a group of islands which have shown great resilience, both in the face of financial distress and when confronted with the overwhelming disaster of the 2011 earthquake.The resulting tsunami, which killed some 19,000 people, and nuclear catastrophe highlighted both the deeply impressive practical resilience of ordinary Japanese and a political culture of extraordinary carelessness and arrogance. Pilling describes the emergency and its aftermath, but then writes far more broadly about many aspects of Japan which are little known to outsiders and which do so much to explain these contradictory responses to the earthquake. Bending Adversity is a superb work of reportage and the essential book even for those who already feel they know the country well. Read more

**Shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize 2024**A story of staggering scope and drama, Revolusi is the masterful and definitive account of the epic revolution that sparked the decolonisation of the modern world.'Astounding . . . history at its best' Yuval Noah Harari'Utterly compelling . . . astonishing' Financial Times'Superb' GuardianOn a sunny Friday morning in August 1945, a handful of tired people raised a homemade cotton flag and on behalf of 68 million compatriots announced the birth of a new nation: Indonesia.Four million civilians had died during the Japanese wartime occupation that ousted its Dutch colonial regime. Another 200,000 people would lose their lives in the astonishingly brutal conflict that ensued - as the Dutch used savage violence to reassert their control, and as Britain and America became embroiled in pacifying Indonesia's guerrilla war of resistance: the 'Revolusi'. It was not until December 1949 that the newly created United Nations finally brought the conflict to an end - and with it, 350 years of colonial rule - setting a precedent that would reshape the world.Drawing on hundreds of interviews and eye-witness testimonies, David Van Reybrouck turns this vast and complex story into an utterly gripping narrative that is alive with human detail at every turn. A landmark publication, Revolusi shows Indonesia's struggle for independence to be one of the defining dramas of the twentieth century.'A magnificent fusion of oral history, sparkling analysis, and historical wisdom. Revolusi has it all: a masterpiece' Sebastain Mallaby'A magisterial and gripping account of events of urgent importance to us now' Jason Burke'A wonderful book' Peter Frankopan'Masterly' J M Coetzee** Shortlisted for the Cundill Prize ** A Financial Times, Evening Standard, History Today and Prospect Best Book of 2024 ** Read more

From the internationally bestselling author of The Silk Roads: everything you need to know about the present and future of the world'Masterly mapping out of a new world order' Evening Standard'Frankopan is a brilliant guide to terra incognita' The TimesPeter Frankopan's highly anticipated follow-up to the 'Book of the Decade', The New Silk Roads takes a fresh look at the network of relationships being formed along the length and breadth of the Silk Roads today.The world is changing dramatically and in an age of Brexit and Trump, the themes of isolation and fragmentation permeating the western world stand in sharp contrast to events along the Silk Roads, where ties have been strengthened and mutual cooperation established.Following the Silk Roads eastwards from Europe through to China, by way of Russia and the Middle East, The New Silk Roads provides a timely reminder that we live in a world that is profoundly interconnected. In this prescient contemporary history, Peter Frankopan assesses the global reverberations of these continual shifts in the centre of power - all too often absent from headlines in the west.This important - and ultimately hopeful - book asks us to reread who we are and where we are in the world, illuminating the themes on which all our lives and livelihoods depend. Read more

'Do not miss this book' NAOMI KLEIN, author of This Changes EverythingThe history of the nutmeg is one of conquest and exploitation - of both human life and the natural environment - and the origin of our contemporary climate crisis.Tracing the threats to our future to the discovery of the New World and the sea route to the Indian Ocean, The Nutmeg's Curse argues that the dynamics of climate change are rooted in a centuries-old geopolitical order constructed by Western colonialism. The story of the nutmeg becomes a parable revealing the ways human history has always been entangled with earthly materials - spices, tea, sugarcane, opium, and fossil fuels. Our crisis, Ghosh shows, is ultimately the result of a mechanistic view of the earth, where nature exists only as a resource for humans to use for our own ends, rather than a force of its own, full of agency and meaning.Writing against the backdrop of the global pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests, Ghosh frames these historical stories in a way that connects our shared colonial past with the deep inequality we see around us today. By interweaving discussions on everything from the global history of the oil trade to the migrant crisis and the animist spirituality of indigenous communities around the world, The Nutmeg's Curse offers a sharp critique of contemporary society and speaks to the profoundly remarkable ways in which human history is shaped by non-human forces. Read more

'Bracingly apocalyptic stuff: atmospheric, chock-full of information and with a constantly escalating sense of pace and tension' Sunday TelegraphSimon Winchester's brilliant chronicle of the destruction of the Indonesian island of Krakatoa in 1883 charts the birth of our modern world. He tells the story of the unrecognized genius who beat Darwin to the discovery of evolution; of Samuel Morse, his code and how rubber allowed the world to talk; of Alfred Wegener, the crack-pot German explorer and father of geology. In breathtaking detail he describes how one island and its inhabitants were blasted out of existence and how colonial society was turned upside-down in a cataclysm whose echoes are still felt to this day. Read more

John Pilger is one of the world's renowned investigative journalists and documentary filmmakers. In this classic book, with an updated introduction, he reveals the secrets and illusions of modern imperialism. Beginning with Indonesia, he shows how General Suharto's bloody seizure of power in the 1960s was part of a western design to impose a 'global economy' on Asia. A million Indonesians died as the price for being the World Bank's 'model pupil'. In a shocking chapter on Iraq, he delineates the true nature of the West's war against the people of that country. And he dissects, piece by piece, the propaganda of the 'war on terror' to expose its Orwellian truth. Finally, he looks behind the picture-postcard image of his homeland, Australia, to illuminate an enduring legacy of imperialism: the subjugation of the First Australians. Read more

Survival, heroism, courage and mateship in Ambon - a place of nightmares.In February, 1942, Ambon, an Indonesian island north of Darwin, fell to the Japanese army and the Allied forces defending it were captured. Over a thousand of these soldiers were Australian. By the end of the war, just one-third of them had survived and Ambon became a place of nightmares, one of the most notorious of all POW camps the war had seen.Many of the men captured were massacred, and of those who initially survived, many later succumbed to the sadistic brutality of the Japanese guards. Starvation also took a fearful toll, and then there were the medical 'experiments'. It was a place almost without hope for those who held on, made worse by the fact that the savagery inflicted on them wasn't limited to their captors but also came from their own. One soldier described their hopelessness towards the end with the bleak words: 'The men knew they were dying.'Yet astoundingly there were survivors and in Ambon they speak of not just the horrors, but the bravery, endurance and mateship that got them through an ordeal almost impossible to imagine.The story of Ambon is one of both the depravity and the triumph of the human spirit; it is also one that's not been widely told. Until now. Read more

Trenchard Brat. Flying Spanner. Left Hand Seat. Nicknames abound in aviation. But not many get to be called them all, especially when theyve started life with an aversion to school and a stammer thrown in. Mick Patrick started his aviation career as an RAF Apprentice and finished it as an Air Ambulance pilot. He never knew he was going to become a pilot just that he was determined to have a good start in life and it seemed the RAF offered this to him.As an engineer, Mick saw active service on jungle airstrips in the Far East during the Borneo Confrontation with Indonesia and got his hands dirty servicing Cold War aircraft. Later he had an opportunity to become aircrew as a Flight Engineer and it was from this position he was able to use his knowledge as part of a crew to take the next step. After many years of watching pilots ply their trade, Mick decided he could do it too, so worked his way up to becoming a commercial pilot.Along the way he experienced risky moments that shaped him as an aviator; he crashed a float plane in a Texas lake, flew casualties to Coventry and elephants to the East, nose-dived in Nassau and skirted death at Stansted. The tales in this book are used to illustrate how they affected Micks approach to aviation and what he took away from those events.Immensely readable and delivered by a true story teller, From Jacks to Joysticks is for anyone who loves tales of aircraft and life in aviation, whether in the cockpit or on the ground. Above all else this book is about how a lifetime of exposure to aviation has shaped one mans thinking and approach to life and how in aviation you need to keep an open mind. Read more

'Bracingly apocalyptic stuff: atmospheric, chock-full of information and with a constantly escalating sense of pace and tension' Sunday TelegraphSimon Winchester's brilliant chronicle of the destruction of the Indonesian island of Krakatoa in 1883 charts the birth of our modern world. He tells the story of the unrecognized genius who beat Darwin to the discovery of evolution; of Samuel Morse, his code and how rubber allowed the world to talk; of Alfred Wegener, the crack-pot German explorer and father of geology. In breathtaking detail he describes how one island and its inhabitants were blasted out of existence and how colonial society was turned upside-down in a cataclysm whose echoes are still felt to this day. Read more

Discover the magic of the Indonesian island of Bali in this captivating book on its history, from the origins of Bali’s geological formation until modern times.Bali is known as “the Island of the Gods,” with its tens of thousands of temples and shrines dating back more than a millennium to the exotic Indianized empires of Java that influenced Bali greatly. Although it bore witness to the ancient Maritime Silk Road of Southeast Asia, Bali mysteriously avoided complete domination by ocean traders and European colonizers until as late as the 20th century.Bali is visited today by millions of international tourists, not only for its magnificent beaches and lush, tropical scenery but also as a living monument of an ancient cultural past. The Balinese of today adhere faithfully to the unique Balinese Hinduism of their island paradise and continue following traditions and art forms that were brought to its shores by their ancestors thousands of years ago.In this book, you will learn:How the island of Bali was home to paleolithic humankindWhy Bali’s Asian biodiversity and rich, fertile soils are not found on the neighboring islandsWhat makes up the unique human heritage of indigenous BalineseHow the island retained its endemic Balinese Hinduism despite 1,300 years of Muslim influenceFrom where and from whom the Balinese learned their abundant skills in metalworking, crafting, sculpture, and artHow art and ritual offerings form the basis of Balinese life, from where the island draws its nameHow it was that the island nation of Bali was not interested in seafaring and maritime tradeInsight into the Balinese pride in being the true ancestors of the collapsed Javanese Indianized Majapahit EmpireHow this gentle, peaceful island consistently evaded total domination by foreign powers and curiously repelled colonialists for much of its historyAnd much more!Scroll up and click the “add to cart” button to learn more about the History of Bali! Read more

This newly designed edition includes a full-colour section at the front of the guide featuring the authors' selected highlights of the country. Throughout there is in-depth coverage of all the sights from Bali's stunning white beaches and temples tothe enigmatic ruins of Java and the jungles of Sumatra. There are first-hand recommendations of the best places to surf, dive and trek and comprehensive listings of the best-value accommodation and eateries for all budgets. A detailed contexts section provides the reader with informed background on Indonesia's history, religions and music. Read more

A memoir of a tough childhood—and tough combat—by an “adventurous, lively, outspoken, opinionated” WWII Marine veteran (Columbus Dispatch).    On September 15, 1944, the US First Marine Division landed on a small island in the Central Pacific called Peleliu as a prelude to the liberation of the Philippines. Among the first wave of Marines that hit the beach that day was twenty-two-year-old George Peto.   Growing up on an Ohio farm, George always preferred being outdoors and exploring. This made school a challenge, but his hunting, fishing, and trapping skills helped put food on his family’s table. As a poor teenager living in a rough area, he got into regular brawls, and he found holding down a job hard because of his wanderlust. After working out west with the CCC, he decided that joining the Marines offered him the opportunity for adventure, plus three square meals a day—so he and his brother joined the Corps in 1941, just a few months before Pearl Harbor.   Following boot camp and training, he was initially assigned to various guard units until he was shipped out to the Pacific and assigned to the 1st Marines. His first combat experience was the landing at Finschhaven, followed by Cape Gloucester. Then as a Forward Observer, he went ashore in one of the lead amtracs at Peleliu and saw fierce fighting for a week before the regiment was relieved due to massive casualties. Six months later, his division became the immediate reserve for the initial landing on Okinawa. They encountered no resistance when they came ashore, but would go on to fight on Okinawa for over six months.   This is the wild and remarkable story of an “Old Breed” Marine—his youth in the Great Depression, his training and combat in the Pacific, and his life after the war, told in his own words. Read more

Taiwan: a place with its own flag, currency, government and military, but which most of the world does not recognise as a sovereign country. An island that China regards as a ‘rebellious province’, but which has managed to survive defiantly for decades. Now with its neighbour China a major power on the world stage and ally United States looking increasingly inward, Taiwan’s position has never been more precarious.Kerry Brown and Kalley Wu Tzu-hui reveal how the island’s shifting fortunes have been shaped by centuries of conquest and by a cast of dynamic characters, by Cold War intrigue and the rise of its neighbour as a global power, explaining how this tiny island, caught between the agendas of two superpowers, is attempting to find its place in a rapidly changing world order. Read more

Judy, a beautiful liver and white English pointer, and the only animal POW of WWII, truly was a dog in a million, cherished and adored by the British, Australian, American and other Allied servicemen who fought to survive alongside her. Viewed largely as human by those who shared her extraordinary life, Judy's uncanny ability to sense danger, matched with her quick-thinking and impossible daring saved countless lives. She was a close companion to men who became like a family to her, sharing in both the tragedies and joys they faced. It was in recognition of the extraordinary friendship and protection she offered amidst the unforgiving and savage environment of a Japanese prison camp in Indonesia that she gained her formal status as a POW. Judy's unique combination of courage, kindness and fun repaid that honour a thousand times over and her incredible story is one of the most heartwarming and inspiring tales you will ever read. Read more

Indonesia is by far the largest nation in Southeast Asia and one of the largest countries in the world and is fourth largest in terms of population after the United States. Indonesian history and culture are especially relevant today as the Island nation is an emerging power in the region with a dynamic new leader. It is a land of incredible diversity and unending paradoxes that has a long and rich history stretching back a thousand years and more. Indonesia is the fabled "Spice Islands" of every school child's dreams one of the most colourful and fascinating countries in history. These are the islands that Europeans set out on countless voyages of discovery to find and later fought bitterly over in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. This was the land that Christopher Columbus sought and Magellan actually reached and explored. One tiny Indonesian island was even exchanged for the island of Manhattan in 1667! Read more

2016 PROSE Award Honorable Mention for Textbook in the HumanitiesA History of Southeast Asia: Critical Crossroads presents a comprehensive history of Southeast Asia from our earliest knowledge of its civilizations and religious patterns up to the present day.Incorporates environmental, social, economic, and gender issues to tell a multi-dimensional story of Southeast Asian history from earliest times to the presentArgues that while the region remains a highly diverse mix of religions, ethnicities, and political systems, it demands more attention for how it manages such diversity while being receptive to new ideas and technologiesDemonstrates how Southeast Asia can offer alternatives to state-centric models of history more broadlyPart of The Blackwell History of the World SeriesThe goal of this ambitious series is to provide an accessible source of knowledge about the entire human past, for every curious person in every part of the world. It will comprise some two dozen volumes, of which some provide synoptic views of the history of particular regions while others consider the world as a whole during a particular period of time. The volumes are narrative in form, giving balanced attention to social and cultural history (in the broadest sense) as well as to institutional development and political change. Each provides a systematic account of a very large subject, but they are also both imaginative and interpretative. The Series is intended to be accessible to the widest possible readership, and the accessibility of its volumes is matched by the style of presentation and production. Read more

A new addition to Europa's popular 'Territories of the World' series, The Territories of Indonesia provides invaluable information on this diverse country. The book supplies an in-depth guide to both the regional dimensions of the area and its inter-provincial politics.Key Features:informative introductory essays provide an impartial background on regional aspects of the Republica chronology covers the major events in the area's political and economic history including: colonial rule, independence, guided democracy, Suharto and recent terrorist activitiesinformation is provided about the national governments, structures and organizations.Individual chapters on each of the provinces and special districts, providing:a map of the area, with geographical and historical informationan economic survey presenting the latest available statistics on performance and conditions in each of the provinces and districtsa directory of the names and addresses of leading administrative and political officials.This key publication offers a unique insight into the relationship between provinces and central government within Indonesia. Read more