Fiction set in and/or written by people living in the region or country can provide insights into society and culture that are hard to obtain without years of study or residence.  The books suggested here do not qualify as “great literature” but the stories are easy to read, enjoyable, and instructive.

Singapore

• Stephen Leather’s series of very short (less than 100 page) books featuring Singapore police inspector Zhang are tightly written crime novellas set in contemporary Singapore.  Books in the series include:

  • • Inspector Zhang Gets his Wish

    • Inspector Zhang and the Falling Woman

• Shamini Flint’s series featuring inspector Singh, an overweight bumbling policeman in Singapore who must deal with the cultural and societal foibles of countries in the region.  Books in the series include:

  • • Inspector Singh Investigates a Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder

    • The Singapore School of Villainy

• Kehinde Fadipe, The Sun Sets in Singapore describes the richness of life in Singapore through the eyes of expats

Malaysia

• Rozlan Mohd Noor has been compared to Ian Rankin and Michael Connelly.  His series featuring Kuala Lumpur police inspector Mislan is set in contemporary Malaysia.  Books in the series include:

  • • DUKE: Inspector Mislan and the Expressway Murders

    • 21 Immortals: Inspector Mislan and the Yee Sang Murders

    • U Tube: Inspector Mislan and he Emancipatist Conspiracy

Thailand

• John Burdett books featuring police detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep, the Buddhist son of a brothel owner and long-gone GI who strives to remain honest and true to Buddhist teachings will navigating the criminal underworld and political corruption of contemporary Thailand.  There are five books in this series; reading them in order helps a little but they can be read independently in any order.

  • • • Bangkok 8 : A Royal Thai Detective Novel (1)

      • Bangkok Tattoo: A Royal Thai Detective Novel (2)

      • Bangkok Haunts (Sonchai Jitpleecheep 3)

      • The Godfather of Kathmandu: A Royal Thai Detective Novel (4)

      • Vulture Peak: A Royal Thai Detective Novel (5)

• Rattawut Lapcharoensap, Sightseeing is a collection of stories reflecting various aspects of life in contemporary Thailand. Described by one reviewer as “intensely political and profoundly angry about the corrupt, poverty-stricken condition of Thailand…with a warmth and belief in humanity.”

• Christopher Hale, A Brief History of Singapore and Malaysia: Multiculturalism and Prosperity: The Shared History of Two Southeast Asian Tigers (2023) contains a lot of detail that probably will not be of great interest to most readers but the sections on the more recent era are compact and useful.

• Richard A. Ruth, A Brief History of Thailand: Monarch, War and Resilience: The Fascinating Story of the Gilded Kingdom at the Heart of Asia (2022) provides more detail and history than many will find necessary but is useful for understanding contemporary politics and why Thailand is different from other countries in Southeast Asia.

Videos on Southeast Asia selected for their relevance to the Southeast Asia Travel/Study Program:

APARC Celebrates 25 Years of Southeast Asia Studies at Stanford (https://aparc.fsi.stanford.edu/southeastasia/news/aparc-celebrates-25-years-southeast-asia-studies-stanford)

• Reconsidering Southeast Asia: Issues and Prospects

  • • Short but important remarks by Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, and Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of the now-banned Move Forward Party that won the 2023 election in Thailand but was prevented from taking office by the governing regime.  Anwar’s remarks begin at the 22:15-minute mark at address the importance of Southeast Asia and ASEAN.  Pita’s remarks begin at the 30-minute mark and cover some of the same issues from a Thai perspective.

• Geopolitics and US Policy in Southeast Asia 

  • • Presentations provide different views of US and Chinese policies in the region.  The speakers are Yuen Foong Khong, an academic from Singapore, Gregory Poling from the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, Scot Marciel, former US ambassador to Myanmar, Indonesia, and ASEAN, and Elina Noor from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace,

• Gender Inequality in Southeast Asia

  • • Presentations of dimensions of gender inequality in the region by Mino Roces (Australia), Mala Htun (University of New Mexico), and Barbara Watson Andaya (University of Hawaii, Manoa).

• The Future of Southeast Asia 

  • • This session is moderated by Don Emmerson with presentations by Gita Wirjawan, former Indonesian Minister of Trade, and Richard Heydarian from the University of the Philippines.  Speakers examine educational, economic, and geopolitical factors that will shape the region’s future.

• Islam and Democracy: Malaysia in Comparative Perspective 

  • • This program in 2014 featured then leader of Malaysia’s principal opposition party (and since 2022 Prime Minister) Anwar Ibrahim with questions and comments from Stanford scholars Don Emmerson, Larry Diamond, and Frank Fukuyama.  Anwar’s talk begins at the 8-minute mark.

• Singapore Today; The Challenges of Race, Inequality, and US-China Relations 

  • • Dialog between Linda Lim from the University of Michigan and Don Emmerson that provides many insights into the complexities of the small but highly successful city state of Singapore.

• Imperfect Partners: The United States and Southeast Asia 

  • • Dialog between Don Emmerson and former US ambassador to Myanmar, Indonesia, and ASEAN centered on his recent book entitled Imperfect Partners: The United States and Southeast Asia.

• Southeast Asia in the New Cold War: Choosing Not to Choose? 

  • • Presentations by Richard Heydarian (University of the Philippines) and Huong Le Thu (Australia) examine how Southeast Asians look and respond to the idea that we are now engaged in a new cold war.

• Democracy, Diplomacy, Geopolitics and the Future of Southeast Asia 

  • • Talk on tensions within ASEAN by former Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Marty Natalegawa.

• Donald K. Emmerson, The Deer and the Dragon: Southeast Asia and China in the 21st Century (2020).  Emmerson’s introduction to this edited volume and Fingar’s chapter on China’s changing priorities in the region provide useful overviews.

• Scot Marciel, Imperfect Partners: The United States and Southeast Asia (2023)  Marciel provides a experienced practitioner’s view of American interests and frustrations in dealing with countries in the region.

• John D. Ciorciari and Kiyoteru Tsutsui, The Courteous Power: Japan and Southeast Asia in the Indo-Pacific Era (2021).  This edited volume provides a non-American perspective on engaging the people and societies in Southeast Asia.

• Milton Osborne, Southeast Asia, An Introductory History (2021). This updated version of the 1979 classic is '"Still one of the best short introductory histories of the region."  Osborne traces social, political and economic change in the region since the 18th century.

• Maryvelma O'Neil, Bangkok, A Cultural History (2008). Oxford University Press, 2008. O'Neil illuminates a city rich in art, history, royal ceremony and tradition in this engaging portrait.

• Donald K. Swearer, The Buddhist World of Southeast Asia. SUNY, 2010. A succinct, authoritative survey of Theravada Buddhism in Southeast Asia as a dynamic, complex system of thought and practice imbedded in the respective cultures, societies, and histories of Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka.

• Barbara Watson Andaya and Leonard Y. Andaya. A History of Malaysia. University of Hawaii Press, 2001. This scholarly yet readable work tracks Malaysia’s sociopolitical development from the appearance of the famed Malay empire Srivijaya to its transition into the 21st century. This is a panoramic historical overview of a multicultural society that supports one of the most dynamic economies in Asia.

• Edwin A. Brown, Indiscreet Memories, 1901 Singapore through the Eyes of a Colonial Englishman. Charles E. Tuttle Company, 2007. Brown observes day-to-day life as well as extraordinary events – like a tiger run amok – in excellent detail in this eyewitness account of Singapore at the turn of the 19th century. 

• Paul M. Handley, The King Never Smiles, A Biography of Thailand’s Bhumibol Adulyadej.  (2006). A balanced biography of Thailand’s powerful king, a constitutional monarch who came to the throne of his country from the United States in 1946. 

• Tash Aw, The Harmony Silk Factory. Riverhead Books, 2006. Tash Aw is a truly gifted writer who manages to weave together fascinating tidbits of Malaysia’s history and culture with the story of a screwed-up family. Best of all, he tells the story in the voice of a terrific, stereotype-busting character -- a pedantic, vain and genuinely funny riff on a dutiful son, a kind of Tristram Shandy who finds himself in Southeast Asia. 

• Pierre Boulle,  Bridge over the River Kwai. Presidio, 2007. The gripping tale of British soldiers in a Japanese POW camp, immortalized by William Holden and Alec Guiness in David Lean’s classic movie (that won seven Academy Awards). French-born, Boulle went to Malaysia as a rubber planter in the 1930s then fled to Singapore when France fell to the Nazis. He was later a guerilla and POW.

• Tan Twan Eng, The Gift of Rain. Weinstein Books, 2009. Nominated for the Man Booker Prize, this moving saga narrates a young man’s perilous journey through war and young manhood. It’s 1939 and Philip, the half-English, half-Chinese son of a wealthy trading family, finds a sense of belonging with a Japanese diplomat. When the Japanese invade his native Malaysia, Philip becomes an unwitting traitor while trying to save as many lives as he can.

• JG Farrell, The Singapore Grip. NYRB, 2005. One of a trio of remarkable historical novels by J.G. Farrell, its centerpiece is the Japanese invasion of British-ruled Singapore. Ranging all over the colony from the slums to posh clubs and cricket fields, it’s an evocative portrait of the colonial city in peace and war.

• Preeta Samarasan, Evening Is the Whole Day. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2009. Set in post-colonial Malaysia, this richly textured debut novel depicts the unraveling of a wealthy family and the six-year- old daughter left reeling from losses and departures. Samarasan’s unflinching yet tender examination of one immigrant family’s experience exposes the complexities and layered history of Malaysia itself.

• Fiona Kerlogue, Arts of Southeast Asia. (2004). A handsome guide to the art, architecture, textiles and crafts of Southeast Asia.

• Berlitz International, Inc. Berlitz Southeast Asia Phrase Book & Dictionary (2015). For travelers in Southeast Asia, this pocket-sized, multi-language phrasebook includes Burmese, Thai, Vietnamese, Khmer and Lao. Features essential words and phrases organized by situation.

• Eyewitness Guides. Eyewitness Guide Malaysia & Singapore. 2016. A visually stunning guide to Singapore and surroundings, featuring hundreds of photographs and illustrations, detailed city maps, and information on history, culture and attractions.

• Eyewitness Guides. DK Eyewitness Travel Top 10 Bangkok. (2023). This slim guide, geared for visitors on a short stay, features color photographs and maps.

• Angela Milligan, Culture Smart! Singapore. Kuperard (2019). A concise, no-nonsense guide to local customs, etiquette and culture with a short overview of the land and people.

• J. Rotheray, Culture Smart! Thailand. Kuperard (2021). A concise, no-nonsense guide to local customs, etiquette and culture with practical travel advice and a short overview of the land and people.