Books and Movies--two of our favorite things

We both love books and we both love movies. Alright, that is not exactly true-- Pearce really loves movies (he invests time into websites, blogs, podcasts) and I on the other hand, just watch them. Even so, we thought we would take our passions for reading and cinema and focus them on our trip to Asia so we can learn more about the countries and people we will be visiting. After all, since we are committing a considerable amount of time, energy and resources to this adventure, we should probably get more out of it then a bamboo chopsticks set and nice tan (me, not Pearce). We want to already have a foundational understanding of the culture, history and politics of the countries we are going to visit so that way our experiences there are that much deeper and meaningful. Or at least that is the goal!

With this in mind, we have begun putting together a list of books and movies we will try to tackle over the next year. The books include both fiction and nonfiction, while the movies mainly draw from documentaries--yay for free Netflix on Demand! If have any books that you feel we shouldn't miss, please let us know and we will add it to our list.

Mongolia:

1. Gobi: Tracking the Desert by John Man
2. Genghis Khan: Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford
3. Hearing Birds Fly by Louis Waugh
   
4. Dateline Mongolia by Michael Kohn
   
5. Wolf totem by Jiang Rong
   

China, etc:

1. Shogun, Tai Pai, Gai-jin, King Rat, Noble House
2. Chasing the Monk's Shadow
3. Fried Eggs with Chopsticks
4. Oracle Bones
5. Red China Blues
6. Riding the Iron Rooster
7. Shanghai: The Rise and Fall of a Decadent City

Thailand:

1. Siam Mapped - Winichakul
2. Forrest Recollections: Wandering Monks in 20th Century Thailand - Tiyavanich
3. A History of Thailand - Baker
   

Laos:

1. Stalking the Elephant King:In Search of Laos - Kremmer
2. Another Quiet American - Dakin
   
3. The Coroner's Lunch

Vietnam:

1. Patriots: The Vietnam War Remembered from All Sides - Appy
2. Vietnam Where East and West Meets - Do Van Minh
3. An Introduction to Buddhism - Peter Harvey

Movies:

1. Wild China
2. China: A Century of Revolution
3. Vietnam: a Television History
4. Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam
5. Globe Trekker: Thailand, Malaysia and Laos
   

Allyson and Pearce