This is the first book in the Lethal Series or the Donovan Creed series by the author John Locke (no, not that John Locke the 17th century English philosopher).
Okay, so the wikipedia entry for the author says that "Donovan Creed, the main character of the Lethal Series, is a former CIA assassin and a smart-aleck tough guy with a heart of bronze. Locke's characters are particularly known for their witty dialogue." After reading the first of the series, all I can say is that that's some effing bullshit.
The dialogue isn't particularly witty or funny. Yeah, there might have been about three or four funny lines, and that's about it. All the rest were some attempts at humor but didn't come even close. The Creed character is supposed to be a tough guy. The author tries really hard, artificially so, to make the character a really tough dude. Then he sprinkles in throw-up quality (there's no other way of saying it nicely, really) sentimental and romantic scenes tied to the same tough guy. At times, I found the reading it really difficult with my mind saying "this is 9th or 10th grade level writing."
I've been pleasantly surprised by a couple of Michael Connelly detective/thriller novels which I came across by accident. If Connelly is close to a 10, this Locke guy comes close to 1.5. Don't get me wrong; it is an easy read, easy to follow, and there's a definite storyline. But, the story doesn't have any reality basis, or a real mystery. The bad guys are bad, the good guys are good. The winner camp ends up with all the loot and then-some. Because of the language and the subject matter, I can't say the novel is for the young adult. Like they say, it is a book to kill time, for those who like it better dead. I don't think I'll be wasting my valuable time on other books by this author.
[This was the first book I read off my smart-phone.]
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Sunday, April 10, 2011
The Grand Design
During last Christmas Kishan and Anusha gave me this book, The Grand Design, by the famous theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, I think, because the title sort of leans towards the nonsensical theological notion of Intelligent Design. Ha ha ha ... they (Kishan, specially) should not judge a book by the cover or the title. The conclusion of the book is anything but that of the popular American theological ... um ... "ideology."
This is a very well written--yet short--book about modern physics, and the implications thereof. In only about 160 or so pages, Hawking and the co-author Mlodinow talk about where and how the scientific reasoning began and how it evolved. And then, they bring it forward to the modern day theories of Special and General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics. Yet, in the first page itself, the authors throw down the gauntlet by proclaiming that the "philosophy is dead" and it is up to the scientists to take up the quest for knowledge. Boy, do they ever!
The authors explain quite nicely that in the "model-dependent realism, it is pointless to ask whether a model is real" but it only makes sense to find out if the model "agrees with observation." This concept is quite well and simply explained using the example of what a goldfish sees from a spherical fish-bowl.
For a book which someone can thoroughly read and understand in a few days' time, it isn't reasonable for me to try to summarize the content here. Besides, I will come up well short of the mark, even if I try. In the first chapter, the authors define the task at hand and then go about explaining quite a lot of scientific subject matter in plain language in the subsequent chapters. Within a few chapters, they cover the Newtonian mechanics, the special and general relativity, quantum mechanics, the Maxwell equations, etc. The chapters are quite well organized and the thinking process flow from one to the other. They then show the need for various theories in microscopic and macroscopic levels. After glancing through the standard model, the string theory, the set of M-Theory equations etc. they come to the conclusion that "just as Darwin and Wallace explained how the apparently miraculous design of living forms could appear without intervension by a supreme being, the multiverse concept can explain the fine-tuning of physical law without the need for a benevolent creator who made the universe for our benefit."
The book should be easy to follow even for someone who doesn't have a quantum theory background. This isn't a theoretical physics book. It does not drown the reader with equations and buzzwords. Unlike Richard Dawkins' books, I did not get the sense that Hawking and Mlodinow were itching for a fight with the religious fundamentalists. They just bluntly present what comes out of the science and yet they do not to sugar-coat it.
Even if the future discoveries in various scientific fields change or invalidates the set of M-theories, the central concept brought forth in this book will hold true. It is that we can understand and explain our environment with simple and elegant scientific thought without having to resort to magic, mystery or mythology.
I very highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand the principles of scientific discoveries.
This is a very well written--yet short--book about modern physics, and the implications thereof. In only about 160 or so pages, Hawking and the co-author Mlodinow talk about where and how the scientific reasoning began and how it evolved. And then, they bring it forward to the modern day theories of Special and General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics. Yet, in the first page itself, the authors throw down the gauntlet by proclaiming that the "philosophy is dead" and it is up to the scientists to take up the quest for knowledge. Boy, do they ever!
The authors explain quite nicely that in the "model-dependent realism, it is pointless to ask whether a model is real" but it only makes sense to find out if the model "agrees with observation." This concept is quite well and simply explained using the example of what a goldfish sees from a spherical fish-bowl.
For a book which someone can thoroughly read and understand in a few days' time, it isn't reasonable for me to try to summarize the content here. Besides, I will come up well short of the mark, even if I try. In the first chapter, the authors define the task at hand and then go about explaining quite a lot of scientific subject matter in plain language in the subsequent chapters. Within a few chapters, they cover the Newtonian mechanics, the special and general relativity, quantum mechanics, the Maxwell equations, etc. The chapters are quite well organized and the thinking process flow from one to the other. They then show the need for various theories in microscopic and macroscopic levels. After glancing through the standard model, the string theory, the set of M-Theory equations etc. they come to the conclusion that "just as Darwin and Wallace explained how the apparently miraculous design of living forms could appear without intervension by a supreme being, the multiverse concept can explain the fine-tuning of physical law without the need for a benevolent creator who made the universe for our benefit."
The book should be easy to follow even for someone who doesn't have a quantum theory background. This isn't a theoretical physics book. It does not drown the reader with equations and buzzwords. Unlike Richard Dawkins' books, I did not get the sense that Hawking and Mlodinow were itching for a fight with the religious fundamentalists. They just bluntly present what comes out of the science and yet they do not to sugar-coat it.
Even if the future discoveries in various scientific fields change or invalidates the set of M-theories, the central concept brought forth in this book will hold true. It is that we can understand and explain our environment with simple and elegant scientific thought without having to resort to magic, mystery or mythology.
I very highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand the principles of scientific discoveries.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
The Lincoln Lawyer
I picked up the book The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly from our campus bookstore's discount bin because it had a nice title and an intriguing enough summery in the dust cover. This is the second of Michael Connelly's books I've come across after diving through discount bins (the first being the "Void Moon"). In both cases, I've been pleasantly surprised.
Connelly seems to have done a lot of research for this book. I'm not in the "machinery," as he calls the whole legal process, so I don't know how close to reality he comes but it sounds pretty compelling. There's one part, pretty insignificant to the overall storyline, where he explains what a phising scam is. He does a fairly accurate job of it. The thanks at the end of the book mentions that he spent quite a bit of time in the courtrooms and judge's chambers. I can't find any holes in the descriptions.
The story itself is pretty nicely laid out. I couldn't figure out the plot ahead of time (unlike some of Dan Brown's stories). Moreover, the story takes place in Los Angeles and San Fernando valley where I spent quite a bit of time. It was nice to visit those places in the pages of a mystery novel.
Looks like they the movie version is coming out this year. Matthew McConaughey as the defense lawyer? Wouldn't have been my first choice, but hey, it will work. Wonder if he will have that excessive southern twang as an LA lawyer too.
All in all, I liked this book a lot.
Connelly seems to have done a lot of research for this book. I'm not in the "machinery," as he calls the whole legal process, so I don't know how close to reality he comes but it sounds pretty compelling. There's one part, pretty insignificant to the overall storyline, where he explains what a phising scam is. He does a fairly accurate job of it. The thanks at the end of the book mentions that he spent quite a bit of time in the courtrooms and judge's chambers. I can't find any holes in the descriptions.
The story itself is pretty nicely laid out. I couldn't figure out the plot ahead of time (unlike some of Dan Brown's stories). Moreover, the story takes place in Los Angeles and San Fernando valley where I spent quite a bit of time. It was nice to visit those places in the pages of a mystery novel.
Looks like they the movie version is coming out this year. Matthew McConaughey as the defense lawyer? Wouldn't have been my first choice, but hey, it will work. Wonder if he will have that excessive southern twang as an LA lawyer too.
All in all, I liked this book a lot.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Fahrenheit 451
Over the years, I certainly had heard of, and read of, Ray Bradbury's dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 in various places, I thought, I almost knew the story. [Read the above Wikipedia link for a summary of the novel.]
At first, the novel seemed like the typical dystopian view of the world. Then it dawned on me, that most of the other ramblings that I've read of such dystopian warnings have been based on this novel and on Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. The more you read about the wall-to-wall TVs, the interactive programming to keep the viewers (consumers) disengaged from the reality, the bombers going overhead to a distant war that no one in the current society cares about, the lack of critical thinking on the part of the majority of the citizenry, etc. the more I can't help but wonder if we are in the process of becoming that dystopian society in this 21st century. The Brave New World was written in 1931 and Fahrenheit 451 in 1953. Yet both authors had had the foresight to think of various ways of technology could be used to the detriment of the society. And, those technologies barely existed back in the authors' times.
The silencing of the intellectuals, hunting down of the accused like escaped criminals, the TV networks working with the authorities to gloss over the realities, ... we are not too far away. What that means in today's society is that it doesn't take an iron-fisted world dictatorship to bring about a dystopia. The well-meaning technologists along with the relentlessly innovating scientists employed by the money-grubbing corporations can steer all of us in the path towards this dystopia all in the name of making a buck and we in the society don't recognize it until it is too late.
Do we not support the intrusion of a little bit of privacy in the name of security? Do we not say "support the troops" regardless of the cause of the war? Do we, the people, really know the real causes of the wars that the old generals in concert with the "military industrial complex" dream of in order the justify their own existence? Do we not nod our heads when the TV talking heads soothe our own sensibilities? We read tweets, not books. We read blogs, not literature. We read article-clips that fit in our Apps, not well-researched articles in periodicals and journals.
Not only should this book be read several times, it should be re-printed every decade with parallels from the current times alongside very page.
At first, the novel seemed like the typical dystopian view of the world. Then it dawned on me, that most of the other ramblings that I've read of such dystopian warnings have been based on this novel and on Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. The more you read about the wall-to-wall TVs, the interactive programming to keep the viewers (consumers) disengaged from the reality, the bombers going overhead to a distant war that no one in the current society cares about, the lack of critical thinking on the part of the majority of the citizenry, etc. the more I can't help but wonder if we are in the process of becoming that dystopian society in this 21st century. The Brave New World was written in 1931 and Fahrenheit 451 in 1953. Yet both authors had had the foresight to think of various ways of technology could be used to the detriment of the society. And, those technologies barely existed back in the authors' times.
The silencing of the intellectuals, hunting down of the accused like escaped criminals, the TV networks working with the authorities to gloss over the realities, ... we are not too far away. What that means in today's society is that it doesn't take an iron-fisted world dictatorship to bring about a dystopia. The well-meaning technologists along with the relentlessly innovating scientists employed by the money-grubbing corporations can steer all of us in the path towards this dystopia all in the name of making a buck and we in the society don't recognize it until it is too late.
Do we not support the intrusion of a little bit of privacy in the name of security? Do we not say "support the troops" regardless of the cause of the war? Do we, the people, really know the real causes of the wars that the old generals in concert with the "military industrial complex" dream of in order the justify their own existence? Do we not nod our heads when the TV talking heads soothe our own sensibilities? We read tweets, not books. We read blogs, not literature. We read article-clips that fit in our Apps, not well-researched articles in periodicals and journals.
Not only should this book be read several times, it should be re-printed every decade with parallels from the current times alongside very page.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Ender's Game
The front cover of Orson Scott Card's book Ender's Game says that it is the author's definitive edition and that it's a winner of both Hugo and Nebula awards.
Read the above wikipedia link for a synopsis or a plot summary of the story. In its entirety the story is quite good and original. It flows nicely and the story makes sense in itself. However, I have several issues:
After the humans have been attacked twice by the buggers, the general public, and even those who train to fight with the enemy don't seem to know much about them. That is completely contrary to what would happen if an alien invasion were to take place. The first thing that everyone would find out would be all the extraneous details such as what do they look like, what do they eat, how do they talk, how would you kill one, what's inside them, where is their brain, where is their weakest point, etc. etc. At the end of the story, we do find out that those who were in the previous fights did know sufficient details and did have pictures and videos. Why aren't those being released? At least to the trainees? I guess, they didn't have embedded reporters like in present-day wars. This, in my view, the author's refusal to let in an important detail early-on in the story but that would have shaped the story better, IMHO.
The human race, after the first invasion, got technologically better at developing really cool stuff like instantaneous communication across light years of distance and a bomb that totally destroys everything, yet they need a child to command the whole fleet? Seriously? I have a difficult time swallowing the strategy of training a bunch of children from 6 years on in order to command a space fleet at the age of about 17 or so. It isn't like any organization, least of all the military, to give up the command level positions to a bunch of kids. And, in the final battle, Ender didn't make a series of 500 mega-decisions in 15 seconds ... he just made a kill-all decision because he was pissed. BFD.
Any space-faring race, no matter how much mind-share they have, needs a way to keep the history, pass on the knowledge to the next generation, organize, etc. They must develop a communication system, at least, between generations. The claim that they don't understand another race's communications or written words, etc is quite far-fetched. Fine, even if they don't understand another species' communication method, they should be able to see the difference between a herd of antelopes running around and a bunch of ape-looking animals driving space ships! I guess, that's why this is (supposedly) a thought provoking novel, but you don't become a space-faring species by thinking alone with a single mind. You need different ideas to clash and debates and such and that means more than one mind and that means there must be a way to put forth opposing ideas and view points. Whatever!
Written in the early 80s, Card seems to have over estimated the power of what a couple of teenagers can do by blogging from their parent's basement. :-)
This is the thing with me and science fiction novels. I tend to find holes in the theories. But, if you ignore the holes and go along with the claims, then this novel is organized and presented really well. Anyone writing such a story in today's environment would have tried to tie the characters into the military tactics of today's wars and the buggers to the international terrorists.
Read the above wikipedia link for a synopsis or a plot summary of the story. In its entirety the story is quite good and original. It flows nicely and the story makes sense in itself. However, I have several issues:
After the humans have been attacked twice by the buggers, the general public, and even those who train to fight with the enemy don't seem to know much about them. That is completely contrary to what would happen if an alien invasion were to take place. The first thing that everyone would find out would be all the extraneous details such as what do they look like, what do they eat, how do they talk, how would you kill one, what's inside them, where is their brain, where is their weakest point, etc. etc. At the end of the story, we do find out that those who were in the previous fights did know sufficient details and did have pictures and videos. Why aren't those being released? At least to the trainees? I guess, they didn't have embedded reporters like in present-day wars. This, in my view, the author's refusal to let in an important detail early-on in the story but that would have shaped the story better, IMHO.
The human race, after the first invasion, got technologically better at developing really cool stuff like instantaneous communication across light years of distance and a bomb that totally destroys everything, yet they need a child to command the whole fleet? Seriously? I have a difficult time swallowing the strategy of training a bunch of children from 6 years on in order to command a space fleet at the age of about 17 or so. It isn't like any organization, least of all the military, to give up the command level positions to a bunch of kids. And, in the final battle, Ender didn't make a series of 500 mega-decisions in 15 seconds ... he just made a kill-all decision because he was pissed. BFD.
Any space-faring race, no matter how much mind-share they have, needs a way to keep the history, pass on the knowledge to the next generation, organize, etc. They must develop a communication system, at least, between generations. The claim that they don't understand another race's communications or written words, etc is quite far-fetched. Fine, even if they don't understand another species' communication method, they should be able to see the difference between a herd of antelopes running around and a bunch of ape-looking animals driving space ships! I guess, that's why this is (supposedly) a thought provoking novel, but you don't become a space-faring species by thinking alone with a single mind. You need different ideas to clash and debates and such and that means more than one mind and that means there must be a way to put forth opposing ideas and view points. Whatever!
Written in the early 80s, Card seems to have over estimated the power of what a couple of teenagers can do by blogging from their parent's basement. :-)
This is the thing with me and science fiction novels. I tend to find holes in the theories. But, if you ignore the holes and go along with the claims, then this novel is organized and presented really well. Anyone writing such a story in today's environment would have tried to tie the characters into the military tactics of today's wars and the buggers to the international terrorists.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Digital Fortress
Just finished reading Dan Brown's 1998 novel Digital Fortress. If you want a synopsis of the story, check that link to the Wikipedia page.
Okay, so I work with them computers. I know a bit about cryptography, code breaking, primitive ciphers such as Caesar Cipher, back-up systems, how machine-rooms are run, what sys admins do, etc. etc. If you are a sys admin like me, and you want to read this story, throw away all your computerese knowledge for the duration of the book. Just enjoy the flow of the story. One problem with writing computer-related thrillers is that the technology changes so quickly, the facts on which the story is based become quite obsolete real quickly.
Otherwise, this story an easy read. It flows nicely. Brown's knowledge of the field is not complete, but it is sufficient to hold the storyline together. At times, it feels like he is thinking of the story as a movie rather than any real scenes. He is thinking of movie-set lighting rather than anything close to reality.
This story gets lots of facts wrong. Lots of things are glossed over. I see this transparency because I know the field quite well. Now, if I extrapolate this same transparency to Dan Brown's other books like the DaVinci Code, I can understand why the Catholic Church had such a negative reaction to some of the supposed "facts" presented in that book. These are novels, after all. So, Brown seems to take quite a large liberty with mixing facts with fiction and stretching many things until the breaking point.
SPOILER: Having read several of Brown's books with primitive codes, I can say that it is quite easy for me to break his codes. (ie: Apple in DaVinci Code, Susan in Digital Fortress, etc.) I saw them coming a mile away. I suppose the stories would have held a bit more suspense had the codes been a bit harder to break for the reader (me).
Anyway, as I said earlier, it is an easy read ...quite far from any resemblance to any reality. Perhaps, a good book to read on a lazy summer day to pass the time.
Okay, so I work with them computers. I know a bit about cryptography, code breaking, primitive ciphers such as Caesar Cipher, back-up systems, how machine-rooms are run, what sys admins do, etc. etc. If you are a sys admin like me, and you want to read this story, throw away all your computerese knowledge for the duration of the book. Just enjoy the flow of the story. One problem with writing computer-related thrillers is that the technology changes so quickly, the facts on which the story is based become quite obsolete real quickly.
Otherwise, this story an easy read. It flows nicely. Brown's knowledge of the field is not complete, but it is sufficient to hold the storyline together. At times, it feels like he is thinking of the story as a movie rather than any real scenes. He is thinking of movie-set lighting rather than anything close to reality.
This story gets lots of facts wrong. Lots of things are glossed over. I see this transparency because I know the field quite well. Now, if I extrapolate this same transparency to Dan Brown's other books like the DaVinci Code, I can understand why the Catholic Church had such a negative reaction to some of the supposed "facts" presented in that book. These are novels, after all. So, Brown seems to take quite a large liberty with mixing facts with fiction and stretching many things until the breaking point.
SPOILER: Having read several of Brown's books with primitive codes, I can say that it is quite easy for me to break his codes. (ie: Apple in DaVinci Code, Susan in Digital Fortress, etc.) I saw them coming a mile away. I suppose the stories would have held a bit more suspense had the codes been a bit harder to break for the reader (me).
Anyway, as I said earlier, it is an easy read ...quite far from any resemblance to any reality. Perhaps, a good book to read on a lazy summer day to pass the time.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
A Fortune-Teller Told Me
I came across this book A Fortune-Teller Told Me by Tiziano Terzani in August of 2009. The title grabbed my eye and the info in the book jacket intrigued me enough to check it out from the Rockville public library. So, here I am writing this blog about a book I read almost a year ago and without having it sitting in front of me.
Looking back, I think I can break it down to several major themes. The book is about the Chinese diaspora spread across the South-East Asian countries; it is about questioning the value of blindly following the Western ideals of a prosperous society; it is about stopping to smell the coffee during your travels; it is about fortune-tellers and their craft; it is about spiritual enlightenment.
The hyperlink I've given to the book title above will take you to a review of the book by a newspaper in the region. There are many other book reviews in the net also. (Google is your friend.) So, instead of a complete review, I'll just give my take on the aspects that interested me ... at least, what I remember a year later.
As a Western journalist, Terzani doesn't believe in Fortune-tellers. Yet, he is quite intrigued by them, he seeks them out in various places he visits. It is interesting that this book, and his quite enriching perspectives of the countries involved would not have happened, had he not believed that one fortune-teller who told him not to fly in 1993. So, in essence, at least one fortune-teller changed his life. Then again, had that fortune-teller been a good one, he would have been able to see that Terzani, in fact, does NOT fly in 1993 and that instead he undertakes a traveling agenda that is quite fascinating. Reading about the various other fortune tellers in the book also reminds the reader that most of them are not very good. Yet, there's certain take away lessons in most of their advices.
Terzani's look at the Chinese diaspora in the region is frank and unflattering. At times, I feel that he paints them with a broad brush. He claims that most of them are only interested in the bottom line and that they will do almost anything to accumulate wealth. Well, who doesn't? Then again, people are people and you can find generous as well as miser individuals among any ethnic group. What Terzani fails to realize is the fact that most of the Chinese diaspora spread across all those South-East Asian countries are those who have fled an oppressive government back home. They are the ingenious ones who have been able to "make it" in a new country where they are relegated to a second-class. They have had to do almost anything to survive. Thus it is not by accident that those who have gone through such hardship tend to accumulate wealth in order to leave a better inheritance to their children.
Development and civilization is a measure to which the World Bank tend to assign Western numbers and perspectives. What Terzani questions, and what the Mekong.net review failed to grasp, is the fact that why should we assign western values to things like happiness or a successful society. Is building more roads and taller buildings the answer to a better quality of life? What really is the quality of life anyway? Aren't some folks who don't have to contend with the western inconveniences like the cell phones better off in their own world? Who are we--those who worship the almighty dollar--to question the quality of life of those who are content at having enough meat for their entire extended family? I think Terzani asks these questions elegantly. But since he's a white guy from the West, in some people's eyes, he's a hypocrite. Oh well.
By Terzani's mis-fortune (get it? He missed having being in a plane crash because of a "fortune" he was told. :-)) he ends up traveling by land/sea across all of these countries. Therefore, he is forced to stop, to take time, to take the less traveled path, to slow down to the pace of the locals, and to smell the coffee. This actually has opened his eyes to a lot more things had he been simply flying from one major city to another. I was reminded again of details about these travels when I heard the NPR report on the Mekong region. One day I hope to go to some of these places myself.
Terzani admits that he is seeking the spiritual enlightenment just like every other Western traveler in the region. Well, sort of. He actually rejects most of what he finds; except the meditation.
All in all, it is a very good read. Not your every-day travel book. Not your every day memoir. Actually, the reason why I sort of wanted to write this blog a year later is because I was reminded of the "do not fly in 1993" part by my own dealings with a couple of fortune-tellers. Two of my friends who have looked at my palms and my birth charts have, sort of, refused to tell me details of something. I get the feeling that they "see" something bad happening to me and they don't want to tell me. Perhaps, I shouldn't fly in 2010 or 2011. Meh! What will be, will be. (Check my blog on Free Will and fate.)
Looking back, I think I can break it down to several major themes. The book is about the Chinese diaspora spread across the South-East Asian countries; it is about questioning the value of blindly following the Western ideals of a prosperous society; it is about stopping to smell the coffee during your travels; it is about fortune-tellers and their craft; it is about spiritual enlightenment.
The hyperlink I've given to the book title above will take you to a review of the book by a newspaper in the region. There are many other book reviews in the net also. (Google is your friend.) So, instead of a complete review, I'll just give my take on the aspects that interested me ... at least, what I remember a year later.
As a Western journalist, Terzani doesn't believe in Fortune-tellers. Yet, he is quite intrigued by them, he seeks them out in various places he visits. It is interesting that this book, and his quite enriching perspectives of the countries involved would not have happened, had he not believed that one fortune-teller who told him not to fly in 1993. So, in essence, at least one fortune-teller changed his life. Then again, had that fortune-teller been a good one, he would have been able to see that Terzani, in fact, does NOT fly in 1993 and that instead he undertakes a traveling agenda that is quite fascinating. Reading about the various other fortune tellers in the book also reminds the reader that most of them are not very good. Yet, there's certain take away lessons in most of their advices.
Terzani's look at the Chinese diaspora in the region is frank and unflattering. At times, I feel that he paints them with a broad brush. He claims that most of them are only interested in the bottom line and that they will do almost anything to accumulate wealth. Well, who doesn't? Then again, people are people and you can find generous as well as miser individuals among any ethnic group. What Terzani fails to realize is the fact that most of the Chinese diaspora spread across all those South-East Asian countries are those who have fled an oppressive government back home. They are the ingenious ones who have been able to "make it" in a new country where they are relegated to a second-class. They have had to do almost anything to survive. Thus it is not by accident that those who have gone through such hardship tend to accumulate wealth in order to leave a better inheritance to their children.
Development and civilization is a measure to which the World Bank tend to assign Western numbers and perspectives. What Terzani questions, and what the Mekong.net review failed to grasp, is the fact that why should we assign western values to things like happiness or a successful society. Is building more roads and taller buildings the answer to a better quality of life? What really is the quality of life anyway? Aren't some folks who don't have to contend with the western inconveniences like the cell phones better off in their own world? Who are we--those who worship the almighty dollar--to question the quality of life of those who are content at having enough meat for their entire extended family? I think Terzani asks these questions elegantly. But since he's a white guy from the West, in some people's eyes, he's a hypocrite. Oh well.
By Terzani's mis-fortune (get it? He missed having being in a plane crash because of a "fortune" he was told. :-)) he ends up traveling by land/sea across all of these countries. Therefore, he is forced to stop, to take time, to take the less traveled path, to slow down to the pace of the locals, and to smell the coffee. This actually has opened his eyes to a lot more things had he been simply flying from one major city to another. I was reminded again of details about these travels when I heard the NPR report on the Mekong region. One day I hope to go to some of these places myself.
Terzani admits that he is seeking the spiritual enlightenment just like every other Western traveler in the region. Well, sort of. He actually rejects most of what he finds; except the meditation.
All in all, it is a very good read. Not your every-day travel book. Not your every day memoir. Actually, the reason why I sort of wanted to write this blog a year later is because I was reminded of the "do not fly in 1993" part by my own dealings with a couple of fortune-tellers. Two of my friends who have looked at my palms and my birth charts have, sort of, refused to tell me details of something. I get the feeling that they "see" something bad happening to me and they don't want to tell me. Perhaps, I shouldn't fly in 2010 or 2011. Meh! What will be, will be. (Check my blog on Free Will and fate.)
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