Travel Log Book Review, Mabuhay Magazine August 2004

This book, perhaps the best introduction to the cultures of Southeast Asia, is both Story and History. Together, the clear, concise narrative and the excellent photos of museum artifacts from ten ASEAN nations (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Cambodia) unfold the origins and early history (beginning from the Stone Age) of the peoples of Southeast Asia.

Westerners and Asians alike will marvel at the variety of cultural expressions found across the region, and wonder at how such a diverse collection of beliefs, art forms and religious practices somehow manage to retain a distinct character.

For example, photographs of weavings from Laos, Indonesia, Bangkok and the Northern and Southern parts of the Philippines all reflect different patterns, symbols and motifs, yet a common thread, perhaps in the choice of colors or the cloths’ ritual functions, exist among them.

How come the Buddhas of Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos reflect the same air of sanctity and peace, despite the differences in stylistic renditions? And while the Philippines is not he only Catholic nation in Asia, elements of Indian, animistic and ancestral worship found in all of Southeast Asia – as represented by sculptural and fabric artifacts – are still found in current religious practice.

This book is both enlightening and entertaining, and would make any Southeast Asian proud.