That quixotic quest for understanding has drawn much of the world’s population eastward ever since Buddha first assumed the lotus position, and writer Mara Altman needed to know why. So she flew around the world in search of an answer not only to that mystery, but also to the deeper questions that plague all who yearn to define the meaning of life. What Altman found in her wild, comic 18-day reporting trek across India – a journey that took her on a laborious, 37-hour cross-country train trip, onto a mystical flat rock by the ocean in Pondicherry, and eventually into the emergency room of a cut-rate Bangalore hospital – will make you laugh, learn and ponder. By the end of her epic odyssey, it will also take you unexpectedly and thrillingly close to the pulsing heart of human existence. After graduating from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, Mara Altman worked as a staff writer for The Village Voice. In 2009, HarperCollins published Altman's first book, Thanks For Coming: A Young Woman's Quest for an Orgasm, which was optioned as a comedy series by HBO. She has published seven bestselling Kindle Singles, including the #1 bestseller Bearded Lady, and has also written for New York Magazine and The New York Times. Cover design by Adil Dara

    David K. Wyatt has also added new sections examining the social and economic changes that have transformed the country in the past two decades. Praise for the previous edition:“Wyatt knows his subject well enough and has enough enthusiasm for it to make his book . . . entertaining as well as eminently educational.”—David McElveen, Asiaweek“A very readable account. . . .We come away from reading it with a clearer understanding of where Thailand stands in relation to its neighbors, who the Thai people are, how the Thai government evolved into its present form.”—James Stent, Asian Wall Street Journal“Concise, thorough, and readable.”—John Gabree, New York Newsday

    He didn’t get to where he is without knowing a thing or two about people, including how long it takes for a crocodile to digest one. Before Chance can quit, his father asks him to “take care of a little something for me.” Then a bomb goes off.Waking up in hospital later that night, his father in a coma next door, Chance’s troubles have only just begun. There are three guys dressed in black down the corridor and they aren’t carrying flowers. Worse, Uncle Mike isn’t answering his phone, and a guy with a lisp is asking for a hundred million dollars in a week or “I’ll kill him, sthlowly.”While figuring out who is trying to put the family permanently out of business, where to get a hundred million, and who’s got Uncle Mike, in the midst of a Bangkok gone crazy with factional fighting, quitting the family business takes a backseat to survival.Survival begins with dying. And dying is the easy part.

    On a bright July morning a series of bombs bring the capital to a halt. Simon Swann, a medic from one of the large teaching hospitals, is searching frantically amongst the chaos and the rubble. All around police sirens and ambulances are screaming but Simon does not hear. He is out of breath because he has been running, and he is distraught. But who is he looking for? To find out we have first to go back thirty years to a small island in the Indian Ocean where a little girl named Alice Fonseka is learning to ride a bicycle on the beach. The island is Sri Lanka, with its community on the brink of civil war. Alice's life is about to change forever. Soon she will have to leave for England, abandoning her beloved grandfather, and accompanied by her mother, Sita, a woman broken by a series of terrible events.In London, Alice grows into womanhood. Trapped in a loveless marriage, she has a son. Slowly she fulfills her grandfather's prophecy and becomes an artist. Eventually she finds true love. But London in the twenty first century is a mass of migration and suspicion. The war on terror has begun and everyone, even Simon Swann, middle class, rational, medic that he is, will be caught up in this war in the most unexpected and terrible way.

    1857. It is the height of British Imperialism in India, and the Sepoys are making a stand. This classic history of the Indian Mutiny of 1857 addresses both the causes and consequences of one of the greatest uprisings in the history of the British Empire. With the introduction of cartridges believed to have been greased in cow and pig fat the issue of religious disrespect started to inflame the Sepoys. How much influence did the greased cartridge issue have on the crisis?Were they merely a catalyst for an already turbulent situation?Had trouble long been simmering among the Bengal Army native soldiers?What affect did terms of service, poor pay and lack of promotion prospects have upon the prospect of a mutiny?In this abbreviated history drawn from an earlier six volume work, George Bruce Malleson utlises his military background and first-hand knowledge of India to present an analysis of the underlying causes of this violent mutiny. George Bruce Malleson (1825-1898) was British officer who served in India. He served through the second Burmese War and his first work was published in Calcutta, in the midst of the mutiny, in 1857. His other works include History of the French in India and The Decisive Battles of India. For details of other books published by Albion Press go to the website at www.albionpress.co.uk. Albion Press is an imprint of Endeavour Press, the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.

    But there's more here than meets the eye — look closely to find the bumblebees, teacups, mushrooms, and other surprising figures hidden amid the wild, swirling designs. Answers are included and illustrations are printed on one side of perforated pages for easy removal and display. Specially designed for experienced colorists, Dream Doodles with a Hidden Picture Twist and other Creative Haven® adult coloring books offer an escape to a world of inspiration and artistic fulfillment. Each title is also an effective and fun-filled way to relax and reduce stress.

    I'll show you where to find the best materials from the best suppliers to fuel your Etsy selling success.After getting more than 1 million views on YouTube with over 100,000 follow up questions answered for handmade businesses since 2012, Renae Christine has learned that 90% of handmade businesses fail within the first 5 years due to lack of proper suppliers or the know-how to find those suppliers of the best materials.Read this resource guide to learn:Why every Etsy seller and handmade business owner needs a supplier.Why you should avoid your local craft store's clearance section like the plague.Common mistakes that you could be making.How much money you need to place an initial order, which might surprise you.Where to find tens of thousands of proper material suppliers.The questions to ask before taking on a supplier and placing an order so you don't waste your money.15 of Renae Christine's favorite suppliers from a convention she scoured just for handmade businesses.Additional bonus suppliers listed from different handmade industries.Is this resource guide for you?You need this guide if you:You're in the 'Etsy business for beginners' phase of businessYou feel like your business or Etsy shop just can't get off the ground and you don't know whyYou want to learn how to sell on Etsy through proper strategies and avoid making mistakesRenae Christine has been featured in Yahoo Finance, ABC, CBS, Reuters, Bloomberg Business Week and in thousands of other publications worldwide. She is the worldwide known business coach for everything handmade. Renae is even more rare because she built a six-figure stationery business herself.

    In A Collection of Beauties at the Height of Their Popularity, Whitney Otto's characters congregate night after night at a North Beach bar called the Youki Singe Tea Room, their lives conjoined by the bonds of friendship and shared experience. At the Youki Singe, the stories of these young peoples' lives”their parties, their eccentric living situations, their passions for books and art and one another—are recorded in one patron’s “pillow book,†her version of the intimate journals of the courtesans of Edo Japan. Meanwhile, though, the careless joys of the drifting life are giving way to a desire to find something more substantial, a need to belong to something or someone.The title A Collection of Beauties at the Height of Their Popularity is taken from a series of woodblock prints by the eighteenth-century artist Utamaro, a master at depicting Japan’s legendary Floating World, where, it is said, the patrons of the great pleasure quarters—and their escorts—devoted them-selves to the pursuit of music, sex, food, poetry, theater, and fashion. Now, two hundred years later and an ocean away, the young men and women of Otto’s San Francisco find themselves in their own version of a Floating World.Illustrated with more than two dozen beautifully reproduced woodblock prints, A Collection of Beauties at the Height of Their Popularity conjures an atmosphere both dreamy and contemporary. Whitney Otto engages the senses as well as the mind while exploring the intricacies, the trouble, and the rapture of human connection.

    When a stranger contacts Laura claiming to be her brother who disappeared forty years earlier when the family lived in Bangkok, Laura ignores Bea’s warnings of a scam and flies to Thailand to see if it can be true. But meeting him in person leads to more questions than answers. Bangkok, 1972: Genevieve and Robert Preston live in a beautiful house behind a high wall, raising their three children with the help of a cadre of servants. In these exotic surroundings, Genevieve strives to create a semblance of the life they would have had at home in the US—ballet and riding classes for the children, impeccable dinner parties, a meticulously kept home. But in truth, Robert works for American intelligence, Genevieve finds herself drawn into a passionate affair with her husband’s boss, and their serene household is vulnerable to unseen dangers of a rapidly changing world and a country they don’t really understand. Alternating between past and present as all of the secrets are revealed, What Could Be Saved is an unforgettable novel about a family shattered by loss and betrayal, and the beauty and hope that can exist even in the midst of brokenness.

    Her parents were taken from her at a young age, then her uncle sold her into prostitution; it was enough for many years just to cope and survive. One day, fate places a kind gentlemanin her path, and she begins to discover the city outside the brotheland the world beyond China's borders. As a larger canvas of life emerges, Pan realizes that she has something of value to say -- and a talent through which she can express herself. From Shanghai to Paris, Pan is challenged by the harsh realities in politics, art, and love, and must rely on her own strength to develop her talent. In so doing, she takes a relatively ordinary life and makes it extraordinary.A work of fiction -- but based on the life and work of a real artist -- The Painter from Shanghai transports readers to early-20th-century China, a culture marked by oppression. Epstein has proven herself a shining talent in this first novel, tackling such weighty questions as: How does a talented artist blossom, even under repressive conditions? What is art, and what is love? What makes a life well lived? The answers form a mesmerizing portrait of one young woman's journey to find herself and to nourish her creative talents despite appreciable odds.(Summer 2008 Selection)

    It offer in a nutshell and interesting historical perspective of each country."--Dato Zaid Ibrahim, Member of Parliament for Kato Bharu, Malaysia "A Short History of South-East Asia is one of my best references whenever I need to look for factual information and explanation about major events in South-East Asia, covering the most recent period and going back more than a thousand year."--Narongchai Akrasanee, Former Thailand Minister of Commerce "Any businessman doing or wanting to do business in SE Asia must understand the history of the area if he is to be successful. The history of each country plays an important part in understanding the country's culture and behaviour. This easily read book provides this invaluable information - ignore it at your peril."--Mike M. Courtnall, President, Asian Building and Manufacturing Markets, BHP Steel Limited "Succinct, reliable, historical surveys of each state of ASEAN, reaching right up to the present day. Such a country-by-country approach has real value for the business visitor of the tourist moving around this complex region. No one seeking to identify opportunities and dangers in Southeast Asia can ignore the historical processes that shape the different societies."--Anthony Milner, Basham Professor of Asian History, Australian National University "This authoritative, concise, balanced and accessible history neatly fills the gap between the tourist guides and the weighty academic tomes. It gives the reader an authentic "feed for history," so necessary to understand the present."--Stephen Grenville, Former Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of Australia "The interpretation of events in this book has managed to capture to a considerable degree Southeast Asian perceptions of its history. To have achieved this in such a brief text is impressive."--Nono Anwar Makarim, Founder and Counsel to Makarim and Taira Chairman, Aksara Foundation, Jakarta

    These objects are our constant companions in life. As such, writes Soetsu Yanagi, they should be made with care and built to last, treated with respect and even affection. They should be natural and simple, sturdy and safe - the aesthetic result of wholeheartedly fulfilling utilitarian needs. They should, in short, be things of beauty.In an age of feeble and ugly machine-made things, these essays call for us to deepen and transform our relationship with the objects that surround us. Inspired by the work of the simple, humble craftsmen Yanagi encountered during his lifelong travels through Japan and Korea, they are an earnest defence of modest, honest, handcrafted things - from traditional teacups to jars to cloth and paper. Objects like these exemplify the enduring appeal of simplicity and function: the beauty of everyday things.

    Brimming with the joy of process and a love of art history, Brian Rutenberg reveals the places, people, and experiences that led to the paint­ings for which he is well known today. This book is packed with ideas, observations, techniques, and career advice all thought­fully arranged into six sections designed to inspire artists of all levels, as well as anyone interested in creativity.Clear Seeing Place is a companion to the artist's popular YouTube series, "Brian Rutenberg Studio Visits," and is a love letter to painting written by a painter.

    So, Inspector Samuel Tay of Singapore CID asks himself, why is it no one wants him to find their killer?The first body is in Singapore, on a bed in an empty suite at the Marriott Hotel. The second is in Bangkok, at a seedy apartment near the American embassy. Both American women, both viciously beaten and lewdly displayed. The FBI says it’s terrorism, but the whispers on the street tell a different story. They say a serial killer is stalking American women across Asia.Inspector Samuel Tay is a little cranky, a little lonely, a little overweight, and he smokes way too much. A lot of people think he's a lousy policeman, but he's the best detective the Singapore cops have ever had. It makes the bosses nervous as hell to put this case in Tay's hands, but with something this tricky on their plate they know they have no choice.Still, there's a big problem. Before Tay can even get the investigation started, everybody wants a piece of it. The FBI demands to take over the case, the American Diplomatic Security Service insists on being in charge, Bangkok's Special Branch won't allow itself to be ignored, Singapore's Internal Security Department is going to have a major say, and even the American Ambassador sticks his nose right into the middle of everything.That's a lot of people walking all over Tay's murder case. But here's the thing. He realizes that none of them, not a single one, really want him to find the killer.

    Now, Carl Hoffman uncovers startling new evidence that finally tells the full, astonishing story.Despite exhaustive searches, no trace of Rockefeller was ever found. Soon after his disappearance, rumors surfaced that he'd been killed and ceremonially eaten by the local Asmat—a native tribe of warriors whose complex culture was built around sacred, reciprocal violence, head hunting, and ritual cannibalism. The Dutch government and the Rockefeller family denied the story, and Michael's death was officially ruled a drowning. Yet doubts lingered. Sensational rumors and stories circulated, fueling speculation and intrigue for decades. The real story has long waited to be told—until now.Retracing Rockefeller's steps, award-winning journalist Carl Hoffman traveled to the jungles of New Guinea, immersing himself in a world of headhunters and cannibals, secret spirits and customs, and getting to know generations of Asmat. Through exhaustive archival research, he uncovered never-before-seen original documents and located witnesses willing to speak publically after fifty years.In Savage Harvest he finally solves this decades-old mystery and illuminates a culture transformed by years of colonial rule, whose people continue to be shaped by ancient customs and lore. Combining history, art, colonialism, adventure, and ethnography, Savage Harvest is a mesmerizing whodunit, and a fascinating portrait of the clash between two civilizations that resulted in the death of one of America's richest and most powerful scions.