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'A wild and wonderful tour through the Westernised East' ANITA DESAI'Marvellously enjoyable' WILLIAM BOYD'As much a document of the eighties as BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES' LITERARY REVIEW

Reviews

"Quick-witted and perceptive...something more than a deft and entertaining traveler's tale." -- The New Yorker
"The book is filled with Iyer's enthusiasms and opinions, both engaging and provocative, and is...a sensual feast of rich impressions." -- Los Angeles Times
"A fresh approach, embellished by the author's humorous and perceptive style." -- San Francisco Chronicle
Mohawk haircuts in Bali. Yuppies in Hong Kong. In Bombay, not one but five Rambo rip-offs, complete with music and dancing. And in the new People's Republic of China, a restaurant that serves dishes called "Yes, Sir, Cheese My Baby," "A Legitimate Beef," and "Ike and Tuna Turner." These are some of the images -- comical, poignant, and unsettling -- that Pico Iyer brings back from the Far East in this brilliant book of travel reportage. A writer for Time, Iyer approaches his subject with a camera-sharp eye, a style that suggests a cross between Paul Theroux and Hunter Thompson, and a willingness to go beyond the obvious conclusions about the hybrid cultures of East and West.

In the past we traveled to see the exotic; today we find the familiar. Rambo movies and rock music pollute Asian cultures. How pervasive, and deep, is Western influence in Asia? Through chapters built around expatriate life in Hong Kong, the sex scene in Thailand, the mock paradise of Bali, popular movies in India, and baseball in Japan, we clearly see the collision of cultures. Iyer is well-matched to his subject: British born and educated, of Indian parents, and a resident of the United States and reporter for Time . He has a fine turn of phrase and an eye for the incongruous, but beneath this lively account is a provocative book that belongs in academic as well as public libraries. Harold M. Otness, Southern Oregon State Coll. Lib., Ashland

"Quick-witted and perceptive...something more than a deft and entertaining traveler's tale." -- The New Yorker
"The book is filled with Iyer's enthusiasms and opinions, both engaging and provocative, and is...a sensual feast of rich impressions." -- Los Angeles Times
"A fresh approach, embellished by the author's humorous and perceptive style." -- San Francisco Chronicle
Mohawk haircuts in Bali. Yuppies in Hong Kong. In Bombay, not one but five Rambo rip-offs, complete with music and dancing. And in the new People's Republic of China, a restaurant that serves dishes called "Yes, Sir, Cheese My Baby," "A Legitimate Beef," and "Ike and Tuna Turner." These are some of the images -- comical, poignant, and unsettling -- that Pico Iyer brings back from the Far East in this brilliant book of travel reportage. A writer for Time, Iyer approaches his subject with a camera-sharp eye, a style that suggests a cross between Paul Theroux and Hunter Thompson, and a willingness to go beyond the obvious conclusions about the hybrid cultures of East and West.