Comments on: Sorta Henry Miller? Lawrence Osborne’s Vulgar-Prose “Bangkok Days”

By: Steppen Wolf

Steppen Wolf — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 07:59:06 +0000

Being a ten years veteran of Bangkok, I do not understand all the fuzz about this book: real facts are distorted and several points were not suitable to be mentioned by a serious writer (Eden Club for instance).

This book goes in the league of so many other works of farangs trying to explain what Thailand is without even getting closer to the truth, being so full in their Western stereotypes.

Just read the opening of the book, the way the Chao Phraya is described … this is not the real river, it’s an imaginary vision of a farang forcing his ways into a novel …

By: Louis Carriere

Louis Carriere — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 04:54:33 +0000

“Bangkok Days” was also named the top travel book of 2009 by the New York Times last weekend. Read it in Saigon …

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/books/review/Travel-t.html?_r=1&ref=books

By: Bonny Madder

Bonny Madder — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 20:11:06 +0000

This book was just named the top summer read by New York Magazine.

http://nymag.com/arts/books/features/57867/

By: roberto

roberto — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:47:11 +0000

I love Lawrence Osborne books.

My language is Italian, anyway was worth a little effort reading it in English.

Thanks a lot Lawrence.

By: Jaded

Jaded — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 04:57:29 +0000

I am reluctant to get too into this, but as you asked so nicely I will proffer the following critical comment.

This book certainly bears comparison with Edmund White’s classic “The Flanneur.” What White did for Paris was initiate the reader into some of its less well known sources of sexual energy, but I didn’t find a similar energy illuminating Bangkok Days.

Osbourne has a beautiful prose style. The tone and cadence of the writing is quite exquisite although, ironically, his “voice” would also probably the focus of any criticism I might have. At times I found his prose a little too sweet or baroque for my particular taste but this is a comment reflecting in my opinion how close to perfection much of the writing is …

If, on occasion, it did feel a little uneven this was probably due to the demand of maintaining the same tone for the entire length of the text which seemed overly long. The last few chapters have an almost elegiac quality. As the book peters out towards a final almost wimpering coda a certain amount of the energy created earlier in the text is dissipated in a rather pointless fashion …

No doubt this is partly the conceit of the writer to create this atmosphere and a feeling of partial closure but there must have been other possible ways to finish it.

I should say that any criticisms that I have are predicated on my belief that this book is the best of its kind that I have read in many many years.

By: BangkokDan

BangkokDan — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 12:13:05 +0000

Talk to us Jaded! BangkokDan

By: Jaded

Jaded — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:40:21 +0000

I spent the weekend reading this book. I wish I had a suitable superlative that would do this work justice. It certainly deserves to be read by every expat I know …

By: BangkokDan

BangkokDan — Thu, 28 May 2009 00:33:43 +0000

Here’s an interview with the man himself:

http://www.worldhum.com/features/travel-interviews/interview-with-lawrence-osborne-bangkok-days-20090430/

BangkokDan

By: BangkokDan

BangkokDan — Sat, 16 May 2009 10:03:40 +0000

Yes val the book's on preorder, should be out by the end of the month. BangkokDan

By: val

val — Sat, 16 May 2009 06:25:44 +0000

Where is the book available? Amazon says it hasn’t been released yet.