2 self-published books reviewed

Book Review
I have two books to review, both self-published using the facilities afforded by blurb.com. The first is Jayne Dunsmuir's Retreat from Humanity: Cambodian Death Camp S-21. It's in hardback and is 60-odd pages, half of which are the author's own photographs from Tuol Sleng or Choeung Ek and the other half are quotations from various sources that she chose to illustrate her subject. Many of the photos are of victims at S-21 or the detention cells but there's enough variety in the chosen pictures to provide an insight into the prison as a whole, while a two-page preface from the author sets the scene at the beginning of the book. I viewed it as a very personal document by the author, a memory of her visit, a reminder of the cruelty of man with carefully chosen excerpts from people like Vann Nath, one of S-21's few survivors - actually, the sort of book that I'd love to publish myself as a permanent reminder of my visit. More formal than an album full of photos. The photos are clear and crisp and the ones I liked the most showed portraits of the victims lying forgotten and covered in dust in rooms not accessible by the public - the unseen face of S-21 if you like, which could've made an interesting document in itself.
Book Review
The second book to review, is James King's Khmer: Shadow in the Ruins, which I loved. Split into eight chapters, this is a photography book from James' two visits to Cambodia, in 1998 and 2007, with 228 pages and full to bursting with both black and white and colour photographs on every page. With 80% of the book dedicated to the temples of Angkor, there is perhaps an over-reliance on those amazing structures from the Khmer Empire of old that are so photogenic but he also graces his pages with snapshots of the locals he encounters en route. It's not clear which photos are from his first or second visit but that doesn't really matter as his book presents a stunning kaleidoscope of images from a country he obviously fell in love with, as do so many who visit Cambodia. I loved many of his his pictures, especially those from Prasat Kravann though his choice of an Andre Malraux quote seems incongruous, considering Malraux was arrested for stealing treasures at Banteay Srei. Besides that, it's a book well worth owning, though it doesn't come cheap.

More books please

I received an email today from James King, a designer and photographer from London, who has travelled the globe and has just published a book about what he found when he came to Cambodia. It's called Khmer - Shadows In The Ruins, 228 pages of his photos and thoughts and is available through the on-line publishing website at blurb.com. In fact, if you search through the Blurb.com website, you will find a number of self-published books available via their search engine, using words like Angkor, Khmer, Phnom Penh and Cambodia. It seems everyone and their dog is using websites like this to get their work out to prospective book buyers, and why not. If any of these authors would like me to review their books, please feel free to drop me a line. All books on Cambodia are very welcome. As if someone was reading my mind, I've just received the recently published memoir by Sopheap Ly called No Dream Beyond My Reach, who sent me a copy of her 115-page book via a friend. Dr Ly arrived in the US from a refugee camp at the age of sixteen. Her book is her story of surviving the trauma of the Khmer Rouge years in Cambodia and her new life in the States. I will read it in the next few days and post my review here. My thanks to Sopheap for arranging its delivery and to Richard for acting as the postman.