New covers for some
|
August 2021: It's good to put on new clothes occasionally. The Complete Short Stories (which was complete at the time, though it only includes three of my four short-story collections) and the William Peskett Novel Double (an omnibus of Pond Life and Losing Yourself) now have smart new covers, courtesy of insanely talented designer Eva Hobson.
|
|
|
Intergallactic farce
July 2021: Business studies lecturer and loner Dave Smart leads an expedition of misfit business people from Earth across the Milky Way to Kalista. Frustrated by do-gooder laws at home that stop them making money because of concerns for health and safety, the environment or consumer protection, they're looking for somewhere lawless where they can make a killing.
Guess what? It doesn't turn out quite the way they planned.
Guess what? It doesn't turn out quite the way they planned.
More sonnets, and this time it's serious
March 2020: Here's a collection of 36 new sonnets on the subject of kissing, trees, tattoos and whisky. Those are the good things. The poems also tackle such pressing issues as climate change, population, tyranny, greed, waste and extinction.
The dodo became extinct long before the poet and artist William Blake - 1757-1827 - was born. These sonnets take Blake’s concepts of Innocence and Experience as states of consciousness before and after the Fall of Man and reimagine them for the new concerns of our age. What better than the dodo to symbolise man’s progression from inhabitant to steward and finally to vandal of our planet. More>>
The dodo became extinct long before the poet and artist William Blake - 1757-1827 - was born. These sonnets take Blake’s concepts of Innocence and Experience as states of consciousness before and after the Fall of Man and reimagine them for the new concerns of our age. What better than the dodo to symbolise man’s progression from inhabitant to steward and finally to vandal of our planet. More>>
A new livery for the omnibuses
|
|
February 2019: I liked the old white covers, but Amazon was never happy about the way the title wrapped round the spine - their computers kept flagging it up as a mistake. Silly computers. And the white meant they didn't stand out against a white background. So in the end I gave in and had the books redesigned. Buy>>
|
Les Sonnets de Thaïlande
January 2019: Here's a treat for readers who prefer to read amusing sonnets in the language of lerve, French. My translator, Michel Gauthier, is to be congratulated for his heroic efforts in preserving the quirky humour of this collection of Thailand-themed poems. They cover such unexpected topics as mobile phones, soft-shelled crabs, ladyboys and, of course, go-go bars (one, anyway). The new collection is available as an ebook as well as a paperback. If you get the latter you're provided with the original English side-by-side with the French, which might well help you with your conversational skills next time you're in Paris. Review>>
The Thailand Sonnets
September 2017: A new slim volume of poems about life in Thailand. Amazingly, these 38 verses are in the form of sonnets, a style not normally associated with the Land of Smiles. However, some of these are designed to make you smile. The collection is illustrated with a few appropriate snapshots and comes as a paperback and an ebook on Amazon. Buy>>
New look for French short story collections
July 2016: My books of short stories in French translation have received a face-lift - striking new covers but still the same engaging tales within. Find them here: Riz Gluant à la Mangue, Brume sur la Jungle, Le Chant Ensorcelant de la Sirène and Le Temps des Tigres.
Nouvelles choisies de Thaïlande
Juillet 2016 Certains récits dans ce recueil analysent les différents regards que les gens jettent sur le monde, par exemple celui d’un scientifique opposé à celui d’un bouddhiste traditionnel. D’autres examinent les aspirations chimériques qui peuvent motiver ou détruire une personne.
Parfois ces espoirs sont frivoles – boisson, argent, sexe – et les personnages sont comiques, psychopathes ou autodestructeurs jusqu’à l’absurde. Parfois ces idéaux sont gâchés par d’autres. Parfois la poursuite d’un rêve devient tragique.
Et parfois ces attentes deviennent lyriques, se remplissent de beauté, même si elles restent inassouvies. Ces histoires examinent les nombreuses facettes – et pas seulement celle des mariages exotiques – de la symbiose qui s’établit entre la Thaïlande, son peuple, sa culture, son environnement, et ceux qui ont cherché à la connaître.
Parfois ces espoirs sont frivoles – boisson, argent, sexe – et les personnages sont comiques, psychopathes ou autodestructeurs jusqu’à l’absurde. Parfois ces idéaux sont gâchés par d’autres. Parfois la poursuite d’un rêve devient tragique.
Et parfois ces attentes deviennent lyriques, se remplissent de beauté, même si elles restent inassouvies. Ces histoires examinent les nombreuses facettes – et pas seulement celle des mariages exotiques – de la symbiose qui s’établit entre la Thaïlande, son peuple, sa culture, son environnement, et ceux qui ont cherché à la connaître.
Short story recommendations
March and May 2016: The website for holiday reading, TripFiction, has just reviewed my book Selected Short Stories of Thailand, so I'm expecting to see lots of copies in the hands of sun worshippers, elephant riders and Walking Street beer swillers in the near future.
The collection was also reviewed by the Online Book Club. Check out their verdict here.
The collection was also reviewed by the Online Book Club. Check out their verdict here.
Short story singletons
March 2016: A lot of my short stories are now available as e-book singletons at the risibly low price of $0.99, which is the lowest that Kindle allows. Singletons are for readers to get a flavour of my short story style before rushing to buy one of the four collections. See all>>
Online Book Club reviews Return To The Go-Go
February 2016: Return to The Go-Go is the feverishly-awaited follow-up volume to If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of The Go-Go. Like its predecessor, it's a collection of thoughtful yet absurd articles about what it's like for a helpless Westerner like me to live in Pattaya, Thailand's extreme city. The book was recently reviewed by the Online Book Club.
Hidden Chapter
October 2015: Riperian is a short story from my fourth collection. It examines the confusion felt by a young woman - a ladyboy as she would be called in Thailand - when trying to find love with a male partner. The title refers to that area of shore, washed by waves between land and water, which is neither one thing nor the other. The story has recently been published on the literary website Hidden Chapter and may be read here.
A grateful Nation
|
|
September 2015: The Nation is one of Bangkok's 'quality' dailies and occasionally runs book reviews. In this edition their literary critic Paul Dorsey casts his experienced eye over Selected Short Stories of Thailand and Return to the Go-Go and pretty much gives them both the all-clear.
|
Applause for the tigers
September 2015: My fourth collection of short stories, The Day of the Tiger, gets a stonking review on the Online Book Club. In case you missed it, there are 11 stories in the book and characters include a bank teller who suspects murder, an old
man who loses his shorts, a butcher reminiscing with his biggest customer and a
ladyboy searching for love. Throw in the diary of one of the last two people on
Earth, a market-stall tableau and a vision of eternity to appreciate the
variety of perspectives that this collection contains. The collection is available as a paperback, ebook and audiobook.
Focus on Thailand
August 2015: This is a selection of stories set in Thailand, taken from my four collections. The selection was made by noted editor Robert Johnstone, who also wrote the introduction. Here's an extract: 'The stories in this selection cover the different ways in which people look at how the world works, for example in the clash between a scientific approach and a traditionalist Buddhist mode of thought. And some deal with the impossible yearnings that can motivate or destroy a person. Sometimes these may be shallow—a lust for drink, for money or for sex—and the characters absurdly comic, self-destructive or psychopathic. Sometimes the yearning may be for a better life that is thwarted by others. Sometimes the outcome may be tragic. And sometimes the yearning can be lyrical and full of beauty, however unfulfilled. In a way, these stories examine many different aspects (not just that of intermarriage) of the various forms of love affair that spring up between Thailand, its people, its culture and its environment, and those who have come to know it.'
A big book ideal for the smallest room
August 2015: Think about it: nearly 100 chapters of roughly 1,000 words each - exactly the right length for a little sit-down. This bundle contains two books, If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of The Go-Go and Return To The Go-Go, both of which are stuffed full of the prattlings of Kuhn Pobaan, Pattaya resident and general know-all, about what it's like to live in Thailand's self-proclaimed extreme city. The omnibus is available only as an e-book, so be sure to charge the battery in your e-reader before you lock the door.
And we're back!
July 2015: ...at the go-go, that is. If you enjoyed If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of the Go-Go, then you will be delirious to learn that the follow-up volume of insights into life in Pattaya, Thailand's self-proclaimed extreme city, has now been released from captivity into the hands of an adoring public.
Mined from the rich seams of the blog on this very website, Return to the Go-Go is a collection of humorous essays that includes all your favourite bletherings from Khun Pobaan, including such gems as when to cut your toenails, how to survive Songkhran, censorship on Thai television and the fascinating and controversial issue of female body hair. Few strong men could resist such provocation. Order this book now.
Mined from the rich seams of the blog on this very website, Return to the Go-Go is a collection of humorous essays that includes all your favourite bletherings from Khun Pobaan, including such gems as when to cut your toenails, how to survive Songkhran, censorship on Thai television and the fascinating and controversial issue of female body hair. Few strong men could resist such provocation. Order this book now.
The classic Pattaya primer is now available for hands-free listening
June 2015: This is the first book I wrote about Thailand, more specifically it's a collection of insights into what it's like to live in Pattaya, Thailand's self-proclaimed EXTREME city. Now these jovial essays are available as an audiobook, read by the very talented and long-suffering Bryan Kimmelman.
Easily available through your local Amazon site or direct from Audible.com.
25 copies of the audiobook are being offered FREE on Audible.co.uk. Details here.
Easily available through your local Amazon site or direct from Audible.com.
25 copies of the audiobook are being offered FREE on Audible.co.uk. Details here.
First short stories on audiobook
April 2015: The Day of the Tiger has become the first of my collections of short stories to appear in audiobook form. Read by the incomparable Kate Shrewsday, the stories include a wealth of unlikely characters such as a bank teller who suspects murder, an old man who loses his shorts, a butcher reminiscing with his biggest customer and a ladyboy searching for love. Throw in the diary of one of the last two people on Earth, a market-stall tableau and a vision of eternity to appreciate the variety of perspectives that this collection contains.
Riz Gluant à la Mangue: it tastes even better in French
February 2015: My francophone friends and consummate professionals Michel Gauthier and Benoit Charlier have again helped to transform a collection of short stories for discerning French-speaking readers. The blurb explains what the stories are all about:
Un photographe embauché pour filmer un meurtre, un daltonien donneur de sperme, un fantôme qui ne peut se passer de ses copains, un Canadien qui se dit Letton et une femme qui a la certitude que ses enfants seront la dernière génération sur terre, tels sont quelques-uns des personnages fascinants de ce recueil.
e-book
livre de poche
Un photographe embauché pour filmer un meurtre, un daltonien donneur de sperme, un fantôme qui ne peut se passer de ses copains, un Canadien qui se dit Letton et une femme qui a la certitude que ses enfants seront la dernière génération sur terre, tels sont quelques-uns des personnages fascinants de ce recueil.
e-book
livre de poche
New audiobook launched
January 2015: My Selected Poems is now available as an audiobook with me reading! Recording this book was great fun but also a bit of a challenge since I had to kit out a home sound studio and work out how to operate it. All constructive feedback gratefully received.
More story collections
December 2014: People seem to like to get their reading matter in bulk as omnibuses sell well. Here is the second omnibus of short stories, which includes all of Sweet Song of the Siren and The Day of the Tiger. For heavy-duty story fans I've also published a whopping blockbuster that includes all four collections. This can be used for pressing flowers, employed as a defensive weapon or, when you're done with that, read. You can't deny it's staggeringly good value - more than 700 pages for less than the cost of a round of drinks.
New look for stories
November 2014: Because my new book of short stories, The Day of the Tiger, looked so smart, I have asked celebrated graphic designer Eva Hobson to redo the covers of the whole series.
My first audiobook
November 2014: Enhance Your Exports!, my outer-space satire on political correctness on Earth, is now available as an audiobook, so you can listen to the zany adventures of Dave, Ted, Daisy and Waldo while you're on the go in your car, space-pod or other vehicle, or indeed while lying on the beach on the vacation planet of Salutan. The recording, expertly read by Kevin Guzewich, can be found on Amazon here. Also on iTunes.
The Day of the Tiger
November 2014: My latest collection of short stories has just been published. Most of these 11 tales are set in Thailand and involve an exotic set of characters in intriguing situations. For example, you'll find
a bank teller who suspects there's been a murder, an old man who somehow loses his
shorts, a butcher reminiscing with his best customer and a lady-boy searching
for love. There's also the diary of one of the last two people on Earth (that one's set in the UK), a market-stall
tableau and a vision of peaceful eternity. The Day of the Tiger is now available as a paperback and as an ebook.
Brume sur la Jungle
October 2014: The intrepid Michel Gauthier has translated a second collection of my short stories, transforming Mist on the Jungle into Brume sur la Jungle. The new book is available as paperback and e-book. The blurb goes like this:
Un homme d’affaires concupiscent qui préfère la chose avec de faux garçons plutôt qu’avec de vraies filles, un capitaine en déprime qui va saborder son propre ferry, une femme qui mange plus que de la nourriture, et une veuve thaïlandaise qui se trouve des racines en Crête – voilà quelques-uns des personnages attirants qui apparaissent dans cette collection originale de nouvelles.
Souvent amusants, parfois drôles, à l’occasion dramatiques, ces contes sont toujours touchants. D’une plume légère, William Peskett, avec sensibilité, verve et sympathie, met en scène une grande variété de personnages dans des situations inattendues.
La plupart des nouvelles se déroulent en Thaïlande ou ont un rapport avec la Thaïlande. Elles révèlent ainsi beaucoup de la vie que connaissent les autochtones et les étrangers dans ce monde fascinant de l’Orient.
Un homme d’affaires concupiscent qui préfère la chose avec de faux garçons plutôt qu’avec de vraies filles, un capitaine en déprime qui va saborder son propre ferry, une femme qui mange plus que de la nourriture, et une veuve thaïlandaise qui se trouve des racines en Crête – voilà quelques-uns des personnages attirants qui apparaissent dans cette collection originale de nouvelles.
Souvent amusants, parfois drôles, à l’occasion dramatiques, ces contes sont toujours touchants. D’une plume légère, William Peskett, avec sensibilité, verve et sympathie, met en scène une grande variété de personnages dans des situations inattendues.
La plupart des nouvelles se déroulent en Thaïlande ou ont un rapport avec la Thaïlande. Elles révèlent ainsi beaucoup de la vie que connaissent les autochtones et les étrangers dans ce monde fascinant de l’Orient.
All change
June 2014: The Short Story Omnibus has been relaunched with a stunning new cover and the optimistic addition of the word 'First' to the title. Whether there will be a second or not is hard to say, but I'm working on it. The First Short Story Omnibus is only available as an e-book at the moment because the people who would have printed it refuse to deal with a cover with the ends of the word 'Omnibus' cut off. They say people will think it's a mistake. If you feel, as a reader, that your intelligence is being insulted, please write in. More details here.
Trader gets it right again
April 2014: The Pattaya Trader is a fine publication - full colour, nicely laid out, full of the sort of articles you don't find anywhere else, and free. But the magazine is at its best, I feel, when it is giving one of my books a good review. Their reviewer seemed to like my latest collection of short stories. You can see if you agree with her by ordering the book through the magic of the internet or, if you're lucky enough to live in Pattaya, from one of our plucky independent book emporia.
Kallista-mm on air, really?
March 2014: It hardly seems possible but last night the Pattaya Players held auditions for the main parts in my radio comedy Deals in Space! I've never been a dramatist before except when I set fire to a chip pan (oh, sorry, that was being dramatic) but now it really looks as if my adaptation of Enhance Your Exports! is actually going to make it on to the airwaves. Pattaya People Radio is being very supportive, providing their excellent studio for the recordings and their airspace for the broadcast. Wherever you are in the world, there will be no escape from Deals in Space! since you'll be able to tune in to the station through the magic of the internet. Block out your diaries now. The story, as you may know, is a bit mad so you can imagine that it was a great new experience for me at the auditions to see grown actors speaking the daft jokes I'd written. You can read the script here.
Now shop at iTunes too
March 2014: If you prefer to get your e-books from iTunes, now's your chance. As from now, my collections of essays, short stories and some poems are available from the iTunes store. Chick here for a preview, then click through to your account. Easy when you get the hang of it.
Le Chant Ensorcelant de la Sirène
Janvier 2014: Auteur, ingénieur et voyageur intrépide Michel Gauthier a habilement et imaginative traduit mon livre Sweet Song of the Siren en
français. C'est maintenant disponible comme Le Chant Ensorcelant de la Sirène. Parmi les 11 nouvelles, vous trouverez un assassin qui se voit taillé dans la pierre, un écrivain que son épouse défunte rejoint en remontant le temps, une communauté de robots qui attend leur sauveteur, un homme amoureux d’une part de lui-même, une vieille dame entement enlisée dans sa démence sénile et une bande de singes blagueurs.
e-book
livre de poche
e-book
livre de poche
New Plains Review
January 2014: Autumn must come late in what is known rather prosaically as the West South Central United States because the University of Central Oklahoma has only just published the Fall 2013 issue of its literary journal New Plains Review. As a reward for your patience, the magazine includes my short story 'Snake Eyes' which, unfeasibly, is the story of a chap who falls in love with his own penis. Well, we've all done it. Not women, obviously.
All my stories bundled together
December 2013: All of the stories included in Mango and Sticky Rice, Mist on the Jungle and Sweet Song of the Siren are now available in one enormous volume - paperback or ebook. Weighing in at somewhat less than one tonne (the ebook weighs hardly anything, by the way), this massive tome will lend itself to a myriad of functions around the home. You could sit on it, hold doors open with it, use it to prop up the slide projector, swat cockroaches or even larger vermin, press flowers under it. By Jove, you could even read it. There are 33 stories in the collection. Available on Amazon and the Kindle store.
Compare and contrast
November 2013: If you've been wondering what the connections are between the 'heroes' of Pond Life and Losing Yourself, what better opportunity could there be than to read the two novels back-to-back? This 'Novel Double' offers both novels in e-book format for very little more than the price of a single book. It's handy. It's good value. It's irresistible. Look it up on the Kindle Store or here at Amazon:
John Bunyan Would Love This
October 2013: Readers visiting, or residing in, the sleepy fishing town of Pattaya on Thailand's Eastern seaboard and seeking diversion from the usual round of coffee mornings and whist drives will be gratified to learn that my titles are now available as crisp paperbacks from the Canterbury Tales cafe, guesthouse and bookshop on Soi Chaloem Prakiat, just off the up-and-coming Soi Bua Khao. If you haven't visited the Canterbury Tales cafe or shared a bit of educational banter with its legendary proprietor, Dave Collier, you don't know Pattaya. Check out the website here.
The Trader Speaks Out
September 2013: If you're in Funtown or environs for any time at all it's hard to see how you could survive without the Pattaya Trader. This local institution is full of entertainment and useful information; it shows you places to go that no-one else goes; it has a big crossword puzzle; it tells you stuff about fruit; when you've read it, you could use it to press flowers or hold a door open in a gale; and it's free. You can get it in Foodland. And other places. Also, it has the most intelligent, insightful - and possibly most handsome - book reviewers. Plucking a sample of their craft randomly from the tropical air, I recommend this.
Sweet Song of the Siren
July 2013: The title story in this new collection is a fantastical confession by a young New Zealander about an unbelievable Asian adventure. While diving in the Andaman Islands - situated off the west coast of Thailand but belonging to India - Henry meets and falls for what he considers the love of his life. While the relationship is more than he has ever dreamed possible, there is within it a terrible flaw, yet he is lured deeper and deeper and finally brought to disaster. This allegorical tale will be familiar to many Western men who fall in love in Asia, but perhaps not told in this way. With ten other stories in the collection, Sweet Song of the Siren is now available as paperback and e-book.
Go-Go Girls Get a Facelift
May 2013: My book of verse celebrating the go-go dancers of Thailand's raunchiest bars has undergone a redesign, incorporating a painting, Go-Go Dancers of Ko Samui, by celebrated mixed-media painter and photographer Yianni Foufas. Yianni
has traveled extensively, including in Thailand, and he is
passionate about expressing himself through artistic mediums and professionally
growing as an artist. Many of his photographs represent moments of
reflection he had during his travels. He lives in Alberta,
Canada with his family. You can see more of his work at fineartamerica.
Sales Buoyant
February 2013: Sales and downloads of Pond Life, my first novel, have now passed the 1,000 mark, making it, while perhaps not an international best-seller, at least a fairly steady pot-boiler. To join in with all the hysteria, take a look at the reviews here; find out more here or order your ebook or paperback copy here.
Get your books signed here
November 2012: Most of my books are now registered with Authorgraph, a website where you can request autographs from the writers of your favourite titles. The site was set up by a chap who was frustrated that he couldn't get e-books signed by their writers because, er, they're not made of paper. At Authorgraph, authors sign their names digitally using a mouse, so the results look a bit shaky - a bit like Guy Faulks after he'd been tortured - but the whole thing is free so it's OK for a laugh. Please queue up here for your signed copies by visiting my section of the Authorgraph library. You don't even have to buy the books!
|
|
The Polish version
October 2012: This 'news' is about four years old but it has only just been pointed out to me that a number of my poems are now available on the internet... in Polish. I cannot attest to the accuracy of the translation by Jaroslaw Anders. Perhaps someone could let me know. You can find the poems on Kratery, an interesting site if you speak Polish.
HiddenChapter
September 2012: My short story, Laos Theory, has just been published by the on-line literary magazine, HiddenChapter. The story, inspired by a visit to Laos, describes a series of connected events which begin and end with a couple of tourists visiting Vientiane, happenings which, unknown to the tourists, form a chain spanning the globe. The nature of the last event has been determined by the first. In our lives, events often follow the same pattern, with similar starting points leading to very different outcomes. That's called chaos theory or, in Southeast Asia perhaps, Laos theory. See more stories and poems at HiddenChapter.
Bestseller
August 2012: It may not have reached the New York Times list of books that fly off the shelf but If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of The Go-Go is now officially my bestselling book. Adding downloads and paperbacks, it has just passed the 1,000 copy mark, making me very proud but not rich. If you'd like to join in the fun, find out more here. Or discover what others think by reading the reviews here.
Exclusive to Thailand
July 2012: The Last Boat to Samui is a selection of stories, specifically about Thailand, taken from my two main collections, Mango and Sticky Rice and Mist on the Jungle. It was published in paperback this month by Bamboo Sinfonia of Bangkok and will be available only in Thailand. Look out for it in Asia Books and other good bookshops. Before long it should be available by mail order from DCO. The list of contents is here.
How to judge a book
June 2012: I'm not sure if this is really news, but I've changed the cover of Selected Poems. That's one of the great things about publishing your own books - if you get a bit bored with their covers, or anything else, you can just go ahead and change them. The previous cover featured a photo of a cycad which I took at Nong Nooch, a horticultural and botanical garden (plus other things) of world quality not far south of where I live in Pattaya - highly recommended if you're ever in the area, by the way. This new cover is even closer to home as it features a corner of my house. All comments gratefully received.
Cheaper by the pair
June 2012: My two books of short stories are now available bundled together as a single ebook, exclusively on Kindle, The William Peskett Short Story Omnibus. There's a bonus story included in the package which brings the total number of stories to a staggering 23. Sorry about the unimaginative front cover. As a paperback it would have made about 360 pages. Since my frailer readers would have required lifting gear to assist them with its bulk, I decided to make the omnibus digital only. Click here for a blurb for the omnibus.
Doing Business on Other Planets
May 2012: If you were kind, you'd call Dave Smart the Gulliver de nos jours. Otherwise, he's just a business studies lecturer (Open University) who leads an expedition to the Smiling Disc star system in the North-West quadrant of our galaxy hoping to identify export opportunities for Earth-based firms. Although the inhabitants of the largest planet in the system, Kalista-mm, are more similar to us than Dave and his party expected, they're not that similar. For a start, they drink sulphuric acid and lay eggs, but they're also disarmingly candid about the despoilment of their environment and the mistreatment of their employees. It's all a blatant set-up for a satirical look at how we live our lives down here on our own dear planet Earth. Oh, also an opportunity for some laughs. The book is available now on Amazon, as a paperback and ebook.
Back in print
April 2012: Amazingly, my two books of poetry, The Nightowl's Dissection and Survivors are now available again - this time in paperback (and ebooks) - after being out of print for 37 and 32 years respectively. I am still very fond of these books; the first because it was the first I ever published and because it reminds me so much of my youth (I was 23 when it first came out), and the second because I thought it represented an improvement, or at least a greater show of maturity. I would be grateful for your views. You can see more at the publisher's website.
Asian Cha literary journal
March 2012: My short story 'Mist on the Jungle' is included in the March issue of the online literary journal Asian Cha. Edited from Hong Kong, Cha includes the best contemporary Asian writing as well as featuring authors from all over the world. If you are not familiar with Cha, I recommend a visit to their website.
An affectionate verse portrait
March 2012: Just published: this has to be the strangest project I have yet attempted - a collection of 92 limericks about bargirls. There's not much space in a limerick to say what you want to say, so the sheer quantity of verses in this collection is needed to convey something of the complexity of the lives led by these heroines of the Pattaya bar scene. A lot of bad things are said about go-go girls, generally focusing on their commercial, or even mercenary, approach. These verses take a different point of view, acknowledging that everyone in business is in it to make a living and recognising some of the challenges that these women face in the course of their working week. The book is available now on Amazon.
Mist on the Jungle
February 2012: Mist on the Jungle And Other Stories is my second collection of short fiction. The book is a follow-on from Mango and Sticky Rice; as in the earlier book, most of the stories are set in Thailand or have a Thailand connection. One of the pieces, Pica, concerns an unusual eating habit which is strangely prevalent in some northern tribes. The book also includes a new racy adventure for Kress, Thailand's coolest private investigator. You can get more information here.
Free ebooks
January 2012: All my titles are now enrolled in a Kindle scheme under which e-books can be downloaded FREE at the Kindle store for up to five days in any three-month period. There's no telling when each book will come up free, so keep an eye on my books on Amazon or at the Kindle store. Please contact me if you'd like a particular e-book to be free at a particular time. I'll see what I can do.
Mango and Sticky Rice
January 2012: I'm very excited about this collection of new short
stories which is now available as a paperback from Amazon and as an e-book
from the Kindle Store. With many of the stories set in Thailand, they
introduce a throng of interesting characters, some of whom pop up in
more than one place. The stories are funny and sad, sometimes both. More information here.
In bookstores now
December 2011: The publisher and printer have overcome serious logistics problems caused by the Bangkok floods and If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of The Go-Go is now available as a paperback from all good bookshops. Now, every time I visit Asia Books, I'll be moving my book to the front of the shelf!
Floods delay publication
November 2011: My collection of humorous essays, If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of The Go-Go, was due to be released to bookshops in Thailand this month by local publisher Bamboo Sinfonia. You've heard about the floods; unfortunately, the printer in Bangkok is surrounded by water. Rather than produce soggy books, we're waiting a couple of weeks until the inundation subsides.
Confectionery
November 2011: Confectionery is
a short story about an absurdly lascivious senior British businessman
(of Italian origin) who is in Cambodia to investigate some financial
malpractice in his chocolate company. It's a serious issue, and his
business could be at risk, but what's really on his mind is where he can
find the most perfectly transformed ladyboys - Phnom Penh or Bangkok?
The story is included in the Autumn issue of Ambit magazine.
E-books in Thailand
October 2011: A couple of my books are now available as digital downloads direct from Thailand. You can get the novel Losing Yourself and my collection of hysterically funny essays on life in Thailand, If You Can't Stand The Fun, Stay Out Of The Go-Go at the click of a mouse from DCO.
