Thailand
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A Short History; Second Edition
David K. Wyatt
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Format: PaperPrice: $37.00
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This highly acclaimed book, the standard history of Thailand for almost twenty years, has now been completely revised by the author. 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
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
David K. Wyatt was John Stambaugh Professor of History at Cornell University until his recent retirement.
“Wyatt knows his subject well enough and has enough enthusiasm for it to make his book . . . entertaining as well as eminently educational.”—, 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
"Bound to become a classic in the field of Southeast Asian history. At last we have a readable, yet critical, account of Thailand's history that will suit the general reader, as well as the specialist."—Ann Maxwell Hill, Best Sellers
"The first comprehensive history of Thailand to appear in more than half a century. As such, it is a welcome and much needed addition to the literature on Southeast Asia. Wyatt outlines the history of the Thai people from the early centuries AD until 1982. The book is concise and well written, making excellent use of Thai chronicles and Western sources, and it includes an extensive annotated bibliography. . . . An important book of interest to anyone concerned with traditional or modern Thailand."—Choice
"Wyatt, a well-known scholar on Thailand, has produced a sweeping general history of the country. . . . This belongs in all libraries interested in having a representative collection of works on the Third World." —Library Journal
"In range and scope this would seem to be the most ambitious history of the Thais ever published. It moves from theories on the origin of Tai-speaking peoples several millennia ago right up to the 1980s. Much of David K. Wyatt's concern is political; the book deals in the main with state formation, internal struggles for power, warfare, and the Thai state's international relations. . . . A thoughtful survey of recent events and the changing conditions of the Thai political scene."—B.J. Terwiel, American Historical Review
"[Wyatt] has spent nearly a quarter of a century examining Thailand's past. . . . Few historians of Thailand have ranged so confidently over such large stretches of the past. Very few have mastered the primary sources he has used to reconstruct events. Hardly any can write as smoothly, or could manage to maintain an evenness of tone, and a consistent sense of authority, over a book such as this one, that deals with Thai history from its beginnings to the 1980s. . . . It is hard to imagine history written with a surer hand."—David P. Chandler, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies
"Wyatt's smoothly written work, the first broad historical study of Thailand in more than 50 years, provides a concise yet comprehensive look at the only country in Southeast Asia to avoid 19th and 20th-century colonial rule. Intended for general readers, the book has also been praised by experts in the field."—Alida Becker, Philadelphia Inquirer
"The best and most reliable account of the historical development from pre-Thai civilizations to the present day." —Archaeology
"Professor Wyatt has written a succinct, lucid and comprehensive history of Thailand and the Thai people from their complex ethnic origins to the advent of General Prem in 1980. This is an excellent and valuable book."—D. K. Bassett, International Affairs
"Written by a distinguished scholar of Southeast Asia, this is the first general history of Thailand since W. A. R. Woods 'History of Siam' appeared in 1926. Comprehensive in coverage, keenly analytical and lucidly written, this book will undoubtedly be the standard work for years to come."—A. Thomas Kirsch, Journal of Asian History
"This book, the only recent comprehensive survey of the whole course of Thai history, is a major achievement. It is more than a textbook, and will rank as a significant interpretive study of an area which has attracted increasing scholarly attention in recent years. The work is reliable, readable, and rewarding; factual yet never dull; and it provides both a starting-point for the interested general reader and a basis for further study for the student."—Malcolm Falkus, Economic History Review
"There can be few Western scholars more advantageously placed to write an introductory history of Thailand than Professor Wyatt. . . . For its chronological range and for its unfailingly lucid and engaging presentation, this is a notable achievement."—Ian Brown, Bulletin of the School of Oriental & African Studies
“A fascinating history of an extraordinary land.”—Michael Kerrigan, Scotsman
ISBN: 9780300084757
Publication Date: December 11, 2003
Publication Date: December 11, 2003
384 pages, 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
24 halftones + 13 maps
24 halftones + 13 maps
