Recommended READINGS ON GAY THAILAND
Dear Uncle Go : Male Homosexuality in Thailand = Sawatdi Khrap 'a Ko Paknam
by Peter A. Jackson
A landmark study of male homoeroticism in Southeast Asia. "Uncle Go Pak-nam" has been Thailand's advice columnist for gay men in a major national magazine since 1974. Letters to him come from the confused, lovelorn, naive, worldly and lonely. Their sexually explicit stores are often moving, sometimes shocking, sometimes delightful, but always fascinating and deeply human. Uncle Go's advice to them is wild, witty, and wise.
The Men of Thailand : (6th Edition): Thailand's Culture & Gay Subculture
by E. G. Allyn, Samorn Chaiyana.
This is the most praised guidebook for gay men ever published. Reviewers and users have praised its cultural sensitivity, its frankness, and insight. Includes an extensive discussion of Thailand's culture and its gay subculture, practical etiquette, plus resources and listings for 15 Thai cities. Each listing is in Thai script you can use to point-and-show to get around. Also includes maps for major locations with a gay scene. Considered essential for any gay visitor to the Land of Smiles.
Queer : Facts About Gays and Lesbians.
by Saksit Pakdeesiam
About the Author - Saksit Pakdeesiam is a sociologist, writer and translator who has done extensive research on gay life in Thailand and overseas. He now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, USA. His first book (written in the Thai language) is QUEER - Facts About Gays and Lesbians. His second book is "Thai for Gay Tourists" - a language guide for gays and lesbians visiting Thailand.
Book Description.
This book is written in Thai. It has information and stories about the lives of gays and lesbians both oveseas and in Thailand. The book is semi-academic. Good for gay people and anyone who wants to know about gays and lesbians (friends and families, etc.). A GREAT gift for your Thai gay friends.
The Dove Coos II : Gay Experiences by the Men of Thailand.
by E. G. Allyn, E.G.Allyn, David Jonathan.
These thirty-seven stories, written by gay men in Thailand about their gay experiences, were translated from major Thai gay magazines. This book also includes an introduction to gay Thailand by the editor of MIDWAY magazine, one of Thailand's top gay publications.
Lady Boys, Tom Boys, Rent Boys: Male and Female Homosexualities in Contemporary Thailand.
Peter A. Jackson (Editor), Gerard Sullivan (Editor)
Lady Boys, Tom Boys, Rent Boys: Male and Female Homosexualities in Contemporary Thailand offers methods that will help social workers, researchers, and students create HIV/AIDS intervention services for gay men, lesbians, and transgender individuals in or from Thailand.
Many of these methods can also be used by practitioners or HIV/AIDS educators in North America and developing countries to address issues of culturally diverse clientele. In response to Western and Thai sexuality studies that fail to accurately represent the diverse sexualities of Thailand, this book discusses and describes certain factors that need to be taken into consideration when developing intervention programs.
Demonstrating how cultural and social factors influence services, Lady Boys, Tom Boys, Rent Boys will help you provide clients with effective and relevant services. Drawing attention to Eurocentric ideology that may hinder cross-cultural collaboration for Thai-Western service provisions, this book offers you information that will help you understand how cultural, political, and economic systems shape sexuality and gender roles in Thai society.
Gold by the Inch by Lawrence Chua
Called "striking" by The New York Times Book Review, Gold by the Inch is the story of a young New Yorker of Asian descent who has returned to the country of his birth following a disastrous relationship and his father's death. In a Bangkok drunk on the nation's financial miracle - and high on an assortment of other things - the narrator meets Thong, a young, beautiful male hustler who works at a nightclub. As his romantic obsession with Thong grows, the narrator tries to convince himself that it transcends its commercial nature, but he is quickly forced into a hard look at the connections between desire and exploitation, personal and national identity. Lawrence Chua vividly combines Southeast Asia's troubled history with evocations of its modern face - its polyglot culture, its colonial past, the cool futurism of its skyscrapers and its sex industry. Written in hard-bitten, dazzling prose, Gold by the Inch is a stunning debut.
Re: Recommended reading on gay Thailand
Very sadly, The Men of Thailand is out of print with no plans to re-print "due to Govenment attitudes" which I though rather weak. However you can get a glimpse of the full book online at: http://www.floatinglotus.com/tmot/tmotonline.html
Floating lotus have several gay books about Thailand in print and a friendly website.
Of the other books suggested I can heartily recommend The Dove Coos II ( and The Dove Coos I was good to but out of print) The Uncle Go book is good and there are a lot of his, wonderful agony aunt type, letters on the floating lotus website.
Male Homosexuality by Peter A Jackson I would give a miss. It is very dry and analytical but based on very fragile basis of small numbers interviews and then the results analysed as if the truth. He admits that they found Thai men have a habit of telling them the answer which is what they think those asking wants to hear. However I found "The Intrinsic quality of skin" by the same author a fascinating read. Being small and dark skinned he could pass as a Thai and it was interesting to find out how many straight Thai men like to dabble on the other side of the fence.
Dean Barrett - Not gay-related but stories involving Thailan
This past April, while flying Eva from Taipei to Bangkok, I sat next to a gentleman named Dean Barrett and had a thoroughly enjoyable conversation. I learned he was an author and had lived in the Bangkok area for about 28 years. I inquired about his books and ultimately bought two of them - "Skytrain to Murder" and "Memoirs of a Bangkok Warrior" - which I found in a small bookshop just east of the Taipei Gate in Chiangmai. I finished both books before I got home.
"Memoirs" is a Mash-style (humor) story of army finance clerks in Bangkok during the Vietnam War. It's funny - from stories of the constant disparagement (Hawkeye-style) of career officers to descriptions of legendary Whorehouse Charlie and his string of "brothelariums" (brothels operating out of housing with holes in the roofs). If you enjoyed the humor of the Mash television series, you'll enjoy this book.
"Skytrain to Murder" is a murder-mystery story set in Bangkok and also involves some of the brothelarium-type creatures. The storyline seemed a bit contrived but the setting, background, and some of the characters seemed to be right on the money.
What I enjoyed about both books the most was the periodic comments/insights about the thai culture/mindset that seemed quite recognizable to me. I had previously read John Burdette's "Bangkok 8" which I very much enjoyed for this reason.
In any event, a couple of other choices (although, as noted, neither are gay-related).
