John Keay’s Followers (253)

John Keay

Born

in Devon, The United Kingdom

September 18, 1941

Website

http://johnkeay.com/

Genre

History, Travel

edit data

John Stanley Melville Keay FRGS is an English journalist and author specialising in writing popular histories about India and the Far East, often with a particular focus on their colonisation and exploration by Europeans.

John Keay is the author of about 20 books, all factual, mostly historical, and largely to do with Asia, exploration or Scotland. His first book stayed in print for thirty years; many others have become classics. His combination of meticulous research, irreverent wit, powerful narrative and lively prose have invariably been complimented by both reviewers and readers.

UK-based and a full-time author since 1973, he also wrote and presented over 100 documentaries for BBC Radios 3 and 4 from 1975-95 and guest-lectured tour groups ...more

Combine Editions
John Keay’s books

Average rating: 3.89 · 9,169 ratings · 990 reviews · 60 distinct works • Similar authors

	India: A History 3.93 avg rating — 4,074 ratings — published 2000 — 40 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	China: A History 3.93 avg rating — 2,432 ratings — published 2008 — 33 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Honourable Company: a History of the English East India Company 3.75 avg rating — 682 ratings — published 1991 — 21 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Great Arc: The Dramatic Tale of How India Was Mapped and Everest Was Named 3.93 avg rating — 573 ratings — published 2000 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	India Discovered : The Recovery of a Lost Civilization 4.09 avg rating — 266 ratings — published 1981 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Spice Route: A History 3.70 avg rating — 176 ratings — published 2005 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Himalaya: Exploring the Roof of the World 3.58 avg rating — 166 ratings — published 2022 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Midnight's Descendants 3.74 avg rating — 158 ratings — published 2012 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mad About The Mekong: Exploration and Empire in South East Asia 3.86 avg rating — 104 ratings — published 2005 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Mammoth Book of Travel in Dangerous Places by John Keay (Editor), Wilfred Thesiger (Foreword) 3.25 avg rating — 101 ratings — published 1995 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by John Keay…

Quotes by John Keay (?)

“Histories themselves become history before they reach the shelves.”
― John Keay

8 likes

“Liang Qichao came away disappointed. American democracy seemed to spawn "mediocre politicians, corruption, disorder, racism, imperialism". "In short," noted the late J K Fairbank, most prolific and influential of America's sinologists, "he got our number, and it turned him off.”
― John Keay, China: A History

tags: america, china, democracy-gone-wrong, history, international-development, u-s-a

2 likes

“Poetry, like remonstration, could be a form of protest; and since poets were products of the Confucian education system, extravagant military adventures often came in for criticism in their verses. No”
― John Keay, China: A History

1 likes

See all John Keay's quotes »

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The History Book ...: WOODROW WILSON: A BIOGRAPHY - GLOSSARY (SPOILER THREAD)	345	157	Jul 11, 2013 08:24AM
The History Book ...: DANIELLE'S 50 BOOKS READ IN 2013	49	121	Nov 01, 2013 07:23AM
The History Book ...: ARCHIVE TWO: PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF ~	6144	5126	Sep 19, 2015 03:18AM
The History Book ...: GLOSSARY - STAYING ON - THE RAJ QUARTET SERIES~ (Spoiler Thread)	88	314	Jul 11, 2016 08:32PM
The History Book ...: * INDIA'S FOREIGN RELATIONS (International Relations)	45	256	Apr 14, 2018 12:37PM
The History Book ...: * HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ASIA -INTRODUCTION	52	453	Feb 24, 2019 01:26AM

More…

Is this you? Let us know. If not, help out and invite John to Goodreads.

John Keay’s Followers (253)

John Keay

Combine EditionsJohn Keay’s books

Topics Mentioning This Author

Combine Editions
John Keay’s books