Patpong Pattaya Phuket and other paradises for a gang of mad dogs and sundry sonzabitches Babble booze and grass and snow and toadstools and...
Thai hippiedom in its 1980s heyday. First serialised in a women's magazine, yet another masterpiece by the author of 1982 SEA Write Award winning The Judgment and 1994 SEA Write Award winning Time
He first came to prominence with the publication of his novel Khamphiphaksa (The Judgment) in 1981. Named as Book of the Year by Thailand's Literature Council, the book won him the S.E.A. Write Award.[1] He received a second S.E.A. Write Award in 1994 for Wela (Time).[2] He was named a National Artist in Literature in 2004, and was among the honorees of the inaugural Silpathorn Award, given to Thai contemporary artists. In 1969, at the age of 15, he published his first short story, Nak Rian Nak Leng, in a school publication at Wat Pathum Khong Kha School. His story Phu Phae won the Cho Karaket short story award in 1979 from Lok Nangsue magazine.
He has established himself as a full-time writer, stating, "I choose to be a writer. I give it my whole life. I have traded my whole life for it." He has founded the publishing house Samnakphim Hon (Howling Books), which publishes all of his work. .
Were there moments of beauty and power? Yes. Did it cohere? No.
I get that this is supposed to be a shaggy dog story – and these dogs are indeed shaggy – but I got frustrated with the lack of forward momentum. And I found the storylines bled into each other a bit too much, and I found it difficult over time to distinguish one layabout Thai hippie character from another. This would have been far more effective, I think, if Chart had chosen to focus on one character rather than an ensemble cast.
back to some thai literature with (allegedly) a modern classic of late 80s thai hippiedom with chart korbjitti’s พันธุ์หมาบ้า (mad dog & co. in english translation which more or less captures the spirit though i’ve heard quite bad things about this translation). it’s a sprawling 600+ page-turner comprising mostly of ragtag stories exchanged over pints and joints centered around a group of struggling friends trying to navigate the already stringent effects of neoliberalism recently washed up on thai shores. as for writing, this is me giving chart a second chance to redeem his morally-loaded stories but remnants still remains which i am not a fan of; still, being partly autobiographical, there‘s enough nuance and character development that sustained my interest and made me somewhat invested, though i’m concerned that this is further proof to the quality of the substance of the work rather than the execution. i particularly enjoyed the dialogue and profanity (some very good and funny bits which is rare for thai books imo) but it lacks certain depth that such a saga warranted.
Like most of Charts writing in English I find this book tedious in the extreme. Watching paint dry would be more interesting. The few insights into Thai culture and society are buried beneath monotonous detailed description