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The King Never Smiles: A Biography of Thailand's Bhumibol Adulyadej, by Paul M. Handley
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Thailand’s Bhumibol Adulyadej, the only king ever born in the United States, came to the throne of his country in 1946 and is now the world’s longest-serving monarch. The King Never Smiles, the first independent biography of Thailand's monarch,�tells the unexpected story of�Bhumibol's life and sixty-year rule—how a Western-raised boy came to be seen by his people as a living Buddha, and how a king widely seen as beneficent and apolitical could in fact be so deeply political and�autocratic.
Paul Handley provides an extensively researched, factual account of the king’s youth and personal development, ascent to the throne, skillful political maneuverings, and attempt to shape Thailand as a Buddhist kingdom.�Handley takes full note of Bhumibol's achievements in art, in sports and jazz, and he credits the king's lifelong dedication to rural development and the livelihoods of his poorest subjects. But, looking beyond�the widely accepted image of the king as egalitarian and virtuous, Handley portrays an anti-democratic monarch who, together with allies in big business and the corrupt Thai military, has protected a centuries-old, barely modified feudal dynasty.
When at nineteen Bhumibol assumed the throne, the Thai monarchy had been stripped of power and prestige. Over the ensuing decades, Bhumibol became the paramount political actor in the kingdom, silencing critics while�winning the hearts and minds�of his people. The book details this process and depicts Thailand’s unique constitutional monarch—his life, his thinking, and his ruling philosophy.
- Sales Rank: #638293 in Books
- Published on: 2006-07-28
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.25" h x 1.50" w x 6.13" l, 1.90 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 512 pages
From Publishers Weekly
Early on, Handley declares that current king of Thailand Bhumibol Adulyadej's restoration of the Thai monarchy is, in fact, "one of the great untold stories of the 20th century." The dense history he assembles more than meets the high expectations he sets for himself. Bhumibol, ninth king of the Chakri Dynasty and the first American-born Thai monarch, took power in 1946 during a time when being king was not the most desirable job in the country. Handley offers a substantive history of the monarchy reaching back 500 years, providing the framework for understanding Bhumibol's challenge as king and "leading theologian" following the 1932 coup that turned the old kingdom of Siam, an absolute monarchy, into the constitutional monarchy of Thailand. While rendered politically weak by the coup and subsequent power struggles, Bhumibol has quietly salvaged the relevance of the monarchy while maintaining the image of bodhittsava-like figurehead, a tricky and necessary accomplishment for a country balanced between modernity and ancient Buddhist and Hindu tradition. Dynamic in both his professional and personal life, Bhumibol grapples with insurgencies, growing leftist sentiment and an alliance with the U.S. to combat Communism, finding time along the way to dabble in everything from water development projects to jazz composition. This absorbing and well-researched volume should please Asian history buffs and those interested in the topical challenge of leading a traditional society into the modern world.
Copyright � Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Paul M. Handley is a freelance journalist who lived and worked as a foreign correspondent in Asia for more than twenty years, including thirteen in Thailand.
Most helpful customer reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful.
Masterful as biography AND propaganda study
By B. Martin
Having lived in Thailand for two lengthy periods since 1965, I knew some of the basics. Mr. Handley has filled in details in highly credible fashion and produced as complete a picture of not only the monarchy but Thai politics as I have seen anywhere. The book is especially good on the ways that much of the belief system of ordinary Thais has been constructed for them by the palace and other royalist institutions and individuals. It's no wonder that North Korea's Kim Jong Il, himself no slouch as a propagandist, has pointed to the Thai system as one of the few foreign models he admires.
-Bradley K. Martin, author of Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader: North Korea and the Kim Dynasty
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Five Stars
By R. Kirkland
Excellent
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
Accurate and dispassionate
By Bubbles From Below
This book is scholarly and engaging; I have to believe that Handley was barred from entering the Kingdom as persona non-grata after publishing it. I gave it 4 stars only because it takes a lot of coffee to get through the minutia. But without that level of detail, the author would be at risk of being ridiculed for trying to do a hatchet job on Thailand's Royal Family. The reality is, the King is a product of his time, working in a country beset by ignorance and self-serving "influential families." Most Thais would be horrified to read this book, and will probably reject it out of hand. But their school system and indoctrination will never allow them to read this dispassionately. Having lived in Thailand, I understand why Thai's who have reviewed this book are horrified by it, but as a Westerner, I just view it as a solid piece of historical inquiry. I enjoy life in the Kingdom and the unique Thai conviviality and sense of fun; this book just gives me a better perspective on the reasons for Thailand being the way it is today.
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