Bali and Angkor

In the early 1930s, Geoffrey Gorer, who had already made his mark with Africa Dances (now reissued in the Penguin Travel Library) went on a three months' trip to Sumatra, Java, Bali, Thailand, and Cambodia. The resulting travelogue, an exciting record, can be read today with great enjoyment and interest. Though recent travel writing about South-East Asia may contain more practical information, what Bali and Angkor lacks in this respect is more than made up for by Gorer's considerable powers of observation and his interest in interpreting the role that art and religion play in the life of the Balinese and the Khmers.