Siam Sam

John Heard

They're illegal.

I read Bangkok 8 a few years back, didn't go much on it at all so never read another of his.

Bird On a Wire

Yes, it is based on a period of his life. I watched it a few months ago but didn't think it was that good. There is another film about his life starring Matt Dillon called Factotum. I started watching it on Kodi a while ago but the stream kept failing after about twenty minute so I gave up on it.

Ah, where would we be without Kodi? A friend introduced me to it when I came to Thailand last October and I've been using it ever since. I can't get the subtitles to work either.

The last time I posted here I had just finished Post Office by Charles Bukowski. I'm going to list the books I've read since then with a rating out of ten and a short review. Last year I decided I'm going to read some of my favourite books again. The Damage Done by Warren Fellows The third time I've read this. Brilliant stuff. About the convicted heroin smuggler Warren Fellows who served 12 years in the notorious Bang Kwang prison in Bangkok. The ultimate novel about prison and redemption. Highly recommended. Ten out of ten. A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson The second time I've read this. Absolutely fascinating. Essential reading if you have an inquisitive mind and a thirst for knowledge. I highly recommend this. Ten out of ten. 1984 by George Orwell I've read this several times now. It's absolute class and I don't think I need to say too much about this because everyone knows it's one of the best novels ever written. It's one of my favourite novels. A work of pure genius and a literary masterpiece, everyone should read this book in their lifetime. Ten out of ten and highly recommended. Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh The second time I've read this. This is brilliant and one of my favourite Welsh novels. Welsh is one of my favourite contemporary writers and if you haven't read a book of his then this would be a good one to start with. Ten out of ten and highly recommended. Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald What a big disappointment this was after reading The Great Gatsby which I thought was brilliant. This is nowhere near as good in comparison. Some people see this as Fitzgerald's greatest work but I can't see it myself and can understand why it had such mixed reviews when it was released. He's clearly a talented writer but I found the plot to this rather stale. His sentence structure is frequently convoluted too which makes it hard to follow in places. I did however enjoy the main character's descent into alcoholism which resonated with me. Six out of ten. Porno by Irvine Welsh This is the sequel to Trainspotting and another book that I've already read. it seemed appropriate to read it again before I watched the recently released Trainspotting 2 movie which is based on this novel, although the plot of the film is very different to the book. I did however love the movie and it worked very well, with the decision to write a script with a different plot to the book a good one. This book is also excellent and as good as Trainspotting. I'm yet to read a Welsh novel that I didn't rate highly and I've only got two left to read. His novels are laugh out loud funny in so many places. His work resonates with me because many of the events that occur in his novels have happened in my own life. I think many are put off reading his books because much of them are written in a broad Edinburgh accent but my advice is to persevere because before long you will get into a rhythm and get used to the accent when you read. The pay off is worth it because his novels are exceptionally good and this guy is a literary genius in my opinion. Ten out of ten. Highly recommended but read Trainspotting first. Women by Charles Bukowski I'm so glad I discovered Bukowski last year. Man can I relate to this guy. I read Post Office last year which I enjoyed but this was way better. It's cynical, vulgar, crude and downright hilarious. No wonder they call this guy the "laureate of American lowlife." This guy had a real debauched existence and a sex life that would have put Casanova to shame. Great stuff and mongers will enjoy this. I've since read some of his poetry which is really good too. Ten out of ten and once more, highly recommended. A Decent Ride by Irvine Welsh The second to last novel Welsh has written. As always a great read and highly entertaining. It's a riotous tale that includes the usual dose of sex, violence and drug abuse you'd expect in a Welsh novel but with some more controversial elements such as incest and necrophilia thrown in for good measure. The plot is centred around the recurring character of "Juice" Terry Lawson who was also a protagonist in the Glue and Porno novels. Welsh's characters are genius because even though they are villains and reprobates they have a benevolence and charm that the reader warms to. Nine out of ten. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad I read Lord Jim a few years ago and didn't rate it but I thought I'd give Conrad a second chance because people speak so highly of this novel. I recently watched Apocalypse Now again and until then had no idea it was based on this book. It's about a voyage up the Congo river to find the enigmatic Mr Kurtz, an ivory trader whom the narrator is obsessed with. It's set during the height of British imperialism in Africa and deals with the disturbing effects that exploitation had on African societies and the violent behaviour that induced in many. It's a great read and considered to be one of the best books ever written. Nine out of ten. I'm currently 240 pages into War and Peace. I felt it was high time I read this epic literary classic.

I haven't seen the documentary but I am going to watch it because I am extremely interested in this subject and have conducted much of my own research over the years, mainly due to periods of anxiousness about contracting HIV when I have been reckless and barebacking with bar girls in Thailand. Indeed, if there was one thing that I could change about my trips to Thailand and something that takes the shine off of them a little, it's the anxiety I sometimes experience worrying about this. It would be asinine to deny the existence of AIDS but after extensive research I do believe that much of the research and "facts" regarding HIV and AIDS is inconclusive at best and much of it is used as a way of controlling people and the way they behave. I am of the opinion that if you are a heterosexual male then it is extremely difficult to contact HIV, even if you are have unprotected sex with a girl that has the virus. I am not condoning or advocating unprotected sex with sex workers as this is just my opinion and while it still isn't impossible to contract HIV through unprotected heterosexual sex it probably makes sense to try and limit the number of times you do this if you are going to go through life frequently having sex with sex workers in South East Asia. I see this as an occupational hazard for mongers and if you're like me, something that will invariably happen from time to time.

The agent I spoke to on Monday is full of shit. I've just booked flights direct with Thai Airways and the return flights can be amended for £75 per person when we are in Thailand. Open tickets don't exist in the way that you have to give them a return date but you can pay extra so that you can have the type of ticket that can be amended so effectively you do have an open ticket.

I phoned an agent that were offering the cheapest flights on Skyscanner for Thai Airways and she told me that "open" tickets don't exist any more. Apparently if you want to change your return date then you have to purchase a ticket that has a return date but is also valid for 12 months and the return date can be changed at any time during the 12 months. I'm not sure I believe this because she then said if I wanted to amend the return date in Thailand it would cost me £150 for each person plus the difference between the tax on the two flights which could mean more than £200 per person.

Excellent answer. Thank you. I'll be buying my tickets direct from the airline I think!

The last time I was in Thailand I had to come back to England unexpectedly and I had to change the date of my return flight. I called the agent I bought the ticket from and was charged about £300 to do this. A friend told me that I should have called the airline direct (BA) and they would have changed the return date for free. Another friend has told me that that is only possible if you have booked the ticket direct from the airline and not through an agent. So who is right? I am looking at flights for our upcoming trip and because we are going to be in Thailand for a long time I was thinking it might be a good idea to book direct with Thai Airways in case I need to change the date of my return flight. It is more expensive to do this but if it saves me from an expensive change of date through an agent it is probably worth it for peace of mind. Another option would be to get an "open" ticket with no definite return date. I'd have to check whether this is more or less expensive than booking direct with the airline if you can indeed change the return date for free if you book direct with them and not through an agent. Please help, any advice is welcomed.

Yes I have The World of Sex on my reading list. Is it any good?

The way in which I carefully select the books that I put on my reading list, based mainly on my own research but also on recommendations means that I am having a great run of books that I would rate as nine and ten out of ten. I have just read three fantastic books in quick succession that I would all rate highly and recommend. They are: Fear by L. Ron Hubbard A psychological horror that was both thrilling and gripping with a clever twist at the end. This is one of the greatest science fiction books ever written and often makes lists of the greatest books ever written. Paddy Clarke ha ha ha by Roddy Doyle This is brilliant and one of the most compelling books I've read for a while. It's about a ten year old boy and the narrative is written from his perspective. It encapsulates childhood perfectly, the innocence, thought processes, fears, sadness and joy that you experience at that age. It's absolute genius and I can understand why it won the Booker prize. Post Office by Charles Bukowski Proof that you don't need an extensive vocabulary or the ability to use sophisticated metaphors and similes to write a good story. Bukowski has a simplistic writing style but one that is interesting enough to keep you reading. This is an autobiographical novel about his life working for the United States Postal Service (BigD have you read this? I should imagine you have met Charles Bukowski? ) and how he juggles his working life around his alcoholism and passion for horse racing and gambling. It's an excellent story which is highly amusing at times as he drifts from place to place drinking heavily and womanising, written with an acerbic humour and a cynical perception of the world. It's great stuff and I think I'm going to check out some of his poetry next.

Yes it's good stuff. Funnily enough I have a few of Roald Dahl's books on my reading list including Switch Bitch. I bought copies of Tales of the Unexpected and My Uncle Oswald recently.

I was only going on the strength of my copy. Considering the syntax of the Russian language and its translation into English it could be translated both ways but I prefer the surname first.

I'd give it a go. It's brilliant. It is however quite epic at 870 pages (my copy) long so it'll take you a while to read it. It's actually called The Karamazov Brothers - for some reason I keep calling it the Brothers Karamazov.

I think many are put off reading Dostoevsky because they believe it to be far too intellectual and hard reading but I can assure you with the Brothers Karamazov that that is not the case, it was an absolute pleasure to read.

Recently I finished The Karamazov Brothers by Doestoevsky. It was brilliant - an absolute masterpiece of writing. No wonder this is considered by many to be his magnum opus. I really enjoyed Crime and Punishment and felt before I read this that it would have to be exceptionally good to surpass that but it did and I highly recommend it, it's one of the best books I've read.

Malcolm McDowell

I finished reading Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs by Hunter S Thompson which I really enjoyed and give a nine out of ten. It's a candid account of the year that he spent with the Hell's Angels and gives a great insight into their way of life although it's obviously a bit dated now as it was written in the sixties. Still a good read and easy to see why this launched his career as a writer. After this I read The Basketball Diaries by Jim Carroll. This was made into a film in 1995 that starred Leonardo DiCaprio in one of his early roles. I enjoyed the film but it's taken me twenty years to get a copy of the book and read it. It's a diary that Jim Carroll wrote sporadically over a period of three years from the age of thirteen. It chronicles his experiences growing up in New York City and his decent into drug addiction and a life of crime. It's very graphic and beautifully encapsulates the deplorable levels that people can be reduced to when they have a bad heroin habit. I highly recommend it and gave this nine out of ten too. I'm currently reading The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe.