"The relations between eastern and western cultures have long been a neglected topic, and this careful and intelligent look at a small but significant part of those relations is most welcome."--Thomas McEvilley, author of The Shape of Ancient Thought "How wonderful that Jacquelynn Baas has seen the light of the Buddha's smile shining from faraway Asia into the realm of the art of modern times in what we think of as the West! . . . Her work reveals how some of our most influential artists explored and expressed the sophisticated perceptions and joyful energy emanating from the realm of Buddhist Asia."--Robert A. F. Thurman "As a Buddhist scholar and artist I welcome this thoughtful and richly detailed study of how many aspects of Buddhism have stimulated, invigorated, and enriched Western arts over the past 150 years."--Stephen Addiss, author of The Art of Zen "A crucial contribution to modern art studies, this high-spirited text surveys Western artists awakened by the wisdom of the East, from Monet and Duchamp to O'Keeffe to Martin. It is a thoughtful book about thoughtful artists, their values and their visions, with a lot to offer general readers and specialists alike."--Charles Stuckey, Associate Professor of Art History at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

"Tinker loves Thailand, its beautiful beaches and smiling people. But someone has stolen a Buddha from one of Thailand's oldest temples. Has Mr Lee got it? Is it on Crab Island? Can Tinker find the 'The smiling Buddha'?" - back cover.

The Americans have engineered a coup in Khamla, north of Thailand. Prince Soumidath has been deposed. He can return only under Thai protection. Civil war rages. Against this background of bedlam, Margaret Jones in The Smiling Buddha weaves parallel stories narrated by Gilly Herbert, the Australian wife of English academic David. Gilly's own experiences, events in Khamla and the story of Peter Casement, a mysterious American and Gilly's lover who has emerged as eminence grise to Prince Soumidath, merge in a dramatic, vivid evocation of the horrors of war and the abuses of power. Margaret Jones has worked as a foreign correspondent for Australian newspapers in Europe, North America and Asia. She opened a bureau for the Sydney Morning Herald in Beijing after the Whitlam Government established diplomatic relations in 1972, and has travelled extensively in the region. A former Foreign Editor and later Literary Editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, she is the author of The Confucius Enigma and Thatcher's Kingdom, a study of British politics.

He may not be wealthy or svelte, but the Laughing Buddha is happy and says that you can be, too. Layering your life with lucky objects and images such as the Laughing Buddha increases your chances for happiness and prosperity. This illustrated book contains the story of the Laughing Buddha, so prepareyourself for a life full of joy, luck, and prosperity!