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Many Lives Paperback – June 1, 1999

by M. R. Kukrit Pramoj (Author), Meredith Borthwick (Translator)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 7 ratings
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"That night, the rain poured and wind howled, raindrops crashing like solid objects onto the ground and water. A passenger boat from Ban Phaen to Bangkok, packed with people, pressed on through the current amidst the rising clamor of the rain and storm. . . ." The boat capsizes in the torrent, and washed up on the shore the next morning are the sodden bodies of the many passengers who lost their lives.

Thus begins M. R. Kukrit Pramoj's classic novel set in the Thailand of the early 1950s and first published in 1954. The life of each passenger who perished is retraced from birth, revealing a complex web of experiences and emotions.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    240 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Silkworm Books
  4. Publication date
    June 1, 1999
  5. Dimensions
    5.1 x 0.7 x 7.6 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    9747100673
  7. ISBN-13
    978-9747100679
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

M. R. Kukrit Pramoj (1911–1995) was a writer of renown, politician, prime minister, intellectual, journalist, and classical dancer. He wrote more than 20 books, including the historical novel Four Reigns.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Silkworm Books (June 1, 1999)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9747100673
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-9747100679
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.1 x 0.7 x 7.6 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 7 ratings

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
7 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

amazon customer
5.0 out of 5 stars I wish I could read more of his works
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2021
Verified Purchase
I really enjoyed four reigns by the author, and gave this one a try too! It's a nice change of pace from the big novel, and the short stories are all really well thought out and you can connect with the characters. This is easily one of my favorite books, and authors.

BUY IT!
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Chris den Engelsman
4.0 out of 5 stars . Was death a retribution, a fulfillment, a reward, an escape, or merely the end to a long life?
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2015
Many lives by Momrajawong (M.R.) Kukrit Pramoj (1911-1995)

Kukrit Pramoj was a leading political and literary figure in Thailand during the four decades after World War II, authoring the Thai constitution of 1974 and serving as prime minister, among other activities.

M.R. Kukrit, a direct descendant of King Rama II (1809-1824) that is what the name/ title Momrajawong (M.R.) stands for, meaning as much as ‘grandson of the king’. He was as close to achieving status as a "renaissance man" as any figure in contemporary Asia. Socially prominent because of his royal connections, he was also the founder and publisher of Thailand's most influential Thai language newspaper (Siam Rath) and weekly magazine (Siam Rath Sapadaan), the author of more than 30 books, a university professor, radio commentator, economist, capitalist (owner of the Indra Hotel), actor (the prime minister in the film The Ugly American), and narrator on an American educational television film series on Asian civilizations. He was also a professional Thai classical dancer, a photographer, and a horticulturalist.

Among his most well kown novels are ‘Four Reigns’ (Si Phaendin) – 1954 – giving a panoramic view of Thai court life under the reign of Rama V until Rama VIII as seen through the eyes of Mae Ploy.

And this novel ‘Many lives’ (Lai Chiwit) – 1954 – a beautifully told and very interesting read on many different levels.
First of all beautifully – or should I say skillfully? – written, I never thought of finding another Chekhov in Thailand. A literarily achievement but always written with a warm humanitarian heart, judging mildly and showing us the universality of human folly.

Next to that it is an illuminating commentary on Thai society and its values.

And above all it gave me a new philosophical view on life, or perhaps better on death.

‘That night, the rain poured and wind howled, raindrops crashing like solid objects onto the ground and water. A passenger boat from Ban Phaen to Bangkok, packed with people, pressed on through the current amidst the rising clamor of the rain and storm … The boat capsizes in the torrent, and washed up on the shore the next morning are the sodden bodies of the many passengers who lost their lives.

In this novel Kukrit Pramoj retraces the life of each passenger who perished, from birth, revealing a complex web of experiences and emotions. Could their past actions have brought them to this karmic end? The writer asks. Was death a retribution, a fulfillment, a reward, an escape, or merely the end to a long life?

In the different lives the writer shows us that as each life is different, each death is also very different. For me that was a new way of seeing, because so far I always thought that all death is more or less the same, coming gentle and mild or hard and violent, but the same. This novel was my first time of seeing that as each life is different each death is also different. At this moment I cannot by far see the consequence of this discovery. Will probably take the discovery of yet another Chekhov.
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Steve Rosse
1.0 out of 5 stars A thin retelling of "The Bridge of San Luis Rey"
Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2011
MR Kukrit was an excellent author in his own right, and it's a shame he felt the need to pad his vida by translating Western works without crediting the authors. He did it with "Kawaw Thi Bang Phlaeng" (The Cuckoos of Midwich) and with "Many Lives," which is Thornton Wilder's "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" set in Thailand, and probably with others. It is unfortunate that MR Kukrit did not simply give credit where credit was due.
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