MR Narisa Chakrabongse, great-granddaughter of King Rama V and daughter of Prince Chula Chakrabongse (whose story is on our front page today), runs one of Thailand's most respected publishing houses. Her River Books has brought out several books on Southeast Asia that have earned admiration for their keen sense of social history, past and present.
Also an environmental campaigner, who is often shuttling between London and Bangkok, MR Narisa takes time to share with us her reading list, old and new.
What are you reading?
For pure relaxation I am reading Donna Leon's The Golden Egg, which has just come out. I read it in bed at night on my Kindle, which has a light and so doesn't disturb my husband. I love reading about Police Commissioner Brunetti and his work and family in Venice. I am also reading Adventures In The Strange Science Of Sleep by David K. Randall, as I am interested in dreams and also neurology. Finally, Orhan Pamuk's Silent House. I think he's a really good writer and I love Istanbul.
What's the book you've always wanted to read but still haven't? And why haven't you read it?
Dante's Inferno. I feel this is a book one should have read but I doubt I ever will. I don't like novels which are in verse.
Any recent book that made you cry, or choke up?
Fred Pearce's The Landgrabbers: The New Fight Over Who Owns The Earth. This is a shocking collection of tales of big business and foreign investors buying up land over the heads of existing inhabitants and thereby depriving them of their livelihood.
Any recent book that made you laugh, or feel so happy?
It's not really a recent book but I really enjoyed Eat Pray Love. A bit chick-lit, I know, but good escapism.
How many books are waiting to be read at home?
About five or six books waiting to be read.
As a publisher, does your professional obligation sometimes get in the way of pleasure reading?
Not really. I do my professional editing and manuscript reading during the day and then read for pleasure when I am in the bath or in bed. Sometimes it influences my book choices, however. For example, I hope to publish my Thai grandfather's letters this autumn and so have been reading about the Russo-Japanese war and also Letters From The Palazzo Barbaro by Henry James.
What's the best book on the subject of the environment?
That's a difficult one. Obviously the classic that comes to mind is Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, which I read when I was young.
More recently, I was impressed with Charles Clover's book The End Of The Line: How Overfishing Is Changing The World And What We Eat. This book definitely made me think every time I thought about having fish for dinner. I also like Heat by George Monbiot and am looking forward to his new book Feral: Searching For Enchantment On The Frontiers Of Rewilding.
If you could invite a writer, dead or alive, to have dinner with you, who would that be?
Jane Austen. She is my favourite author and I think discussing her views on the position of women in early 19th century Britain would be both informative and very amusing.
