Here is a list of some books that focus on Ubud, or are
particularly relevent in one way or another.
Monumental Bali, by A.J. Bernet Kempers,
Periplus Editions. An excellent introduction to ancient temples and
other archaelogical sites in the Ubud area and their historic
background.
Balinese Music, By Michael Tenzer, Periplus
Editions. And Music in Bali, By Colin McPhee, Da
Capo Press. Since Ubud is a centre of traditional music, and many of
the island's most renowned gamelan orchestras are located in the
area, these are food tools to help you understand what you hear.
Bali: A Paradise Created, by Adrian Vickers,
Periplus Editions. Will give you a new perspective on the
development of Balinese culture, and the effect that foreign patrons
and "consumers" have had in its evolotion.
Bali: Sekala & Niskala (2 Volumes), by Fred B. Eiseman,
Jr., Periplus Editions. Collections of essays on Balinese
culture, crafts and traditions, which will help you understand what
you experience in Ubud.
Bird of Bali, by Victor Mason, Periplus
Editions. If you take a guided Bali Bird Walk in Ubud, or strike out
on your own, this is the book to read the night before, and carry
with you in the field. Written by the former publican of the
Beggar's Bush, one of Ubud's most famous bars.
Flowers of Bali, by Fred and Margaret Eiseman,
Periplus Editions.
Fruit of Bali, By Fred and Margaret Eiseman,
Periplus Editions.
The Island of Bali, by M. Covarrubias, Oxford
University Press.
Balinese Painting, by Dr. A. A. Made Djelantik,
Oxford University Press. Before you cruise the museums and galleries
of Ubud.
Neka Museum: Guide to the Painting Collection.
Spans the history of Balinese painting, by Neka, the painter,
collector and founder of the museum that bears his name.
Gianyar: Valley of the Ancient Relics, Art and Culture,
by Silvio Santosaa The Regency Government of Gianyar.
Perceptions of Paradise, Images of Bali in the Arts, by
G.Kam, Yayasan Dharma Seni Museum Neka.
Walter Spies and Balinese Art, by H. Rhodius and J.
Darling, Terra, Sutphen.
Bali Style, by B, Walker and Rio Helmi, Times
Editions, Singapore. See some of the most glamourous houses of the
Ubud area.
The Language of Balinese Shadow Theatre, by M. Subuchen,
Princeton University Press.
Dancing Shadows of Bali, by Angela Hobart, KPI.
About Wayang Kulit.
Indonesian Medicinal Plants, by A.P. Dharma,
Balai Pustaka, Jakarta.
Offerings: The Ritual Art of Bali, by F. Brinkgreve and
D. Fox, Image Network Indonesia.
Woodcarvings of Bali, by Fred Eiseman, Periplus
Editions.
Bali: Temple Festival, by Jane Belo, University
of Washington Press (1953,1966). Describes in deatai the ritual of
the temple anniversary in a temple in Sayan, the village just West
of Ubud, where most of its luxury hotels and expatriate palaces are
now located.
Traditional Balinese Culture, by Jane Belo,
Columbia University Press.
Images of Power; Balinese Paintings Made for Gregory
Bateson and Margaret Mead, by Hildred Geertz, University of
Hawaii Press.
A Balinese Journal 1971 - 1991, by Rosemary Hilbery,
self-published, available at bookshops in Ubud. Describes twenty
years of life inside the Ubud palace in a straightforward,
day-by-day manner.
Tjokorda Gede Agung Sukawati, Ubud 1910 - 1978,
an autobiography of the "last king of Ubud" as dictated to Rosemary
Hilbery, describing the incredible sequence of events that shaped
Ubud, Bali and the Republic of Indonesia during the Twentieth
Century, from the "palace perspective".
The Guard of Ubud Corner, by Madi Kertonegoro,
The Harkat Foundation. An idiosyncratic look at everyday life in a
rapidly-modernising Ubud.
Man from Behind the Mist, by Madi Kertonegoro,
The Harkat Foundation.
Bali Behind the Seen: Recent Fiction from Bali, edited by
Vern Cork, self-published. A collection of short stories
that reveal how Balinese respond to their own culture, to foreign
influences and to the world beyond Bali.
Troppo Man, by Gerard Lee, University of
Queensland Press. Fiction, partly based in Ubud.
A House in Bali, by Colin McPhee, Oxford
University Press. The story of life in Sayan village, just west of
Ubud, during the years when tourism and western culture began to
make inroads.
Bali, the Ultimate Island, by Leanoard Lueras and R. Ian
Lloyd, Times Editions, Singapore. An exceptionally good
coffee table book on Bali, with superb photographs and detailed
cultural information that is well written and accessible to the
general reader.
Balinese Gardens, by William Warren and L. I Tettoni,
Periplus Editions. Coffee table book which includes a section on
gardens in the Ubud area.
Stranger in Paradise, by Made Wijaya, Wijaya
Words, 1979-80. A sometimes zany journal of expatriate life in Bali
by the eccentric landscape and building architect, Michael White,
who is better known by his Balinese name, Made Wijaya.
Balinese Architecture, by Made Wijaya, Wijaya
Words. This book amounts to an exhaustive scrapbook explaining
Balinese architecture, showing the typical features of homes,
palaces, temples, villages, etc.
The Definitive Map. Travel Treasures publishes
the definitive map of Ubud. Available at bookshops in the area. A
new edition has just been produced, and while the colours and
clarity aren't as food as the previous edition, much of the
information has been updated and new material added. Includes a map
showing location of shops, hotels and other features. On the reverse
is a map resembling an aerial photograph, showing natural and
manmade features, roads, paths, rivers, and so on. Essential for
anyone who wants to explore the area on foot.
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