David Attenborough Zoo Quest for a Dragon (o/p). A youthful Attenborough's travels through the archipelago during the 1950s as a wildlife collector and filmmaker, peaking with the capture of a Komodo dragon.

Nigel Barley Not a Hazardous Sport (Penguin). Humourous, double-sided culture-shock tale, as the anthropologist author persuades craftsmen from Sulawesi to return to London with him in order to build a traditional Torajan rice barn in the Museum of Mankind.

Lawrence and Lorne Blair Ring of Fire (Bantam). Possibly the definitive account of a tour around the Indonesian archipelago. The photos are great, the tales are occasionally tall and certainly not lacking in genuine passion for the country and its inhabitants.

Guy Buckles Dive Sites of Indonesia (New Holland). Exhaustively researched, attractive, up-to-date guide with strong practical details.

Vern Cook (ed.) Bali Behind the Seen: Recent Fiction from Bali (Darma Printing, Australia). Interesting collection of short stories by contemporary Balinese and Javanese writers.

Cubitt & Whitten Wild Indonesia (New Holland). Plenty of good pictures and text in this overview of Indonesia's natural history, including coverage of national parks.

Jacques Dumarcay The Temples of Java (OUP Asia). Slim but entertaining rundown of all the major historical temple complexes in Java.

Fred B Eisemann Jr Bali: Sekala and Niskala Vols 1 and 2 (Periplus, Singapore). The fascinating and admirably wide-ranging cultural and anthropological essays of a contemporary American, thirty years resident in Bali. His pieces encompass everything from the esoteric rituals of Balinese Hinduism to musings on the popularity of the clove cigarette.

Anna Forbes Unbeaten Tracks in Islands of the Far East (OUP Asia). Island life in remote corners of Maluku and Nusa Tenggara as observed by the resourceful wife of nineteenth-century naturalist Henry Forbes.

John Gillow and Barry Dawson Traditional Indonesian Textiles (Thames & Hudson). Beautifully photographed and accessible introduction to the ikat and batik fabrics of the archipelago.

Rio Helmi and Barbara Walker Bali Style (Thames & Hudson). Sumptuously photographed glossy volume celebrating all things Balinese, from the humblest bamboo craftwork to the island's most fabulous buildings.

Paul Jepson and Rosie Ounsted Birding Indonesia: A Bird-watcher's Guide to the World's Largest Archipelago (Periplus, Singapore). Excellent introduction to the subject with plenty of photographs and practical detail.

Garret Kam Perceptions of Paradise: Images of Bali in the Arts (Yayasan Dharma Seni Neka Museum, Bali). One of the best introductions to Balinese art, with helpful sections on traditions and practices, and plenty of full-colour plates.

Hugh Mabbett The Balinese (January Books, New Zealand). Accessible collection of anecdotal essays on contemporary Balinese life, from the role of women to the impact of tourism.

Anna Matthews Night of Purnama (o/p). Evocative and moving description of village life and characters of the early 1960s, focusing on events in Iseh and the surrounding villages from the first eruption of Gunung Agung until 1963.

Jean McKinnon Vessels of Life: Lombok Earthenware (Saritaksu). Fabulously photographed and exhaustive book about Sasak life, pottery techniques and the lives of the women potters.

George Monbiot Poisoned Arrows: An Investigative Journey Through Indonesia (Joseph). The author travels through some of the less well known areas of Irian Jaya, researching the effects of the Indonesian government's transmigration policy.

Kal Muller Underwater Indonesia: A Guide to the World's Best Diving (Periplus, Singapore). This is the must-have handbook for anybody planning to dive in Indonesia. Exquisitely photographed, with useful maps.

Sri Owen Indonesian Regional Cooking (St Martin's Press, US). Relatively few recipes, but plenty of background.

M C Ricklefs A History of Modern Indonesia Since c.1300 (Macmillan). Acknowledged as the most thorough study of Indonesian history, but probably best dipped into rather than consumed from start to finish.

Neville Shulman Zen Explorations in Remotest New Guinea: Adventures in the Jungles and Mountains of Irian Jaya (Summersdale). Not a drop of rain escapes without some obscure explanatory proverb or quotation, but even if you find his determination to find the zen in everything irritating, you can't escape the author's genuine enthusiasm for his journey.

Tara Sosrowardoyo, Peter Schoppert and Soedarmadji Damais Java Style (Thames and Hudson). Sumptuous volume, evocatively photographed, with illuminating descriptions of buildings and design all across the island.

John G Taylor Indonesia's Forgotten War: The Hidden History of East Timor (Zed Books/Humanities Press). Clear and incisive account of the disastrous events in East Timor, from the fifteenth century to the present.

Adrian Vickers Bali: A Paradise Created (Periplus, Singapore). Detailed, intelligent and highly readable account of the outside world's perception of Bali, the development of tourism and how events inside and outside the country have shaped the Balinese view of themselves.

Alfred Russell Wallace The Malay Archipelago (OUP o/p). A thoroughly readable account of the eight years that British naturalist Wallace spent in Indonesia collecting and studying wildlife during the mid-nineteenth century.