Anthropologists, most from Pacific Asia, examine socio-cultural anthropology in East and Southeast Asia, its development, its distinctive characteristics, and its relation to anthropology in the rest of the world. Some of the 14 essays have been updated from presentations to a July 1998 international conference in Williamsburg, Virginia; the others were solicited for the volume. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)