'A fascinating account of ancient culture colliding with modern media
'Tucked between Tibet and India in the Himalayas, the kingdom of Bhutan is one of the most isolated and beautiful countries in the world.
'In The Dragon’s Voice Australian journalist Bunty Avieson provides a glimpse of life beyond the country’s exotic exterior. As a consultant to local newspaper Bhutan Observer, she admires the paper’s strong social conscience, but finds herself constantly challenged in a country where spirituality and personal happiness are prioritised over work.
'Bunty also witnesses the tensions that arise as a Buddhist kingdom makes the transition to democracy. How can deference to authority be reconciled with the need to ask hard questions of politicians? Does the courtship ritual of ‘night-hunting’ have a sinister side, or is it a rural practice misunderstood by city dwellers? And what place does activism have in a culture that prioritises peace?
'With a unique blend of memoir and reportage, The Dragon’s Voice is both a deeply personal story and a vivid portrait of a nation on the cusp of revolutionary change.' (Publication summary)
Epigraph:
Just as Alice, when she first walked through the looking glass, found herself in a new and whimsical world, so we found ourselves as though caught up on some magic time machine, fitted fantastically with a reverse.
–Lord Ronaldshay, Governor of Bengal, upon reaching Bhutan in 1921
The media are not just watchdogs of society, they are changing society itself. Media are constructing new realities and values.
–Siok Sian Pek-Dorji, Media Impact Study 2008
