ABSTRACT
If it is difficult and risky for a writer to write about a contemporary subject, then it is extremely difficult and risky when that subject is the reigning monarch of Thailand. Difficult because of the obvious in-built preference and prejudice a writer must have unavoidably accumulated throughout his/her socio-cultural experiences; risky because anything dealing with royalty puts a writer on the spot of either being perceived as self-serving for undeserved fame or for a short-cut to personal gains, be it financial or otherwise. In Thailand, there is also an all-encompassing law on lèse-majesté crimes to ensure that not only proper respect and decorum be strictly observed but also that the not-so-refined aspects of royalty be kept out of public knowledge. Woe betide those who are unfortunate enough to transgress this unusually high standard towards the royalty. Amidst these socio-legal minefields, I have decided to chart an academic course as carefully and as humanly possible. The final part of this book is dedicated to the study of King Bhumibol Adulyadej from the shaky beginning of his royal destiny to the great personal and political triumph of the King and the constitutional monarchy in Thailand. It is high time that a comprehensive account is given of how and why the King succeeds against almost impossible odds as well as how His Majesty has managed to restore the monarchy to the centre of Thai sociopolitical life.
