Parry, Richard Lloyd 1969–

PERSONAL: Born 1969, in England. Education: Graduated from Oxford University.

ADDRESSES: Home—Tokyo, Japan. Office—c/o Independent House, 191 Marsh Wall, London E14 9RS, England. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:Journalist and writer. Independent (newspaper), London, England, foreign correspondent; Times (newspaper), London, foreign correspondent.

WRITINGS:

In the Time of Madness (nonfiction), Grove Press (New York, NY), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS: Richard Lloyd Parry is an English journalist and author who moved to Japan as a foreign correspondent and has a keen interest in Asian history. In his book In the Time of Madness, Parry provides his own firsthand account of the fall of Indonesian dictator General Suharto, and the violent aftermath of Suharto's regime in Indonesia. In the book, Parry recounts his travels to the country's numerous islands from 1966 to 1999, and his experiences witnessing the horrors and savagery of numerous conflicts, including such upheavals as the ethnic cleansing of a Muslim group called the Madureses by the ethnic majority and politically powerful Dayak of Borneo. In one encounter, Parry witnesses the murder of some Madureses, whose heads have been cut off and who are cannibalized. He also reports on student demonstrations in Jakarta in which hundreds of people were killed. Parry not only focuses on atrocities but also writes about his own involvement and feelings as he tries to stay out of harm's way. He eventually decided to leave the area because he feared for his life.

A Kirkus Reviews contributor called Parry's account "a memorable book that will excite discussion in anthropological and geopolitical circles." Additionally, a reviewer writing in Publishers Weekly commented that In the Time of Madness is a "boldly reported, introspective account" and went on to refer to it as "vivid and honest."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Kirkus Reviews, October 15, 2005, review of In the Time of Madness, p. 1126.

Publishers Weekly, September 5, 2005, review of In the Time of Madness, p. 42.

ONLINE

Australian Broadcasting Corporation Web site, http://www.abc.net.au/ (August 22, 2005), "Journalist and Author Richard Lloyd Parry."