Congratulations are in order for my favorite Lonely Planet writer, Joshua Samuel Brown, who has recently been published as a co-author in the 7th edition of Lonely Planet Taiwan. Joshua is also co-author of Fodor’s China 2007.

Lonely Planet’s Taiwan 2007 edition will be hitting bookstores soon. You can pre-order to reserve a copy now. Word up to all my friends in Taiwan, make sure you get your copy and show some support!

Joshua also happens to be the author of one of my absolute favorite blogs in Taiwan, Snarky Tofu. If you haven’t stopped by Snarky Tofu for a look around, I highly recommend giving yourself at least an hour’s worth of reading time. It’s chock-full of funny anecdotes, short stories and thoughtful insight about life in Taiwan.

As most of you know, I’m an avid bibliophile. I’d rather read than watch TV. So I commited myself to learning more about Joshua’s writing accomplishments and credentials and discovered in addition to writing for prominent travel guides, Joshua has also been busy with his own literary endeavors. He has written several articles for newspapers throughout Asia and recently published a book called Vignettes of Taiwan, which is a collection of short stories and articles on his time here in Taiwan. Digging a little further, I discovered that his book was well received here in Taiwan. The Taipei Times featured a review of Vignettes of Taiwan in March 2007. It has taken me three months to track down Vignettes of Taiwan. I tried to order it from Amazon, but the shipping costs were ridiculous. It was more expensive to ship than to buy. I figured I’d be able to order a copy at Page One.

Well it’s taken me three months and a lot of searching. The book was sold out everywhere we went! When I mentioned this to Joshua in a comment on his blog, he kindly offered to send me a copy.

Of course, I complied and sent him my address. I’m not one to turn down a book from the author himself! Last week, yours truly became the proud owner of a signed copy of Vignettes of Taiwan. I love the book. It’s a terrific read. I recommend it to anyone thinking of visiting Taiwan. Thank-you Joshua. Christmas came early for me this year and I’m very touched you made the effort and took the time to send me a copy. It’s a wonderful momento of my time here in Taiwan and something I will cherish forever.

If you’d like to learn more about Joshua’s literary achievements, please visit his website at http://www.josambro.com/.