Former Nation reporter found dead in her flat
The Nation



BANGKOK: -- Salisa Phruttitum, a novelist and former reporter at The Nation, was found dead in her condominium in Bangkok's Thonglor area yesterday.

Born in 1972, Salisa spent her childhood in the US. She studied at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire and graduated with a degree in economics from Northwestern University. She returned to Thailand in 1994 and completed a master's degree at Sasin Graduate School of Chulalongkorn University.

She wrote for the features section of The Nation and left the newspaper to focus on writing novels.

Her first, "Chalida: A Thai Family Drama", an English-language novel, was published by Asia Books last year.

Even though a work of fiction, the novel conjured up memories of tragic political events of the past with its story of the hi-so foreign-educated Chalida. She is guilt-ridden when she learns the Thai people blame her grandfather, a former prime minister, for the massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators in the 1970s. The novel ends with Chalida, like her mother, committing suicide. The book was translated into Thai by Nation Books.

Salisa was also freelance writer for various English magazines and was working on her second novel, which dealt with the gap between the rich and the poor in Thai society. Before her untimely death, she was about to start working full time again.

She is survived by her son Punn.

Thonglor Police Station superintendent Colonel Chumpol Pumpuang said a cleaner at the apartment building noticed the door to Salisa's room was slightly ajar, became suspicious and went in to check.

"The cleaner alerted police after the body was found," Chumpol said.

It was believed that she might have been dead for at least 24 hours.

"This does not look like a murder. But we will have to send her body for an autopsy before we can determine the exact cause of her death," Chumpol said.


-- The Nation 2013-04-24

Sad to lose a life at any time at such a young age. I hope her death was from natural causes.

Any thai who can present Thailand non / fiction as it is in English language is generally worth reading, as opposed to the countless garbage about bar girls and their lifes churned out by English hacks and thai bargirls. A loss in a very limited market no matter what the cause of her death. RIP Khun Salisa.

Any thai who can present Thailand non / fiction as it is in English language is generally worth reading, as opposed to the countless garbage about bar girls and their lifes churned out by English hacks and thai bargirls. A loss in a very limited market no matter what the cause of her death. RIP Khun Salisa.

I agree. Some of the better (English) books ive read in Thailand are written by Thai academics. She will be missed.

Unfortunately its the bar girl or patpong nights books that attract the eye of most male westerners...Nothing worse than listening to a middle aged farang cry over his beer because his favourite bar girl has vanished.

Any thai who can present Thailand non / fiction as it is in English language is generally worth reading, as opposed to the countless garbage about bar girls and their lifes churned out by English hacks and thai bargirls. A loss in a very limited market no matter what the cause of her death. RIP Khun Salisa.

I agree. Some of the better (English) books ive read in Thailand are written by Thai academics. She will be missed.

Unfortunately its the bar girl or patpong nights books that attract the eye of most male westerners...Nothing worse than listening to a middle aged farang cry over his beer because his favourite bar girl has vanished.

YES definitely RIP for one so young. However, I both agree and disagree about the 'Bar Girl Books'... They sell because they tell a common story, one that most male tourists readily identify with. The better written works have difficulty seeing the light of day.

RE the bar girl books - all too many Thai Visa readers seem to think all Thai women are bar girls and that foreigners only associate with bar girls.

Again many people prefer the fiction to reality...

Any thai who can present Thailand non / fiction as it is in English language is generally worth reading, as opposed to the countless garbage about bar girls and their lifes churned out by English hacks and thai bargirls. A loss in a very limited market no matter what the cause of her death. RIP Khun Salisa.

I agree. Some of the better (English) books ive read in Thailand are written by Thai academics. She will be missed.

Unfortunately its the bar girl or patpong nights books that attract the eye of most male westerners...Nothing worse than listening to a middle aged farang cry over his beer because his favourite bar girl has vanished.

YES definitely RIP for one so young. However, I both agree and disagree about the 'Bar Girl Books'... They sell because they tell a common story, one that most male tourists readily identify with. The better written works have difficulty seeing the light of day.

RE the bar girl books - all too many Thai Visa readers seem to think all Thai women are bar girls and that foreigners only associate with bar girls.

Again many people prefer the fiction to reality...

Just to comment on 1 point, it's not just TVF posters that think this way-ALL Thais think this way---especially about Pattaya,, If a professional lady works there, she has to tell other Thai people that she works in Chonburi, It is not the girl that is wrong it is the reputation of the City of sin.

RIP Salisa Phruttitum, its so sad when a good life is cut short.

I'm wondering how and why the subject turned to bar girls so quickly.

RIP Salisa; author and mother.

Indeed RIP

I hope some new readers will benefit from her work and stimulate reading .

Any thai who can present Thailand non / fiction as it is in English language is generally worth reading, as opposed to the countless garbage about bar girls and their lifes churned out by English hacks and thai bargirls. A loss in a very limited market no matter what the cause of her death. RIP Khun Salisa.

I read that a grand total of 8 books has been translated from Thai to German.

Marvelling at the respectful style of the article reporting her death, and the absence of pics of her corpse spread all over the internet. It can be done his way, after all.