Chris Stowers, longtime photographer, credits a fellow journalist for the title of his latest memoir, Shoot, Ask...and Run (Earnshaw, 2025). The journalist’s advice to a young Chris, just starting out, went like this.

Shoot: Take the photo when the opportunity arises. Then, if someone notices that you took a photo, “ask” for permission to use the photo. Finally, if the subject seems annoyed, “run”...particularly if he or she has a gun.

Shoot, Ask...and Run is the second memoir from Chris Stowers, who previously joined the podcast to talk about his first memoir, Bugis Nights (Earnshaw: 2023). Chris is a photojournalist based in Asia. He has traveled, lived and worked in more than seventy countries. His work has appeared in most major international newspapers and magazines, among them: Time, Newsweek, The Economist, Forbes, Businessweek and The New York Times.

Listen to Chris’s first interview, on Bugis Nights!

You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia.

Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon.

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