The book is an important study of the silk industry in Thailand. It provides a brief history of the industry and examines the role of the Thai government, private companies, and non-government organizations in promoting the industry. The authors study six villages that are integrated into the industry in different ways in regard to the significance of different aspects of sericulture, silk weaving, the selling of silk products, and especially in their use of different species of silk worms. There are 149 color plates that provide detailed illustrations of the silk industry in northeastern Thailand.