FROM THE ROOF OF THE WORLD: Refugees of Tibet <i> edited by Zara Wallace & Jack Petranker (Dharma Publishing: $24.95, illustrated).</i>

In a time of widespread demands for ethnic self-determination, the plight of Tibet, occupied by the Chinese since 1959, seems to have been forgotten. Prepared under the auspices of the Tibetan Aid Project, “From the Roof of the World” dramatizes the plight of the more than 100,000 refugees who have fled to India, Nepal and Bhutan. Unfortunately, the text is repetitious and difficult: The authors employ an odd system of orthography that transforms even the familiar name of the capital into the alien-looking lHa-sa . Nor do they offer the reader any clues to the pronunciation ofthe long, hyphenated names of people, places and schools of religious thought. Hidden amid these names is an idealized picture of life in the “Land of Snows” that makes James Hilton’s Shangri-La sound like the South Bronx. However, most Americans will buy the book for the illustrations: moving sepia-toned photographs that reveal the suffering and dignity of these men, women and children. (Proceeds from the sale of the book will be used to benefit the Tibetan refugees.)