A couple of weeks ago I went on vacation and took 4 books to read. Normally, 4 books in 5 days wouldn't be a big deal, but this vacation also involved lots of drifting off for a nap while lounging beachside, so...two weeks later, I've still only finished 2 1/2, but I'm going to go ahead and review the two I've finished.
1. The Sex Lives of Cannibals by J. Maarten Troost. Yes, it does have an unfortunate title. And as I think back on the book, I don't think that was even addressed much, maybe like for a page. A better title might have been "Bathroom Habits on an Atoll." This book takes place on an itty bitty teensy tiny bit of land smack dab in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I work at a missions agency, so there are maps all over the place. I was looking for Kiribati and Tarawa on the map when a coworker walked up and asked "why are just staring at the Pacific Ocean?" There's nothing there but these tiny dots of land. It's really kind of freaky to think about. And to read about. Troost does a great job of explaining living on a tropical island, existing in a 3rd world country, going native as well as coming back to the US after that. And seriously, he also spends a fair amount of time addressing what you do with all the crap (literally) generated by one of the most densely populated specks of land in the word which lacks any type of plumbing. I'd just read a friend's Masters project on clean water and so I was actually particularly interested in how this book addressed issues with waste, clean water, and foreign aid. I'm just beginning to understand some of the ways that foreign aid has done a huge disservice to developing nations and this book was very informative in that regard. While I still prefer his book Lost On Planet China, I do think that anyone who's lived or traveled through a third world country is going to find much to identify with here. Future missionaries, be warned, you'll get glimpses of what is to come. All in all, an interesting read, though.
P.S. It also does address WWII and the toll it took on the islands. After reading Unbroken (see review here) and having my eyes opened to so much more of what the war was like for Americans in the Pacific theater and particularly in Japan, it was another eye opening experience to be confronted with the immense toll these wars took on the tiny Pacific islands who had no stake in this war at all.
2. Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins. This was my "airplane" or "beach" book. Totally light and fluffy (and of course, the first book I read). It seemed particularly apropos on my vacation with high school friends as it was about the girl who was kind of an outsider in high school and how she finally confronts that as an adult (and "that" means mostly the boy who broke her heart). It was an entertaining read that actually dealt with some big issues - adoption, anxiety attacks, widowhood, single parenting, consequences of sexual promiscuity in high school. Ok, that makes it sound super serious or totally melodramatic which it wasn't, just a relatively light book that dealt with big topics in a fairly real way. I will have to say that it was a bit, well, lusty. Not that it was graphic or explicit, just that the characters seemed more motivated by "lust" than "like" at times which was a little off-putting. Not bad for a beach read (I've definitely read worse), but not my new favorite, either.
1. The Sex Lives of Cannibals by J. Maarten Troost. Yes, it does have an unfortunate title. And as I think back on the book, I don't think that was even addressed much, maybe like for a page. A better title might have been "Bathroom Habits on an Atoll." This book takes place on an itty bitty teensy tiny bit of land smack dab in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I work at a missions agency, so there are maps all over the place. I was looking for Kiribati and Tarawa on the map when a coworker walked up and asked "why are just staring at the Pacific Ocean?" There's nothing there but these tiny dots of land. It's really kind of freaky to think about. And to read about. Troost does a great job of explaining living on a tropical island, existing in a 3rd world country, going native as well as coming back to the US after that. And seriously, he also spends a fair amount of time addressing what you do with all the crap (literally) generated by one of the most densely populated specks of land in the word which lacks any type of plumbing. I'd just read a friend's Masters project on clean water and so I was actually particularly interested in how this book addressed issues with waste, clean water, and foreign aid. I'm just beginning to understand some of the ways that foreign aid has done a huge disservice to developing nations and this book was very informative in that regard. While I still prefer his book Lost On Planet China, I do think that anyone who's lived or traveled through a third world country is going to find much to identify with here. Future missionaries, be warned, you'll get glimpses of what is to come. All in all, an interesting read, though.
P.S. It also does address WWII and the toll it took on the islands. After reading Unbroken (see review here) and having my eyes opened to so much more of what the war was like for Americans in the Pacific theater and particularly in Japan, it was another eye opening experience to be confronted with the immense toll these wars took on the tiny Pacific islands who had no stake in this war at all.
2. Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins. This was my "airplane" or "beach" book. Totally light and fluffy (and of course, the first book I read). It seemed particularly apropos on my vacation with high school friends as it was about the girl who was kind of an outsider in high school and how she finally confronts that as an adult (and "that" means mostly the boy who broke her heart). It was an entertaining read that actually dealt with some big issues - adoption, anxiety attacks, widowhood, single parenting, consequences of sexual promiscuity in high school. Ok, that makes it sound super serious or totally melodramatic which it wasn't, just a relatively light book that dealt with big topics in a fairly real way. I will have to say that it was a bit, well, lusty. Not that it was graphic or explicit, just that the characters seemed more motivated by "lust" than "like" at times which was a little off-putting. Not bad for a beach read (I've definitely read worse), but not my new favorite, either.
Catching up on your blog - I love that, when I read it, it's like I can hear you talking. :)
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