J Maarten Troost is a travel writer that has lived an extraordinary life. First, he follows his girlfriend to the Equatorian Atoll of Kiribati for two years, returned to Washington DC, only to get restless again. He then follows his wife (same person) to the Islands of Fiji and Vanuatu. Through both of his books, The Sex Lives of Cannibals and Getting Stoned with Savages, the raw truth, and the raw sewage, is exposed while living on the other end of the earth. While never taking himself quite seriously, these books impart both the absurdity of island life and some well researched facts on the areas he visits. You actually hear of the colonial history, the remains of this including racial hatred, as well as details of the Neckowiar of Tanna (a rare three-day alliance ceremony between villages) they witnessed, including details of the leaf men wear over their penis for a full day of dance. You learn about the tribal history of the people of Vanuatu, the colonial history of invasion, cannibalism, how to make kava, and how centipedes there can kill. Through it all, you learn of the differences in the cultures of other, how the customs came about, and how it may seem like paradise, but don’t look too closely to see the cracks. These were two fun reads.
Tag: around the world books
Bookpacking the World
I have been thinking a lot about travelling lately. It’s not something I do that often anymore. At one point in my life I think I was on a plane at least once a month. Now that the kids are home from camp, all they want to do is go away. And they have plenty of ideas of where to go (and no concept of what it costs.) Of course, I translate this to reading – that’s what I do. I started to think about where I have read in relation to where I have been.
Thus far, I have identified that I have been to 10 countries, 18 states, and 30 cities (that I count as “visited”) but I will probably remember more. After doing a fast review of my completed titles, I seem to be centered on fiction located in Asia, Middle East, Europe and North America.
Books set in Asia tend to be focused on China or India. These cultures have always fascinated me. The deep history, and the struggles between the sexes and classes are an endless source for tales of strength and redemption. Recent favorites from here include Lisa See’s The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, Camron Wright’s The Rent Collector, and Nadia Hashimi’s The Pearl That Broke Its Shell. These stories touch upon the struggles of being women in cultures that do not value them, as well as the difference between the “haves” and “have nots” in those societies. They do not, however, leave you feeling downtrodden, but with hope for a better future.
While the battles between the sexes are not as pronounced in Europe, the number of stories that have captivated me remains a big draw. With the focus on the royal family, with births, weddings, retirements and more, I have been reading some fun fictionalizations about the Queen. Mrs Queen Takes the Train and The Uncommon Reader are perfect if you want to see the Queen in a very human light. For a wonderful fictional account of the history of England, there are few (if any) that could challenge Ken Follett’s Kingsbridge Trilogy (Pillars of the Earth, World Without End, and A Column of Fire), or his more contemporary Centuries Trilogy (Fall of Giants, Winter of the World, and Edge of Eternity). Zadie Smith’s On Beauty takes on the ever present challenges of race differences, JoJo Moyes takes on love and rights, and the plentiful mysteries set there make it easy to find a book located there.
For books set in the Middle East, I have focused on Afghanistan and Israel. The beautiful yet sad reality that is brought to life by Khaled Hosseini is made more poignant with each book he writes. The Kite Runner and And The Mountains Echoed, while amazing, are actually not my favorite. A Thousand Splendid Suns continues to resonate with me, years after I finished it. And as the wars have scarred Afghanistan, reading modern Israeli writers show that the years of conflict have taken a toll on the psyche of the Israeli people. Bethany Ball illustrates this well in What to Do About The Solomons, as does Edeet Ravel in One Thousand Lovers and Look for Me. Capping this is the memoir written by Laura Blumfeld Revenge: A Story of Hope, that illustrates how complicated the hatred between people can be.
And while I have not focused a large amount on Africa and South America, I have read books based there, also. Favorites in Africa include Americanah, Things Fall Apart, and Poisonwood Bible. Beautifully written, complex emotions and cultural structures are explored and explained within the pages of these books. In Latin America, I have just finished Ten Women, and will continue to explore titles in this region to continue to expand my cultural horizons.
I will continue to seek out books centered in other cultures, because I live in a world that keeps shrinking. We need to know as much about other people as possible, because we keep bumping into everyone on the tiny planet of ours.
The Source 4 Books 
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