Mark Powell Powell itibaren Murrumbateman NSW 2582, Australia
Troost's book is ambling, rambling, and delightful. Mostly, Troost focuses on the inanity of the situation he finds himself in as the aimless attachment of his "beguiling girlfriend" on a Pacific island that blows away almost of all hazy, childhood, move-inspired preconceptions of life and people on a Pacific island. Troost doesn't delve much into the culture of the I-Kiribati but more into the culture of a foreigner living on the island. I would think many Americans who have traveled abroad for any length of time can relate to some of the culture, lifestyle, and place shock Troost writes about. Though we may not be able to express it in such a hilarious, mad-cap fashion. I did find it refreshing when Troost, in an excellent sardonic way, blasts the various ills that the Pacific nation suffered under: namely, exploitation from multiple foreign powers, rampant governmental corruption, and decimation of island habitats by world powers playing with nuclear power. Troost's book is unabashed and honest...and darn funny.
Wow. I can see why this series is so popular.
I rarely say this, but everyone must go read this book right now. It is incredibly salient to the current fiscal crisis. It really explains so much. Liar's Poker documents the Big Swinging Dick, devil may care attitude of the traders at Salomon Brothers. The men (it is mostly men) in this book aren't stupid or evil. Instead, they get carried away by the gluttonous, prideful, greedy, and envious culture of the bond market. It shows how capable men can make colossal mistakes and bring down the world financial system. The book is both smart and wise, and should be read by everyone.
A wonderful drama that spans 4 continents and 6 decades, Verghese tells a moving story about a pair of twins, unwittingly abandoned by their birth parents, who grow up together in a mission-based hospital and then grow apart, and one thing and another rekindled their physical and emotional bond again as brothers. With periods of suspense and rich storytelling of the brothers' childhood and landscape in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Verghese shows that his medical expertise transcends that of being a beautiful novelist as well.