Go and Come Back

Rating:
Summary: Another point of view
Review: As an anthropologist having done fieldwork in another part of Amazonia, I recognized myself in Alicia's descriptions of the awkward, annoying, and funny situations, with two young women trying to get a grip on the culture they want to study. I think anthropologists should read this book to become more honest about the way they gather their "data", initially understanding half of what was said, to say nothing of the context in which it was said. On the other hand, Abelove obviously succeeded in her own fieldwork, understanding and conveying another point of view so well. She writes with care and respect for the two different cultures, with modesty, and with humor. She does NOT standardize the witty characters and does NOT create a native paradise, nor a native hell. I wished more anthropologists would use her human approach in addition to writing academic, "objective" books. It could bring us a wider readership, which in turn could help to create more respect for "the other" in an increasingly hostile and racist world.

Rating:
Summary: Best book ever!!!!
Review: How does Abelove even know if this is what the Isabo tribe was thinking about them? They don't speak their language. What if they all liked her insted of hateing her? Dispite this, this book was very well writen and told. It has many lifelike events.

Rating:
Summary: Best book ever!!!!
Review: I absoulutly loved this book and would reccomend it to anyone who loves to study new cultures. This book gives the reader an idea of how lucky we are to have food, have a very nice home, and live happily. It is like a whole new world that you are learning about. PLEASE READ TO ENJOY A NEW WORLD AND EXPERIENCE!!!

Rating:
Summary: This book wuz sorry
Review: I think this book was horrible it didnt make any sense to me I thought the people from Peru were greedy and not thankful for anything they recieved form the anthropologists I think they just wanted them to stay in the in their area because they thought that they would bring them gifts and bow down to them just because they were from the states. I thought these people were disguisting and sick how can you have a husband and still have bofriends the only time that I felt any remorse for these people is when Cami died....... I think this book is not for readers that are interested in fictional stories.

Rating:
Summary: This book wuz sorry
Review: I wouldn't say this book is awful..it just wasn't interesting. I would't have wasted my time on it if I didn't have to. I don't think it had any point to it. I am a book reader and I wouldn't say this is my favorite book..It didn't end the best and it didn't really make much sense...but if you like books that talk about teen-agers having sex and getting married at a young age and having a lot of boyfriends while their husband is working..then this is your kind of book!

Rating:
Summary: ewwwwwwwwwww
Review: this book was too graphic for people of our young age
it talked about PERSONAL things and it was really gross.
but we read it anyways because were very mature young ladies, amber and me, and besides the icky details, we liked it

Rating:
Summary: See things from a different perspective
Review: This excellent book is the story of two American anthropologists who went to live with a tribe in Peru. One of the main characters is a young girl who is trying to raise an adopted baby and becomes friends with the anthropologists. The story shows all of the cultural differences and misunderstandings that arose between the anthropologists and the people of the village because they had different values and ideas about how people should behave. The book does a good job of showing how people of one culture can try to do things that they see as polite and kind and can be perceived by people of a different culture as stingy or mean. It is challenging to readers because it helps them think about what is important to them and how that is expressed in what they do. It helped me see ways that my actions are not really consistent with what I say is important to me. It also gave me a good sense of some of the basic difficulties and joys of living in a different culture.

One caution: if you would be offended by open talk about sex, this book is not for you. It shows a culture in which sex is discussed openly and people tell children more about it than in the U.S.

Rating:
Summary: There is no word for good-bye
Review: This wonderful story is told in the first person narrative of Alicia, a teenaged girl in a small village in the Amazonion jungle of Peru. Two anthropologists from New York City come to observe and take notes for an entire year on the way of life of the Isabo people. Margarita is there to study the village agriculture and Joanna is to study the children. Alicia thinks that these two women are stingy because they do not follow the Isabo's custom of sharing all their food with everyone in the village immediately. The two anthropologists are also perceived as being unclean and unsociable because they only bathe once a day and relieve themselves in private. The humorous tone of this book kept the pace moving. The cultural differences are many and Alicia explains things in a matter of fact way, such as the Isabo's views on sex compared to the two American anthropologists...married women have boyfriends, teenagers have sex and couples invent reasons to slip off in the bushes. As the year progresses the two women are taught about customs and traditions of the tribe. They also learn about the subtleties of the language and the fact that there is no word for good-bye in Isabo. When two people take leave of each other, they say "Catanhue", which means go and come back. I enjoyed the differences in both cultures and feel this was a wonderful way to learn about anthropology in the Amazon jungle.