Rating: 
Summary: Paradise Lost, Humor Found!
Review: THe author decides to chuck his limited prospects in the USA and move to a tropical paradise with his hot girlfriend. Who would not be tempted to indulge in such a scenario? But alas, the author's paradise is infested with garbage and sewage strewn beaches, overcrowding, bad music and food, and well-meaning but often incompetent development officials. THis healthy dose of reality is enough to make this book compelling, but the author's humorous take on the whole endeavor is what makes this book worth buying. HIs humor serves him well and probably kept him going and allowed him to politely put up with the natives and his dreary existence; and also makes its a refreshing alternative to other travel writers such as Paul THeroux, who bemoan the despoiling of paradise and complain about the locals! Troost endures both with a humor-filled stoicism, and despite his rantings, ended up coming back not too long after leaving!
If you are looking for a serious cultural/sociological examination of South Pacific island life, this book is not for you. THe title would be your first clue! But if you want one that is entertaining and somewhat enlightening, then its a good beach read, not too serious, but educational enough that you'll walk away feeling like you learned a little something about a distant corner of the world that for most of us, exists only in our imagination or our likely unrealized dream vacation or travel destination. Afte reading this book, I'll probably stay home, Its cheaper, and funnier! Sometimes paradise exists best only in our fantasies!
Rating: 
Summary: Great Book! Very Funny and I couldn't put it down!
Review: This is a very funny and irreverant set of stories about Mr. Troost's two years of living on the island of Kiribati. One of my students asked to discuss some of the items in the chapter on government. I read this chapter and then bought the book. While the first two or three chapters were slow, I couldn't put this book down for the other 20. Many of the points Troost makes about island life could apply to quite a number of other pacific islands. He doesn't provide any suggestions on how islanders could improve (refreshing given the large number of bad suggestions these nations have had over the years)and he sticks to relating snapshots of his life in and around the island. This is a fun book to read.
Rating:
Summary: Very funny
Review: This was a really funny, heart-warming book. The author has a very glib sense of humor and I can only hope we'll be reading more from him soon. Well done. (...)
Rating: 
Summary: Irrelevant title....Loquacious...Rather Anti-American
Review: Troost is clearly educated and intelligent, even mildly amusing at times. But this book is hardly worth any hype. The title is meaningless and unexplained. His text is far too long-winded. And for a man who bemoans capitalism, materialism and nearly everything American, where did he end up living? Cali! In the end, the hypocrisy was a bit much.
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