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| The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific |
<<< The Sex Lives of Cannibals is not, with a few exceptions, about the sex lives of cannibals.
The subtitle, Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific, is a bit more accurate.
The premise is easy enough. A simple na'er-do-well, along with his woman, bored with his current
lot in life moves to a country nobody has heard of to live a life on the beach absent of the
comforts of McDonald's.
Unfortunately a part of this premise for the book is faulty. The author, J. Marteen Troost, likes to
paint himself as a loser. However, in having consulted with the World Bank, "...racking up useless
graduate degrees...(as per the back cover)", and an interesting stint as a reporter for an English
language newspaper in Eastern Europe, Troost makes the reader feel like a loser in comparison.
Meanwhile, the author's original plan was faulty. He didn't exactly end up on a paradise island.
Although at times beautiful, his island had problems with incompetence, feces, and wild dogs.
What did you expect? That's what makes Sex Lives a good read.
The subtitle, Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific, is a bit more accurate.
The premise is easy enough. A simple na'er-do-well, along with his woman, bored with his current
lot in life moves to a country nobody has heard of to live a life on the beach absent of the
comforts of McDonald's.
Unfortunately a part of this premise for the book is faulty. The author, J. Marteen Troost, likes to
paint himself as a loser. However, in having consulted with the World Bank, "...racking up useless
graduate degrees...(as per the back cover)", and an interesting stint as a reporter for an English
language newspaper in Eastern Europe, Troost makes the reader feel like a loser in comparison.
Meanwhile, the author's original plan was faulty. He didn't exactly end up on a paradise island.
Although at times beautiful, his island had problems with incompetence, feces, and wild dogs.
What did you expect? That's what makes Sex Lives a good read.
The Island in question is the Republic of Kiribati. According to the CIA Factbook the population of Kiribati is 112,850 good for
the 190th spot on the most populated list.
One could very easily get on a soapbox talking about the region. Like many places over there, Kiribati is still getting over the
often negative effects of imperialism having been ruled by Britain until the Seventies. For good measure, the neighboring
Marshall Islands hosted a US nuclear test.
Troost isn't going for that kind of story. He doesn't gloss over the negatives, but he generally tries to keep it flowing even if he,
as the disclaimer mentions, has to, "(play) a little fast and loose with the space-time continuum. He has done this for you, the
reader."
Troost, if above's loser comments weren't enough, is humble. He doesn't list a noble desire to help mankind as a reason for
going. He doesn't hate America. So, what then, did he have a good reason to go? At one point he writes, "...and the demise of
the Washington Redskins as a team to be reckoned with all gave me pause and even some anxiety regarding the general
course of Western Society."
In actuality, his wife was on the island working for a nonprofit. Troost picked a job up here and there and aspired to use the rest
of his free time writing a good book.
He never wrote anything worthwhile on the island, but J. Marteen Troost, with a name that ought to be out of Dr. Seuss, ended
up writing a pretty good book about the island.
the 190th spot on the most populated list.
One could very easily get on a soapbox talking about the region. Like many places over there, Kiribati is still getting over the
often negative effects of imperialism having been ruled by Britain until the Seventies. For good measure, the neighboring
Marshall Islands hosted a US nuclear test.
Troost isn't going for that kind of story. He doesn't gloss over the negatives, but he generally tries to keep it flowing even if he,
as the disclaimer mentions, has to, "(play) a little fast and loose with the space-time continuum. He has done this for you, the
reader."
Troost, if above's loser comments weren't enough, is humble. He doesn't list a noble desire to help mankind as a reason for
going. He doesn't hate America. So, what then, did he have a good reason to go? At one point he writes, "...and the demise of
the Washington Redskins as a team to be reckoned with all gave me pause and even some anxiety regarding the general
course of Western Society."
In actuality, his wife was on the island working for a nonprofit. Troost picked a job up here and there and aspired to use the rest
of his free time writing a good book.
He never wrote anything worthwhile on the island, but J. Marteen Troost, with a name that ought to be out of Dr. Seuss, ended
up writing a pretty good book about the island.