Getting Stoned with Savages

Author: J. Maarten Troost
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0767924932
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 258

Book Description
From the bestselling author of The Sex Lives of Cannibals, the laugh-out-loud true story of his years on the islands of Vanuatu and Fiji, among cannibals, volcanoes . . . and the world’s best narcotics. With The Sex Lives of Cannibals, Maarten Troost established himself as one of the most engaging and original travel writers around. Getting Stoned with Savages again reveals his wry wit and infectious joy of discovery in a side-splittingly funny account of life in the farthest reaches of the world. After two grueling years on the island of Tarawa, battling feral dogs, machete-wielding neighbors, and a lack of beer on a daily basis, Maarten Troost was in no hurry to return to the South Pacific. But as time went on, he realized he felt remarkably out of place among the trappings of twenty-first-century America. When he found himself holding down a job—one that might possibly lead to a career—he knew it was time for he and his wife, Sylvia, to repack their bags and set off for parts unknown. Getting Stoned with Savages tells the hilarious story of Troost’s time on Vanuatu—a rugged cluster of islands where the natives gorge themselves on kava and are still known to “eat the man.” Falling into one amusing misadventure after another, Troost struggles against typhoons, earthquakes, and giant centipedes and soon finds himself swept up in the laid-back, clothing-optional lifestyle of the islanders. When Sylvia gets pregnant, they decamp for slightly-more-civilized Fiji, a fallen paradise where the local chiefs can be found watching rugby in the house next door. And as they contend with new parenthood in a country rife with prostitutes and government coups, their son begins to take quite naturally to island living—in complete contrast to his dad.

The Sex Lives of Cannibals

Author: J. Maarten Troost
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0767915305
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 290

Book Description
At the age of twenty-six, Maarten Troost—who had been pushing the snooze button on the alarm clock of life by racking up useless graduate degrees and muddling through a series of temp jobs—decided to pack up his flip-flops and move to Tarawa, a remote South Pacific island in the Republic of Kiribati. He was restless and lacked direction, and the idea of dropping everything and moving to the ends of the earth was irresistibly romantic. He should have known better. The Sex Lives of Cannibals tells the hilarious story of what happens when Troost discovers that Tarawa is not the island paradise he dreamed of. Falling into one amusing misadventure after another, Troost struggles through relentless, stifling heat, a variety of deadly bacteria, polluted seas, toxic fish—all in a country where the only music to be heard for miles around is “La Macarena.” He and his stalwart girlfriend Sylvia spend the next two years battling incompetent government officials, alarmingly large critters, erratic electricity, and a paucity of food options (including the Great Beer Crisis); and contending with a bizarre cast of local characters, including “Half-Dead Fred” and the self-proclaimed Poet Laureate of Tarawa (a British drunkard who’s never written a poem in his life). With The Sex Lives of Cannibals, Maarten Troost has delivered one of the most original, rip-roaringly funny travelogues in years—one that will leave you thankful for staples of American civilization such as coffee, regular showers, and tabloid news, and that will provide the ultimate vicarious adventure.

Headhunters on My Doorstep

Author: J. Maarten Troost
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 1592408737
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Follow in the footsteps of Robert Louis Stevenson with J. Maarten Troost, the bestselling author of The Sex Lives of Cannibals. Readers and critics alike adore J. Maarten Troost for his signature wry and witty take on the adventure memoir. Headhunters on My Doorstep chronicles Troost’s return to the South Pacific after his struggle with alcoholism left him numb to life. Deciding to retrace the path once traveled by the author of Treasure Island, Troost follows Robert Louis Stevenson to the Marquesas, the Tuamotus, Tahiti, Kiribati, and Samoa, tumbling from one comic misadventure to another. Headhunters on My Doorstep is a funny yet poignant account of one man’s journey to find himself that will captivate travel writing aficionados, Robert Louis Stevenson fans, and anyone who has ever lost his way.

Lost on Planet China

Author: J. Maarten Troost
Publisher: Random House LLC
ISBN: 076792200X
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 382

Book Description
A sharply observed, hilarious account of Troost's adventures in China- a complex, fascinating country with enough dangers and delicacies to keep him, and readers, endlessly entertained.

First Comes Love, then Comes Malaria

Author: Eve Brown-Waite
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0767931491
Category : Travel
Languages : en
Pages : 322

Book Description
In this hilarious memoir, a pampered city girl falls head over little black heels in love with a Peace Corps poster boy and follows him—literally to the ends of the earth. Eve Brown always thought she would join the Peace Corps someday, although she secretly worried about life without sushi, frothy coffee drinks and air conditioning. But with college diploma in hand, it was time to put up or shut up. So with some ambivalence she arrived at the Peace Corps office, sporting her best safari chic attire, to casually look into the steps one might take to become a global humanitarian, a la Angelina Jolie. But when Eve meets John, her dashing young Peace Corps recruiter, all her ambivalence flies out the window. She absolutely must join the Peace Corps and win John's heart in the process. After spending a year in the jungle in Ecuador, she runs back to the states, vowing to stay within easy reach of a decaf cappuccino for the rest of her days. Just as she's getting reacquainted with the joys of toilet paper, John gets a job with CARE and Eve must decide if she’s up for life in another third world outpost. Before you can say, "pass the malaria prophylaxis," the couple heads off to Uganda, and the fun really begins— if you call having rats in your toilet fun. Fortunately, in Eve’s case you certainly can, because to her, every experience is an adventure to embrace and the pages come alive with all of the poignant and uproarious details. From intestinal parasites to getting caught in a civil war, culture clashes to unexpected friendships, First Comes Love, then Comes Malaria is an honest and laugh-out-loud look at Eve’s misadventures as an aspiring do-gooder and her search for love and purpose, which she finds in the last place she expected.

Kava in the Blood

Author: Peter Thomson
Publisher: Booksurge Publishing
ISBN: 9781419695766
Category : Fiji
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Judges report, Montana NZ Book Awards 2000: "This is an excellent story, beautifully written and skillfully mixing the personal with the political."

The Sweet Life

Author: Dulce Candy Ruiz
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1592409504
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Book Description
The YouTube star and beauty guru shares her hard-won lessons on success, style, and finding the sweetness in all aspects of your life. Since posting her first makeup tutorial in 2008, Dulce Candy has become one of the top beauty stars on YouTube, boasting more than 2 million subscribers and garnering hundreds of millions of views of her bright and energetic videos. But before she became a style icon and a role model to millions of young women, Dulce struggled to make her way in the world. Having emigrated with her family from Mexico to the United States when she was six years old, Dulce battled depression and low self-esteem as a teenager and eventually enlisted in the army in an attempt to turn her life around. It was here, on the battlefields of Iraq, that she finally uncovered and embraced her true passion—fashion and beauty—and gained the confidence to move on from her past, follow her dream, and launch what would become her wildly successful brand. The Sweet Life chronicles Dulce Candy’s inspiring story, showing that anyone can be successful no matter their background and sharing the hard-won lessons that helped transform her from a shy, self-doubting teenager into a confident business woman and beauty expert. According to Dulce, you can’t live the sweet life until you accept who you are—flaws and all—and take chances—knowing that failure is just a part of learning and fear is a sign that you’re trying something new and exciting. Drawing on anecdotes from her own life and career, Dulce offers advice on building a personal brand (“Know what makes you different”), building confidence (“Fake it till you make it”) and balancing the personal and the professional (“Don’t settle when you settle down”). She also emphasizes the importance of both inner and outer beauty, encouraging women to love themselves, ignore the critics, and flaunt their own original style. Part memoir, part manifesto, The Sweet Life is a fun, inspirational guide for any woman who wants to find success and happiness without compromising who she is.

The Voyaging Stars

Author: David Lewis
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN:
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 230

Book Description

More Than a Carpenter

Author: JOSH. MCDOWELL
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
ISBN: 1496488261
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 173

Book Description
He thought Christianity was a sham. Then it changed his life. Skeptic Josh McDowell thought Christians were out of their minds. He ridiculed and insulted them, then decided to combat them with his own thorough research to disprove the claims of Jesus Christ. To his surprise, he discovered that the evidence suggested exactly the opposite--that Jesus, instead of being simply a first-century Hebrew carpenter, truly was the God he claimed to be. Josh went on to write the inspirational work on Christian apologetics, More Than a Carpenter, which has sold over 15 million copies. In this revised and updated edition, with over 15 million copies in print since its original publication, More Than a Carpenter has changed countless lives. Now, in this revised and updated edition, Josh is joined by his son, Sean, as they tackle the questions that today's generation continues to ask: "Can I be spiritual without believing in God?" "How can I make sure that my life counts for something?" "Is it really possible to know anything for sure about God or Jesus?" This edition is an accessible read for seekers and a great evangelism tool.

Getting Stoned with Savages

Author: J. Maarten Troost
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0767921992
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 258

Book Description
With The Sex Lives of Cannibals, Maarten Troost established himself as one of the most engaging and original travel writers around. Getting Stoned with Savages again reveals his wry wit and infectious joy of discovery in a side-splittingly funny account of life in the farthest reaches of the world. After two grueling years on the island of Tarawa, battling feral dogs, machete-wielding neighbors, and a lack of beer on a daily basis, Maarten Troost was in no hurry to return to the South Pacific. But as time went on, he realized he felt remarkably out of place among the trappings of twenty-first-century America. When he found himself holding down a job—one that might possibly lead to a career—he knew it was time for him and his wife, Sylvia, to repack their bags and set off for parts unknown. Getting Stoned with Savages tells the hilarious story of Troost’s time on Vanuatu—a rugged cluster of islands where the natives gorge themselves on kava and are still known to “eat the man.” Falling into one amusing misadventure after another, Troost struggles against typhoons, earthquakes, and giant centipedes and soon finds himself swept up in the laid-back, clothing-optional lifestyle of the islanders. When Sylvia gets pregnant, they decamp for slightly-more-civilized Fiji, a fallen paradise where the local chiefs can be found watching rugby in the house next door. And as they contend with new parenthood in a country rife with prostitutes and government coups, their son begins to take quite naturally to island living—in complete contrast to his dad.