Why this book:  This book was given to me by a friend who has just left on a ‘semester at sea’ where he’ll be teaching some college (undergraduate) classes on a ship with students traveling around the world.   When I told him that I would be leading a discussion to help SEALs  better bridge culture gaps and understand people living in developing countries, he sent me this book.  He told me it is on the required reading list for people going on the cruise, which will hit lots of exotic , and out of the way ports.

My Impressions:  It is short, about 90 pages, almost an essay,  on the author’s views on life in Antigua in the Caribbean where she grew up.  But it is not an idyllic portrait she paints.  She describes and attacks the condescension that Westerners have toward the island and the islanders, and the history of exploitation of the island’s people and resources by Westerners.  Her tone is bitter, sad, and resigned.  She also describes – doesn’t explain – but describes the corruption and inefficiencies of the government and the sense of almost inevitability around decay and unfulfilled expectations.   Yes, she says, these are Antiguans who elect these corrupt officials, Antiguans who virtually sell the country to wealthy foreigners, and Antiguans who profit from the corruption and ignore the needs of the majority of people on the island. But she holds the West partly but clearly responsible for this state of affairs and in collusion with these corrupt leaders.   She describes the almost surreal beauty of the island and how this is almost a curse – like a rich sauce on a very tough, and almost inedible piece of meat.   It seduces visitors away from the human issues and the real problems of the island.   She contrasts the perspective of the western tourist on a 7-10 day vacation with that of the locals, who live there all year long. It is insightful and sobering to read her description of how they view  tourists.   Most of us have been that tourist at one time or another. 

 The book is somewhat of a bitter pill, but it is beautifully written, almost poetic in its style, and worth reading .   I was glad it wasn’t much longer though – the anger and bitterness were a bit off-putting, but they were genuine and well justified, it seems.   She peels back the layer of charm, beauty, and Caribbean ‘innocence’ that I have seen in my many trips to the region when I was in the Navy.  More importantly, the points she makes about Antigua could apply to many, perhaps most, countries in the developing world, to include some of the places where our military is fighting.  It is eye-opening  to get inside the head of a very articulate and worldly-wise local.