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peer_pastinakel's review
3.0
Despite many poignant moments and overall great writing, the book feels like an afterthought of the preceding one, is a bit tedious at times and Theroux spends a bit too much time apologizing for the ending.
cacique's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
craigxcanada's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
angus_mckeogh's review against another edition
4.0
This was my first foray into Theroux's travel narratives. I had enjoyed some of his fiction (and have had a little trouble getting through some of his other fiction), but I found his travel writing great. Or perhaps it was his route and destination. Angola. A place I'll never go. A reputed hellhole. A war torn area run by bandits, dictators, and communists. A really fascinating read. Illuminates the problems with Africa and how America is connected to that very thing. Makes one extremely thankful for the circumstances of one's upbringing. A great read.
lediamond4's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
3.5
So here’s the deal: I’m attempting a “Read Around the World” challenge. There are two main “rules”: the primary location has to be that country (so not too much traveling) and the author should be from that country. I and had an extremely difficult time finding literature for Angola that fit my criteria, a fact that the author actually touches on this book. It’s not my first compromise and I know it won’t be the last. I plan to revisit these countries once I’m initially finished to see if I can find anything beyond what I’ve found in my library’s system.
For the time being, I thought this was a decent fit. Paul Theroux is certainly not from Angola, but he spent time there as a young man working as a teacher. He then returns to Africa decades later and spends a large majority of this second trip in Angola. Missed on the first rule but I think it met the second rule.
I learned a lot about Angola, both its history and its current state. Theroux covers a lot of ground, writing about the political, social, and economic issues both past and present. He writes very visually about this country and I believe that he knows what he’s talking about. So yeah, as a “first visit” I’m fairly satisfied.
Ironically, when Theroux first ventured into Angola I did start to lose his intentions behind writing this book. Africa starts out pretty romanticized even though Theroux definitely goes off the beaten path. It was an interesting balance. However, but things take a depressing turn once Theroux enters Angola and the book becomes an intensely detailed account of the extreme poverty, the violent crime rate, and the diseases that the people who live there face on a daily basis.
I don’t take issue with either halves, the problem is that I don’t think they fit together to make a coherent whole. Theroux’s writing is both visual and educational, and I never struggled reading it, I just wish that it was more consistent in its focus.
For the time being, I thought this was a decent fit. Paul Theroux is certainly not from Angola, but he spent time there as a young man working as a teacher. He then returns to Africa decades later and spends a large majority of this second trip in Angola. Missed on the first rule but I think it met the second rule.
I learned a lot about Angola, both its history and its current state. Theroux covers a lot of ground, writing about the political, social, and economic issues both past and present. He writes very visually about this country and I believe that he knows what he’s talking about. So yeah, as a “first visit” I’m fairly satisfied.
Ironically, when Theroux first ventured into Angola I did start to lose his intentions behind writing this book. Africa starts out pretty romanticized even though Theroux definitely goes off the beaten path. It was an interesting balance. However, but things take a depressing turn once Theroux enters Angola and the book becomes an intensely detailed account of the extreme poverty, the violent crime rate, and the diseases that the people who live there face on a daily basis.
I don’t take issue with either halves, the problem is that I don’t think they fit together to make a coherent whole. Theroux’s writing is both visual and educational, and I never struggled reading it, I just wish that it was more consistent in its focus.
dobbydoo22's review against another edition
5.0
Paul Theroux is a very analytical travel writer, and this book provides some excellent insights into the issues with economic inequality that plague developing nations. His work has become simultaneously more introspective and more 'big-picture' as he has aged, which gives his tales very valuable depth. I'd highly recommend this book.
plaidpladd's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
slow-paced
2.0
This book is like being on an uncomfortable trip with your weird, sketchy uncle. I don't know if I'm being too generous giving this two stars; I did actually learn a lot, but it was a struggle. The book lacks focus--apparently the author's intended goal was to make it to Timbuktu, but he only tells you this in the last chapter when it's clear he will fail to make it. For being in Africa, he sure interviews a lot of white people. I would say maybe even mainly white people? It's bordering on Rhodesia nostalgia which is gross. SPEAKING of gross, if the author notices a Black woman or girl he is GOING to tell you what her breasts are like. I'm not sure why the white women don't get the same treatment--maybe he thought they were more likely to read his book? Honestly should probably have stopped at the second or third "heavily-bosomed" woman he sees on a bus, but I was determined to cross Angola off my Around the World project.
kellyd's review against another edition
sad
medium-paced
4.0
A depressing but important read on Africa
hedjet's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
simonfay's review against another edition
3.0
Paul Theroux was a bit lost on this one. I know because he complained about it every other page. 'Why am I here?' is a constant question that pads the text, just as often substituted with, 'What's the point?'
It's fair to say that doubt, both in himself and civilisation as a whole, is a theme that occupies the majority of the book, and though he paws around the dirt to find some answers, in most cases he can only come up with half-hearted justifications for why he would suffer a journey in which he seems to have absolutely no interest. It doesn't make for a compelling read.
Then he arrives in Angola.
I imagine any travelogue requires a certain balance between the writer's subjective experience and a more objective outline of what was seen. Paul Theroux has always been happy to tip that balance towards his personal views, a quality that was rather mundane on this occasion, but in Angola, a country that's rife with injustice, landmines, social inequality, corruption, Chinese opportunists, colonial scars, outrageous characters and decades of war torn misery, in Angola he manages to get out of his own way to create a lucid portrait of madness that makes it a necessary purchase for anybody interested in the refuse of global capitalism.
Just remember, if you do pick up a copy, I don't think you'll be missing out on much by skipping ahead to Chapter 10.
It's fair to say that doubt, both in himself and civilisation as a whole, is a theme that occupies the majority of the book, and though he paws around the dirt to find some answers, in most cases he can only come up with half-hearted justifications for why he would suffer a journey in which he seems to have absolutely no interest. It doesn't make for a compelling read.
Then he arrives in Angola.
I imagine any travelogue requires a certain balance between the writer's subjective experience and a more objective outline of what was seen. Paul Theroux has always been happy to tip that balance towards his personal views, a quality that was rather mundane on this occasion, but in Angola, a country that's rife with injustice, landmines, social inequality, corruption, Chinese opportunists, colonial scars, outrageous characters and decades of war torn misery, in Angola he manages to get out of his own way to create a lucid portrait of madness that makes it a necessary purchase for anybody interested in the refuse of global capitalism.
Just remember, if you do pick up a copy, I don't think you'll be missing out on much by skipping ahead to Chapter 10.