aniastef86's review against another edition
4.0
Una famiglia fuori dagli schemi, uno spaccato di vita dell’autrice in cui vediamo la bellezza selvaggia della natura africana scontrarsi con la piaga dell’Aids, la stregoneria con la medicina occidentale, le idee liberali con quelle razziste. Un viaggio in un Botswana che toglie il fiato, una storia che stringe il cuore.
niceread's review against another edition
5.0
Entertaining and informative. Robyn Scott comes from a truly original family. It was fascinating to read their story.
clarereadstheworld's review against another edition
4.0
This is a really in depth, detailed account of the years Robyn Scott spent in Botswana with her family during her childhood. As well as discussing family life, Scott also fill this book with details of Botswana's history and politics. This makes it a really interesting read, and I feel like I learnt a lot about Botswana.
In the early 90's, when her family moved there from New Zealand, Botswana was one of the wealthiest African countries. Scott's father reluctantly agrees to take over as the local flying doctor (the pervious one having recently died in a plane crash). Through the stories of her fathers visits to rural health clinics, we get a real insight into the culture and mentalities of people living in rural Botswana. Scott's father has to learn how to balance Western medicines and cultural beliefs and superstitions about disease, not always easy!
Scott's family are not very conventional either. The 3 children are home achooled by their mother, in a very haphazard, but not ineffective manner. They spend most of their 'school' days out exploring the bush, discovering the local fawn and fauna, or trying (and not quite succeeding) to break in their wild horses. From crocodiles and poachers to unexploded devices found in the mine dump, danger is never far away, but somehow the children always bounce back ...
Tragically, Botswana changed forever when AIDS pandemic hit in the mid-90's, largely thanks to the governments lack of action. Through Scott's father medical practice the family has a front row seat to the devastating effects of the AIDS pandemic. It's heartbreaking to read about the lack of education and understanding of the disease which lead to so many more deaths. This is not uniques to Botswana, or even to the African Contient, but Botswana is one of the worst affected African nations.
Scott also does not shy away from discussing her problematicaly privileged position in Botswana as a white. Even to her child's mind the racism and discrimination was troubling. While her own family tried hard to encourage inclusion and diversity, not everyone agrees with them.
Recommend
In the early 90's, when her family moved there from New Zealand, Botswana was one of the wealthiest African countries. Scott's father reluctantly agrees to take over as the local flying doctor (the pervious one having recently died in a plane crash). Through the stories of her fathers visits to rural health clinics, we get a real insight into the culture and mentalities of people living in rural Botswana. Scott's father has to learn how to balance Western medicines and cultural beliefs and superstitions about disease, not always easy!
Scott's family are not very conventional either. The 3 children are home achooled by their mother, in a very haphazard, but not ineffective manner. They spend most of their 'school' days out exploring the bush, discovering the local fawn and fauna, or trying (and not quite succeeding) to break in their wild horses. From crocodiles and poachers to unexploded devices found in the mine dump, danger is never far away, but somehow the children always bounce back ...
Tragically, Botswana changed forever when AIDS pandemic hit in the mid-90's, largely thanks to the governments lack of action. Through Scott's father medical practice the family has a front row seat to the devastating effects of the AIDS pandemic. It's heartbreaking to read about the lack of education and understanding of the disease which lead to so many more deaths. This is not uniques to Botswana, or even to the African Contient, but Botswana is one of the worst affected African nations.
Scott also does not shy away from discussing her problematicaly privileged position in Botswana as a white. Even to her child's mind the racism and discrimination was troubling. While her own family tried hard to encourage inclusion and diversity, not everyone agrees with them.
Recommend
rhodaj's review against another edition
4.0
Robyn is nine years old when her rather unconventional parents decide to move from New Zealand to Botswana. The family of five, including Robyn’s younger brother and sister move into a cowshed on her grandparent’s property near a small town in Botswana. Her father becomes a flying doctor and her mother homeschools the three children, who live a very free range lifestyle in close proximity to her enigmatic grandfather and gentle grandmother.
The memoir follows the ten years the family live in Botswana, including their eventual relocation to a property of their own four hours drive from her grandparents house and on the river bordering South Africa, where some of their extended family members live. The children live a very unconventional life, being homeschooled (and it sounds like that term is used rather loosely
The memoir follows the ten years the family live in Botswana, including their eventual relocation to a property of their own four hours drive from her grandparents house and on the river bordering South Africa, where some of their extended family members live. The children live a very unconventional life, being homeschooled (and it sounds like that term is used rather loosely
audreyapproved's review against another edition
4.0
Read around the world project - Botswana
Wow, the author and I sure had different childhoods... hers involved a lot more snakes than mine! Scott's memoir about growing up in Botswana is basically a string of memories involving her two siblings, parents and grandparents. Many memories were entertaining and funny, although as a whole the piece had neither cohesion nor overarching takeaway. I found the most interesting stories involved Scott's homeschooling and her parents' preference for alternative medicine. I didn't learn a ton about Botswana until the last 1/3 of the book, when it opened up to more racial and social topics.
3.5 stars
Wow, the author and I sure had different childhoods... hers involved a lot more snakes than mine! Scott's memoir about growing up in Botswana is basically a string of memories involving her two siblings, parents and grandparents. Many memories were entertaining and funny, although as a whole the piece had neither cohesion nor overarching takeaway. I found the most interesting stories involved Scott's homeschooling and her parents' preference for alternative medicine. I didn't learn a ton about Botswana until the last 1/3 of the book, when it opened up to more racial and social topics.
3.5 stars
kellygrape's review against another edition
5.0
I had the chance to read this book when I was visiting my friend in Cambridge, England. By chance, after finishing the book, I ran into the author, who was in town that week for a Gates Cambridge Scholars dinner. The book is wonderfully written, and it was a treat to meet Robyn in person.
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well written memoir.
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well written memoir.
lizdesole's review against another edition
3.0
Although the stories are entertaining, there were some things about her story that I found enormously irritating. Yes her homeschooling family is whackadoodles, her mother seems self-righteous and her father a bit clueless, her sister on cloud nine and her brother obsessed with violence. Don't even get me started on her grandparents. Her father's dream is to own (not just 99year lease)a farm which he does acquire and then never farms! Yep, so important not to lease the land from the government but keep it in (white) private hands. Then just lives there as glorious scenery-when there isn't much farmable land. My real complaint is that the story seems so much from the white colonialist perspective. She says all these really naive things about Botswana having no racial problem. Really!!? Despite the fact that almost all the black people in the book are the white people's servants or super poor?! Her family never even learns the Swetslana language. She doesn't even see the "black" part of town until driving an AIDS activist home towards the end of the book. She's very critical also of the South African farmers across the river for their racial attitiudes but I couldn't see a huge difference in her family's essential treatment of blacks besides a few token instances.Frustrating
rkjgallagher's review against another edition
5.0
Superb book. My heart breaks for the devastation AIDs has wrought, but I loved seeing Botswana from an angle other than Alexander McCall Smith's.