jonjeffryes's review against another edition
3.0
I think this book would work better if, as a reader, I'd dipped into it every now and again...as opposed to reading it straight through. The book has charm, but not much of a narrative propulsion. I was slightly disappointed by the weak frame of the narrative (i.e. following the a panama hat from creation the storefront...I think the idea is a solid one, but the execution was too meandering. The whole third part of the book leaves the trail and just meanders around Ecuador and Colombia. Overall an OK read...you don't find many books about Ecuador, so it was interesting to get see that part of the world in book form.
giovannnaz's review against another edition
3.0
One of the few books I've found about Ecuador...the book is nominally about the manufacture and distribution of Panama hats, but more a window to the Ecuadorean culture and people. And you get a description of what cuy (guinea pig) actually tastes like. And a chapter about Bemelmans--who wrote a travel book (The Donkey Inside), a kids' book (Quito Express), and a novel (Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep)taking place in Ecuador.
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