leighnonymous's review against another edition
4.0
Clearly, this writer is well-traveled and an astoundingly good researcher. The amount of detail about the Papua New Guinea jungles made me feel like I was stomping through, right along with her. Her descriptions of malaria, leeches, and amoebic dysentery both amazed and repulsed me. It is evident that she's a travel writer with a love for dangerous and exotic locales; even the horrible depictions of some of the residents of these areas (The Congo, in particular) nonetheless display a deep love and affection for them. She immensely values other cultures, regardless of their irrational and superstitious ways. I still don't understand how Marika didn't kill the tribesmen over their belief that she poisoned the Walwasi tribe with her menstrual blood; it is simply unfathomable to me that they believe such supernatural nonsense; but, Salak explains the validity of their beliefs in such a way that I couldn't help thinking, "Oh. Well, if it works for them…" (Had she mentioned anything about women's oppression or abuse within the tribe, I would have jumped all over that).
This novel had the feel of a female version of Conrad's Heart of Darkness in that Marika made an arduous journey into the center of a massive jungle just to find someone who was world-weary and had utterly lost the core of himself. Mistah Lewis, he dead, indeed. However, unlike my exhausting experience with Conrad's book, The White Mary kept my interest (at least the current story). I didn't care for the Seb storyline, felt like he was a flat character, and ultimately thought Marika was a complete whore, but the jungle scenes made up for it.
I had a difficult time relating to Marika; she is unlike me in nearly every way. I never understood why she felt the way she did about risky trips to hazardous third-world countries. The author didn't offer an sufficient explanation Marika's motivations.
I did like the ending and her relationship with Tobo, her "humbug" guide; the growing connection with him in the book made it endearing to me. I ended up liking him best of all.
This novel had the feel of a female version of Conrad's Heart of Darkness in that Marika made an arduous journey into the center of a massive jungle just to find someone who was world-weary and had utterly lost the core of himself. Mistah Lewis, he dead, indeed. However, unlike my exhausting experience with Conrad's book, The White Mary kept my interest (at least the current story). I didn't care for the Seb storyline, felt like he was a flat character, and ultimately thought Marika was a complete whore, but the jungle scenes made up for it.
I had a difficult time relating to Marika; she is unlike me in nearly every way. I never understood why she felt the way she did about risky trips to hazardous third-world countries. The author didn't offer an sufficient explanation Marika's motivations.
I did like the ending and her relationship with Tobo, her "humbug" guide; the growing connection with him in the book made it endearing to me. I ended up liking him best of all.
think_kimberly's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
herethethea_hobbies's review against another edition
5.0
Love the story as a whole. Would I re-read it to re-experience it? Yes I do. I remembered that I enjoyed the premise of the story too
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