One Hand Does Not Catch A Buffalo: 50 Years Of Amazing Peace Corps Stories: Volume One: Africa (Peace Corps At 50) Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
Africa is a complicated place, and the Peace Corps Volunteers who have worked in 43 African nations have seen it all: from public executions to public celebrations to life in a time of AIDS. This heartfelt collection is the first of its kind to chronicle 50 years of Peace Corps service. Stories range from poignant to hilarious, involve political intrigue and cultural missteps, illuminating the joys and agony of volunteering abroad and representing the United States in the process.Sixty stories provide a broad overview and give readers a glimpse into the life and times of these brave volunteers, who each learned at least one new language and went to work in the villages and cities from Morocco to South Africa. They worked hard, too. But in these stories you will see that they also danced, faced death by elephant, and witnessed unbearably grim events. One is admired for her “big butt,” another reminded that he had taught proper police procedure in a time of civil unrest. Saying “I was there” is sometimes a bittersweet declaration.
Series: Peace Corps at 50
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Travelers' Tales (March 1, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1609520009
ISBN-13: 978-1609520007
Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 1.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #271,432 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #55 in Books > Business & Money > Job Hunting & Careers > Volunteer Work #460 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Specific Topics > Globalization #1184 in Books > Travel > Travel Writing
A family member sent me this wonderful book, since I will be leaving on my own Peace Corps journey to Africa in one month. The stories are mostly short and easily digested, but rich with tales of adventure, caution, and advice for the future traveller. After reading this book, I feel more confident in decision to join the Peace Corps. I also know what to do if I awake to find an angry elephant outside my house. It's an especially great read for anyone interested in travelling abroad!
I really can't be an unbiased reviewer as I have a story in this book.I CAN tell you that each story is true. I can also tell you that each story is well written.You are a different person after two years in the Peace Corps. You also become able towrite about your experience with a unique sensitivity to humanity's woes.
Reading the stimulating stories from Peace Corps volunteers who served in Africa massaged my senses. This volume educes a range of feelings and emotions, for example:Jubilation (Children taunting a white Peace Corps volunteer because of fascination and fondness)Astonishment (an individual's not believing clean water comes out of a faucet)Joy (the celebration of a big butt as beautiful)Frustration (a community's fatalistic attitude that keeps villagers from building latrines)Sadness (a Peace Corps Volunteer tenderly crying because she cannot deliver on her promise to return)Rage (ceremonies that mark genital mutilation)Hilarity (Old tribal chief asking why he has to continually chew out the white people)Shock (Rat being served for dinner)Wow (6-foot cobra killed with a broom)Enough noted.
I haven't read all the essays (yet) but the ones I have read are wonderful and so unique. I was very touched by Daniel Franklin's story Imani about his dog, Solveig Nilsen's piece called Your Parents Visited You in Africa? which was beautifully written and Janet Grace Riehl's Big Butts Are Beautiful! which I believe every woman in the United States should take to heart. I have never read a book quite like this. It makes one want to join the Peace Corps. I am looking forward to finishing these essays. They were obviously chosen with care.
This is a book put together and edited by Aaron Barlow to allow Returned Peace Corps the chance to relive their experiences in Africa and pass those experiences on to others. I think it is safe to say that the Peace Corps experience changed us all and that the greatest experience was not what we were able to accomplish during our tours, but what we were able to come away with in terms of understanding other cultures and peoples, learned not from a textbook, but from first hand, daily association. I was fortunate to have a story in this book and hope that it conveys a little of the enormous transition of a young lad from the comfort of the San Fernando Valley to the wilds and isolation of living in the bush in Somalia.
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