Kirstin's review of The Camel Bookmobile
The Camel Bookmobile by Masha Hamilton (Goodreads author!)
I found this a really compelling read. The book alternates between characters’ points of view — Fiona, the citified Kenyan librarian, the educated teacher who has returned to the village, the young wife, the teenagers struggling to find their path to the future. Because of the alternating takes on the story, you really get how there is an untenable position here between embracing custom and tradition in a struggling community or pursuing modernity at the price of losing your self-identity. And how to cope if you are a marginal member of society? I found myself thinking about this book in a way that I don’t often with casual fiction picks; it really got under my skin. Probably because I identified with do-gooder Fi so much, it was really hard for me to reconcile the idea that good intentions really could do so much harm — and at their core are designed to destroy a way of life. I should encourage my Peace Corps friend to read this book and see if she has any insights.
I’ve ...more
I’ve ...more
comments
No comments have been added yet.
