I wavered between 3 and 4 stars for this book. After the sudden death of his father and his own realization that he will never be a father himsekf. Ken Budd decides to take on international volunteering vacations as a way to give meaning to his life and allow him to make a lasting impression on the world. Budd's writing style is funny,descriptive and easy to read. His travels take him to New Orleans, China, Costa Rica, Equador, Bethlehem and Kenya where he does a variety of tasks from home renovation to caring for children. Throughout the memoir, Budd recalls his father's life from Budd's own memories and the words of his father's friends and former coworkers.

I've always had an interest in "voluntourism" and this book made the experience more intriguing and also brought to light a lot of important things to think about before taking on this type of a journey. Budd includes some helpful information for anyone considering voluntourism and the names and contact informtation of the organizations he worked with.