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First Comes Love, then Comes Malaria: How a Peace Corps Poster Boy Won My Heart and a Third World Adventure Changed My Life
In this laugh-out-loud funny memoir, a pampered city girl falls head over little-black-heels in love with a Peace Corps poster boy and follows him—literally—to the ends of the earth.
Eve Brown always thought she would join the Peace Corps someday, although she secretly worried about life without sushi, frothy coffee drinks, and air conditioning. But with college diploma in hand, it was time to put up or shut up. So with some ambivalence she arrives at the Peace Corps office—sporting her best safari chic attire —to casually look into the steps one might take if one were to become a global humanitarian, à la Angelina Jolie. But when Eve meets John, her dashing young Peace Corps recruiter, all her ambivalence flies out the window. She absolutely must join the Peace Corps—and win John's heart in the process. Off to Ecuador she goes and—after a year in the jungle—back to the States she runs, vowing to stay within easy reach of a decaf cappuccino for the rest of her days.
But life had other plans. Just as she's getting reacquainted with the joys of toilet paper, John gets a job with CARE, and Eve must decide if she’s up for life in another third-world outpost. Before you can say, "pass the malaria prophylaxis," the couple heads off to Uganda, and the fun really begins—if one can call having rats in your toilet fun. Fortunately, in Eve’s case one certainly can, because, to her, every experience is an adventure to be embraced, and these pages come alive with all of the alternatively poignant and uproarious details.
With wit and candor, First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria chronicles Eve’s misadventures as an aspiring do-gooder. From intestinal parasites to getting caught in a civil war, culture clashes to unexpected friendships, here is an honest and laugh-out-loud funny look at the search for love and purpose—from a woman who finds both in the last place she expected to find them.
Eve Brown always thought she would join the Peace Corps someday, although she secretly worried about life without sushi, frothy coffee drinks, and air conditioning. But with college diploma in hand, it was time to put up or shut up. So with some ambivalence she arrives at the Peace Corps office—sporting her best safari chic attire —to casually look into the steps one might take if one were to become a global humanitarian, à la Angelina Jolie. But when Eve meets John, her dashing young Peace Corps recruiter, all her ambivalence flies out the window. She absolutely must join the Peace Corps—and win John's heart in the process. Off to Ecuador she goes and—after a year in the jungle—back to the States she runs, vowing to stay within easy reach of a decaf cappuccino for the rest of her days.
But life had other plans. Just as she's getting reacquainted with the joys of toilet paper, John gets a job with CARE, and Eve must decide if she’s up for life in another third-world outpost. Before you can say, "pass the malaria prophylaxis," the couple heads off to Uganda, and the fun really begins—if one can call having rats in your toilet fun. Fortunately, in Eve’s case one certainly can, because, to her, every experience is an adventure to be embraced, and these pages come alive with all of the alternatively poignant and uproarious details.
With wit and candor, First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria chronicles Eve’s misadventures as an aspiring do-gooder. From intestinal parasites to getting caught in a civil war, culture clashes to unexpected friendships, here is an honest and laugh-out-loud funny look at the search for love and purpose—from a woman who finds both in the last place she expected to find them.
305 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
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2754 people want to read
About the author
Eve Brown-Waite
2 books35 followersEVE BROWN-WAITE was a finalist for Iowa Review, Glimmer Train, and New Millennium Writings Awards for stories she wrote about her time abroad. FIRST COMES LOVE, THEN COMES MALARIA (Broadway Books, April 2009) is her first book. She lives with her husband and two children in Massachusetts.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 271 reviews
July 2, 2011
I wanted to like this -- I really did. But I think the reason it took so long for me to finish reading this book was because Eve Brown-Waite seemed to be trying too hard to be charming and quirky -- like Carrie Bradshaw if she had followed some handsome do-gooder out to Uganda and married him.
But the thing is, Eve Brown-Waite is no Carrie Bradshaw -- though, some of the flightly, materialistic, whiney aspects of Carrie's character is on full display in this book.
I think the best travel memoirs give you a true sense of a place. When someone's so busy complaining about how difficult it is for them to be there and seems to gleefully document how much they've struggled to adapt there...well, it's hard to want to continue finishing the book.
If anything, she makes a pretty good case for how awful it is in Uganda and how she seems to deserve some sort of medal for surviving it.
I mean, you have to feel sorry for the poor thing! She has no domestic skills whatsoever! Of course she had to hire on several servants -- after all, that's what they do there. And wasn't she helping people out by hiring them to wash and clean and cook for her? After all, she must have been so busy, what with not having a job and complaining all the time.
I get the fact that Eve is a do-gooder at heart but the fact remains that, despite a short stint with the Peace Corps herself, this is really just the story of a girl who followed a boy to a Third World country. I would have really rather just read an account of the good work that her husband did while he was in Uganda, as opposed to the massive culture shock that Eve had to face when she was suddenly living without all the luxuries that she was so used to. What's more is, even though she establishes very early on that it's just what you do there -- hiring people to be your servants -- I very quickly got the sense that she was this spoiled rich person who sat about doing nothing all day and then being irritated over how "backwards" everything was.
It was like, "Oh, I was always being asked for money and I freely gave it out!" or "I was at the tennis club with my expat friends..."
Yes, she has a Masters degree, and yes, she tried to get a job, but ultimately, couldn't get one. (Not her fault, though. Nobody seemed to have a position readily available for her...but, in her own words, she became this "giver" of money, helping people out, so I guess she found something to do.)
The fact is, I just didn't really like Eve very much -- the more I read of her book, the more I thought, "I wouldn't get along with this woman or like her very much if I knew her in real life." In fact, a small part of me couldn't even understand what drew her husband to her. (Though, who can really understand what makes one person fall in love with the other?) I get why she was drawn to her husband, but not the other way around.
If anything, she came across as this whiney, self-indulgent, condescending brat.
I only finished this book because I have this insane urge to finish what I started...but now I'm beginning to think, "Why waste time with things you hate?"
But the thing is, Eve Brown-Waite is no Carrie Bradshaw -- though, some of the flightly, materialistic, whiney aspects of Carrie's character is on full display in this book.
I think the best travel memoirs give you a true sense of a place. When someone's so busy complaining about how difficult it is for them to be there and seems to gleefully document how much they've struggled to adapt there...well, it's hard to want to continue finishing the book.
If anything, she makes a pretty good case for how awful it is in Uganda and how she seems to deserve some sort of medal for surviving it.
I mean, you have to feel sorry for the poor thing! She has no domestic skills whatsoever! Of course she had to hire on several servants -- after all, that's what they do there. And wasn't she helping people out by hiring them to wash and clean and cook for her? After all, she must have been so busy, what with not having a job and complaining all the time.
I get the fact that Eve is a do-gooder at heart but the fact remains that, despite a short stint with the Peace Corps herself, this is really just the story of a girl who followed a boy to a Third World country. I would have really rather just read an account of the good work that her husband did while he was in Uganda, as opposed to the massive culture shock that Eve had to face when she was suddenly living without all the luxuries that she was so used to. What's more is, even though she establishes very early on that it's just what you do there -- hiring people to be your servants -- I very quickly got the sense that she was this spoiled rich person who sat about doing nothing all day and then being irritated over how "backwards" everything was.
It was like, "Oh, I was always being asked for money and I freely gave it out!" or "I was at the tennis club with my expat friends..."
Yes, she has a Masters degree, and yes, she tried to get a job, but ultimately, couldn't get one. (Not her fault, though. Nobody seemed to have a position readily available for her...but, in her own words, she became this "giver" of money, helping people out, so I guess she found something to do.)
The fact is, I just didn't really like Eve very much -- the more I read of her book, the more I thought, "I wouldn't get along with this woman or like her very much if I knew her in real life." In fact, a small part of me couldn't even understand what drew her husband to her. (Though, who can really understand what makes one person fall in love with the other?) I get why she was drawn to her husband, but not the other way around.
If anything, she came across as this whiney, self-indulgent, condescending brat.
I only finished this book because I have this insane urge to finish what I started...but now I'm beginning to think, "Why waste time with things you hate?"
April 19, 2010
Can I rate the first section five stars and the second section three? Being a RPCV (returned Peace Corps volunteer) and ex-"expat" myself, the book rang true. I laughed out loud about gamma globulin shots, weekly Newsweek magazines, host families that, with the best of intentions, will never leave you alone, scary staging in Miami, crazy water heaters, people going through your personal hygiene products trying to figure them out, etc. It was a fun, realistic look at the well-meaning, and often misguided efforts of the idealistic idiots that most of us were, or still are.
On the other hand, being an expat isn't really all that interesting beyond the point when life becomes routine. Eve, as is often the case, met some interesting fellow expats and figured out that hired help can get you through the challenges of working out survival techniques while helping the local economy. She also saw some interesting scenery and stressed about interesting governmental situations which I would have loved to learn more about. The motherhood issues got a bit dragged out for my taste, and the cast of characters got flat in the second section. I wish we'd learned more about her husband and his work, and I wish she'd come away with some deeper friendships with some of the people of Uganda.
Still, the book was enjoyable and money well spent.
On the other hand, being an expat isn't really all that interesting beyond the point when life becomes routine. Eve, as is often the case, met some interesting fellow expats and figured out that hired help can get you through the challenges of working out survival techniques while helping the local economy. She also saw some interesting scenery and stressed about interesting governmental situations which I would have loved to learn more about. The motherhood issues got a bit dragged out for my taste, and the cast of characters got flat in the second section. I wish we'd learned more about her husband and his work, and I wish she'd come away with some deeper friendships with some of the people of Uganda.
Still, the book was enjoyable and money well spent.
May 14, 2016
Usually I am much more tolerant, but I guess I make an exception for whiny princess drama queens who write books whose ultimate message is, "Look at me doing this! Look at me doing that!" Such was First Comes Love, then Comes Malaria: How a Peace Corps Poster Boy Won My Heart and a Third World Adventure Changed My Life by Eve Brown-Waite.
I undertook to read this book because of the chapters on Ecuador. The problem was that the author was in too much of a funk to try to understand the people and culture of Santa Domingo de los Colorados, where she was stationed as a Peace Corps volunteer.
Most of the book is set in Africa, where the author becomes pregnant and spends an excessive time describing the sounds her baby made and the various stages of illness (including malaria) in her life.
I suppose Eve Waite-Brown is uniquely qualified to be a suburban earth mother where she has ready access to all the Snapple and cottage cheese she craves. But next time, Eve, spare me the histrionics!
I undertook to read this book because of the chapters on Ecuador. The problem was that the author was in too much of a funk to try to understand the people and culture of Santa Domingo de los Colorados, where she was stationed as a Peace Corps volunteer.
Most of the book is set in Africa, where the author becomes pregnant and spends an excessive time describing the sounds her baby made and the various stages of illness (including malaria) in her life.
I suppose Eve Waite-Brown is uniquely qualified to be a suburban earth mother where she has ready access to all the Snapple and cottage cheese she craves. But next time, Eve, spare me the histrionics!
June 21, 2009
CARE and the Peace Corps do not have the same lifestyle as missionaries, but the confusion and frustrations of being plunged into a small town in a developing country are very similar. The fact is that negative events are much funnier to read about than pleasant ones, and Eve Brown-Waite’s misadventures in Ecuador and Uganda will have you laughing out loud whether you have ever been in a developing country or not. Those of us who have, will see ourselves and our friends in everything from making yogurt in a sleeping bag and coping with body odor to dreading good-byes and totally losing it in an American supermarket.
Brown-Waite’s account shows culture shock in both directions. If it doesn’t scare you off life overseas, it may prepare you for the realities with more insight than a field integration manual. Although in much of the book she is desperate to escape, by the end, as unrest escalates in the area, she is heartbroken to leave her friends and remove her “Ugandan” toddler from this supportive community.
Brown-Waite’s account shows culture shock in both directions. If it doesn’t scare you off life overseas, it may prepare you for the realities with more insight than a field integration manual. Although in much of the book she is desperate to escape, by the end, as unrest escalates in the area, she is heartbroken to leave her friends and remove her “Ugandan” toddler from this supportive community.
August 14, 2024
2.5. As a PCV in Uganda, I can confidently say that I would not be friends with the author if she was in my cohort and she’s the exact type of expat I avoid😭. The story follows Eve, a college grad who falls in love with her PC recruiter, goes to PC Ecuador, then ends up in Uganda working for CARE in Arua. This is gonna be a long one because I have some THOUGHTS
Let me start off by saying: she’s so real for the matooke hate
Firstly, I did find a lot of the PC and Uganda parts relatable. It was fun already knowing the PC lingo and what it’s like living in Uganda already. She’s in Uganda in the early 90s and it’s so crazy how some things still ring true today such as, Uganda being a country of waiting, higher ups not wanting to do things without bribes, being treated better solely from being white/a mzungu, and the overall chaotic beauty that is Uganda. Regarding PC, there’s not much difference in service then and service now, except of course more technology.
Now for the dislikes (the fun part). The book has so many cringy parts like no joke. I absolutely hate how ignorant Eve is. Yes I’m keeping in mind that this was the late 80s and early 90 and the author is coming from a upper middle class (maybe rich?) white New England family, so yes a different time but Jesus Christ. She dedicates whole sections to “Africans smelling terrible”….and to make matters worse she uses “Africans” bc I’m sure to her all of Africa might as well just be a singular country. She does this often.
SPECIFICALLY, as a Black American PCV in Uganda, the part where a Ugandan says something discriminatory (not racism) regarding another Ugandan, the author reports how she can’t wait to tell her Black friend back in America that “see Black people can be racist too”. Lmaooooo. That’s not a “gotcha moment”at all. It’s so funny because I know these are the type of conclusions many non-Black volunteers actually come to while in service, not understanding the nuance. Even comparing a colorist remark a Ugandan made regarding their own (spoiler colorism is a result of colonization) to the systematic racism in America is crazy. Insanity even.
She also didn’t seem to put any effort into actually integrating and immersing herself in the culture in Uganda. All she did in Uganda was seemingly play badminton with her expat friends, host and go to fancy dinners, fly from Arua to Kampala, lay in the kiddy pool, and complain complain complain. And look, adjusting to Uganda is HARD. I for sure have done my fair share of complaining, but it reaches a point where it becomes insufferable. But also like girl you bought a whole cappuccino machine where even was your head at.
I am glad that Eve was able to in the end really appreciate Uganda for what it has done for her. She finally was beginning to see the beauty and that part I appreciated, because it reminded me of my own service journey. Rocky start but amazing and fulfilling ending.
Overall, there were deff some interesting, relatable, and even funny parts (especially if you can get past the first 30-40 pages). I really do want to rate this a 3 but the dislikes were stronger than the likes.
Let me start off by saying: she’s so real for the matooke hate
Firstly, I did find a lot of the PC and Uganda parts relatable. It was fun already knowing the PC lingo and what it’s like living in Uganda already. She’s in Uganda in the early 90s and it’s so crazy how some things still ring true today such as, Uganda being a country of waiting, higher ups not wanting to do things without bribes, being treated better solely from being white/a mzungu, and the overall chaotic beauty that is Uganda. Regarding PC, there’s not much difference in service then and service now, except of course more technology.
Now for the dislikes (the fun part). The book has so many cringy parts like no joke. I absolutely hate how ignorant Eve is. Yes I’m keeping in mind that this was the late 80s and early 90 and the author is coming from a upper middle class (maybe rich?) white New England family, so yes a different time but Jesus Christ. She dedicates whole sections to “Africans smelling terrible”….and to make matters worse she uses “Africans” bc I’m sure to her all of Africa might as well just be a singular country. She does this often.
SPECIFICALLY, as a Black American PCV in Uganda, the part where a Ugandan says something discriminatory (not racism) regarding another Ugandan, the author reports how she can’t wait to tell her Black friend back in America that “see Black people can be racist too”. Lmaooooo. That’s not a “gotcha moment”at all. It’s so funny because I know these are the type of conclusions many non-Black volunteers actually come to while in service, not understanding the nuance. Even comparing a colorist remark a Ugandan made regarding their own (spoiler colorism is a result of colonization) to the systematic racism in America is crazy. Insanity even.
She also didn’t seem to put any effort into actually integrating and immersing herself in the culture in Uganda. All she did in Uganda was seemingly play badminton with her expat friends, host and go to fancy dinners, fly from Arua to Kampala, lay in the kiddy pool, and complain complain complain. And look, adjusting to Uganda is HARD. I for sure have done my fair share of complaining, but it reaches a point where it becomes insufferable. But also like girl you bought a whole cappuccino machine where even was your head at.
I am glad that Eve was able to in the end really appreciate Uganda for what it has done for her. She finally was beginning to see the beauty and that part I appreciated, because it reminded me of my own service journey. Rocky start but amazing and fulfilling ending.
Overall, there were deff some interesting, relatable, and even funny parts (especially if you can get past the first 30-40 pages). I really do want to rate this a 3 but the dislikes were stronger than the likes.
April 13, 2011
This memoir was really event based and not as thoughtful as I wanted it to be. The author describes major events in this sort of matter-of-fact way, but never provided the reflective commentary I wanted to get what the heck was going on. I thought that Eve was just a bundle of contradictions (which admittedly, everyone is) but she never took the time to really explain why she acted the way she did. I hate criticizing memoirs because the work that her and her husband do is really exciting and important... it just didn't make for the most gripping of plot lines.
On a side note, I really loved the cover design.
On a side note, I really loved the cover design.
August 24, 2009
If you can get past the first 30 pages of obnoxious whining, you'll find that the rest of the book is comprised of much more entertaining whining. Definitely a different book than I expected - mostly about the author's struggles with being an ex-pat in Uganda, trying to adjust to the environment, figure out the people, and maybe find meaningful work to do while she's there. Basically, the things I learned from this book:
1) Uganda is pretty, but I don't want to live there
2) Do-gooder, save-the-world people are great in theory, but if you marry one you'll end up eating termites
1) Uganda is pretty, but I don't want to live there
2) Do-gooder, save-the-world people are great in theory, but if you marry one you'll end up eating termites
January 8, 2009
The cover and title are misleading. This book is more culturally sensitive and aware than I expected. Detailed description of culture shock and adaptation make the book worth reading. The author does not spend much time describing the places or cultures she interacts with. But she is refreshingly honest about her reactions to the disorientation and frustration of dealing with a totally unfamiliar culture and the addictive qualities of "aid" work.
December 16, 2011
As someone who's about to become a Peace Corps volunteer I read this book in order to get another perspective on what it is like to serve. The book is split into two parts-- when she's a Peace Corps volunteer in Ecuador, and then when she is in Uganda with her husband when he is working for CARE. It's almost like 2 different books, and one gets the sense that she is rushing through the first part of the story just to get to the second. The whole premise of her falling in love with her Peace Corps recruiter is preposterous and fairly unbelievable to anyone who has been through the process. You never get the sense of why she is so madly in love with him, nor do you get why he falls for her. I mean, it's a pretty big deal that he quits his job and spends the summer living with her in Ecuador (are volunteers really allowed to have someone shack up with them for a summer?) And you'd think it would be really frowned upon for a recruiter to date a potential volunteer, plus why would he start dating someone that he obviously knows is leaving for 2 years? The whole romantic aspect is just not believable to the reader. The other part that wasn't treated well was her early termination of service. She vaguely talks about panic attacks, but I think she gives it all of 2 pages from when the panic attacks start to when she says "I quit". For such a monumental decision, she doesn't offer it much gravitas, and it forces the reader to think that she just quit early so she could go back to her pseudo-boyfriend-- even if that's not the case, her treatment of that episode just makes it seem that way.
Her writing style is conversational and the epistolary element at the end of each chapter adds a nice, different dimension to each chapter, but oh my god does the "I'll keep you posted.." ending to each letter get irritating! (Who signs a letter that way?)
A lot of readers find her whiny and irritating in her unrealistic expectations of life in rural Uganda-- as someone who served as a Peace Corps volunteer you'd think she'd be a little bit better prepared to do without western luxuries. Ultimately I did empathize with her, especially during her incredibly difficult pregnancy, but on the whole I was not able to be pulled in enough to really identify with her.
Her writing style is conversational and the epistolary element at the end of each chapter adds a nice, different dimension to each chapter, but oh my god does the "I'll keep you posted.." ending to each letter get irritating! (Who signs a letter that way?)
A lot of readers find her whiny and irritating in her unrealistic expectations of life in rural Uganda-- as someone who served as a Peace Corps volunteer you'd think she'd be a little bit better prepared to do without western luxuries. Ultimately I did empathize with her, especially during her incredibly difficult pregnancy, but on the whole I was not able to be pulled in enough to really identify with her.
March 3, 2012
This book is in the same vein as Maartin Troost's "Sex Lives of Cannibals" and "Getting Stoned with Savages." The book follows Eve from her post-college Peace Corp experience in South America, to Uganda with her husband and eventually baby via CARE.
To me, it just didn't live up the standards of Troost's books. I never really felt like I understood what day to day living was like there. People and situations seem to pop in and out throughout the book with the sense that they've been there all along but you haven't been hearing about them. For example, we didn't get a sense of what the wildlife around them was like until about 150 pages in, and even then it's only mentioned once, there's a whole chapter on bringing the cats to Uganda from the US and then they're only mentioned a couple more times throughout the book, and at the end when she's saying goodbye to everyone there were several people whose names I knew I'd seen but I couldn't remember exactly who they were, what role they'd played in her life, and why she was so distraught over leaving them. Now I'm not saying I'd want to read 100+ pages on housecats in Uganda, but a little bit of flow and continuity would have been nice. Sometimes it just felt like she forgot that we couldn't see through her eyes and know what was going on from day to day.
This was a perfectly fun book with some definite laugh out loud moments. But like I said, I read Troost's books first, and his just feel more effortlessly informative and funny.
To me, it just didn't live up the standards of Troost's books. I never really felt like I understood what day to day living was like there. People and situations seem to pop in and out throughout the book with the sense that they've been there all along but you haven't been hearing about them. For example, we didn't get a sense of what the wildlife around them was like until about 150 pages in, and even then it's only mentioned once, there's a whole chapter on bringing the cats to Uganda from the US and then they're only mentioned a couple more times throughout the book, and at the end when she's saying goodbye to everyone there were several people whose names I knew I'd seen but I couldn't remember exactly who they were, what role they'd played in her life, and why she was so distraught over leaving them. Now I'm not saying I'd want to read 100+ pages on housecats in Uganda, but a little bit of flow and continuity would have been nice. Sometimes it just felt like she forgot that we couldn't see through her eyes and know what was going on from day to day.
This was a perfectly fun book with some definite laugh out loud moments. But like I said, I read Troost's books first, and his just feel more effortlessly informative and funny.
April 21, 2009
This book was worth the what? This book was worth the wait! I'm pretending that I've known for twenty years that this book was going to be written...which I did not know, and also, when I did become aware of it's existence I think maybe a week passed before I had it in hand. and then I couldn't put it down. I think eve brown-waite waited the exact right amount of time to get her experiences in Ecuador and Uganda down on paper for the public. The story developed beautifully as she effortlessly told her story of being uncomfortably an outsider in bewildering cultures to being comfortably an outsider. Her style is frank and honest and funny, capturing the voices of friends and family...I particularly liked her mother and Adam. I really hope she is planning to write about her husband's next assignment too...although I realize she'll be wiser adjusting to a new culture but Uzbekistan is surely a fascinating place that eve brown-waite will describe with her singular sense of humor. I also really hope that she has returned to Uganda, or plans to, and finds her people in Arua...and writes about it for us. The only gripe I have about her book is the missing photographs....I'd really like to see what Arua looks like, what the market looked like, what the compounds looked like, what her friends and househelp looked like, and definitely what her hot pink pants from the dead mzungu market looked like.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 23, 2022
“I came to Uganda totally unprepared for life in Africa; in many ways, unprepared for life in general. I had been taught by her and tamed by her. I’d fallen into—and out of—love with this place so many times, I’d lost track. I knew in the end, I hadn’t changed Uganda one bit. But she had fundamentally changed me. And like malaria, Uganda would live forever in my blood.”
-Eve Brown-Waite, “First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria”
To be honest, almost every place touched, is like this, no? Well said.
Nevertheless, what a gorgeous country, culture, language, foods, and such beautiful people. Uganda & Ugandans.
-Eve Brown-Waite, “First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria”
To be honest, almost every place touched, is like this, no? Well said.
Nevertheless, what a gorgeous country, culture, language, foods, and such beautiful people. Uganda & Ugandans.
January 20, 2018
Intriguing read about life as an Expat
Loved this book about life as Peace Corp volunteer and expat in Uganda. The writer interspersed letters she wrote during those years which were interesting. It kept my interest to hear how she matured and learned about other ways of life!
Loved this book about life as Peace Corp volunteer and expat in Uganda. The writer interspersed letters she wrote during those years which were interesting. It kept my interest to hear how she matured and learned about other ways of life!
May 28, 2020
At first I was not sure if I would love this book (the main character Eve is a bit whiny), but living life with Eve in the second half of the book as she lived in Africa was a funny, interesting, heart-warming adventure and it brought back great memories of my recent mission trip to Senegal.
December 9, 2020
If you want an in depth story of what it is like to be in the Peace Corps this really isn't the book for that. But the story, her adventures and her humorous way of telling it made it an enjoyable read.
July 18, 2020
Better and slightly less problematic than I anticipated. The first part was the best, second part was still pretty good and then the third pard was kinda meh. But I derived some joy from this book overall.
December 19, 2016
I stuck with this book, hoping the author's perspective would develop beyond the "Great White Saviour" attitude displayed in her early Peace Corps days. Surely living for a few years in Uganda would bring about a deeper understanding of the harmful impact of forces of colonialism and globalization? Unfortunately this does not seem to be the case. While seeming self-conscious and conflicted about her expat ladies-who-lunch lifestyle, she appears to have made little effort to genuinely understand the local culture.
Twice she gleefully points out prejudiced comments by Ugandans, saying that she cannot wait to relay these stories to her black friend at home in the US (ouch). This friend had made a comment that I interpreted to be about structural racism in America, but which the author seems to have understood as meaning that black people can never exhibit bias. Similarly she makes a flippant remark that implies that the Lugbara language was simplistic and nonsensical given that it was purely oral, a common and arrogant misconception that inaccurately conflates writing with linguistic complexity. She marvels that the local women running stalls at the market where she shops know her name and details about her life, while she knows nothing about them. This says much about her lack of effort to get to know them as more than a faceless mass of "Africans." (She uses the generic "African" to describe words and customs that are specific to the region she lived in.)
Brown-Waite heaps scorn on Ugandans (more than once describing the country as "a corner of hell") for their fatalistic attitudes - if only they displayed the "can do" spirit of Americans, all would be well! - and traditional beliefs about HIV/AIDS that contradict scientific evidence. If she'd made more of an effort to understand why people have a different outlook on life or different attitudes about personal agency (how might these beliefs work in the context of this culture and the history of this place?), she might have displayed more humility. Similarly, successful public health workers operate respectfully within the the worldviews and beliefs of communities rather than simply contradicting them and chastising them for not seeing the light. People living overseas often come to new realizations of the absurdities and contradictions of their own home cultures - but this type of perspective never seems to dawn on her.
The saddest part of this whole book for me was how well-intentioned she generally was. She comes across as someone who genuinely wished to help others, wanted to get to know other parts of the world, and believed herself to be open-minded. So many writers have eloquently made the case that that overseas aid often does more harm than good, and this book inadvertently sheds some light on why this may be.
Twice she gleefully points out prejudiced comments by Ugandans, saying that she cannot wait to relay these stories to her black friend at home in the US (ouch). This friend had made a comment that I interpreted to be about structural racism in America, but which the author seems to have understood as meaning that black people can never exhibit bias. Similarly she makes a flippant remark that implies that the Lugbara language was simplistic and nonsensical given that it was purely oral, a common and arrogant misconception that inaccurately conflates writing with linguistic complexity. She marvels that the local women running stalls at the market where she shops know her name and details about her life, while she knows nothing about them. This says much about her lack of effort to get to know them as more than a faceless mass of "Africans." (She uses the generic "African" to describe words and customs that are specific to the region she lived in.)
Brown-Waite heaps scorn on Ugandans (more than once describing the country as "a corner of hell") for their fatalistic attitudes - if only they displayed the "can do" spirit of Americans, all would be well! - and traditional beliefs about HIV/AIDS that contradict scientific evidence. If she'd made more of an effort to understand why people have a different outlook on life or different attitudes about personal agency (how might these beliefs work in the context of this culture and the history of this place?), she might have displayed more humility. Similarly, successful public health workers operate respectfully within the the worldviews and beliefs of communities rather than simply contradicting them and chastising them for not seeing the light. People living overseas often come to new realizations of the absurdities and contradictions of their own home cultures - but this type of perspective never seems to dawn on her.
The saddest part of this whole book for me was how well-intentioned she generally was. She comes across as someone who genuinely wished to help others, wanted to get to know other parts of the world, and believed herself to be open-minded. So many writers have eloquently made the case that that overseas aid often does more harm than good, and this book inadvertently sheds some light on why this may be.
April 22, 2014
This was a great book. It was honest if even slightly exaggerated and as a result was an enjoyable reading experience. I love to read travelogues and learn about other people's experiences. This may be because I cannot afford to travel, but there is a steady stream of reading material available to me. I utilize my public library quite frequently and buy books whenever I have extra money. Do I have a personal inkling to visit either Ecuador or Uganda, probably not in this lifetime, but it was fun to read about a very non-domestic person setting up housekeeping in the third world. Unfortunately, Eve Brown-Waite was not able to set up housekeeping in her native New York City, either. Maybe it was best for her to be an ex-pat in an extremely poor country. In this manner she could learn the skills that were not inherit in her very nature without all of the criticisms of the first world. Hey! She gets to learn to make homemade yogurt. I cannot do that.
Okay this story is not without flaws, but then again what human being is without her flaws? This very personal story admits to the reader that Ms. Brown-Waite is a deeply flawed, at times whiny individual. The book starts with her Peace Corps experience which did not end happily, but allowed her to seek professional help and have a lasting relationship with the man she married and went to Uganda with. Through a series of mishaps she learns domesticity and unconditional love albeit in a war zone. After all we are all just surviving. The people she meets are amazing and she is open to let them teach her the knowledge she does not possess.
Okay this story is not without flaws, but then again what human being is without her flaws? This very personal story admits to the reader that Ms. Brown-Waite is a deeply flawed, at times whiny individual. The book starts with her Peace Corps experience which did not end happily, but allowed her to seek professional help and have a lasting relationship with the man she married and went to Uganda with. Through a series of mishaps she learns domesticity and unconditional love albeit in a war zone. After all we are all just surviving. The people she meets are amazing and she is open to let them teach her the knowledge she does not possess.
October 5, 2011
This book was good, but dated. Hello, right up my ally! For the most part I liked it, but I am going to say the big thing that I didn't like. It tried to jam too much into a short book. I wish the author had written like two books, one about her time in the Peace Corp and maybe her courtship with her husband and then another book about their time in Africa. Instead, it was jammed into one, kind of short, book. And in doing that, lots of detail was left out. And it's the details I would have liked! Oy, what can you do. It's not my story to tell.
Girl finishes school, had no idea what to do, works a bit and then joins the Peace Corp, but not before falling for her recruitment officer. They have a relationship before she is shipped off to South America for 2 years. She lasts 9 months before coming home, which apparently is quite common. She picks up her relationship again, they marry and then Boy gets a job in Africa and they settle there. Their time in Africa is like half the book. So imagine how rushed all that first part is! She writes about her life in Africa, her getting a job, being pregnant, having a kid and then coming back to the US, which is where the book ends. Oh yeah, and all this takes place in the late 80's, early 90's!
The pace was the biggest issue I had with this book. The whole story was jammed into like 300 pages, which is a good length of a book for me, but not for this entire story! I felt too much was left out. Okay, I'll get over it. Otherwise, I liked this book. Different places, different people, different cultures. A decent read.
Girl finishes school, had no idea what to do, works a bit and then joins the Peace Corp, but not before falling for her recruitment officer. They have a relationship before she is shipped off to South America for 2 years. She lasts 9 months before coming home, which apparently is quite common. She picks up her relationship again, they marry and then Boy gets a job in Africa and they settle there. Their time in Africa is like half the book. So imagine how rushed all that first part is! She writes about her life in Africa, her getting a job, being pregnant, having a kid and then coming back to the US, which is where the book ends. Oh yeah, and all this takes place in the late 80's, early 90's!
The pace was the biggest issue I had with this book. The whole story was jammed into like 300 pages, which is a good length of a book for me, but not for this entire story! I felt too much was left out. Okay, I'll get over it. Otherwise, I liked this book. Different places, different people, different cultures. A decent read.
June 12, 2011
This was a fast enjoyable read. Eve's story illustrates that perhaps the biggest impact of The Peace Corps is the change in world view the Peace Corps volunteers come home with.
Her description of the teaching session in which she learned which cuts of beef were the ones she should choose in the open air market was wonderful. The ones with flies on them were the ones to pick, the one looking clean and tasty had to have been sprayed with pesticides. It reminded me of the pig faces that were hanging in the market in Managua,Nicaragua when we were there many years ago.
I also strongly related to her description of being over whelmed with all the choices on the store shelves when she returned home. Hopefully returned Peace Corps volunteers are somehow able to retain the value of keeping it simple when they reintegrate into our world of way too many unnecessary options.
Her description of the teaching session in which she learned which cuts of beef were the ones she should choose in the open air market was wonderful. The ones with flies on them were the ones to pick, the one looking clean and tasty had to have been sprayed with pesticides. It reminded me of the pig faces that were hanging in the market in Managua,Nicaragua when we were there many years ago.
I also strongly related to her description of being over whelmed with all the choices on the store shelves when she returned home. Hopefully returned Peace Corps volunteers are somehow able to retain the value of keeping it simple when they reintegrate into our world of way too many unnecessary options.
May 28, 2009
I loved this book. It wasn't deep and profound, and I don't really read books for escape, but that's what it was. It was the exact dream I'd once had for my own life that I will never be able to fulfill so for once I see it as an "escape" even though usually books inspire me how to live rather than dream.
It was a quick read and full of good stories, I could see myself in the author's shoes, being full of desire for adventure and then not knowing how to do anything and feeling intimidated and overwhelmed with the learning curve in a third world country. But I loved how she became the one who helped newcomers to the area and how her baby grew up among all those different influences.
It was a quick read and full of good stories, I could see myself in the author's shoes, being full of desire for adventure and then not knowing how to do anything and feeling intimidated and overwhelmed with the learning curve in a third world country. But I loved how she became the one who helped newcomers to the area and how her baby grew up among all those different influences.
November 13, 2017
This was a lot of fun. The author occasionally seems a little whiny, especially at the first when she thinks she wants to go in the Peace Corps, suddenly falls in love with her recruiter, and then endlessly agonizes about going or not, because she wants to stay with him. I get the idea she was a bit clingy at first. :-) But once she is in Ecuador, the laugh-out-louds begin and reading about her good and bad times through Ecuador, then further education, marriage, and a posting in Uganda--very enjoyable reading.
April 29, 2011
A pretty quick and light read. Funny and full of interesting cultural information.
August 19, 2018
This book was entertaining although not completely what I was expecting.
Although I would like to say that i deeply respect the authors honesty about her experiences, which can sometimes be difficult to express.
At first I was frustrated because Eve expresses some optinions that I disagree with and acted differently than I would have under the circumstances in Africa. One thing that I disliked was her attitude towards the institutions in place, for instance, she criticizes the systems for being slow and not accomplishing much without delving further into the political and economic history and circumstance (which i feel she only touched on). She sometimes even calls the place "her corner of hell" even though she comes to love it. But i am much more like John, adapting to the places i go effortlessly, which is a useful skill. I would want to spend all my time with the local people, learning their language and discussing their lives... No shock there. But sure paints the picture of spending all this time with other expats playing tennis and sitting in a kitty pool. She spends more time writing about her children and how much she misses cottage cheese than she does discussing the cultuur of Uganda. So at first I wrote her off as a prissy elitist.
But i gave her a break in regards to her attitudes towards the country. I thought about my travels and realized that i, too, have been frustrated by Japanese people, culture, and institutions. And not everyone wants to be a freaking anthropologist. She told us about her experiences and she was brave enough to be honest about her negative feelings. Sometimes you want to pretend like you effortlessly did something impressive, or like you fit in perfectly, or your past is tinted idealisticly once you leave a place... Im guilty of this. But she was always going to be an outsider, like me in japan, and that's no reason not to completely adapt the culture... But sometimes when you know your time is limited and you don't mesh entirely with a culture, then you might not want to, like Z. But a place always stays with you and it was interesting to read about the country in its history.
Also im really jealous about John and i want this kind of love story. It's the main reason i didn't text that guy back. That and I realized I'm hella not ready for something serious and I'm not making dating decisions based on boredom or lonliness anymore. But i hope one day when im like 40 i can also have an epic romance. I know she was my age when she got married but we live in a different age now and none of my epic wishes for romance include marriage children or malaria right now. I don't think I'll ever budge on the last one.
Eve just wasn't my kind if person.
The first part was pretty interesting though. About the peace corps.
I dont think I'll be joining anytime soon. But i liked the info.
I felt really bad about her trauma there. Honestly thats one of the things i was worried about when i was in psyc, accidentally digging up some kind of trauma i didnt know i had.
Although I would like to say that i deeply respect the authors honesty about her experiences, which can sometimes be difficult to express.
At first I was frustrated because Eve expresses some optinions that I disagree with and acted differently than I would have under the circumstances in Africa. One thing that I disliked was her attitude towards the institutions in place, for instance, she criticizes the systems for being slow and not accomplishing much without delving further into the political and economic history and circumstance (which i feel she only touched on). She sometimes even calls the place "her corner of hell" even though she comes to love it. But i am much more like John, adapting to the places i go effortlessly, which is a useful skill. I would want to spend all my time with the local people, learning their language and discussing their lives... No shock there. But sure paints the picture of spending all this time with other expats playing tennis and sitting in a kitty pool. She spends more time writing about her children and how much she misses cottage cheese than she does discussing the cultuur of Uganda. So at first I wrote her off as a prissy elitist.
But i gave her a break in regards to her attitudes towards the country. I thought about my travels and realized that i, too, have been frustrated by Japanese people, culture, and institutions. And not everyone wants to be a freaking anthropologist. She told us about her experiences and she was brave enough to be honest about her negative feelings. Sometimes you want to pretend like you effortlessly did something impressive, or like you fit in perfectly, or your past is tinted idealisticly once you leave a place... Im guilty of this. But she was always going to be an outsider, like me in japan, and that's no reason not to completely adapt the culture... But sometimes when you know your time is limited and you don't mesh entirely with a culture, then you might not want to, like Z. But a place always stays with you and it was interesting to read about the country in its history.
Also im really jealous about John and i want this kind of love story. It's the main reason i didn't text that guy back. That and I realized I'm hella not ready for something serious and I'm not making dating decisions based on boredom or lonliness anymore. But i hope one day when im like 40 i can also have an epic romance. I know she was my age when she got married but we live in a different age now and none of my epic wishes for romance include marriage children or malaria right now. I don't think I'll ever budge on the last one.
Eve just wasn't my kind if person.
The first part was pretty interesting though. About the peace corps.
I dont think I'll be joining anytime soon. But i liked the info.
I felt really bad about her trauma there. Honestly thats one of the things i was worried about when i was in psyc, accidentally digging up some kind of trauma i didnt know i had.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2017
For years, Eve had talked about serving with Peace Corps. After college, she decided it was time to follow-through with what she’d said. During the recruitment process, she fell in love with her recruiter and in spite of not wanting to leave, followed through with her assignment in Ecuador. Unfortunately, personal issues cut short the time she spent there. After returning to the States and marrying John, he accepted an assignment with CARE in Uganda. The majority of the book is their experiences there.
One of the reviews on the back cover calls this "laugh out loud funny". I suppose we have different senses of humor because while I smiled at some things, I wasn't laughing. I commend her for being open about the events in Ecuador that uncovered the abuse in her past to enable her to find help and healing. At times I got frustrated with her whiny-privileged mindset. But now I can look back and see that some of that was necessary in the early parts in order for the change at the end to show her own development.
One of the reviews on the back cover calls this "laugh out loud funny". I suppose we have different senses of humor because while I smiled at some things, I wasn't laughing. I commend her for being open about the events in Ecuador that uncovered the abuse in her past to enable her to find help and healing. At times I got frustrated with her whiny-privileged mindset. But now I can look back and see that some of that was necessary in the early parts in order for the change at the end to show her own development.
November 25, 2020
Well, I wanted to like this book more because I really enjoyed Eve. I did really enjoyed the first part in Ecuador and the beginning of her time in Africa. I was hooked for a while. I loved her sarcasm and even her complaints were funny and not distracting for me. However, I really did not enjoy her husband. I was shocked when she asked to go home during her first pretty complicated pregnancy that he basically guilted her into staying. Even after the cluster of trying to get a pregnancy diagnosis. During the civil unrest, her husband had the attitude of “this is fine,” and all but ignored her desire to leave. I felt that he often helped everyone around him except his wife.
At the end of the day, it’s a story about a woman that follows a man for love. Those stories are a bit dated and I could do without.
If you’re looking for something funny and about living in Ecuador and Africa, be my guest and check it out. If you can ignore the blatant white saviorism then you’ll be fine and enjoy it probably more than me.
At the end of the day, it’s a story about a woman that follows a man for love. Those stories are a bit dated and I could do without.
If you’re looking for something funny and about living in Ecuador and Africa, be my guest and check it out. If you can ignore the blatant white saviorism then you’ll be fine and enjoy it probably more than me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2018
This is one of those hidden gems that is both educational and entertaining at the same time. First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria is Eve Brown-Waite's personal memoir of her time spent in the Peace Corps in Ecuador, and then later two years in Uganda when her husband took a job there with CARE.
Eve first meets her husband John when interviewing for the Peace Corps - he's her recruiter. I have to admit I had reservations about this book right away. Eve's narrative about the guy she falls head over heels for seemed so corny, I thought I had picked up a work of teenage chick-lit. But it wasn't long before I settled in an enjoyed myself. Eve's self-deprecating humor had me laughing along with her, and the descriptions of her third world experiences were just as horrifying to me as they were to her. Well, maybe not - after all she had to live them, and I only had to read about them. At any rate the book was great fun and very interesting. 3 1/2 stars.
Eve first meets her husband John when interviewing for the Peace Corps - he's her recruiter. I have to admit I had reservations about this book right away. Eve's narrative about the guy she falls head over heels for seemed so corny, I thought I had picked up a work of teenage chick-lit. But it wasn't long before I settled in an enjoyed myself. Eve's self-deprecating humor had me laughing along with her, and the descriptions of her third world experiences were just as horrifying to me as they were to her. Well, maybe not - after all she had to live them, and I only had to read about them. At any rate the book was great fun and very interesting. 3 1/2 stars.
April 27, 2020
I liked this book well enough, because it was honest and funny and the author, Eve Brown-Waite, didn't try to hide her true feelings about her "third world adventures". Thankfully this book lacked the insufferable preachy tone that so many Western writers traveling in developing countries adopt. For me, the most interesting part was about their 2.5 years in Uganda. I knew literally nothing about this country and it was interesting to learn about the locals' mentality and some details of their everyday lives, even though the story is now quite dated having happened in 1994. It's also quite fascinating how the expats coped without the modern conveniences that previously were part of their lives (having plenty of local "help", it doesn't look like they suffered too much though). It's too bad that there isn't part 2 describing Eve's and her family's life in Uzbekistan where they went after Uganda.
December 12, 2017
I wanted to read this book because the author served as a Peace Corp volunteer in Ecuador in the 80's. She stayed only about three months due to her reaction to another female volunteer being raped. My son is an anthropologist in Ecuador so I told him about the book, and he feels that female scientists and volunteers still have this same problem to be concerned about.
Most of this books was about the author's time spent in Uganda with her husband who worked for the Care Organization. She admits to being a whiner, and this came across strongly in the book, but I think she did this to make the book humorous. Interesting, but I would probably have enjoyed it more with a little less whining.
Most of this books was about the author's time spent in Uganda with her husband who worked for the Care Organization. She admits to being a whiner, and this came across strongly in the book, but I think she did this to make the book humorous. Interesting, but I would probably have enjoyed it more with a little less whining.
June 14, 2017
In my younger days I thought I would be a Peace Corps volunteer. After reading this book I know I would not have lasted. Eve's first "adventure" is in Ecuador where she spends many hours moaning about the man she left behind in the States - her recruiter, John. I was surprised to learn that the volunteers define their own mission. I had assumed that you were added to a project already underway. Eventually, Eve ends up in Uganda as part of CARE. There are very different challenges in Africa and Eve tries to find her purpose among the peoples of a culture that is completely alien to Americans. This book was a very interesting read written in a breezy style.
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