Happy Isles of Oceania Paddling The [Hardcover]

Paul Theroux (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 14, 1992

This travel book follows Paul Theroux's explorations of Micronesia and Polynesia by canoe.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 560 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam~trade; 1ST edition (September 14, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0241131847
• ISBN-13: 978-0241131848
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,081,997 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #17 in Books > Travel > Australia & South Pacific > Micronesia

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't go there!, July 21, 2005

By 

James Ashley Shea - See all my reviews

This review is from: Happy Isles of Oceania Paddling The (Hardcover)

In 1980 I proofread a magazine excerpt of a Paul Theroux book. It began with his getting up early to catch a train from Boston to begin a journey to Patagonia. Who cares how early this bloody New Englander had to get up or what he had for breakfast? I'd thought Patagonia was a mythical country. I guarantee you it wasn't in my geography book. Turns out it's part of Argentina. Big deal.

But the guy is a real writer. In The Happy Isles, he recounts the tale of how he brought a folding boat, about the size of a big suitcase, to every Pacific island you've ever dreamed about and paddled around them all. Forget those islands -- Theroux says they are mostly full of lazy, suspicious people who stuff themselves with imported junk food. Some are Christian religious fanatics, some are vicious pagans, and some are both.

The first two chapters are on New Zealand, and I imagine those folks would shoot Theroux on sight if he had the temerity to return. He was not complimentary.

Theroux is not Mr. Sweetness and Light, but that's all the more enjoyable as he demolishes the images of tropical paradises, whether in Meganesia, Melanesia, Polynesia, or Hawaii. Stay home! Stay home, pour a Mai Tai, and enjoy this delightful putdown.