Santiago's Children: What I Learned about Life at an Orphanage in Chile (Paperback)

by Steve Reifenberg (Author), Paul Farmer (Foreword)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"This book is a gem and offers a wonderful roadmap for students of any age who are thinking about engaging in a complicated world. It should make its way to every university career counselling office." Abraham F. Lowenthal, Professor of International Relations, University of Southern California

Review
This book is a gem and offers a wonderful roadmap for students of any age who are thinking about engaging in a complicated world. It should make its way to every university career counseling office across the country. (Abraham F. Lowenthal, Professor of International Relations, University of Southern California )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: University of Texas Press (April 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0292717423
• ISBN-13: 978-0292717428
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #231,711 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully Insightful Book, July 24, 2008

By	D. Shulman - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Reifenberg does a fantastic job with this memoir. The stories of the orphans he works with are engrossing, and his own story is quite interesting to follow as well. He also writes about the brutal dictatorship in Chile which is very much tied to why his orphanage is so important. I would highly recommend this book, especially for people who are interested in international service.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful book, July 11, 2008

By	KP (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

I read Santiago's Children after returning from a long-term volunteer placement in Latin America, and was thoroughly impressed. This book provides an unusually realistic account of volunteer work in a developing country. Although Steve Reifenberg occasionally sees dramatic results, he also learns to appreciate slow changes and small-scale victories in the lives of the children with whom he works. He depicts Chileans responding to political oppression not with heroic displays, but with quiet acts of kindness, courage, and generosity.

Fortunately, you don't have to be an international traveler to enjoy this well written and engaging story. Its protagonist, the young Steve Reifenberg, is a complex, down-to-earth, and entirely likeable character. Steve offers honest, self-deprecating accounts of his successes and failures, enthusiasm and frustration. His love for the people and places he discovers, and especially for the children of Hogar Domingo Savio, is apparent in every anecdote. He comes away from his experience in Santiago with a universally useful lesson: "I learned to believe that maybe it was not a bad thing to have big dreams, even if sometimes they fell short."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read autobiography, July 10, 2008

By	Florence Kehrer (Geneva, Switzerland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I read Santiago's children coming from two places :

First as an avid reader of autobiographies. This one will remain a gem in my memories. It is seldom that one finds a life story so well written, funny, terribly moving, sad, authentic and yet so humble. Reifenberg takes you from the first chapter to the very last page through numerous simple - yet incredible - everyday life stories in Chile. This book combines epics from the childhood of Chilean orphans, their wonderful "mama", Chilean history and includes Reifenberg's own story in the background. I roared with laughter, was moved to tears, even sobbed and did not want this unforgettable book to finish. A must read for anyone !

Secondly relating to the book as a career counselor. I wish that the choices my clients made could often take this path of self-reflection, as long, thorough and difficult as it may be. But where in the end one senses that the person has found his or her core values, the ones that will enable them a fulfilling career and life. Reifenberg seems to have set the ground for a lifelong self-understanding and calling during those two years in Chile.