Customer Reviews

Two Years in the Kingdom: The Adventures of an American Peace Corps Volunteer in Northeast Thailand

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I read this book before it was published and for sale on the internet...back when I was living in PaKham myself. I found this book really entertaining from the perspective that I was living in the same town, meeting the same people, and having some of the same experiences.
PaKham is one of the littlest known places in Thailand, but to me it will always be home. The book is very honest and humorous. It's a nice perspective on living in Thailand in a rural village in the poorest region of the country. There are good sections on the political history of the area (which is briefly mentioned in Lonely Planet...we had the monk that ordained a forest in order to save it from being harvested), information on ghosts and superstition (a big part of life in Essan and a favorite chapter of mine), plus Thai idioms and language (that are always useful when trying to impress your Thai friends).
I recommend this book to anyone thinking of living in Thailand, especially doing the volunteer life, and anyone thinking of travelling there as well (for more than 2 days that is). Or if you're just interested in travel writing.

As someone who has lived in Thailand, I can see what the author is trying to describe in this book, but am not sure that it always works. I didn't get a vivid picture of the place or food or smells. As I'm interested in the topic, I'd still pick it up to read it and certainly enjoyed parts of it, but I think it suffers from a lack of professional editing (being a self-published book).

I think the author made an error in deciding to not write about his first three months in the country (those familiar with the Peace Corps will know that the first three months is training and a homestay with a local family). He describes it as being a 'whole other story', but I think it would have been good for readers to see it - the first three months would have so many new experiences and impressions. The book has a number of pieces that aren't well integrated or linked to the rest of the book, including the section on the forest monk and the two 'essays' at the back of the book - the author admits he is not sure how to fit them in with the rest of the book. Also, there are a couple of places where the author makes lists (different kinds of Thai ghosts, different sorts of edible insects) and I didn't find it an interesting way of presenting the information.

There is little sense of why the author decided to join the Peace Corps and how he views his time in retrospect. Some story threads are just left hanging, we never find out what happened between him and his Thai girlfriend in the end.

Sorry, I should clarify the earlier review (from Anonymous, Melbourne, Australia) - you do find out what happens in the end with his girlfriend etc, but it is very much a summing up, you don't feel or see what happens. And this is hidden at the back of the book after the essays which don't fit into the story.