Michael Ngusa Ngusa من عند 33692 Güelles, Asturias, إسبانيا
This is a seriously great and unique book. If you are interested in adoption, international travel, or Latin American culture, this will be a book to enjoy. Mamalita offered unique insight into the increasingly controversial practice of international adoption. The author is exceedingly brave in being extremely open about her adoption experience. She wasn't afraid to air some unflattering information about herself. If you love the complicated and fascinating country of Guatemala, you will also love this book. You'll love traveling around with the author to Tikal, Atitlan, and Antigua. Her insight into political and racial relations in Guatamala is interesting and accurate. In the end it's a touching story about a woman willing to do anything for her daughter. The final pages left me in tears.
I'll be honest. When I first picked this up, I was intrigued but not overwhelmingly excited about reading it. And then I started. Within seconds, I was hooked. The protagonist's name is Thomas Thomson, which immediately sets up a tone of whimsy and sort of naivety, which is exactly how the protagonist portrays himself. All one needs to know is Mr. Thomson was the ghostwriter of a ghostwriter of a ghostwriter and that leads him to a position working for a barrister writing the story of a prisoner awaiting trial. Throughout the course of the story, the reader begins to wonder who is telling the truth and questioning the outrageousness of the story the prisoner tells and Mr. Thomson relays. By the time I reached the middle of the book, I was completely absorbed in the story taking place both in the Congo and England. Strangely enough, Mr. Thomson's story evokes a bit of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness - whether or not that was intentional, I do not know, but I certainly saw some parallels. All in all, I was completely absorbed by this book. Upon completion, I put it down and simply sat there, digesting everything I had read. It's rare that I experience that sort of "Wow" moment, but Pandora in the Congo certainly does that much and more. I'm surprised it's not all over the New York Times Best Seller list - though I look forward to reading more from this author for sure.