Last night I finished the Poisonwood Bible. I read until one in the morning because I just couldn't put it down.
It is quite possibly my new favorite book.
It made me think about a lot of things: family relations, life, religion, Africa and why other countries felt (and still feel) the need to "civilize" it, change it, or convert it. I wish I had been underlining my favorite phrases throughout, but I started about a hundred pages from the end.
one simple yet profound thought:
"everything you're sure is right, can be wrong in another place." -Leah Price
That one phrase sums up 90% of what I learned in Intro to International Development, last semester. If you try to help someone/something/some country/some way of life by changing it to what you are used to, without letting it change you right back, it won't work. If I learned anything in that course, it is that it takes working with whatever you are trying to help, with the attitude of being both a teacher and a student.
Read it. It is definitely worth it.
3 comments:
It really is such a good book. I need to re-read that this summer... along with Half Blood Prince, Jesus the Christ, Jerusalem the Eternal City, Dune, finish 1001 Nights.... the list goes on. Yay for summer and having time to pleasure read!!!!
dang, i just checked to see if byu has that book and it's checked out. sounds like a good read!
Hear hear! I am such a strong believer that we are a pompous arrogant nation. One that thinks we know what's best for the world. Well, we're wrong. Africa is quite happy the way it is thank you, and they don't need us shoving McDonalds down it's throat just because we are addicted.
Why do we feel the need to govern the world when our very foundation of government is based upon fighting that very thing? We are pathetic human beings. =S
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