The Gospel of Trees: A Memoir | 
pickA beautifully-written, thoughtful memoir of the author‘s experiences as a missionary kid in Haiti in the 1980s—90s. Irving weaves together reflections on her family and childhood & teen years, with glimpses of Haiti‘s complicated history. There‘s some deconstruction of the whole missionary ideal and the “white savior” complex, while acknowledging the intentions behind and complexities of aid work in general. Slow-paced but insightful & worthwhile.
“The first post-earthquake presidential elections in Haiti had prompted a travel warning as, in a stroke of pure lunatic surrealism, both Baby Doc Duvalier and Aristide had returned from exile to take up residence in Port-Au-Prince. It was as if Elvis and Tupac had returned from beyond the grave to cohost a reality show on military coups.”
“Ironically, one of the most significant lessons I learned from the missionaries was that it can be a gift to be the outsider, to get it wrong most of the time; to practice humility when I thought that I had the world all figured out. And I have come to believe that if we move toward the things we are afraid of, then we will find them changed—and ourselves changed in the process.”
“Beauty was a luxury that, as a missionary kid, I had been taught to mistrust. It was not useful. It could not save anyone. But when I was alone with beauty, something in me felt reckless with joy.”
Here‘s the rest of my Book Outlet #bookhaul. There are so many that I‘m excited about, but the tagged one felt like such a find!! I came across the title via a podcast interview. I was fascinated with the author‘s story & impressed by the beauty of her writing in the excerpts she read. She also just seemed like someone I‘d like to know better! Sometimes I have a hard time finding less-well-known titles on Book Outlet, so this felt like a coup!
pickThankful for the opportunity to read and review this complex and thoughtful memoir about Haiti, which stirred up some memories of my own travels there a few years ago. https://adelegallogly.com/2018/10/19/a-missionary-childhood-in-haiti/
My kid is taking tennis lessons against her will. @Redwritinghood here‘s my reading spot. 😀🎾
Y‘all - has anyone heard of this book? It‘s fascinating!
pickThe author, Apricot Irving, spent many of her childhood years living in Haiti with her missionary parents. Her memoir is an engaging mix of rapture about the beauty of Haiti and warnings about the danger of trying to rescue another nation. I thought this book really well done and it offers a personal perspective about the good and bad consequences of missionary work in developing countries. Pub. 3/6
#netgalley
