Welcome to Litsy!

#readingoceania2024 #tonga Although not a great book it nevertheless lends insights into this independent constitutional monarchy. Focused largely on Queen Salote, who died in 1965, the book is outdated and still informative. PLUS for the first time ever, I completed all the prompts for 2024. Of course, I still have tons of prompts left from #readingtheamericas2023. Happy New Year all.

#readingoceania2024 #palau I read Shipwreck, Palau Discovered by Dr Paul Dale. It is about the wreck of the British packet Antelope and the mutual discovery of the people of Palau and Europeans. The crew befriended the natives and built a small ship to return to Macao. Unlike almost all the other initial Native/European interactions I have read- this was a meeting of fair minded, respectful humans who actually appreciated each other.

#readingoceania2024 #newzealand 830 page chunkster that is part Dickens, part Agatha Christie taking place on the Wild West coast of NZ during the gold rush. It is highly flawed with well developed characters disappearing from the book and a framework of astrological signs that was largely meaningless to me. Also, for an incredibly complex mystery, I would have liked a bit more clarity on the details. However, really enjoyed the reading!

#Readingoceania2024 #samoa Although the plot is contrived and the pacing erratic, the main characters/narrators had charm enough for me to keep reading. Plus, the invention of the stories around Robert Louis Stevenson and Mary Shelly was a nice addition. I even learned a bit about Samoa.

#readingoceania2024 #solomonislands A bit of a cheat as this is a book that largely takes place in the UK and the WWI trenches in France. However, the reminiscences of an anthropological journey to the Solomon Islands gives the book a broader view of humanity‘s relationship to death. Excellent book.

#Readingoceania2024 I was going to use this for Tonga as Cook did stop there in addition to New Zealand, Tahiti, Kiribati and, of course, Hawaii. However, there was exactly two pages on Tonga. I‘ll have to find another book. This was a good view into Cook‘s third voyage of discovery though. It illustrated well the geographical and cultural differences between the islands and it really highlighted how the European and Oceania cultures clashed.

#ReadingOceania2024 #Tuvalu Although another “palagi‘s” (outsider‘s) POV, unlike Troost, Ells worked in Tuvalu. As the People‘s lawyer or public defender he had real inside knowledge of at least how customs and the law interacted and has very interesting stories of crime on the islands. As the country is very small, everyone knows everyone else‘s business which definitely impacts legal proceedings. Plus he knew Prime Ministers and Presidents

#readingoceania2024 #vanuatu I am getting a bit tired of the “my year in ….” (Name of South Pacific island) format but he keeps things light and moving and you do catch a bit of history and culture although much of what you catch is being a foreigner there. I learned a bit about cannibalism. I am slowly getting a glimpse of the differences between all the countries in Oceania. Just wish I could locate some better literature along the way

#readingoceania2024 #australia Fictionalized account of a real historical figure who was known as a bit of an Australian Robin Hood. Largely written as an explanation of events from Ned Kelly to his daughter it has a rough plot construction. I would have liked to hear more from other characters to have gotten more context but I did learn some Australian history along the way.

This was okay to listen to, but I felt myself being disinterested and zoning out during other parts. I think part of my issue was that it was dated- so much has happened since the Obama administration. #ReadingOceania2024