Customer Reviews

Return to Paradise

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Michener takes us on a tour of the islands of the Pacific Ocean with a collection of entertaining short stories of the people who inhabit them. Fictitious or not, dear reader cares less. The way he represents their populace is more than fifty years past and certainly, times may have changed. This reviewer hopes that holds equally true for Fiji !! This is one of those perfect books for someone who has limited time for reading or enjoys doing so only in short bursts.

Having read Tales of the South Pacific, one of the classics of 20th Century literature, I couldn't wait to read this 'sequel' by Michener. I wished I hadn't bothered. It seemed as if the great wordsmith was just writing because his publisher demanded to cash in on the success of 'Tales'. Disappointed, I put it down about a third of the way through and never bothered to pick it up again. It takes two to tango - even in a novel. Michener (the author) and I (the reader)danced our way through 'Tales' never missing a step. With the sequel it was if we had two left feet.

I loved this book. While reading Tales of the South Pacific, I was interested in the island cultures which played behind the main stories. This book delves into those cultures, as they were when the book was written. Nice stories.

The pieces on Fijian-Indians in 'Fiji' and 'The Mynah Birds', in which local Indians are shown up in an ugly and racist manner, are just bad writing. To his credit Michener apologised about his untoward remarks years after the publication of the book.