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By: NAP 026
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2023-08-03 14:46:30 |
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Mixed views. Some people really liked it. Others thought it was a lost opportunity to create a richer narrative given the knowledge the author had. |
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By: DUNED 029
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2023-07-24 12:51:45 |
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A very powerful book, beautifully written. Deals with serious themes of grief and death and consequences for families against an unfamiliar culture from the perspective of a young child. Encouraged us to research the history of West Papua. |
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By: AUCK 335
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2022-06-09 14:41:57 |
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We were generally rather disappointed in this book. The author had many interesting experiences but we thought the book was rather poorly written. |
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By: HAVE 016
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2022-01-10 10:25:42 |
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Bit of a controversial book with rankings from 2-4. Many found it depressing and some felt the literary quality of writing was low. One member liked it a lot for the story and insights. |
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By: PALMN 006
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2021-09-22 12:14:02 |
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A good read and a great account of life in Papua through a young girl's eyes. We enjoyed it but not an "amazing" read. It was great to read about a country we knew little about. |
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By: MARLB 001
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2021-09-15 12:26:50 |
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Not universally enjoyed - but loved by one of us who had spent time in Papua New Guinea. |
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By: CHCH 508
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2021-06-18 14:19:58 |
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Interesting, but not easy to read. All learnt something. |
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By: GORE 001
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2021-06-02 14:10:06 |
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All agreed this book was beautifully written - a profound picture of loss, grief and guilt, supported by vivid description and profound thought. Many were shocked by the violence depicted and were confounded by the apparent cultural acceptance of this. All are heartbroken by the ongoing conflict. An excellent read, although disturbing... |
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By: DUNED 007
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2021-05-19 14:25:18 |
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The group felt that the vignettes took away from the story as a whole. The vignettes needed to be read very carefully to ascertain their significance in relation to the West Papuan story. The group thought the writing was good in style. |
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By: DUNED 061
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2021-03-08 14:14:36 |
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Great discussion. |
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By: MILT 002
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2021-02-22 14:35:40 |
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This book prompted members to find out more about West Papua, but we did not enjoy this book. |
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By: CHCH 238
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2021-02-22 11:27:43 |
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A brutal but inspiring novel. Well worth the read. |
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By: DUNED 002
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2020-12-16 14:30:20 |
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We all enjoyed the language and thought it was well-written. We also liked learning about the flora and fauna of the country. Some felt it would have been equally good, if not better, as a biography of the author's experiences. |
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By: INVER 002
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2020-10-20 12:50:39 |
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Some could not finish - good discussion though. Great writing - will look for next book. Captured the humidity and warmth of Papua - in the moment. Enough material for 2 books. The vignettes gave a needed reprieve from the harshness of life. Very knowledgeable. |
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By: MARTIN 001
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2020-09-22 14:10:13 |
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All enjoyed the book. People learnt a lot about West Papua in the 1990s. They knew nothing before reading the book. |
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By: AUCK 360
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2020-07-20 11:51:09 |
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A very well-written realistic book. We liked the inserts of biological asides. A depressing situation re environmental issues. Written as a child would see it. Not an enjoyable book as too close to the bone on many many levels. Social and gender issues well covered. |
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By: PALMN 013
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2019-11-08 14:50:18 |
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We did learn a lot from this story about a place most of us were not familiar with. It gave us food for thought about dealing with a death in the family. Also, we discussed outsiders going into a primitive culture and trying to change it ( not that there was much in this story about that). |
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