Living Poor: A Peace Corps Chronicle by Ecuador RPCV Moritz Thomsen
Living Poor: A Peace Corps Chronicle by Moritz Thomsen
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Number of Reviews: 10
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Remembering Moritz, December 29, 2002
Reviewer: Peter Lourie from Vermont
I knew Moritz for a few years of Bloody Marys in Quito in the early eighties long after he'd left the coast. In the evenings we'd listen to loud music, talk about books, writers and other expats.
Anyone who knew Moritz remembers his endless joking (which was no joke) about his own death, impending. It was egotism, but it was also just possible he was right. His lungs were bad from years of smoking, and it kept you off balance to hear him wheeze after climbing all those steps to his Quito apartment.
I don't think Moritz ever drank Bloody Marys before I came along. Not regularly. It was something I'd done as a bartender, and I was proud of mine, with just the right plethora of Worcestershire, horse radish, and pepper. He liked them, but he didn't drink more than two. If he did, he got sloppy.
When he finally got to the top step of the staircase to his Quito apartment, he waited until his sick lungs got enough oxygen. Then he shuffled in looking half dead, but with a devilish grin when he spotted the first Bloody on the table. There was a lot of lip smacking on the first sip, the promise of a stroll through the stars. Something a bit sinful, too, for a writer who would need all his senses in the morning. (Moritz labored at his prose; a half page would be a good day's work.)
Moritz could cast a spell over people. He was a teacher. When talk ended, the music started. Sometimes music was first. Always loud, never soft, and always Barber, Harris, Ravel, Stravinsky, or Milton Nacimento, among others. He'd say, "This, Peter, is how your new book should begin." Crash, bang, zipppp. The teacher stood up, waving possessed arms, as if his arms could shout.
His enthusiasm was gargantuan. A favorite phrase between us was "the ambiguous clarity." He got very excited about that.
His books are marvelous, and full of ambiguous clarity. But Living Poor, his first, is perhaps pure Moritz. Originally published as shorter pieces for a newspaper in San Francisco, the anecdotes hold together nicely as a testament to his love for, and commitment to, Ecuador and its people. Can't recommend it enough as a prelude to that spectacularly diverse and magnificent country.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
I was lucky, July 5, 2001
Reviewer: blair_mdstblz from Phoenix, AZ United States and Tumbaco, Ecuador
I was fortunate enough to grow up in Ecuador and was the daughter of a good friend of his. This book, like his others, brings out the curmudgeonly appeal he had for me as a young girl playing in his courtyard. His straightforward dark humor, playing on the subtleties of his life, is present throughout this book. I found this book to reflect the nature of South American Ex-Pats, new and old, bringing that fervent desire to belong and not belong to the adopted culture. To me this is also about trying to make an impact learning and teaching, creating and destroying.
I highly prize this book, and am so saddened that I will never again read another book from this man.
If you are interested in South America, the nature of Ex-patriotism, and living in a culture outside your own, this is one book to have in your library.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Informative and Honest, June 28, 2001
Reviewer: Kenneth G. Johnson (see more about me) from Bremerton, WA USA
Down to Earth and very detailed account of this man's experience in Ecuador in the 1960s as a Peace Corps Volunteer. There are many things a person in the Corps can relate to regarding Moritz Thomsen's inner thoughts about his role and responsibilities, environment, and people he dealt with. He gave a lot of honesty in himself and his personal perceptions. I would recommend this book to those considering applying or serving in the Peace Corps. One note, is that the training today is much different than it was in the 1960s. There are numerous books about the Peace Corps experience from RPCVs who served and they also are worth looking into.
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6 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
A little too jaded for my taste, December 28, 2000
Reviewer: laura fleischer from Washington DC
As a young, idealistic future Peace Corps volunteer to Ecuador, I found this book a little too dark. While I am not completely naive to volunteerism, study, and work in developing countries (and the accompanying hardships), I felt that Thomsen never gave the reader hope. Did he have hope? Maybe his motivation for this book was not to focus on all the glamour and goodness that many other books do. However, we can see through different eyes without being clouded by negativity. That is the path I hope to take as I embark on my 2+ year experience. I guess this book did not provide the inspiration I was looking for. I'm sure I'll feel differently after I return. I do appreciate his brutal honesty though.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
Wonderful Reading, May 12, 2000
Reviewer: aom21 (see more about me) from Atlanta, Georgia
Thomsen teaches you a great deal about what living in a poor, rural, South American town is like. You can actually feel his sadness, elation and frustration gripping hold of you from the pages. I would recomend this to anyone, even if you are not interested in the Peace Corps. It was an extremely enjoyable read.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
A Handbook for Development, March 22, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from Boston, MA USA
This book is the answer to The Ugly American. Thomson gives to readers what may be the most believable account of the difficulties in working with poor, malnourished groups of people. He validates his claims with personal experience, and keeps his writing informal as to make relating to these experiences easy. There will be a line of friends waiting to read this when you are finished.
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21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
A True Portrayal of Peace Corps Life, December 27, 1999
Reviewer: A reader from Boston, MA
Before going to Peace Corps, I read every Peace Corps related book I could find. Although this book is the oldest of all that I read, it gave me the clearest, most realistic picture of Peace Corps life. Beyond that, it was a story that touched me deeply. Too many Peace Corps stories drown in sentimentalism or self-admiration or cutesy life lessons learned. Living Poor avoids these traps and is a great story, whether or not you are contemplating Peace Corps.
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6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
PERHAPS MORE APTLY: LIVING ON THE EDGE., December 15, 1999
Reviewer: jas-webb (see more about me) from WENDOVER, NEVADA
I DON'T KNOW WHAT 5 STARS MEANS. IF YOU CONNECT WITH A BOOK...YOU LIKE IT. THIS BOOK COULD EASILY BE MORE STARS. IF YOU EVER WONDERED HOW POOR PEOPLE THINK AND WHAT THEY THINK ABOUT IN A DFFERENT CULTURE YOU WILL KNOW AFTER READING THIS STORY. READS LIKE A NOVEL. LIVING IN A SMALL COSTAL TOWN IN NORTHERN EQUADOR MORITZ THOMSEN FINALLY SOLVED THE, WHY ARE PEOPLE POOR? QUESTION FOR ME. I LIVED IN THE HINTERLAND OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FOR TEN YEARS AND NEVER HAD A CLUE. THE DEFINITIVE BOOK. ACTION AND MYSTERIES ABOUND.
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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
Best description of the Peace Corps experiece I have read., March 20, 1999
Reviewer: A reader from Merced, CA
In 1988, my wife and I decided to join the Peace Corps. We were both in our early 40s at the time. When we found we were being sent to Ecuador we madly scoured the library trying to find something about the Peace Corps in Ecuador. We we lucky enough to find Moritz Thomsen's book, "Living Poor." As we devoured the book we both laughed and cried, looked at each other and wondered what we were getting ourselves into. Although every Peace Corps volunteer's experience is different (and our's was totally different from the authors) after our two years in Ecuador this book still rings true This book is brutally honost. Moritz makes no effort to glorify himself or what he accomplished or the Peace Corps. This is part of the charm of the book. We regret that we never met the author but we will always treasure his books.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
Peace Corps from the perspective of a jaded pig farmer., September 10, 1997
Reviewer: jfhardim@facstaff.wisc.edu from Madison, Wisconsin
Mr. Thomsen's views of life in the peace corps had me laughing outloud one moment and almost crying the next. His jaded perspective of this institution and the problems with dealing in a third world mentality made me think of pushing my own life's challenges. The characters involved and the Ecuadorean coastal culture are similar to Wouk's "Life is a Carnival" , one of my favorites also. Although I never served in the Peace Corps I have a better feel for the trials and tribulations of the task now that I have read this book
