Dave Allen
05-24-2005, 06:03 PM
I found this to be a most extraordinary book and would strongly recommend it to *everyone*. Just before reading TYPEE (which I have just finished), I read Nathaniel Philbrick's "In The Heart Of The Sea", which sets the scene perfectly for both TYPEE as well as any bold enough to thoroughly engage with MOBY DICK.<br><br>What is truly unique about this book is that it is, at points, an anthropological study of a Polynesian society -- from an unwilling captive perspective -- before the influence of Western society has really been felt at a cultural / social layer. <br><br>My only cautionary word is that I found reading it ultimately made me sad because I am going to TYPEE (aka TAIPI) valley soon ... actually making the trip ... and I know that what remnants may still exist of TYPEE culture will be little more than a shadow of what it once was. That's life. That's Western influence. <br><br>READ THE BOOK. FIVE STAR PLUS RECOMMENDATION.