 2008-11-22 - Cured me of my China wanderlust!
I'm a sucker for off-the-beaten-path, tell-it-like-it-is, humorous travelogues, and Maarten Troost doesn't disappoint in "Lost on Planet China." His tales of being a Westerner throughout the vast land of China are alternately gasp-inducing, stomach-churning, and rip-roaring hilarious. Whether he's dealing with the yellowish haze of Beijing or trekking up the country's tallest mountains, Troost takes his readers along and pulls no punches. I would willingly read more of his books, but I really could do without the occasional Bush-bashing that adds nothing to the story and merely makes him look whiny in that "let's throw rocks at the Republicans" sort of way.
 2008-11-14 - Ethnocentrism as an art form?
Troost is funny, observant and an extremely energetic traveler. He not only avoids the "beaten path" but seems to avoid entire regions that have them. His trips are well researched yet he retains a good bit of flexibility as he travels. This is the first of his books that I have read and, based on other readers' comments, may check out another before I pass any final judgments.
I'm a sucker for any book that has a map on the inside covers and love travelogues where the author actually travels rather than simply visits. There's no denying that Lost on Planet China covers a tremendous amount of territory. What bothers me about most of the book is that Troost often prefers to criticize rather than understand. It's obvious from the start that he has little affection for Chinese cities or their inhabitants. It's not until he reaches Tibet that we see any glimmer of pleasure in his commentary. Even though I heartily agree with his disdain for the Chinese government's conquest and destruction of Tibet, I am not very comfortable with his ongoing expressions of distaste for modern Chinese culture and customs. A lot of the book's best laughs come at the expense of the people he is observing. After a while, the jokes about flying loogies, his ongoing dismay that signs and transit information in Chinese cities are so inconsiderately written in Chinese and his frustration with the massive crowds and dense pollution gets a bit old. It's often hard to see where the humor leaves off and personal bias takes over.
You may want to write this off as a minority opinion, but I just can't escape the feeling that virtually all of Troost's humor comes at his subject's expense.
 2008-11-09 - Raw experience
To the critics here who feel offended by the author's naïve approach to China, I have this to say: First-time visitors will find this book useful and informative because, they too, don't know what to expect. Maarten's brysonesque wit conveys with brio the raw experience of being lost in a bewildering and ruthless culture without means of communication. Very well done, Mr. Maarten!
2008-10-26 - Passes the spit test
If you like Paul Theroux you'll enjoy this book. My test for a valid travel/summary of contemporary China is the spit test. If the book doesn't cover the spit factor in China it fails. Troost gets an A+. I quote, "...I watched the residents of Beijing, young and old, male and even a few elderly women greet the new day with an immense hawk and a resonant splatter........" And that wasn't even close to his best descriptive.
2008-10-06 - One of the most entertaining and informative books....
This was one of the most entertaining and yet informative travel books I've ever read. What I liked most is that the author educates the reader in the most entertaining way and in a way that makes the facts easy to remember. His experiences are memorable, funny, shocking, and incredible. It's a must read for anyone that loves travel and adventure!
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