Peace Corps Worldwide

On Sunday afternoon, March 18, 2012, a memorial service was held in Washington, D.C., for Shlomo Bachrach (Ethiopia PC/Staff 1965-67) who died of lung cancer at his home in Los Angeles on December 8, 2011. Shlomo was a famous figure in Ethiopian/American life who recently published the East Africa Forum online that concentrated on news out of the Horn of Africa. He also had two blog on this site. In addition to this, he was actively involved in dozens of other activities that promoted understanding between the US and Ethiopia, including working to start the North American-Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce. He was the author of an Ethiopian folktale book published by Oxford University Press, and for many years ran training workshops for PCV TESL teachers in Ethiopia. In recent years his major focus was his work with a local NGO and the Ethiopian government to develop and implement coffee trademark concept on the country’s major export. At the service . . .

Through the Eyes of My Children: The Adventures of a Peace Corps Volunteer Family by Frances L. Stone (Philippines 1971-73) Peace Corps Writers 172 pages $12.99 (paperback) January 2012 Reviewed by Barbara E. Joe (Honduras 2000–03) THE STONES WERE AMONG THE FIRST to sign up when the Peace Corps began sending whole families overseas, and the six of them went to the Philippines in 1971. Frances Stone’s book, Through the Eyes of My Children: The Adventures of a Peace Corps Volunteer Family, told mainly in the voices of her four children and aimed at young readers, helps document the history of this little-known, short-lived experiment. I knew two families, each with two children, who served in Costa Rica at that same time. Both they and the Stones have touted the lasting benefits of the program for themselves and their kids, and the positive impact on the communities where they served. . . .

Brazil: Heads and Tales 1965–1967, Peace Corps by Tomas Belsky (Brazil 1965–67) Peace Corps Writers 2012 116 pages $20.00 (paperback) Reviewed by Lawrence F. Lihosit (Honduras 1975–77) THERE ARE THOSE AMONGST US who long to outlaw art as a waste of energy. These are usually the same folks who talk about money and practicality. Strange, but when we review human history — the Egyptians, Chinese, Greeks, Romans, Mayas, Incans — nobody cared enough about merchants to even jot down their names. We remember statesmen, military leaders, builders and most of all, artists. In many cases, the artists were also royalty who supervised statesmen, military leaders and builders. Tomas Belsky understands the power of art. He created a book filled with poetry, colored plates of paintings and personal experience essays about Brazil’s Northeast between 1965 and 1967. In a humorous, free verse poem titled “Finding Tomas,” Belsky explains how he lost . . .

The Isla Vista Crucible Reilly Ridgell (Micronesia 1971–73) Savant Books and Publications 268 pages $16. 95 (paperback) 2012 Reviewed by Darcy Munson Meijer (Gabon 1982-84) THE 1960s AND EARLY ’70s were an especially interesting period in U.S. history, a decade of  changes social, political and ideological. In The Isla Vista Crucible, author Reilly Ridgell examines many aspects of the era from the viewpoints of three students sharing a house in Isla Vista, the community next to the UC Santa Barbara campus. He looks at sex, responsibility, friendship and patriotism in a thoughtful, relaxed way which is both informative and enjoyable. Meet the main characters: Reggie, studying for his Master’s degree in political science. He is serious, diligent and horny. He starts the school’s first lacrosse team. Donnie, his undergraduate roommate. A self-styled political radical and C student, he is self-centered and impulsive. He needs to maintain a 2.0 GPA to avoid being . . .

The online arm of the Chico (CA) Enterprise Record published a review of Rob Davidson’s (Crenada 1990–92) new short story collection. Biblio File: New collection of short stories from a Chico writer By Dan Barnett Posted: 3/11/2012 at chicoer.com Rob Davidson teaches American literature and creative writing at Chico State University. Born in Duluth, Minnesota, he studied at Beloit College and Purdue University, then traveled to the Eastern Caribbean to serve with the U.S. Peace Corps. His new collection of short stories, “The Farther Shore” ($16 in paperback from Bear Star Press in Cohasset, takes its inspiration from the sayings of the Buddha: “Go beyond / This way or that way, / To the farther shore / Where the world dissolves / And everything becomes clear.” The nine stories in the book, beautifully designed by Bear Star’s Beth Spencer, bring their central characters to a place that threatens dissolution. They . . .

[This is an interview with our famous travel writer Josh Berman (Nicaragua 1998-2000) that appeared recently on the blog  inBed.me, the First Social Booking site for Hostels, Beds and Couches.] Meet Joshua Berman. He’s written four books for Moon guidebooks, volunteered for the Peace Corps, taken a 16-month honeymoon, worked as a tour guide, and has had his travel writing published in big-name publications like Outside Traveler, The New York Times, and National Geographic Traveler. He’s even eaten raw testicles on the Travel Channel with Andrew Zimmerman! Want to learn more about this professional nomad? Check out the interview below. You have very extensive experience in the travel world. Let’s start with being a Peace Corps Volunteer. What project were you involved with and what was that experience like? I served as an environmental education volunteer in the village of La Trinidad, Estelí in Nicaragua from 1998-2000. I worked with . . .

Peace Corps Experience: Write and Publish Your Memoir by Lawrence F. Lihosit (Honduras 1975-77) explains how to write, publish and promote a memoir. In seven easy-to-read chapters, the author outlines the art of organization, research, writing, editing, self-publication and promotion. The book includes great examples and advice from other Peace Corps memoirists. “It’s written for the novice,” explained Lihosit, “someone who is not a professional writer and realizes that our stories about service are valuable and should be shared.” The author of nine other books and seven pamphlets, Lihosit was inspired to write this how-to book following an unexpected response to our posting of his article about book formatting (The Arts: On Writing and Publishing, December 6, 2011). Within four hours of posting, readership increased forty percent. The Peace Corps community reaction to the book has been positive. Jane Albritton, the series editor of Peace Corps at 50 Project, called . . .