This week Laurence Mackinreviews Come on Shore and We Will Kill and Eat You Alland Maui: Rough Guide Directions
Come on Shore and We Will Kill and Eat You All
Christina Thompson
Bloomsbury, £14.99
Subtitled An Unlikely Love Story, this is the tale of how Thompson went to New Zealand, where she met her future husband, and their subsequent peripatetic lifestyle. She traces a potted history of New Zealand that focuses, correctly, on her husband's Maori culture. Initially, her observations on the nature of the Maori lifestyle are fascinating (in particular, her husband's approach to time), as are the notes culled from various, if somewhat unreliable, historical sources, where the notion of the noble savage Maori warrior is a recurring theme. As the book meanders along, however, it becomes something more akin to a personal memoir. (Thompson never tires of reminding us of how extraordinary it is that she managed to marry this person, seeing as they come from such different cultures, and she even gushes at one point that her husband resembles an Ingres painting.) It lacks the anthropological weight of more research-heavy books.
Maui: Rough Guide Directions
Greg Ward
Rough Guides, £6.99
Is this the world's most glamorous travel destination? Ward seems to think so, and he makes a good case for the prosecution, with the road to Hana, perfect Hawaiian beaches, whale watching, gigantic craters and some of the world's best surfing as his main evidence. He also makes a reasonable effort to make this island paradise slightly more affordable, with recommendations on cheaper accommodation and tours. Some of the photography looks a little dated, but this is a minor complaint about a well-written and witty guide.