The Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux
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Book Reviews of The Mosquito Coast
Book Review: Riveting Novel By a Master
Summary: 5 Stars
This is easily the best thing I've read by Theroux, although I have some more to go. From start to finish, it is a riveting read. Its fascination lies in its ability to force you to look on in awe as a phenomenon unfolds throughout the book. Like viewing an auto accident happening in slow motion. Allie Fox is the accident happening in slow motion, and the backdrop is the jungle and the seaside of the fabled Mosquito Coast of Honduras, so wonderfully described by Theroux, a master wordsmith. All in all, this is truly a fascinating novel and, although from the first few pages you kinda know how it's all going to end, the journey is a memorable one.Book Review: A Masterful Exotic Adventure
Summary: 5 Stars
An eccentric father packs up his family and moves from the midwest to the Mosquito Coast of Honduras. His plan is to make a wondrous change in the lives of the Maya Indians by providing them with ice. What a character! What an adventure! A compelling story told with humor, a modern voyage into the heart of darkness.
The "Chicago Sun-Times" book review said, "The 'Mosquito Coast' is rich beyond compare...exhilarating and provocative, fun and terrifying."
Highly recommended!
Book Review: A Story About A Schizophrenic
Summary: 5 Stars
I did not read all of the reviews of this book, so this may have been mentioned already. This is a story about a schizophrenic father and the son who loves him and tries to understand him. Nowhere in the book is this disease mentioned, but that diagnosis makes Allie's behavior much easier to explain. The book is a great read.Book Review: Fearsome family dynamics shown with honesty
Summary: 5 Stars
One of the best books I've ever read. The voice of the boy is gripping and an example of showing a younger point of view with no loss of interest. Terrific read.Book Review: Good Character Study
Summary: 4 Stars
This book explores the character of a father who takes his family to several remote locations in Honduras to escape what he sees as the evils of mid-20th century America. The father is believable and finely drawn, and although readers may not like him, they may well empathize, as the father's motives and actions are all too understandable. The novel does a fine job in describing the dangers a man faces, and how dangerous to others that man can be, when he becomes alienated, albeit for good and defensible reasons, from society.
A minor criticism is that the father's inventions are described in detail, but the author does not seem to have much understanding of such things. Thus, glasses of water freeze in the space of a short conversation in the father's novel refrigerator (what would the temperature have to be to do this, -60 degF or so?). There are brackets, levers, pumps, gears, and pipes galore throughout the book, all of which never quite seem to combine into anything understandable. Maybe it's the former engineer coming out in me, but if you don't understand technology it's best to dwell elsewhere in your writing (and maybe it's best to dwell elsewhere even if you do).
I originally became interested in the theme of "Mosquito Coast" while reading "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver, in which a father takes his family to the Congo for similar but more religiously motivated reasons. I was especially interested in gaining insights into the character of such a person. Unfortunately, in that book, the father is sketched as a parody and his character is flat. Instead of character development, the author devotes herself to amateurish left-wing political speculation, an often incorrect recounting of historical events in Africa, and a transparently feminist agenda. If you think literature and politics are best left separate, or if you want sophisticated political analysis, don't waste your time on "The Poisonwood Bible."