Reviews of my favorite books written by expatriates, journalists, and diplomats on what it's really like to live abroad

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Book Review: No News at Throat Lake by Lawrence Donegan

On vacation with an old girlfriend, London-based journalist Lawrence Donegan fell in love with a small country village in Ireland. They spent their days at the beach and nights watching stars in the marvelously clear skies. Touched to his core by the "vast stretches of wild unspoiled beauty" and a slow, ultra-relaxed pace of life, Lawrence decided to chuck in his job at The Guardian and start over again working at a farm in Creeslough.

In this very funny memoir, Lawrence tells the story of what it's really like when you move to the Irish countryside. As you can guess, his farmer's helper job was short-lived (going from a desk job to a muddy field with a bunch of angry cows doesn't usually work out.) So, he threw himself o the mercy of the editor of the local paper, circulation 2,745, and became a local reporter.

It was a fantastic job for an outsider to luck into -- access to all the local events along with the official right to go poking your nose into everyone's business. If I ever move to another country where I speak the language well enough to pull it off, I'll try to do the very same thing.

You'll like this book if:
- You ever dreamed of the simple rural life in amidst "film set" beauty.
- You followed the story of American heiress Doris Duke's butler Bernard.
- You're a journalist or would-be reporter.

No comments:

Post a Comment