Hock returns to the lower river in Malawi to find happiness in the village where he once served with the Peace Corps. But the village and its people have changed, and Hock becomes trapped ...

I really liked this book. I would rather say that I LOVED it, but I wasn't quite there. The narrative dragged in spots, and I got to see how many ways there are to describe hot and humid weather, But if you liked Mosquito Coast or Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible, you'll probably enjoy this.

Looking for a travelogue into Malawi Africa, that is the strength of this book. Unfortunately the main character plods and plods and plods without the reader gaining much new information. The novel generated some good thought about the perceived glory days of youth and about what it means to be charitable.

I got three chapters in, skimmed a little ahead to see if it would improve and gave up. I've read many books by returned Peace Corps Volunteers and enjoyed them, but this book is not for me. I felt no empathy for the protagonist or the way either he or the author seem to view Southern Africa.

Haunting, though drawn out, tale of a Peace Corps volunteer returning to Africa 40 years after he left. He expects to continue his efforts at the school where he taught at the time of independence only to find that the school is in ruins and he is trapped in the small village. I stayed up late to find out whether his plans to escape worked. While I was drawn into the story (which is somewhat repetitive, maybe reflective of the main character's age), this was not my favorite Theroux novel.

I was disappointed in this novel, but even a mediocre effort by Paul Theroux deserves three stars. Theroux is usually such a nuanced writer, putting words together in a way that is like no other author working today. This novel seems to have been written by someone else, lacking the sense of menace and the exact use of language that gives readers that little frisson of pleasure. The main character is an idiot--yes, we can understand his desire to return to the one place he felt completely happy and fulfilled, but my goodness, hasn't he picked up a newspaper of done an internet search on the place? Didn't he read "Dark Star Safari"?

As a matter of fact, why don't YOU read "Dark Star Safari" instead of "The Lower River"? That's Theroux at his multifaceted best. I always look forward Theroux's books, and I am already looking forward to his next.

Guaranteed to discourage any prospective Peace Corps volunteers. A little Heart of Darkness and a little Lord of the Flies. Main character finds himself in a pickle after he returns to the place he lived while in the Peace Corps when a young man. I found him to be so unlikeable that it was hard to feel sorry for him.

Maybe not the best book to read when you're on mefloquine. And in Malawi.

Haunting, though drawn out, tale of a Peace Corps volunteer returning to Africa 40 years after he left. He expects to continue his efforts at the school where he taught at the time of independence only to find that the school is in ruins and he is trapped in the small village. I stayed up late to find out whether his plans to escape worked. While I was drawn into the story (which is somewhat repetitive, maybe reflective of the main character's age), this was not my favorite Theroux novel.