Headhunters On My Doorstep: A True Treasure Island Ghost Story (2013) - Plot & Excerpts
Lovely! A recovering alcoholic follows in Robert Louis Stevenson's journeys in the South Pacific. Troost writes great prose. You may as well read this book aloud because you're just going to chase after people and read chunks of it to them anyway. "Listen to this!" He has a knack for a well-turned phrase and a willingness to be the butt of the joke. This is some of the best travel writing I've read in some time. It makes me want to visit some of the places he writes about, which, given that I regard heat and humidity as mortal enemies, is an impressive trick. I love Troot's other stuff—Sex Lives of Cannibals is hilarious and engrossing, and having lived on a tiny Micronesian island for a year myself, wryly accurate about what a puzzling, absorbing experience that can be. This one, the fourth Troost I've read, disappointed in comparison, though it was still a worthy read. He does make it clear that he's on a bit of a quest to dry himself out from his numbing years of alcoholism, but the rigors of that challenge are given too many pages, for my taste, in a travel journal like this. At times it seems he is writing to work out a penance (which I've seen in my own writing, so perhaps that's why I couldn't fully engage). I thought the book's final 75 pages or so, perhaps 100, were back in line with vintage Troost, and supplied his uniquely amusing, immersive traveler's perspective of curiosity, bafflement and "what the hell" attitude.
What do You think about Headhunters On My Doorstep: A True Treasure Island Ghost Story (2013)?
While this was an interesting read, it was not nearly as entertaining as Mr Troost's previous works.
—desireeavril
Not as enjoyable as his earlier efforts, but worth a read nonetheless.
—Kesiya
2013- Focused more on his addiction struggles rather than travel.
—ILOVEBOOKS4EVER
I finished it. It was ok but not as good as his first book
—ribika34
Love his wit and command of the language.
—shirin1786
