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Fiddler on the Roof of Africa: How to Fail Successfully as a Peace Corps Volunteer
“Should be required reading for people contemplating joining the Peace Corps.” —Ambassador Gregory W. Engle, Peace Corps Country Director
Witness what it takes to live in a foreign country and the lessons gained from international travel.
Do you enjoy learning about far away lands and cultures? Do you have recurring dreams of pooping your pants in front of a foreign president? Have you ever begged neighbors for water to survive? Have you built strong friendships with people you might never see again? Derek Lowstuter captures these realities of living and working abroad as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ethiopia.
Fiddler on the Roof of Africa is a mix of academic study and personal observations—equal parts literature review, introspection, scholarly analysis, confabulation, with a pinch of classic ethnocentrism.
Peace Corps service is exceptionally context specific, every Volunteer and every host community is unique. The reactions that take place between the two can be unpredictable and chaotic. The goal of this book is to address international development issues such as food aid, environmental conservation, cultural traditionalism, and development theory. Each chapter grounds these topics in first-hand experiences to make them more engaging and accessible.
Derek’s memoir, written with humor, intelligence, and grace, reveals there are more similarities than differences that connect people around the world. Join him on his adventure into East Africa.
Witness what it takes to live in a foreign country and the lessons gained from international travel.
Do you enjoy learning about far away lands and cultures? Do you have recurring dreams of pooping your pants in front of a foreign president? Have you ever begged neighbors for water to survive? Have you built strong friendships with people you might never see again? Derek Lowstuter captures these realities of living and working abroad as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ethiopia.
Fiddler on the Roof of Africa is a mix of academic study and personal observations—equal parts literature review, introspection, scholarly analysis, confabulation, with a pinch of classic ethnocentrism.
Peace Corps service is exceptionally context specific, every Volunteer and every host community is unique. The reactions that take place between the two can be unpredictable and chaotic. The goal of this book is to address international development issues such as food aid, environmental conservation, cultural traditionalism, and development theory. Each chapter grounds these topics in first-hand experiences to make them more engaging and accessible.
Derek’s memoir, written with humor, intelligence, and grace, reveals there are more similarities than differences that connect people around the world. Join him on his adventure into East Africa.
265 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 16, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 2, 2025
Valuable and challenging book to read as a future PCV. Would recommend to anyone considering the Peace Corps.
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April 7, 2025I read this for an RPCV book club. A great glimpse of what life is really like in Peace Corps.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews