Dodging Machetes: How I Survived Forbidden Love, Bad Behavior, and the Peace Corps in Fiji - Softcover

Lutwick, Will

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1935925113 ISBN 13: 9781935925118

Publisher: Peace Corps Writers, 2012

Synopsis

Strap yourself in for a wild ride!
“Dodging Machetes” is sometimes dramatic and thrilling, other times flat-out funny. And it’s always compelling!
Will Lutwick, a quirky misfit, gets an MBA at 22, but soon realizes he and the American corporate world are a horrid mismatch. He joins the Peace Corps and is sent to the Fiji Islands, the quintessential tropical paradise. Will finds himself attracted to prohibited pulchritude when Rani Gupta, a beautiful, rebellious 20-year-old from a traditional Hindu family, begins working in his office. Dating is taboo in Fiji’s large Indian community, and an interracial couple would be unprecedented. But Rani and Will soon discover their mutual attraction impossible to resist. Their liaison is clandestine, but word gets out, and a cultural firestorm engulfs Rani’s community. The two lovers are under constant threat of attack, and violence ensues. Will must confront his personal demons about courage and commitment, while Rani is treated like a pariah by her people. Will the besieged lovers stay together, or will a hostile world tear them apart?
In between the dramatic scenes, this serio-comic memoir is savvy and often hilarious. Lutwick deliciously skewers his own behavior and satirizes the people, practices, and protocols he encounters in Fiji and in backstory about his youth.
Will Lutwick has woven his provocative insight with the dramatic events of a singular, but timeless, forbidden-love story. The result is “Dodging Machetes”—a story-driven page-turner from an exceptional writer.

About this title

From the Author

Dodging Machetes was edited by Jordan Rosenfeld, author of Make a Scene: Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time. Her book reviews are regularly featured on The California Report, a news-magazine produced by NPR-affiliate KQED radio.

From the Inside Flap

Additional Reviews:

"Much delight I have in this author. You do a great job of seamlessly weaving the back story and the main plot. You are so vivid with your words. It's light-hearted and educational at the same time. It's movie-friendly. Dodging Machetes kept me from beginning to end."
--Starla Faye, host of Two Talk Books on LA Talk Radio, from her interview with Will Lutwick

"The beauty of Dodging Machetes is not just that Lutwick tells the story of his experience with literally laugh-out-loud humor, depth, insight and candor, but that he does so with such honesty, transparency and...self-reflection...You can rest assured that it won't take long to read this book since you won't be able to put it down."
--UNDERRATED READS by Julie Kessler, author of Fifty-Fifty

"...a lot of fun and quite evocative of the times. If you liked Forrest Gump , you will enjoy this book. I loved it! I give it 4 out of 4 stars.
--LOVE ROMANCE PASSION

"His account of that affair is romantic, funny, and daunting. Mr. Lutwick's chronicle...provides the reader with a deeper understanding of that time and place. Students of history, sociology, and anthropology would be well served by reading Mr. Lutwick's narrative."
--FRIENDS OF FIJI

"This fun and adventurous love story was well written and entertaining...incorporating great dialog...he produced a memoir with the feel of a novel, instead of a narrative. I recommend 'Dodging Machetes' by Will Lutwick to anyone who enjoys a light, fun romance adventure in a multicultural setting."
--READER VIEWS

About this edition

• Publisher: Peace Corps Writers
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1935925113
• ISBN 13: 9781935925118
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 266