James Dorsey’s collection of travel essays is more than a collection of small untold stories from around the world. With sincerity and humility, Jim takes us to places we will probably never visit and introduces us to people and situations we will likely never know. Thanks to his sensitivity and appreciation for his subjects and his clarity of style, we feel intimately connected to the personal dramas and moments captured in these pages.
Sometimes uplifting, sometimes disturbing, rarely have I moved so effortlessly through a book. As with the author, we may not find the kind of overarching meaning and understanding sought in youthful wanderings, yet in lesser but still important ways we are led to contemplate and, above all, to care… to care about what’s being lost forever from the world, and to question our own beliefs, prejudices, and comfort zones.
The author reports on his rickshaw ride around Chau Doc, the northernmost outpost in Vietnam before the Cambodian border, a former United States Special Forces base…
Our ride lasts about an hour and it has taken us into areas I would not choose to go on my own, yet while on this rickshaw I have felt not only safe, but happy. I have completely left the modern world behind and become the pure traveler, welcomed into stranger’s lives because that is the code of the road. If I ever was an enemy, I have now become a friend. We pass each other in the twilight, leaving only the briefest of memories, yet connected by that thread forever….
Upon reading these chapters, especially the one documenting the horrors of Cambodia, a part of me gave thanks for the security and privileges I have enjoyed, but at a deeper level I felt invited, indeed inspired, to reach out, to risk, to step across the divide and make the connections Mr. Dorsey has revealed.
The great age of travel and exploration of our shrinking globe may be over, but the adventure of learning and caring about our fellow travelers still awaits.
From Diane Haithman, Former L.A. Times Staff Writer and author of "Dark Lady of Hollywood"
What I like best about James Dorsey's stories is that he tells you not only where he travels but why. He has a remarkable ability to coax hidden truths from strangers, to absorb and reflect world cultures without judgment. This remarkable collection of essays allows a reader to share both the external and internal journey of a true adventurer.