Alex Sheshunoff

After starting a dot.com business, Alex begins to feel burned out. One day he has an epiphany. He’ll move to a small Pacific island for a while, read books he’s never read, and discover the meaning of life.
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO PARADISE is that true story. Alex’s quarter life crisis prompted his running away to the small, mostly unheard of, Micronesian island of Yap and others after and beyond in search of Paradise, with a capital P.
Alex Sheshunoff has both an easy style and sense of show more humor. I still shudder when the frozen scrambled egg sandwiches story crosses my mind. There are hits and misses as he island hops around Micronesia and the North Pacific. Alex takes an off the beaten path approach as he tries to decide which island is most likely to suit his vision, needs, and druthers. The people he encounters along the way make the story as much as the exotic, rustic locales. In many ways, Alex discovers more than he bargained for.
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO PARADISE is an easy and humorous vicarious adventure for those who left their “roughing” it days when they left their teens or early twenties. While you obviously can’t experience the whole kit and caboodle you also don’t have to “use the other side of the island” as a toilet or deal with any of the other discomfiting, uncomfortable, and or questionable experiences or activities. That’s the way I prefer adventures like this now, from the comfort of my chair surrounded by my electricity, running water, unexpired food, and toilets that flush. For those still in search of paradise and new exploits to share and reminisce about in the future, A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO PARADISE can potentially be a tutorial, some of the path has been laid for you making it possibly a tad easier. Either way it’s a great trip.
Reviewed for Miss Ivy’s Book Nook Take II & Novels Alive TV show less

A Beginner's Guide to Paradise is about a young internet entrepreneur who becomes disillusioned with his life and chucks it all to search for a more meaningful life. He packs up about a hundred of the books he felt he should have read in college, and heads off for the South Pacific. After several unsuccessful stints on various islands, he ends up on one that suits him well. (Who of us, at some point in our life, has not dreamed about doing the same?)
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The show more author has a fantastic, somewhat off-beat sense of humor. I found myself laughing out loud several times. I'm happy to report that his search is a success, and he comes to some realizations that could serve us all. One of the best was, "But paradise, I was coming more and more to think, was being around people you care about while also feeling productive - all, ideally, in a pretty place". Isn't that what we are all searching for?
The book flows very well, the writing is excellent. I highly recommend this book. show less

When is Alex Sheshunoff’s, “A Beginner’s Guide to Paradise” a good book to read?

When you are:
a. Considering moving to a remote island in search of paradise?
b. Waiting for a root canal procedure to commence?
c. Trapped beneath something heavy and the only item within reach is this book to pass the time before help arrives?
d. Procrastinating from writing your own book?
e. Wanting to read a delightfully absurd and insightful memoir by a talented, debut author.
or
f. All of the above.

To show more give you a hint, Sheshunoff’s treasure chest of poignant witticisms sprinkled with reflective prose embodies universal appeal. We have all dreamed of “getting away” from it all, but few of us have the moxie to do it. Albeit fueled by a quarter life crisis and an embarrassment for not having read several literary classics, Sheshunoff’s pursuit is familiar and captivating, bringing us closer to understanding ourselves as we follow along with his outlandish adventures.

Do yourself a favor; make a frothy, fruity drink, sit beneath a palm tree (or poster of a palm tree) and read this book. You’ll laugh, cringe, and be fully engaged with Sheshunoff’s life choices and results. Fun, creative, and sharp-witted, "A Beginner’s Guide to Paradise" is a book you don’t want to miss.

The answer, by the way, is f. show less

Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over

The blurb that had me pick up this title, one which fell outside of my usual interest areas being a contemporary autobiography, has been changed. Perhaps this is a good thing because what drew me to choose A Beginner’s Guide to Paradise turned out to be a single email in the last few chapters of the book.

So why do I say this is a good thing? Well, A Beginner’s Guide is a tongue-in-cheek, brutally honest auto-biography of Alex Sheshunoff’s show more decision to walk away from a traditional life in New York City to find himself in a remote Pacific Island.

Yes, it’s that ridiculous a concept, and yet his journey is compelling. He spares nothing in revealing his missteps, his fumbles, and how all the reading (he brought 100 books) led him to being a pompous know-it-all and almost cost him the love of his life.

While I have no intention of dropping everything to run off to an island, the life lessons he uncovers as he blunders his way through foreign and ex-pat cultures have a broader application than just how to build a house with friends. His discoveries about possessions and expectations are worth pondering as is the rocky nature of how he finds the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with.

It’s endearing even before the introduction of their baby monkey and offers insights into the nature of people and the difficulties of cross-cultural communication. Is this a thinking book? Absolutely. But the tone of voice, the jokes, and inwardly turned humor make it a compelling, fascinating read.

I’m ever so grateful for the mention of Dian Fossey that lead me to pick up A Beginner’s Guide even though it turned out to be the least bit of an intriguing, wonderful journey of discovery. I might not be in a place to do what Alex did, but he’s given me some things to laugh about, ponder, and possibly explore. What more could a reader ask?

P.S. I received this title from the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. show less