The Village of Waiting
by George Packer
On This Page
Description
Now restored to print with a new Foreword by Philip Gourevitch and an Afterword by the author, The Village of Waiting is a frank, moving, and vivid account of contemporary life in West Africa. Stationed as a Peace Corps instructor in the village of Lavie (the name means ' wait a little more' ) in tiny and underdeveloped Togo, George Packer reveals his own schooling at the hands of an unforgettable array of townspeople--peasants, chiefs, charlatans, children, market women, cripples, crazies, show more and those who, having lost or given up much of their traditional identity and fastened their hopes on ' development,' find themselves trapped between the familiar repetitions of rural life and the chafing monotony of waiting for change. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
Packer, a Peace Corps volunteer in Togo in the early '80s, captures the incredible alienation of being the lone world-traveling white man in a place where few people have even left the village. It's rare to read a book that so fuly explores the potential misery of the travel experience and rarer still to find one that can do it in a thoughtful rather than self-pitying way. In describing his own experiences, Packer fleshes out the lives and characters of his village host family and fellow teachers in a vivid and memorable way, giving a 3-dimensional face to the countless impersonal news stories we read about African poverty. I think everyone needs to read this book.
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Lists
Tour of Africa
54 works; 2 members
Mustich's 1000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life Changing List
1,001 works; 18 members
Author Information
26+ Works 3,748 Members
George Packer is an American writer, teacher, and former Peace Corps volunteer. He was also a writing instructor at Harvard, Bennington, and Emerson Universities. Packer was born on August 13, 1960, in Santa Clara, California. Packer's experience with the Peace Corps helped him write the book The Village is Waiting. He has also written The Half show more Man, Central Square and The Assassins' Gate: America in Iraq. He was a supporter of the Iraq war. He was a finalist for the 2004 Michael Kelly Award. In 2013, Packer's work of nonfiction entitled, The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America, won the U.S. National Book Award. (Bowker Author Biography) George Packer's journalism & essays have appeared in "Harper's", "Dissent", "The New York Times", "The 1997 Pushcart Prize" anthology, "The Art of the Essay", & elsewhere. His latest books is "Blood of the Liberals" (FSG, 2000). He lives in Brooklyn, New York. (Publisher Provided) show less
Awards and Honors
Notable Lists
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Common Knowledge
- Important places*
- Togo
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
- Genres
- Travel, Nonfiction, General Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir
- DDC/MDS
- 966.8104092 — History & geography History of Africa West Africa: Mali, Niger, Nigeria Togo and Benin Togo
- LCC
- DT582.27 .P33 — History of Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania Africa History of Africa West Africa. West Coast Togo. Togoland History
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 152
- Popularity
- 214,723
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.79)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 4
- ASINs
- 1
