Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Escape to Thailand is an account of an English emigrant's move to Thailand and his early days here.
Following a bitter divorce and a forced early retirement from his job, Derek struggles with making the final decision to leave England for good and settle for the rest of his life in Thailand. We begin to understand the turmoil going on in his head when he realises what he is leaving behind in the land of his birth. We see from his questioning that he is still unsure whether he is doing the right thing or not. He explains how he felt about some of the cultural differences that awaited him and how he coped with them. We compare his experiences with those of other expats. Culture shock is not the same for everyone.
We see him getting to grips with his new life but are all expats really settled here? Are there going to be some unpleasant surprises in store? Are some seeing only the acceptable parts of Thai life?
Escape to Thailand is not judgmental. It leaves the reader to consider and try to understand the way events were unfolding. The problems of Thai and Western relationships, even if they seem to be surmountable in the short term, are brought out in Derek's true account of his early days in Thailand.
With many glimpses into the lives of ordinary Thais, the biography becomes a "fly on the wall" experience for the reader. Seeing what the average tourist or visitor rarely sees.
Other books by this author:
Thailand Take Two looks at Thais and Thailand in a unique way. It is not a politically correct travel guide written only to promote tourism and showing just the rosy side of Thailand.
Real characters are introduced in the book to show how Thailand's culture is so different from Western concepts. Readers will meet bankers and bargirls, the young and the old, the rich and the less well off. And get right into their lives.
It describes a Thailand that is not always that transparent to the casual observer. It takes the reader away from the regular tourist spots and explores the real Thailand.
A Thailand Diary is a candid look at Thais and Thailand in a light and readable diary format. Over 100 entries.
Holding back no punches, the book takes you inside the real Thailand and gives the reader a virtual tour of the country and its people. It allows its principal characters, authentic Thais, to talk of the cultural differences that make Thailand such a fascinating country.
Get ready for some surprises when you read it.
The Thai Way of Meekness is a commentary on a thesis by the Thai academic, Dr Ubolwan. It explains why Christian evangelism failed in Thailand. She points out that the early missionaries did not understand what she classifies as the 7 main Thai characteristics and gives that as the main reason for their lack of success. Not one convert was made in the early days.
This book concludes that understanding the native culture is a prerequisite to success. It has many links with the concepts discussed in Thailand Take Two so can usefully be read in parallel with that titleThe more you understand Thailand; the more you may find that Matt's novel, The Death of a Thai Godfather, is not as fictional as claimed.
Synopsis
Escape to Thailand is an account of an Englishman's dream of emigrating to Thailand and how it turned out. There are twists and turns throughout the 14 chapters. He first "met" Toy, a Thai teacher, on an internet dating site. Three times she asked him to join her. Three time he declined. After a lonely Christmas following his divorce from his English wife, he relented. We take up his story when he is on the aircraft on the runway at Heathrow. It was then that he seemed to have his first doubts about his decision to fly out to meet Toy and her schoolgirl daughter from her first husband.
At first, he seemed happy to have made the choice to visit. But talking to other expats and thinking more closely at what Toy was saying and doing brought some doubts to his mind. One day he was convincing himself that he could make a new life here; the next day he thought he had made a big mistake.
Was he going to fit into an entirely different culture from that he was used to?
Following a bitter divorce and a forced early retirement from his job, Derek struggles with making the final decision to leave England for good and settle for the rest of his life in Thailand. We begin to understand the turmoil going on in his head when he realises what he is leaving behind in the land of his birth. We see from his questioning that he is still unsure whether he is doing the right thing or not.
One moment he is confident and contented; another, full of doubt and fear. He explains how he felt about some of the cultural differences that awaited him and how he coped with them. He compares them with the very different experiences that some of his expat friends encountered. Culture shock is not the same for everyone.
You see him getting to grips with his new life but is he really settled here? Are there going to be some unpleasant surprises in store for him? Who is wearing the trousers? Derek or his wife Toy? Was he seeing only the acceptable parts of Thai life? Certainly, there are travel bloggers on the internet who turn a blind eye to the unacceptable side of Thailand.
Escape to Thailand is biographical and not judgmental or critical of anyone. It looks at how a relationship between a farang and a Thai is not the same as that which would exist between two Thais.
To understand Thailand and to integrate better with the Thai people and their culture, it's important to observe and listen rather than doing all the talking oneself. After all, God gave us two eyes and two ears but only ONE mouth. Reading Escape to Thailand is a way that the reader can be those two eyes and ears.
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