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jess_mango's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Introspective memoir/travelogue by a journalist who hits a slump and travels to the Azores. I didnβt quite connect with this tale as much as I hoped too.
Introspective memoir/travelogue by a journalist who hits a slump and travels to the Azores. I didnβt quite connect with this tale as much as I hoped too.
moamo's review against another edition
4.0
I first heard of the Azores while planning my Portugal coastline roadtrip, and this book made me want to go there even more!
pamjsa's review against another edition
3.0
Started out charming but quickly became boring. One of those books I stuck with until the end just because I'm stubborn, not because I was enjoying myself.
paigewetzel's review against another edition
3.0
Most of my joy in reading this book was derived from reliving my honeymoon to the Azores. It was a nice, relaxing read that let me relive those wonderful days and also gave me a new perspective on the island chain. It was great to hear about Marcum's back-and-forth from California and the Azores, and how many other do it as well. I loved all the relationships between the characters and the way Marcum illuminated a different way of life.
jove64's review against another edition
4.0
The book is sort of a mid-life crisis memoir crossed with a travel book. Unlike some other popular examples of the first category, it's not overly spiritual nor does finding love have a central place in the narrative. In that sense it feels a bit more real. Decisions are made on the "what's the worst that could happen" principle. The focus is on the relationships between people and rich descriptions of places and events. The geographic focus is relatively limited with multiple overlapping stories about one small place giving a rich sense of it. There is no pretence that this is some kind of objective universal truth. It is her perspective and she's pretty clear on the limitations of that: she doesn't speak the language. She's visiting. She's been away a long time between visits.
All of that makes it a joy to read.
All of that makes it a joy to read.
jessmay27's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
4.0
wildgurl's review against another edition
4.0
The Tenth Island: Finding Joy, Beauty and Unexpected Love in the Azores ππππ
By Diana Mercum
2018
Little A Books
Diana Marcums life changes when she discovers a group of immigrants from the Azorean Islands living in the Central Valley of California. They migrated to North America fleeing a Portuguese dictator and a massive volcanic eruption, between 1950 and 1980.
Her energy and fascination can be felt throughout her travels to the 9 Islands and learning of their formation, cultures, lifestyles and people. She learns of a culture that makes her question her own....a land she never knew existed and a land she can not forget.
" The Tenth Island is what you carry inside you. Its what's left when everything falls away. Those of us who live between worlds just know the Tenth Island better. No matter where I have lived--I have never left my Island. "
She never forgot these words.
Captivating and Recommended!
By Diana Mercum
2018
Little A Books
Diana Marcums life changes when she discovers a group of immigrants from the Azorean Islands living in the Central Valley of California. They migrated to North America fleeing a Portuguese dictator and a massive volcanic eruption, between 1950 and 1980.
Her energy and fascination can be felt throughout her travels to the 9 Islands and learning of their formation, cultures, lifestyles and people. She learns of a culture that makes her question her own....a land she never knew existed and a land she can not forget.
" The Tenth Island is what you carry inside you. Its what's left when everything falls away. Those of us who live between worlds just know the Tenth Island better. No matter where I have lived--I have never left my Island. "
She never forgot these words.
Captivating and Recommended!
loribulb's review against another edition
3.0
Let's be honest... this is like the B grade version of "Eat, Pray, Love."
This was not a book I would've picked up on my own; it was a Kindle Unlimited first read option. I didn't realize what it was about when I first started reading it, but then things got weird.
My mother's family is from the Azores, and settled in California. We were never deeply rooted in the culture of people traveling back and forth; the generations that emigrated were at the great and great-great grandparent level. So in my generation none of us had been back to the Azores. But it felt weird to read about a culture that technically could be mine but really isn't, from the point of view of someone who had randomly stumbled across it.
The writing isn't bad, but it was a book I had to force myself to keep coming back to. The vibe of "look at these charming ethnic people doing quirky things!" made me want to give the author the side eye.
Although it was non-fiction about the author's own experiences, I feel like she put very little of herself into the story. There would be occasional awkward writing about her love life, including bits that were like, "oh yeah awhile back I hooked up with this friend and now things are weird..." I don't want to hear about that after the fact. It made it feel removed and compartmentalized from the story, which seemed counterproductive to engaging the reader.
This was not a book I would've picked up on my own; it was a Kindle Unlimited first read option. I didn't realize what it was about when I first started reading it, but then things got weird.
My mother's family is from the Azores, and settled in California. We were never deeply rooted in the culture of people traveling back and forth; the generations that emigrated were at the great and great-great grandparent level. So in my generation none of us had been back to the Azores. But it felt weird to read about a culture that technically could be mine but really isn't, from the point of view of someone who had randomly stumbled across it.
The writing isn't bad, but it was a book I had to force myself to keep coming back to. The vibe of "look at these charming ethnic people doing quirky things!" made me want to give the author the side eye.
Although it was non-fiction about the author's own experiences, I feel like she put very little of herself into the story. There would be occasional awkward writing about her love life, including bits that were like, "oh yeah awhile back I hooked up with this friend and now things are weird..." I don't want to hear about that after the fact. It made it feel removed and compartmentalized from the story, which seemed counterproductive to engaging the reader.
dblake6145's review against another edition
3.0
Wanted to enjoy it, weird flow and vibe, could hardly finish it