SEARCHING FOR CRUSOE
A Journey Among the Last Real Islands
By Thurston Clarke (Ballantine Books, 2001)

This book left such an impression on us that we did two things upon finishing it: We went to Svalbard, a Norwegian island. And we decided never to set foot on the Maldives in the Indian Ocean.

Clarke's travelogue reads like a story for each island he visits. He gives us just enough historical, political, social & cultural information to introduce us to these places. He also talks to present-day islanders, for a more personal perspective on life there.

In three parts, "Searching for Crusoe" includes Famous Islands, Personal Islands and Symbolic Islands. Some of them were familiar to us, like the Maldives. Some were unheard of, like Svalbard. Some islands seem as distant as another planet to what we're familiar with, like Abemama.With some, like Grand Cayman, we could only sigh and agree with Clarke's assessment of the situation.

Traveling to the Isle of Jura, in Scotland's Inner Hebrides, seemed to have hit Clarke at the "core" of his island-self. The author talks about George Orwell's stay on Jura. It was here that Orwell wrote his essay "Pleasure Spots," where among other scary premises, "no one is ever alone" and "light and temperature are always artificially regulated." Sound like a cruise ship or resort you know?

"Searching for Robinson Crusoe" is serious stuff but very readable. Parts of it will make you sad. Parts of it will delight you. Perhaps most importantly though, the book makes us aware of our shrinking planet. And as a result, the effect it is having on the ability of islands to keep their distinctiveness.

Two pieces of advice from us: seek out the less traveled islands as soon as you can, before they become too homogenized. And, boycott those islands that are self-destructing from too many tourist dollars, or have already lost their island-selves!