Avoiding Prison and Other Noble Vacation Goals: Adventures in Love and Danger

I loved this book from start to finish. It made me laugh and it made me cry. Probably because of a non-typical childhood, Ms. Dale chose to live an unorthodox life while traveling. In so doing, she experienced the countries she's traveled to in a wholly different way than most American travelers. It did me good to see the side of Latin America that she describes. We here in the "States" think we know all there is to living. I think we need to think again. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to enjoy some laughs, some suspense and, some tears of joy. It is an enjoyable read.

Product Placement and a catchy title really are important. I, who have zero interest in Travel, happened by this section in my quest to find the "Horror" section, which by the way, does not exist at my local B & N. And this book, nicely displayed on the aisle, caught my eye. I picked it up, and as I usually will do, read the first page of a book to see if I would want to read further. After about 15 pages, and getting weird looks from other customers for standing there like an idiot failing to stifle my laughing out loud like an idiot, I decided it would be easier reading it at home so I HAD to buy this book. Even a person who has no interest in travelling will find this book hysterical.

I read this book when I'd knocked flat by a horrible flu. Wendy's vivid detail of the equatorial weather, cuisine and nightlife are what cured me, I'm convinced. "Adventures in Love and Danger" couldn't be titled any more appropriately.... conjugal visits in third world prisons, black market shopping and a willingness to chuck everything safe and dive headlong into the circumstances that make a story worth telling... this book doesn't leave anything out. It's full of the stories that most people wish they could tell about their boring year abroad. A fantastic read.

Wendy brings laughter and romance back into travel writing. Learn to bend the rules as you go with her to places no Americans are permitted to go. This book is for anyone who wonders if they're wasting their life inside an office cubicle, or for anyone troubled by crowded beaches and graffiti-worn tourist traps. Wendy strides headlong into foreign lands, ready to learn what it means to be a citizen of the world. Is she asking for trouble? Perhaps, but this coming-of-age account of a very brave young woman shows there's far more to life than worry over lost luggage.

Move over, Paul Theroux. Wendy Dale has now taken the stage with a travel book that redefines travel writing in a way no one else can! Witty, charming, funny, comic, insightful, biting, ironic,sarcastic, philosophical ... this is a travel writer worth waiting for. If you read one good book this summer, read this one. And for expats around the world, dig in!