While in Darkness There Is Light: Idealism and Tragedy on an Australian Commune

The book had barely been used, and I would not have even known that it was used at all if it had not been advertised as such. It also arrived in a very timely fashion.

Bryant brings to life a time of struggle and idealism that stands in stark contrast to today's cynicism. Having come of age at that time, I can attest to this authentic portrayal of my generation's youthful hopes and mistakes. Clear prose and wonderfully drawn characters make this a compelling read, enjoyable and satisfying from start to finish.

Louella Bryant has written an engrossing memoir of a small group of young men, the sons of rich Americans, living under the stress of the war in Vietnam. "Hell-no, they won't go" (to fight), but even so they're scarred by the times. There's a lot of fun and (dangerous) adventure in Australia -- one of them dies in a diving accident and another goes off on a quixotic quest to Southeast Asia, never to return. An excellent forward by former Vermont Governor and prominent Democrat, Howard Dean, who lost his brother. A good read and well-written.

Bryant has done a wonderful job capturing the times of the 70's counterculture when just about everyone, including the wealthiest young men in the country, were turning on and dropping out. Leaving behind lives that most people could only dream of these idealists set up a commune in the Australian jungle and made a go of it. And while Charlie Dean's death was senseless and tragic it does overshadow the overall success of the Rosebud farm and the backbreaking hard work and tenacity of Rich Trapnell who, as the proverbial last man standing, runs a thriving business to this day. The book is a tribute to a time when young people were so fed up with their country that they were willing to move half way around the globe to try and make a better life for themselves. As you will see by reading the book the social struggles reverberate in each of the cast of characters in varying degrees. Highly recommended.

This is an amazing story about a group of young men who were seemingly born with silver spoons in their mouths, attending prep schools, summering in the Hamptons, going to the finest colleges, drinking tea out of fine china with pinkies extended whose families had country club memberships and who, by all means, should have been pure, unadulterated, spoiled snobs. But these young men totally surprised me. These amazing 20-somethings were filled with wanderlust, and they ended up, by their own decisions, on a piece of property in the rain forest of Australia, and they turned it into a working farm visited by hundreds (if not thousands) of similar young folks searching to find themselves. For me, the book was somewhat nostalgic as I was maturing at the same time as time as they were, but never in my wildest dreams would I have left the comforts that they had to toil endlessly in a foreign country. These were extremely intelligent young people, mature for their years, who survived and thrived and had the experience of a lifetime. It is a tale with a tragic ending, but you know that going into the story. It's the events that lead up to that tragic ending that will keep you riveted and entertained.