Smithsonian.com

With straightforward prose, William Powers unfolds the story of his time in Liberia during a resurgence of fighting in the country’s devastating 14-year civil war. Stationed as an aid worker in one of Africa’s most war-torn countries, the author comes into forcible contact with the same troubles plaguing Liberians: a corrupt, graft-filled government; a hopelessness created by poverty and instability; and a violence that seems to be an inescapable way of life. And yet Powers also shows Liberia to be a place of indomitable beauty. Likening the country’s rain forests—some of the last surviving tracts in all of West Africa—to a lush, jewel-toned dreamscape, Powers invests much time and effort in preserving this fragile ecosystem from logging, diamond smuggling and poaching. Written with unsentimental empathy for the people of Liberia, Blue Clay People allows “first world” outsiders to understand a place and way of life that was unfathomable before now.

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At one point Powers describes how well, or not so well, he transitions back into American life during a visit to his fiancée. Leaving much unsaid, the passage still resonates with the author’s disillusionment and trepidation as new and old ways of life clash.

A source of frequent discussion throughout the book is the definition of aid. Powers and many of the people he meets during his stay in Liberia voice very different opinions concerning what entails giving aid, and the price tag attached to such aid.

A continuous thread in Powers’ memoir is the desire for Liberia to move away from dependency toward self-sufficiency and sustainability. This is often linked with having a “first world” culture, which becomes problematic when the Liberian culture is lost or sacrificed in the transition.

The author of The Boys of Summer turns to his own saga, told with grace and conviction. His homage to books, baseball and the spirit of his son, who died at age 23, will linger long in the memory.

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