UNDRESS ME IN THE TEMPLE OF HEAVEN

On a whim, two recent Ivy League graduates decide to backpack around the world. China is their first stop, and, as it turns out, their last. What happens in between is capably, if a little rapidly, brought to listeners by the author, who has waited twenty-plus years to tell this exciting story. To her credit, she attempts to voice some of the international fellow travelers they meet, and when her friend develops mental illness, there's no mistaking the desperation in her voice as she tries to return to the U.S. Her tone also expresses appreciation for the scenery and the Chinese people, if not their officials. An author interview at the end is enlightening, although the interviewer sounds as if she's reading from a script J.B.G. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2009]