THOSE PECULIAR AMERICANS.

by Lawrence H. Fuchs ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 1967

The introduction is an extended essay on the development of American individualism, the conclusion is a summary of the lonely, atomistic American psyche; in between these splashes of borrowed knowledge is the subject of the book--The Peace Corps operation in the Philippines--and on this the author is very much an authority. As the first Representative of Program Director in the Philippines, Mr. Fuchs was in a position to study and analyze the volunteers, the Filipinos, and their interaction: this he did with acumen and sympathy. Here, intellectualized, and conceptualized, are his observations: an unromantic but by no means disenchanted examination of the Peace Corps. Mr. Fuchs describes and evaluates the two-year experience of the volunteer through the day-to-day problems of the all-too-human, completely American (individualistic, work-oriented) youth struggling to perform a non-job in a society based on mutual dependence and fatalism. The former Rep is no writer--repetition, lack of organization, business report rhetoric bog down the text. But the insights into the PCV's life and thoughts, his joys and jolts, are valid, the questions raised about our own society searching. Skip the introductory and concluding material and concentrate on the core for a very real comprehension of the over-Journalized but little-understood volunteer.

Pub Date: May 1, 1967

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Mcredith

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1967

Categories: NONFICTION