As travelogues go, Lost on Planet China is a good one. You get the usual history and statistics mixed with descriptions of visits to some of the most famous sites in the country. There is adequate space devoted to the thoughts of native citizens about their land as well. The real value of Lost on Planet China, though, is it's unsparing frankness and candor. The author does not hold back his opinions about the terrible air pollution in urban China, the chaos of auto traffic and taxi queues, or the variety of the Chinese diet, as is clear from this book's subtitle: "the strange and true story of one man's attempt to understand the world's most mystifying nation, or how he became comfortable eating live squid." Troost also visits Tibet on his journey and he paints a thorough picture of the views on each side about China's occupation of the region. The book is funny throughout and does a good job portraying the sheer mass and diversity of China, but the author's complaints about the traffic and the air become repetitive and contribute to an impression of cultural superiority. Lost on Planet China is not perfect but it is certainly worth your time.
If you like Troost's style, check out his previous book, also a travelogue, Getting Stoned with Savages: a Trip Through the Islands of Fiji and Vanuatu.-- Steve, Main Library
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