Ursula Pike

nonfiction - Peace Corps memoir; a young 20-something woman with Karuk ancestry (but raised "American" with little knowledge of her cultural roots in California/Oregon) volunteers in Kantuta, Bolivia, 1994-1996, and relates her experiences in detail thanks to her copious journal writing.)

read to p. 53 before abandoning, but I had lost interest way before that. Author's writing is fine but as with many/most Peace Corps experiences, not that much actually happens and one's enthusiasm for giving back to the world is slowly drained out of existence. The resulting book lacks a compelling narrative, though I do appreciate that she attempted to bring the indigenous viewpoint into the discussion.… (plus d'informations)

Published: April 6, 2021
Heyday
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ursula Pike is a graduate of the MFA program at the Institute of American Indian Arts. Her work won the 2019 Writers’ League of Texas Manuscript Contest in the memoir category, and her writing has appeared in Yellow Medicine Review, World Literature Today, and Ligeia Magazine. She has an MA in economics with a focus on community economic development and was a Peace Corps fellow at Western Illinois University. She served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Bolivia from 1994 to 1996. An enrolled member of the Karuk Tribe, she was born in California and grew up in Daly City, California, and Portland, Oregon. She currently lives in Austin, Texas.

“But I didn’t realize that helping people is difficult.”

Ursula Pike joined the Peace Corps wanting to make a difference. She wanted to find a way to do some good in the world. She wanted to find value in being a Native woman, and she wanted to connect with other Native people.

This memoir is about the journey Ursula had while in Bolivia. It is beautiful, heartbreaking, life-changing, and raw. The absolute vulnerable truths Ursula shares are so beautifully written. Her time in Bolivia is filled with many adventures.

The lessons learned were so incredibly vast and deep. And her time there changed her. It changed how she thought, how she saw things, how she felt about things. And mostly, it changed how she saw and felt about herself.

This is such a beautiful story about a young Native woman discovering the absolute beauty in her skin. Her culture. Her people. And her place in the world.

I love that Ursula has kept in touch with some of the friends she made while in Bolivia. And I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to share this journey with her. Everything about this book is worthwhile.

Prepare yourself; you’re about to take an emotional journey. The growth, the lessons, and the absolute love contained in these pages is pure magic.… (plus d'informations)