Mir gefiel das Buch nicht so besonders. Ich fand es total überzogen. Vassar, die Hauptperson, ist eine derartig klischeehafte Streberin, bzw. das Kind derartig klischeehafter Strebereltern, dass es nicht mehr glaubwürdig ist. Sie reist dann mit 10 Koffern nach Malaysia, wo sie jede Menge ebenfalls völlig überzogener Abenteuer erlebt und ein sehr vorhersehbares Familiengeheimnis lüftet. Man kann in die Einschätzung meiner Kritik einberechnen, dass ich 51 bin und somit der Zielgruppe längst entwachsen. Aber ich lese oft und gerne Jugendbücher und dieses fand ich schwach. ( )

I agree with community reviewer Kara that this is a book you can't judge by the first bit. ?áDon't give up on it too early. ?áI disagree with her about the final rating. ?áUltimately, it's as superficial as chick lit, and really should have a pink cover accessorized by symbols of Vassar's rich, planned, Western life contrasted with symbols of her quest for a sense of a spiritual identity and a global perspective in rural SE Asia. ?á

I picked it up because of the title and cover. ?áI wanted a story that was powerful enough to hit home, to help me act more boldly and spontaneously. ?áBut this disappoints. ?áIt's not a bad book for a casual reader, but it's not what it could have been. ( )

The characters can be cartoonish at times (Malaysian cowboy?? List-making overachiever named Vassar??) but reading it put me in mind of the old screwball comedy movies and that's not all bad. Entertaining and amusing coming-of-age story. ( )

I liked the cover of this book enough that I bought it on my last trip to Powell's. My level of engagement went precipitously downhill once I opened said cover. Tissue-thin plot, characters I didn't like, and writing I found difficult going overwhelmed the nicely done travel bits. The big mystery at the heart of the book was obvious within the first couple of pages. There just isn't much here to like. ( )

Carpe Diem turned out to be a surprisingly good read about travels in Southeast Asia (where, according to the book, rolls of toilet paper are placed on restaurant tables to be used as napkins). This is one of the few times I've read about the Hmong since The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, and I found the contrast between the happy family and the drug den very interesting. Ultimately it's a YA novel with the requisite teen age love story, and the worst possible narrator, Lynde Houck on the audiobook, and alas a really stupid christian miracle (what do you expect from the daughter of missionaries?). But it's worth a read for the very interesting details of travel. ( )