Overview

Geckos, Incense and the Moon is a deeply personal and vividly written travel memoir by a woman who, at age 73, leaves her home to live in Vietnam for a year-just as the world, unexpectedly, is shutting down due to the pandemic. Prompted by a previous visit to her expat son and a growing fascination with Vietnamese culture and Buddhism, she makes the leap-arriving just before the borders close in March 2020. What unfolds is a rich, layered journey: life in a small beach village, the challenges of navigating daily routines in a foreign language, the beauty of local customs, and new friendships with expats from all over the world. She also brings readers into the complex and honest story of her relationship with her son, who struggles with alcoholism. With his permission, she shares both the loving and painful moments they experience together. This memoir explores what it means to live and even thrive outside your comfort zone. It's a testament to the power of curiosity, courage, and the resilience of the human spirit-at any age

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Reviews

Your beautifully descriptive language holds my attention, and keeps me very much engaged. In particular, your inner reactions to the new world you encounter are terrific. You continue to create wonderful descriptions of the world around you. I can easily visualize what you describe and feel what you're experiencing as you confront what's new, challenging, and frustrating with your travels. Your choice of words to describe your experiences and observations just flow, pulling me in to want to read more. Deak Wooten, CA This story about Vietnam reminded me of the courage that seems to be a large part of your character. The red line in your stories is courage for life and love for real, honest people. Your book will inspire many. Leonie Constandse, The Netherlands I love how you really got into detail about Sapa and more in-depth of the Vietnam culture. This part was where you changed from a tourist to a resident living there. It's brilliant! The ending was fantastic. It must have been so difficult to finalize all that, but you did it. It's a really strong ending, the best part of the book for me. S.W.S. Vietnam Your ability to evoke sights, sounds and more through your writing continues to be strong and admirable. Many writers can describe, but it takes a special talent to evoke sensory and other elements of life experience, which you definitely have! Also, you are able to uncover psychological and emotional elements in the story well, which adds to the overall experience of reading your writing. Paul Takayanagi, CA Your spirit illuminates the pages like the sun lights the early morning sky. Barbara Ellis, CA What a fabulous read! It brought me joy and tears! Mary Gruel, CA ""It feels like a transformational travel story like ""Eat, Pray, Love"", only with the protagonist at a different phase of life and facing different challenges. Dara Tuell, CA

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