One Big Damn Puzzler

I thought this book would be extremely witty but I didnt find it so. It was marred by coarseness, which I felt didnt have a place in the whimsical style it pretended to. The story sounded engaging but in the end I couldnt finish it as it didnt grab my interest.

Ive not read another book that mixed high-brow and low-brow so effectively. From the s***ting beach to Shakespeare, I laughed, a lot. The characters are so well developed that you cant help but feel involved. Our hero only wants to do good, while we can clearly see his efforts will harm. Its a clash of cultures, and a calling out of our American materialism, done well. I highly recommend this intriguing tale.

I read this while on vacation back in 2011. I was laughing out loud. Very witty, surprising, and enjoyable, with lots of details and well built characters and plot. Enjoy it!

I fell in love with this book from the opening lines, as an inhabitant of the island transcribes Hamlet into patois. Despite the humour John Hardings message of the often negative influence western society and money have on other ways of life comes through clearly.

We all imagine a being on a tropical island, in the sun, the roaring ocean, with innocent and beautiful natives giving us everything we need. John Harding gives this to us with plenty of add-ons: Shakespeare, OCD, innocence and its loss, and the Western materialistic mentality. An American lawyer comes to this untouched island, meets the natives, and tries to obtain compensation for them from injuries as the result of left over land mines. The book turns into an allegory of American values running amok and attempts to give a world vision on todays events. Harding uses humor, literary license, and great imagination to accomplish this task. I thank him for great and thoughtful entertainment.

Had to purchase this for a class and I really enjoyed reading it. I kept this one for my book shelf.

I loved this damn book. It is unusual and creative in so many ways-- a wonderful piece of art. There is depth to the characters that was very satisfying. This book is interesting, entertaining and delightful. The topics explore OCD, friendships, and culture. I enjoyed this book tremendously-- and want to read Mr.Hardings other two books.