Monique and the Mango Rains by Kris Holloway

I loved living in an inviting community, where you were always asked to share food and drink, and where you spend time greeting and joking rather than avoiding others because of a busy schedule.

'I cherished spending almost all my time out-of-doors, taking bucket baths under the stars, watching thunderheads pile the sky, and walking and dancing by moonlight. Although the author writes near the end of her 'tour', Quite a stark contrast to the life most Americans lead. I'd most likely be part of the 1/3 of volunteers who do not complete their two years!!! There are definitely other hardships, deprivations, and struggles to stay alive. Oh yes, another patriarchal society that frustrated and disturbed me as I moved through the book ( as did many other things).

Daily life can be back-breaking labor, or other work from morning to night especially for the women. She primarily worked with the amazing Monique who acts as a general health care practitioner and midwife for the villagers. Kris Holloway was a Peace Corps volunteer 1989-1991 in a small village in Mali. I'm almost always interested in fiction or non-fiction stories set in other cultures and this was no exception. This is a worthy story especially after seeing all we take for granted, the food we throw away, the medical system we complain about, just staggers the mind what people do without and still find the motivation to go on. Monique actually visited her in New York. Kris would be profoundly affected by her experience and her friendship with Monique would remain. The birth house, one of the only places women could have privacy was in horrible shape, eventually the Peace Corp would give their approval to have the birth house rebuilt.Īnother story that had heartbreaking moments, unbelievable tension and yet so much humor and love. Monique quickly took Kris under her wing and with Monique she experienced her first birth, she was so profoundly affected by this she vowed never to have children.

Learned many heartbreaking facts about Mali, one of the poorest nations in the world, the amount of women dying in childbirth is heartbreaking. After initial training she met Monique, who was a young midwife, in this very poor village. Kris was a young Peace Corp volunteer, straight out of college and her request for assignment was Mali.

Monique and the Mango Rains by Kris Holloway