We specialize in hard to find items
All Categories
Leaves of the Banyan Tree (Talanoa: Contemporary Pacific Literature, 5)
Share Tweet
*Price and Stocks may change without prior notice
*Packaging of actual item may differ from photo shown
- Electrical items MAY be 110 volts.
- 7 Day Return Policy
- All products are genuine and original
About Leaves Of The Banyan Tree
From Library Journal Set in Samoa, this novel involves three generations of an aiga (family) and reads like a parable. Toasa, the head of the family, tells stories of lions and ghosts and poignantly describes his peoples' connection to their land. He asserts that "his one inconsolable regret was the fact that Tauilopepe, the son of his friend, of the man he had loved so much, would be responsible for the final destruction of his world." The Samoans are envious of the papalagi (European whites) but strive to better their own circumstances, unlike the characters in Alan Duff's Once Were Warriors (LJ 6/15/94). Tauilopepe tames the bush to create a plantation and acquire considerable personal wealth. As he gains stature in his community, he loses the love and respect of his family. Following his success, Tauliopepe is described by his son as being like "all preachers in their wooden thrones who do not listen to their own message because their hearts are stone." For general readers with an interest in Pacific literature.Kimberly G. Allen, MCI Corporate Information Resources Ctr., Washington, D.C.Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. Product Description An epic spanning three generations, Leaves of the Banyan Tree tells the story of a family and community in Western Samoa, exploring on a grand scale such universal themes as greed, corruption, colonialism, exploitation, and revenge. Winner of the 1980 New Zealand Wattie Book of the Year Award, it is considered a classic work of Pacific literature. From Kirkus Reviews This novel by the Samoan-born Wendt (The Birth and Death of the Miracle Man, 1986, etc.), first published in 1979, is a family saga that contrasts three generations of Western Samoans as a way of exploring the effects of colonialism before and after the country's independence from New Zealand. Tauilopepe, the grandfather, who lives on his family's plantation in a farming village, wages a 30-year struggle in the face of European encroachment to extend his family's lands and acquire wealth, power, and prestige. ``God, Money, and Success'' is his credo. His rebellious son, Pepe, winds up doing hard labor after being expelled from the town school and helping to torch a Protestant church hall ``because God does not live in it.'' He soon dies of tuberculosis and leaves behind a son, Lalolagi, who is taken away from his mother by Tauilopepe and sent to a New Zealand boarding school where he is groomed for success and consequently rejects the Samoan language in favor of English. Later, Lalolagi falls in with businessmen and con men of Samoan and European backgrounds, apparently newly united in their determination to exploit the independent country's resources. This book dramatically illustrates the dilemma of a family caught between holding onto old values as everything changes around them and compromising those values in order to survive. But while the reasons for Tauilopepe's single-minded behavior are clear and comprehensible from a historical perspective, they are, narratively, less convincing: His character and emotional motivation aren't fully explored. Disappointingly, women don't have a voice in this story, which is told from male points of view. And the glossary is not as complete as it could be for those unfamiliar with Samoan terms. These flaws combine to make this a less-than-satisfying read. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. From the Inside Flap An epic spanning three generations, 'Leaves of the Banyan Tree' tells the story of a family and community in Western Samoa, exploring on a grand scale such universal themes as greed, corruption, colonialism, exploitation, and revenge. From the Back Cover An epic spanning three generations, Leaves of the Banyan Tree tells the story of a family and community in Western Samoa, exploring on a grand scale such universal themes as greed, corruption, colonialism, exploitation, and revenge. Winner of
