NOTES FROM A SPINNING PLANET: PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Melody Carlson
WaterBrook Press
Fiction
ISBN: 9781400071456
240 pages

In the second installment of this lively new travel series by Melody Carlson, main character and soon-to-be 20-year-old Maddie Chase is invited by her Aunt Sid, a professional journalist, to go on an investigative story hunt in Papua New Guinea. Maddie, not exactly a seasoned traveler, feels more at ease than she did a few months earlier when Sid and Sid's godson flew to Ireland. But should she? Traveling first to Hawaii, the two women enjoy a brief respite in paradise before visiting a country where women are still bought and sold as young brides, AIDS is growing rampantly, crime is the nation’s biggest industry and the government is primarily corrupt.

When Sid shows Maddie a travel warning issued by the government of New Guinea, Maddie begins to feel overwhelmed and frightened. What exactly is she getting herself into? Still, there's no turning back, and God's hand of protection is with them, right? Following the stringent safety instructions, they still almost fall into carjackers' hands and then a second time they become the almost-victims of false-identity guides. But after befriending a citizen of Papua, who has been the victim of violent crimes and still bravely serves amongst her people's neediest, the two Americans have pause to think. At every turn, Sid and Maddie interview willing islanders attempting to uncover the truth about the small country's dire health conditions, and they are constantly on guard against sudden attacks.

Conversely, the island people are among the friendliest and most gracious Sid and Maddie have encountered, which makes the health crisis even more heartbreaking. Even the native Christian islanders’ religious beliefs tend to be superstitious rather than self-sacrificing and accepting, so they are up against more obstacles than the lawbreakers --- they're fighting against ignorance within the church. As they travel to various areas in the country, both Sid and Maddie find themselves personally stretched to see with eyes of faith, trusting that God can and will make a difference through their efforts, one person at a time.

    --- Reviewed by Michele Howe

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