Drug Muled: Sixteen Years in a Thai Prison by Joanne Joseph
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I bought the book because I am friends with the publisher, on Face Book, and I read how it was flying off the shelves in bookstores. I could not find it available in a Kindle version which was annoying, so I did get the soft cover.
This turned out to be a good thing as my daughter, Victoria (13) was visiting on the weekend, picked up the book and finished it by the next day. I heard her laughter next door, as well as the silence and I felt happy that books could take her on an emotional journey.
Once I also settled down to read “Drug Muled” I finished the same day. I did not enjoy the style of writing as it was very simplistic reading in terms of language and comprehension and I felt could do with some “meat”. Victoria and I agreed it is difficult to say we enjoyed the book because of the subject matter. How do you enjoy reading about a horrific act of evil done to a person, which in turn affects dozens of people in its aftermath?
I must admit, after reading the book, I never want to visit Thailand. Not for anything.
I found it hard at times to follow the sequence of events, or how exactly the relationship between the embassy and prison worked. What I did however fully grasp was the love Vanessa shared for her daughter, the devotion of friendship (because I have once shared such of powerful bond) that she could ask a friend to raise her child, and the difficulty adjusting to life outside of such a rigid, cruel structure for so many years.
It was mentioned on Face Book, that the book should perhaps be a compulsory read for high school students, which I would agree with. There is much one can learn about being a naïve young girl, believing in first love. People are both evil and good, and you may be surprised who stands by you when the chips are down. Perhaps the most overwhelming of them all, the difficulty in trying to forgive the people who had framed Vanessa (which is never mentioned in the book) and her acceptance of the years of her life she has lost.
It does leave one thinking.
Wenchy
Nocturnal Wenchy 
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