Rated of 5
by Kimberly D. (Mount Airy, MD) More Of A Travel Memoir
I enjoy reading books that teach some kind of spiritual lesson, so I was eager to read this book to find out what the author learned by working at a radio station in a Buddhist nation. While I believe the epiphanies she arrived at were profound and relevant to my life, they didn't take up much of the book. Radio Shangri-la reads more like a travel memoir offering sights, sounds and a rich atmosphere of a place the reader will never experience in real life. I enjoyed it more for this reason.
Rated of 5
by Jacquelyn H. (Blanco, Texas) Radio Shangri-La by Lisa Napoli
Being a life long traveler, I began this book with great expectations looking forward to a tale of an American working in exotic Bhutan, a place I've never visited. Immediately encountering wordy sentences without smooth flow, I struggled through the mildly interesting plot. The characters showed potential but, often, were not fully defined. Interesting facts about Bhutan and the Buddhist monks held some interest but the lack of smooth writing hindered smooth reading.
Rated of 5
by Caryl L. (Williamsburg, VA) Radio Shangri-la
This is an interesting and very readable book. I expected more on Bhutan's country, beliefs and day-to-day living. However, it is more biographical than historical. What did she learn? I t seemed to me that she got more out of her "three good things" class in LA than from her visits to Bhutan. However, she did love the peace, easy-going and content lifestyle of the Bhutanese. I would too considering our frantic lives. I would like to have had some pictures of the beautiful landscape and life in Bhutan. I do recommend this book for pleasure reading.
Rated of 5
by Katherine T. (Atlanta, Georgia) Shangri skip the La
I was very excited about reading this book since I have loved other travel adventure books in the past. However, I found Radio Shangri-La by Lisa Napoli a bit uneven. The first two days in Bhutan are read well and interesting, but then it lost my interest. Too many pages discussing going back and forth and not enough meat or heart regarding Bhutan.
Rated of 5
by Mary H. (Okemos, MI) Radio Shangri-La: What I Learned in Bhutan, The Happiest Kingdom on Earth.
Like many memoirists these days, when Lisa Napoli experienced a mid-life crisis, she jumped at an opportunity to travel to a remote part of the world – in this case, Bhutan. My favorite parts of the book were her nuggets of information about this tiny Himalayan country: why the Bhutanese paint phalluses on their buildings, the extreme spiciness of the food, why the University of Texas at El Paso designs all their buildings in the Bhutanese style (minus the phalluses, I assume) and the country’s serious pursuit of Gross National Happiness instead of a Gross Domestic Product. As she says, Bhutan was "an ancient, once-secluded kingdom now transitioning at warp speed". A few years ago TV was finally allowed in the country and it has brought images of the US –via Baywatch and Sex and the City. Will young Bhutanese's Gross National Happiness change?
I was interested in this book because I lead an International Book Discussion at the library where I work and we had just read another book about Bhutan. This was a fun and enjoyable read about current events in Bhutan, and I will recommend it to others in our group who want an update about this country, and any other armchair travelers.
Rated of 5
by mainlinebooker(Narberth, PA) Disappointing tale
Perhaps I bring a bias. I have been to Bhutan in the past year and eagerly awaited the depiction of the warm serenity that engulfs the region. Instead, I found a breezy novel with little insight that might appeal to those looking for an entertaining "find yourself' book.I was hoping to hear much more about what she actually did at the radio station and the difficulties she encountered,but again, I found her text to be insubstantial. She talks about various love relationships gone wrong,but brings you to a climax and then drops the stick, never further elucidating what happened. All in all, one might find it a good beach read, but I left it feeling disappointed and wanting more.
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of 5
by Kimberly D. (Mount Airy, MD) 
of 5
by Jacquelyn H. (Blanco, Texas) 
of 5
by Caryl L. (Williamsburg, VA) 
of 5
by Mary H. (Okemos, MI) 
