A review of the memoir Here We Are and There We Go by Jill Dobbe.
I have just finished reading Jill Dobbe’s inspirational memoir, Here We Are & There We Go, which chronicles her family’s unconventional lifestyle of living and teaching abroad with two young children.
The memoir covers the period from 1991 when the family moved with toddlers to Guam for their first overseas experience to their move home to the United States in 2001. In between they also lived in Singapore, Ghana, and Guadalajara, Mexico.
I enjoyed reading Jill’s account of their time spent abroad and what she learned from the experience. Jill doesn’t sugarcoat some of the difficulties that they had living abroad and adjusting to lifestyles that were much different that what they were accustomed to at home in the United States. Relying on her journals from the time, Jill transports the reader along with her family to each of these foreign locales as she describes the life that she, Dan, Ian and Ali led as expatriates.
Even more enlightening is the description of the reverse culture shock that they experienced upon returning home to Wisconsin to live after so many years abroad. Getting accustomed to the new norms of North American lifestyle was as much of an adjustment as it had been learning the ropes of foreign cultures. Jill describes visiting an American supermarket and being completely overwhelmed by the number of choices in the cereal aisle – a poignant reminder of how different the consumer culture is here from the way people live in most of the world.
Ian and Ali have now graduated from college and have embarked on careers and their own travel adventures while Jill and Dan continue to teach abroad and explore the world. The couple are currently working as administrators at the American school in Tegucigalpa, Honduras but only until they decide “here we go again”, pack up their lives and head out on a new adventure abroad.
This is an easy-to-read and inspiring tale of how one family satisfied their wanderlust with kids in tow and I enjoyed it from start to finish. I would have loved to have had so many more details of the experiences that the Dobbe family had in each of their homes.
I’m sure that Jill could have written an entire book about each of the countries that she lived in had she done it at the time rather than many years on. While I was reading I couldn’t help but think that Jill’s story would have made for some incredible blog reading if the medium had existed at the time!
The book is available in Kindle format at Amazon and at Barnes & Noble in paperback version. I was provided with a copy of the book for review purposes by the author.
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Michele {Malaysian Meanders}
I’ll have to download this book on my Kindle. Sounds like a good read. Since we are at an American International School in Malaysia, this family sounds like a lot of the ones that we meet here. It’s always incredible when you hear about all the places someone has lived. I especially like that so many are 2nd generation traveling families. And I totally understand the Cereal story. After being gone just 1 year, my neighbor ran into me at the grocery store in Texas during our home visit. When she asked me how I was, all I could say was, “There’s so much bread here!”
Life Images by Jill
I know some who sounds very similar to this. I will have to send her your link! She is writing a memoir of her experiences too! This books sounds like a very interesting read – I love looking into other people’s lives especially when they are more exotic than mine!
Have a wonderful week and thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Johanna at ZigaZag WA Travel & Lifestyle
Thanks for sending me the link, Jill! Yes it sounds a fascinating story and I can see the parallels with the memoir I’m writing too about our years here there and everywhere as a family from 1989 – 2008. I would really like to get a copy. Thanks Lisa!
Lisa Goodmurphy
The cereal story was one of my favourites – I can just imagine heading through a North American supermarket after dealing with limited selection abroad – the choices can be overwhelming even for someone living here! 😉
Lisa Goodmurphy
I love reading about families traveling and working around the world as well – such an interesting lifestyle!
Lisa Goodmurphy
I look forward to reading your memoir as well, Johanna!
budget jan
Sounds right up my alley. I have a bookcase full of travel memoirs. One more coming up – I may have to go Kindle this time!
Lisa Wood
What an inspiring book, such an inspiring family! I love reading about other traveling families and how they cope with their adventures, and its good when they share experiences – the good times and the not so good times 🙂
InsideJourneys
This sounds like an interesting read. Life in NA really is different — I can relate to the endless variety of choices and the reverse culture shock.
Hikebiketravel
I always love reading stories like this. They fuel my wanderlust. I’m also envious of the kids as that is the sort of life I would have loved growing up but I came from a family that didn’t travel far.
Lisa Goodmurphy
I’m the same, Jan, I love reading about other people’s travel adventures – adds to my list of places that I want to go!
Lisa Goodmurphy
You’re right, Lisa, it’s important to share the not-so-good as well so that readers don’t feel like they have failed if they have a less-than-perfect experience! Doesn’t matter how amazing a trip or an experience is – there are going to be bad days too!
Lisa Goodmurphy
Even within North America – I grew up in rural Northern Canada and then moved to the Toronto area for school – big adjustment!!
Lisa Goodmurphy
I never went anywhere as a kid either, Leigh – our big trip was from Northern Ontario to Bowmanville (outside Oshawa) to spend March break with my cousins! I love being able to travel with my kids and have them see the world – even if it’s only a little bit at a time and not as expats.