Full title: “Bad Karma: Confessions of a Reckless Traveller in Southeast Asia”

Author: Tamara Sheward

Released: Nov. 1, 2007 (U.S.)

Travel genre: Bad Aussies abroad (you know the type)

Territory covered: Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia

Promo copy: “This hilarious travelogue comes to us from Down Under, where it was first published, and is very probably unlike any other travel account you have ever read. Sheward hits the road with her twenty-something chum, Elisa, as they head for Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia with nary a plan. Sheward has a sharp ear for humor, with chapter titles such as ‘The Annoyance of Being Earnest,’ ‘Haight-Ashbury on the Mekong,’ ‘Animosity Bridge,’ and ‘Subterranean Hoedown.’ They find themselves in the most incredible situations. They meet characters like the ‘Kip Kid’ and the ‘Queen of Whatever’ and a variety of stoned backpackers and slum runners who turn out to provide a series of absurd and laugh-out-loud misadventures...Peppered with swindlers, sleazeballs and sanctimonious hippies, Bad Karma puts backpacker culture through the wringer.”

Critical verdict, Zagat-style: A “really tiresome book...anyone on the wrong side of their 21st birthday will very quickly become tired of the relentless descriptions of hangovers and the two women’s inability to meet any form of culture shock without gulping down Valium.” (Chiang Mai Mail) They travel with “the agenda of ‘having a look and annoying the world.’ The dyspeptic duo succeed at both dubious goals, screaming at the locals and belittling other travelers as they barrel along...They omit no traveling cliché (right down to overcharging cabbies and a stolen camera) and pass up no opportunity to misconstrue or poke fun at local religions and culture.” (Publisherss Weekly)

Find it: Amazon, Chapters, Powells, Publisher

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