{"product_id":"serendib-9780820346618","title":"Serendib","description":"\u003cp\u003eI didn't invite him. The idea was all my father's, my seventy-four-year-old father who had never been outside America and who suddenly thought that Sri Lanka, where I was a Peace Corps volunteer, would be a jolly place to visit. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhen John Toner, a retired Cleveland judge, decided on a whim in April 1990 to spend a month with his son in war-torn Sri Lanka, he was as much a stranger to his seventh--and last--child as he was to the hardships of life in a Third World country. \u003ci\u003eSerendib\u003c\/i\u003e chronicles the journey that follows as a father and son who had never been alone together live in close quarters, in the poorest of conditions--and replace awkwardness and distance with understanding and love. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlong the way are the stories of John learning to eat with his fingers, bathing in a river alongside cows, and trading his wool trousers for a traditional sarong. We witness his coming face-to-face with a Hindu priest in a loincloth and his first encounter with the everyday violence of a country at war with itself. John watches with awe as students learn without computers, books, or even paper; he bonds with Sri Lankan children and learns, once again, how to give and how to play. Each new experience pushes Toner's father to face his fears--and brings him closer to his youngest son. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eSerendib\u003c\/i\u003e offers a colorful, humorous, and touching account of multiple discoveries--of an old man exploring deep within himself, of a father and son finding each other, and of two cultures coming together on uncommon ground and awakening to the joy and hope of the life they share.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Georgia Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/01\/2013\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780820346618\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 232\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.66lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.51w x 0.53d","brand":"Jim Toner","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":38013063823541,"sku":"9780820346618","price":20.36,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_51027365-2842-4863-a978-c73a82673846.jpg?v=1609139256","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/serendib-9780820346618","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}