Tom Chesshyre is the author of four travel books that have taken him from Hull to Tripoli via assignments in North Korea, Nepal, India and Iceland. He writes for The Times and has contributed to the Guardian, The Financial Times, The Times Literary Supplement and the Mail on Sunday. His magazine work has been for Geographical and Conde Nast Traveller. On his travels he has been hijacked in Africa, met tornado-chasers in America and followed in the footsteps of Graham Greene in Haiti. His previous books include A Tourist in the Arab Spring, Tales from the Fast Trains, How Low Can You Go and To Hull and Back: On Holiday in Unsung Britain.
Revealing aspects of a surprising little tropical nation wholly unknown to holidaymakers, Gatecrashing Paradise compares honorably with Arthur Grimble's A Pattern of Islands. - Alexander Frater, author of Chasing the MonsoonTom Chesshyre bravely and entertainingly exposes the dimensions of the Maldives that the tourist board is strangely shy of illuminating. - Simon CalderI loved Gatecrashing Paradise. It should be mandatory reading for all visitors. - Francisca Kellett, Travel editor at TatlerIn Gatecrashing Paradise Tom sets out to explore the other Maldives, not the one where all the tourists go. Until quite recently tourists were very restricted when it came to Maldives travel. That's changed and as a result small guest houses and hotels have sprung up and you can make your way like Tom around the island by local ferry services and domestic flights. You don't need an economics degree to know most of the money from the five star resorts would have gone straight back to their overseas owners. Tom [travels] all around the scattered atolls of the low lying nation where he encounters climate change concerns (nothing is naturally much more than two or three metres above sea level), worker exploitation, tsunami fears and some decidedly murky politics, often as opaque as the lagoon waters are transparent.Chesshyre is an affable and enthusiastic traveller, and his sojourn in the Maldives covers interesting ground in a country full of contrasts. - Times Literary SupplementGatecrashing Paradise is an entertaining travelogue that visits the corners most tourists never see. - Marie Claire'Away from the sumptuous water villas of the Maldives, trouble is brewing in this renowned 'honeymoon heaven'. This is the story of a nation you won't read in your glossy weekend supplement. - The Journalist, the magazine of the National Union of JournalistsGatecrashing Paradise clearly depicts a guesthouse scene largely undiscovered, which offers the chance to experience the warm communities and rich culture of island life. - Minivan News: Independent News for the Maldives
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