Entertaining Detours

Entertaining Detours by Michael J. Hawron has an intriguing subtitle: Unique Tales from My Journey Along the Road Less Traveled. The subtitle beautifully translates the unusual nature of the tales narrated in this memoir, a collection that deftly develops themes of love, family, and adventure. The reply email from an amazing lady, now living in the author's former family home, 8,000 miles away in Hong Kong inspires a journey to revisit the place where they have lived thirty years before. “Dear Mike, I am so excited to get your email. Were you the family that lived in the house before us? And you have lots of children? - Who will be very big now, like mine are.” This book documents — in a voice that is lively and infused with humor — the author's travels and misadventures, while capturing the humanity of the people in the encounters with unusual intelligence and skill. Stories like being attacked by baboons and helping a lost army platoon find their way are amongst the hilarious tales in this book.

The stories in Entertaining Detours follow the author through different countries in five continents. The settings come to life in these engaging tales as readers follow a family man, father of 12 children, and a man with an incomparable love for nature. Hawron doesn't just explore the beauty of human encounter in this memoir but allows readers to have powerful glimpses of the threads that bind a large family and how unexpected moments can leave indelible marks in people’s hearts. The relationship that develops between the author and Jenny Quinton is filled with light and this light will shine in the dark places of the hearts of readers as they follow the lovely characters. Hawron writes in prose that sparkles and permeates the writing with a rare sense of humor. The details are interesting and the imagery of some of the locales is impeccably drawn. This poignant, deeply affecting memoir has the power to change the way we view family and travel. It is also as informative as it is entertaining —a striking memoir that examines the deeper meaning of human encounter and the beauty of discovering new places, people, and cultures.