Following her family split, Valerie McKee decided to pursue a dream of volunteering in a third world country. Once she took retirement from her prestigious job in a renowned public Cambridge school, she gained a place with Voluntary Services Overseas as a teaching advisor in northern Ethiopia.
This candid autobiography records the highs and the many lows of that extraordinary year, during which, she aimed not just to survive but to be an effective volunteer.
Ethiopians have not completely put that historical famine – of ‘Live Aid’ times – behind them and they struggle to understand or to keep up with the Western world, including their ever-advancing technology. Education there is seen as a key to success but balancing developments alongside embe...
