The Story of Lata > Comments > "Review of The Story of Lata"
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Commenter Profile
- Catherine Stifter
- Username: cstifter
- Location: Sacramento, California
- Joined PRX: Aug 04, 2005
Piece Information
- "The Story of Lata"
- Summary: who's sailing now? women and the revival of traditional polynesian sailing in the solomon islands
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Review of The Story of Lata
Catherine Stifter
Posted on May 21, 2008 at 11:22 AM
Producer Stephanie Guyer-Stevens has sailed halfway around the world to bring us a beautifully produced story just in time for Asian Pacific Heritage Month. "The Story of Lata" explores the cultural traditions and contemporary challenges of Solomon Islanders in a remote corner of the South Pacific. Here, the tides of modern life have steadily eroded away knowledge of the ancient arts of sailing and navigation that once defined this culture. And it's Polynesian women who remember the old ways. Learning again, from the story of their cultural hero, Lata, to build te puke (canoes). Guyer-Stevens weaves a wonderful watery tale with just the right amount of culture, a taste of technology, and good old storytelling: perfect summer listening.
"The Story of Lata" is the next in the Outer Voices series, featuring little known stories and seldom heard voices of Asian Pacific Island women. It's a gem of a sound-rich story about intriguing, out of the way places that your listeners haven't heard about. But, if you still need a hook, consider this: May 16 was the first International Day for Sharing Life Stories. Organizers say that sharing our life stories with each other is a critical process in democratizing culture and promoting social change. Do your listeners a favor, and share this documentary of a place on earth that many of us will never see, but whose lessons about the value of returning to Earth-based, cultural traditions are relevant for sustaining communities everywhere.