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Pago Pago Tango (The Jungle Beat Mysteries) Kindle Edition

by John Enright (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
3.8 3.8 out of 5 stars 610 ratings
See all formats and editions
First in a Samoan-set series featuring police officer Apelu Soifua: “Enright’s portrait of cultural collision is the heart of this engaging series debut.” —Booklist
 
The city of Tafuna may be located on a tropical paradise, but it’s no stranger to crime. Just like anywhere else in the world, it has its fair share of murder, drugs, and robbery. Which makes Apelu Soifua the perfect man for his job. He’s a cop of two worlds: San Francisco, where he started his career, and now his native Samoa. 
 
Following up on a routine burglary call, Apelu heads to a palangi, or Caucasian, neighborhood. The victim, a VP at SeaKing Tuna—the largest employer on the island—reports only a few items missing. But a fatal shooting at a nightclub a few days later points Apelu to the executive’s hard-partying daughter. With some help from local reporter Lupe, Apelu chases a wave of violence that stems from the burglary—and seeks out what really went missing. The investigation puts Apelu in over his head and is about to be dragged under . . . 
 
“Perfect for any armchair traveling mystery lover. Enright’s descriptions of the Samoan landscape—where the frigate birds are as much a part of the sky as the clouds—are vivid and poetic.” —Kittling: Books
 
“Enright meticulously interweaves the experience and landscapes of Samoa’s mountains, rain forests and jungles that he knows so well.” —Providence Journal
 
“The island setting is a terrific backdrop for the story, one that has Soifua bridging the cultural chasm between the local population and the American community.” —Mysterious Reviews
 
Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 4
    Jungle Beat Mystery
  2. Print length
    265 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Open Road Media Mystery & Thriller
  6. Publication date
    August 29, 2023
  7. File size
    3358 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Detective Sergeant Apelu Soifua of the American Samoa PD is called to a palangi (Caucasian) enclave tocheck on a burglary at the home of a vice president of the island’s largest industry, a tuna cannery. A VCRand some videotapes have been stolen; the VP dismisses the theft as unimportant, but the man’s shrewishwife and flirtatious twentysomething daughter tell different stories, and Apelu finds himself in a murkycase that might be routine—or might be deadly. Apelu faces many obstacles, not least the fact that thepolice force is a “palangi invention.” Prior to the Americans’ arrival, villages policed themselves, andchiefs meted out justice. Enright’s portrait of cultural collision is the heart of this engaging series debut.The insights into Samoan society, culture, and history at first seem like interesting digressions, but theyultimately become integral to understanding Apelu’s approach to the case. Fans of crime in exotic settingswill likely enjoy this one.— Thomas Gaughan --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

About the Author

John Enright was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1945. After serving stints in semi-pro baseball and the Lackawanna steel mills, he earned his degree from City College while working full-time at Fortune, Time, and Newsweek magazines. He later completed a master’s degree in folklore at UC-Berkeley, before devoting the 1970s to the publishing industry in New York, San Francisco, and Hong Kong. In 1981, he left the United States to teach at the American Samoa Community College and spent the next twenty-six years living on the islands of the South Pacific. Over the past four decades, his essays, articles, short stories, and poems have appeared in more than seventy books, anthologies, journals, periodicals, and online magazines. His collection of poems from Samoa, 14 Degrees South, won the University of the South Pacific Press’s inaugural International Literature Competition. Today, he and his wife, ceramicist Connie Payne, live in Jamestown, Rhode Island.



Phil Gigante has narrated over 130 audiobooks, including Audie Award winner The Dark Highlander. An actor, director, and producer with over 20 years experience in theatre, film, television, and radio, he is currently the artistic director of Gigantic Productions and Little Giant Children’s Theatre. He makes his home in the Midwest. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BRV5KY4H
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media Mystery & Thriller (August 29, 2023)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 29, 2023
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3358 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 265 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.8 3.8 out of 5 stars 610 ratings

About the author

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John Enright

John Enright

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John Enright was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1945. After serving stints in semi-pro baseball and the Lackawanna steel mills, he earned his degree from City College of New York while working full-time at Fortune, Time, and Newsweek magazines. He later completed a master’s degree in folklore at UC-Berkeley, before devoting the 1970s to the publishing industry in New York, San Francisco, and Hong Kong. In 1981, he left the United States to teach at the American Samoa Community College and spent the next twenty-six years living on the islands of the South Pacific. Over the past four decades, his essays, articles, short stories, and poems have appeared in more than seventy books, anthologies, journals, periodicals, and online magazines. His collection of poems from Samoa, 14 Degrees South, won the University of the South Pacific Press’s inaugural International Literature Competition. Today, he and his wife, ceramicist Connie Payne, live in Jamestown, Rhode Island.

Customer reviews

3.8 out of 5 stars
3.8 out of 5
610 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

B.W.Knister
4.0 out of 5 stars More than just a good police procedural
Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2013
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Fans of police procedurals are going to enjoy John Enright's Pago Pago Tango. It's solidly written, with the feel of someone writing from the inside of police business in American Samoa. But the bonus for readers is that Enright spent twenty-six years in the islands, and while there obviously paid close attention. There's something even more valuable for this reader than following a very likable, laid-back and clever detective as he unravels a complicated crime involving drugs and murder. It's the unsentimental docudrama the author presents of contemporary life in paradise.

More specifically, what Enright gives readers through the eyes and ears of his Samoan detective Apelu is a native islander's take on how his culture--and his island--have been influenced by the American presence. What emerges is a story of foreign business types in walled compounds, Korean merchants, dead-ended ex-Peace Corps Volunteers and others intruding on a traditional island society. Western materialism, pollution and the industrialization of fishing in a delicate ecosystem are convincingly presented in sharp, and negative contrast to Samoan family and cultural life.

But Enright isn't guilty of the "zoo mentality" that often applies to sentimentalized treatments of traditional, non-Western societies. Against a backdrop of crimes large and small, the over-arching crime of social decline is seen both in terms of outside forces, as well as in the burdens created for Samoans by their own traditions. In short, crime-fiction readers can look forward in Pago Pago Tango to much more than one more whodunnit. They are going to learn things both moving and disturbing about what is in effect a distant American colony.
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amac
5.0 out of 5 stars Pago Pago Bingo
Reviewed in the United States on July 15, 2014
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This is my first time to read a book by John Enright. I was intrigued by this series of books because someone in my family lived for awhile in American Samoa. I was happy to read from Mr. Enright all the interesting stories and facts that I had heard from my family members. I soon became intrigued by the characters in the first book and by Mr. Enright's wonderful ability to unfold a most interesting and readable story. Unlike many books I have read, the description of Apelu (the main character, the detective) is not laid out in bulleted form where each aspect of this man is listed in order; i.e. looks, height, weight, temperament, etc. But rather, the author gradually unwraps Apelu for the reader by his interaction with others in his story. There is so much humor, much of it very subtle. We find that Apelu has strengths and also weaknesses; notably he has a very big problem with math that he keeps hidden, but he seems to be quite intelligent and also compassionate. He seems to take many of the hardships he encounters as part of life and to be expected. We find that he is a member of a police force that has no handguns, the police cruisers are mostly nonfunctioning or only partially usable. Apelu even catches a bus to do his police work, but often he walks. I have also read the second book and I still am not sure of his looks or his age, but vaguely know that he is 6 ft. tall (because his son is the mirror image of him). People seem to gravitate to Apelu, even those who are the 'bad guys'. If you want a book that is fun to read and also delves into the Samoan mindset, I suggest you read this book. Then you may want to read "Dead Men Don't Dance".
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J. Muench
3.0 out of 5 stars Pace is definitely Island Time
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2013
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This was my first purchased book on the kindle--not a freebie--so I feel compelled to review it after finally finishing it. The story starts out pretty well--a police officer checks out an inmate to lead him to a body the inmate has tossed over a cliff. Only things go wrong. The cop climbs down and finds the body, but the inmate is then killed and tossed over the same cliff. Then it really slows down, and we hear all the internal dialog of the cop--the main character Detective Sergeant Apelu Soifua--while he wonders about things, waxes poetic, drives around working on cases, talks to friends and colleagues, interviews suspects, and so on. More characters show up, the plot keeps getting a little thicker, but not the action. After reading for the better part of a day, I felt like I had spent weeks reading this book. Apelu reminded me of Detective Columbo--kinda slow, you knew he was smart though, and drags out questioning to the max with "Just one more question..." or "And another thing..." and "I was wondering how you knew..." as he's shuffling out the door. It's an interesting view into the day to day life there, and I'm sure the pace of the story is a reflection on the pace of life. If you are looking for a fast-paced, page-turning, lots of twists and turns, and staying up too late trying to finish the book, this is not the book for you. If you are looking for a nice easy read, interesting scenery and history, there happens to be a few murders, and loose ends kinda get wrapped up maybe, you will probably enjoy Pago Pago Tango. I tend to enjoy the fast paced, cannot-put-it-down type mysteries; I thought if I put this down I would never be motivated to pick it back up.
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Top reviews from other countries

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I. Cook
5.0 out of 5 stars Immer wieder
Reviewed in Germany on July 31, 2014
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Das ist jetzt das zweite Buch, dass ich von John Enright lese. Ich finde ihn wirklich lesenswert: ich kenne diese Gegend der Welt aus eigener Erfahrung und seine Beschreibungen lassen diese Welt und ihre Bewohner vor meinem inneren Auge 'aufblühen'
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Adrian Seel
4.0 out of 5 stars Pago Pago Tangled
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 23, 2012
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Apelu Soifua is a spliff tokin' hard drinking detective (and that's only on duty), patrolling his jungle, sand and sea, beat in the tropical, flawed paradise of American Samoa.This quirky novel is entertaining and baffling by turns, the descriptions of the people and places are engaging and the preparations for a cross culture Christmas both amusing and touching. The multi-stranded plot involves shootings, pornography, assorted foreigners and complex relationships which are all pulled together for a gripping conclusion. John Enright has produced a new breed of detective, or maybe reworked an old one. Either way this is a fascinating book that makes you work for your enjoyment.
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Alt3rEg0
4.0 out of 5 stars The story is average, but it is well written ...
Reviewed in Australia on January 5, 2015
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The story is average, but it is well written and comes with lots of insight into the Samoan culture at no extra cost.
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Ron Pearce
5.0 out of 5 stars unusuall
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 9, 2012
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This was an interesting if unusual story. Still quite gripping though with plenty of action going on. a very thrilling end to the book
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in Australia on December 29, 2014
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Enjoyed the book very much with a couple of great twists
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