After a brief stint working as a trilingual secretary in Paris, I became a city guide and then trained to teach English as a foreign language. This qualification along with my MA TEFL, led to a variety of jobs in different corners of the globe. Since retiring from classroom teaching I have worked as an English examiner for Trinity College London. When not reading or writing, I dabble in antiques, spend time with my extended family in Hove, and dream of distant lands.
The Fun We Had
By the age of eight Carrie Evans had lived in eight different places in the UK. The various schools she attended were not always happy places and some of her teachers, if not actually psychotic, verged on the unstable and sadistic. Although it came as no surprise to those who knew her that she later chose a peripatetic lifestyle, it did puzzle some when she chose to make her living by peddling the present perfect in overseas language schools.
Carrie begins her memoir The Fun We Had in the sultry, restrictive atmosphere of the Arabian desert in the United Arab Emirates, where she has a teaching job with a decent salary for once – but a despotic boss. There, she casts her mind back to happier days of childhood and candidly recalls her development as a language teacher. She reminisces about the places and people she met along the way, pondering her sojourns in far-flung corners of the globe.
The Fun We Had is a thoroughly enjoyable read, full of insight and humour, that romps along from continent to continent. It is akin to an enormous postcard from the jaunt of a life, a tsunami of incident, gossip and character vignettes, an exploration of other cultures sure to entertain anyone with a fascination for human quirks and foibles.
Carrie explains: “Being a free spirit, I found it stifling to be teaching an ever-increasing number of hours at a tertiary college in the UAE, with a boss who watched my every move. It was the pressure to perform each day and put on a brave face that gave me the impetus to start writing this memoir. It became a therapeutic outlet that allowed me to escape into the past. It also helped me to focus on the positive aspects of my life in Arabia, to find humour in everyday situations, and see beauty in the world that surrounded me.’’
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ISBN9781805140696 £14.99
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Brug Mansia 5.00 out of 5 stars Fun Indeed…
(Reviewed on 13 December 2023)
Carrie Evans’ tale is an account of her life while living and working in various parts of the world. Clearly a free spirit, Carrie is initially unbounded by the conventions of security and career, and travels to the places she finds appealing, such as Greece, India and Thailand. We get to hear about her adventures, friends and lovers. However, Carrie soon realises that to continue such a peripatetic lifestyle, she needs to support herself, and subsequently gains qualifications as an English language teacher, which immediately opens new opportunities for her in lands as diverse as Taiwan and New Zealand. Although some of Carrie’s capers have vague undertones of ‘Five Go Mad in Dorset’, her practical side (along with her father and his secretary absconding to Spain with the family fortune) means she ultimately has to restrict her peregrinations to the more remunerative destinations, which nonetheless provide their own curious turns of events. Carrie’s story gambols along merrily through professional and personal highs and lows to reach a pleasing final cadence. While it is clear that Carrie is a serious professional, she also has the fortunate ability of viewing the vicissitudes of her life with a cheerful stoicism that will engage and amuse the reader.
Carrie Evans’s story will appeal to a varied audience. It will interest those who enjoy the exotic, love to travel, and aspire to live a life other than the conventional. It may also inspire others to record their own experiences, rather than have them disappear down the memory hole that age inevitably brings.
Reviews
Julia Hart 5.00 out of 5 stars A rollicking good read
Reviewed in the UK on 11 December 2023
The book is a requiem to wonderful adventures vividly brought to life by Evans’s witty and precise sketches. To those who haven't had such experiences, she skilfully introduces exotic vistas and cultures. For those who have their own fond memories of travelling and teaching abroad, it recalls that excitement of following your instincts and riffing off the unknown. She is a likeable and honest storyteller whose memoir darts between present and past perfectly.
Judith Barrett 5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read for travellers and budding EFL teachers
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 September 2023
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A fascinating picaresque-style memoir and travelogue that entertains, absorbs and amuses. A must-read for the budding ESL teacher. Carrie’s character descriptions pinpoint the foibles and strengths of the people she meets with humorous clarity. Her warm and caring personality is evident in all her dealings with students and her more difficult acquaintances. She doesn't shy away from the more difficult aspects of her life, but handles them with an honest and light touch which made me empathise with her very much. Can't wait for the follow-up.
Miss Janet Panter 5.0 out of 5 stars What Fun Indeed
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 October 2023
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A charmingly nostalgic view of the life of an English language teacher working abroad, but much more than that. The descriptions are beautifully written with a level of detail that is sure to take the reader on a journey through memories that anyone who has spent time overseas will relate to and become immersed in. I love the fact that it isn’t written chronologically as our memories do pop up at random moments. Hopefully, this is the first of many memoirs by this author, as I’m sure there are many more tales to be told.
Mr David Harrison 5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable
Reviewed in the UK on 23 October 2023
Very well written in an appropriately chatty style, an enormous postcard from the jaunt of a life. A tsunami of incident, gossip, and character vignettes, Carry on Carrie directed by Tati with a nod to Kerouac, seventies fashion magazines and foodie supplements. Very enjoyable.
Gwenda Roberts 5.00 out of 5 stars Reasons to TEFL
Reviewed in the UK on 2 February 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed Carrie’s memoir. The style is inviting and her encounters are an entertaining read. It brought back one’s mixed memories of secondary school and pleasant ones of TEFL teaching. Carrie has been fortunate to have visited and taught in so many countries - this is an illuminating and light-hearted read for anyone fortunate enough to have taught (or is thinking of teaching) English abroad.