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Lost in Yaba: Down and Out in Laos
Lost in Yaba is a true story about an expat who becomes addicted to the infamous drug 'yaba' in Laos. Walt Gleeson planned to only go to Laos on a visa trip from Thailand, but he ended up staying in Vientiane and Vang Vieng for over a year. Most foreigners who visit Vientiane can hardly believe it is a capital city. It is a sleepy, peaceful city in one of the most under developed counties in Asia. But there is a hidden side to Vientiane that most foreigners do not get to see. During Walt's time in Vientiane, he witnessed the underbelly of the city first hand - the drugs, the prostitution and the manipulation of western men for money. This provides a unique glimpse into the dark side of Laos.
210 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
September 28, 2020
Good Points:
. If you've ever been to Vientiane, you'll probably know Samlo Pub and Falang town, but you probably won't know the stuff that goes down in that neighborhood. This book will bring you into the underbelly of Vientiane.
. Walt gives an authentic portrayal of an addict, and it is all the more fascinating because he is struggling with his addiction in poor and underdeveloped Laos.
.The relationship between Walt and his Laos girl is really weird, but also fascinating.
. The reader is given a unique picture of the lives of expats in Laos - not just Walt but several other dodgy individuals who go their for a bit of escapism.
. The party atmosphere in Vang Vieng (especially tubing on the river) is caught brillianlty.
Bad Points:
. The Lao girl, Fon, is a main character throughout the book, but I still feel like i don't know much about her, except that she lies and is an addict.
. I also don't know much about Walt. I know the things he is struggling with, but I don't really know what led him to running away from his home country.
.The ending is a bit abrupt, but then again it is a true story so it is what it is.
Overall, this is an excellent read. One of the best I've read about Southeast Asia.
. If you've ever been to Vientiane, you'll probably know Samlo Pub and Falang town, but you probably won't know the stuff that goes down in that neighborhood. This book will bring you into the underbelly of Vientiane.
. Walt gives an authentic portrayal of an addict, and it is all the more fascinating because he is struggling with his addiction in poor and underdeveloped Laos.
.The relationship between Walt and his Laos girl is really weird, but also fascinating.
. The reader is given a unique picture of the lives of expats in Laos - not just Walt but several other dodgy individuals who go their for a bit of escapism.
. The party atmosphere in Vang Vieng (especially tubing on the river) is caught brillianlty.
Bad Points:
. The Lao girl, Fon, is a main character throughout the book, but I still feel like i don't know much about her, except that she lies and is an addict.
. I also don't know much about Walt. I know the things he is struggling with, but I don't really know what led him to running away from his home country.
.The ending is a bit abrupt, but then again it is a true story so it is what it is.
Overall, this is an excellent read. One of the best I've read about Southeast Asia.
August 29, 2020
I was blown away by this book. The inner struggle that the writer faces throughout the book is intense. The writer also gets a great balance portraying his own problems, the difficult relationships with the people around him and his life in a foreign land. The book is not overly negative about Laos, but it certainly shows a dark little corner of the country.
September 26, 2020
There are precious few books about life in Laos, but this is definitely the best one I've read. It doesn't show a typical expat's life in Laos, rather it shows the life of a drug addict who has a c0-dependent relationship with a Lao woman. It's definitely worth a read.
September 25, 2020
I can’t believe I read this book until the end. First of all, the book is badly printed, with errors in it. Has it even been proofread before publication? Though, I am not sure a decent font would change how I feel about the book in general. The plot is flat. It’s boring! There are no twists or turns in the book. Nothing really happens until the last 20 pages of the book. However, the ending is rushed, like the author himself was fed up of writing the same dialogue on repeat and wanted to finish the book faster. Also, how come Fon’s English is perfect in the beginning of the book but somehow gets worse in the end? Too much candy maybe?
2/5 stars because I enjoyed how the author describes Laos, and provides the unique glimpse into the drugs and the prostitution. But the rest was as boring and sad as Walt’s life in his room smoking candy. I can’t remember the last time I was so disappointed in book.
2/5 stars because I enjoyed how the author describes Laos, and provides the unique glimpse into the drugs and the prostitution. But the rest was as boring and sad as Walt’s life in his room smoking candy. I can’t remember the last time I was so disappointed in book.
October 10, 2020
Having been to Laos a few times, it was really interesting to read this book.
Most foreigners who have passed through Vientiane will the know Samlo pub, and the pub's scene is brilliantly portrayed in this book, as is the tubing scene in Vang Vieng.
Most foreigners who have passed through Vientiane will the know Samlo pub, and the pub's scene is brilliantly portrayed in this book, as is the tubing scene in Vang Vieng.
August 3, 2020
A must read for anyone interested in South East Asia
July 24, 2020
Usually I like to read books set in Thailand; this is the first book I read in Laos, and I really enjoyed it.
It's sad to think that this is a true story.
It's sad to think that this is a true story.
August 5, 2020
A very interesting read. Reads like fiction, which makes it all the more amazing that it's a true story
September 26, 2020
I didn't know much about Laos before, and I'm not sure I know much about the country after reading this book, but I feel like i know a lot about 'falang town' in the country's captial. Falang is the Lao word for foreigner, and most of the book takes place in the foreigner / expat area of the city. It's a really interesting setting for a book. It was interesting to read about this part of Laos and all the drugs and deception that goes on between the expats and the girls.
September 27, 2020
too many fake accounts to raise the rating of the book
October 25, 2020
Great. Read
Thoroughly entertaining, as well as serious. Looking forward to the authors next book.I hope Fon and Walt are doing ok now.
Thoroughly entertaining, as well as serious. Looking forward to the authors next book.I hope Fon and Walt are doing ok now.
July 12, 2022
Though some of the stories in this book are interesting, the book itself is really poorly written. I felt more annoyed at how much of an idiot the author was rather than sympathising with their plight.
At one stage the author talks about writing some stories but having to discard them because they were too bad, it just begs the question, how bad where they of this is what he published?
At one stage the author talks about writing some stories but having to discard them because they were too bad, it just begs the question, how bad where they of this is what he published?
November 15, 2020
Very interesting portrayal of addiction and life in Laos.
I've been to a few places in this book. The description of Samlor bar in Vientiane, the scene in falang town and the stuff that goes on in Vang Vieng is all spot on.
A really enjoyable read.
I've been to a few places in this book. The description of Samlor bar in Vientiane, the scene in falang town and the stuff that goes on in Vang Vieng is all spot on.
A really enjoyable read.
November 29, 2020
I've read this story now and loved it both times. Cracking read!
December 8, 2020
I don't think this book was particularly well written, and you need to know it reads more like a memoir than a story. That being said, it was an interesting glimpse into the life of a drug addict living in Laos temporarily. I'm saddened to think of what these Lao girls are choosing to do to help their families move out of poverty. An unfortunate advertisement, as I now no longer want to visit Laos.
March 5, 2021
Literally nothing happened - no major events, no interesting stories, nothing. Also, it’s clear the book was not proof read because it’s filled with spelling mistakes. Don’t waste your time with this one.
October 29, 2020
This book portrayed the battle with addiction well but that was about it. Pretty repetitive and not much ever happens.
March 31, 2021
35% of the book focuses on this guy smoking candy. Would definitely not recommend - exceptionally boring. I had to finish reading it at 40%. Simply couldn’t carry on.
November 16, 2022
I visited the small rural town of Vang Vieng in Laos a year after the action in this book is set and the descriptions of that notorious place are spot on. It was the apogee of the backpacker mindset at its most crass: drinking vodka out of buckets, ‘happy’ pizzas laced with mind altering chemicals, episodes of Friends on repeat, slides and Tarzan ropes across a dangerously shallow river and, on my visit, The Cranberries’ Zombie on repeat play as scantily clad westerners cavorted in green body paint in honour of St. Pat’s Day.
Vang Vieng was ‘cleaned up’ to become a high class, ‘eco’ destination a year later, a slightly less demure but still magical formula than the one used in gorgeous Luang Prabang to the north. Gleeson doesn’t visit Luang Prabang in this novel/memoir but he does spend a lot of time in the sleepy Lao capital Vientiane (revealing it to be very much less than sleepy under the surface).
So it’s a travelogue along the lines of William Sutcliffe’s Are you Experienced? or Alex Garland’s The Beach, a lifestyle that launched a thousand FHM articles but what’s remarkable to me is that this is one of those Amazon-organised self-published books and very strong evidence that publishing a book this way doesn’t mean a disappearance into the void. That Gleeson has seen more than 50 copies printed that are all distributed free to family and friends is clearly not the case and while the books isn’t perfect – the action tails off a bit and the drug taking and paranoia can become monotonous – it would have been more than worthy of the attention of one of those posh literary agents who control trade fiction.
Vang Vieng was ‘cleaned up’ to become a high class, ‘eco’ destination a year later, a slightly less demure but still magical formula than the one used in gorgeous Luang Prabang to the north. Gleeson doesn’t visit Luang Prabang in this novel/memoir but he does spend a lot of time in the sleepy Lao capital Vientiane (revealing it to be very much less than sleepy under the surface).
So it’s a travelogue along the lines of William Sutcliffe’s Are you Experienced? or Alex Garland’s The Beach, a lifestyle that launched a thousand FHM articles but what’s remarkable to me is that this is one of those Amazon-organised self-published books and very strong evidence that publishing a book this way doesn’t mean a disappearance into the void. That Gleeson has seen more than 50 copies printed that are all distributed free to family and friends is clearly not the case and while the books isn’t perfect – the action tails off a bit and the drug taking and paranoia can become monotonous – it would have been more than worthy of the attention of one of those posh literary agents who control trade fiction.
December 25, 2020
6/10. Quick read. Raced through this although ultimately found it rather depressing. Left with a rather hollow feeling after reading it which, I would hazard to guess, is similar to the after-effects of the drug itself. If that was the author’s intention then perhaps the book could be called a success. Not a book I would recommend though.
September 1, 2022
I was entertained, briefly, until I considered the larger social implications. Then I was somewhat disgusted. I'm not quite sure what to make of this book. I hope the people of Laos don't think all of us Westerns are like this, and I apologize to the people of Vientiane that have to live with guys like this.
I also found three grammatical errors. Just saying.
I also found three grammatical errors. Just saying.
June 20, 2022
An easy and enjoyable read. Very nostalgic for me as I was in Laos while the story was happening. Good to see people self publish their travel memoirs especially interesting stories like this that are away from the main backpacker trail for the most part.
Read
March 7, 2021.
November 21, 2021
Really interesting insight into the underbelly of Vientiane, Laos. Never seen this subculture portrayed anywhere else. Make me want to go back to Laos after Covid.
December 5, 2021
I’d give it 4.5, but I can’t.
Walt’s paranoia and Fon’s mystery drive this book. The climax toward the end has a good buildup, and a sad and abrupt ending. Would recommend
Walt’s paranoia and Fon’s mystery drive this book. The climax toward the end has a good buildup, and a sad and abrupt ending. Would recommend
December 12, 2023
Interesting to read about a darker side of were travellers can end up in this country, however not an overly entertaining story.
July 1, 2024
this book is very nice
August 2, 2022
I've always found Laos to be quite a mysterious country relative to it's cousins Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand which have gotten so much press due to the wars, genocide, southern islands, Bangkok sex tourism etc. Nice having eyes on the ground of slumming it in Ventiane even though not all that much of what we'd call action or suspense ever really happened in the story. I enjoyed just reading about what the ambiance of living there was like and all the interesting characters he encountered in that corner of the world. I could feel the lure of being addicted to a place like that esp. as a man.
May 10, 2024
I love this story.you nailed it.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews