I just could not put it down - Rated 
This book brought back some memories. I went through VSO screening to be one of two doctors for two years on Tuvalu in 1992. Unlike Philip Ells I chickened at the last moment and lost all the fun and challenges. Very enjoyable, amusing and informative read.
This book should be compulsory pre-deployment reading for all VSO and UNV Volunteers.
An engaging story of culture shock on many levels - Rated 
This book was re-published in 2006 as "Where The Hell Is Tuvalu?". The 2006 edition adds a short (6 page) epilogue which gives the major details about Tuvalu's history after Ells left the country in 1996, but the epilogue is not an essential read and so this edition is still a worthwhile read.
It is an engagingly written account that covers Ells' culture shock spending so much time as an Englishman abroad, neatly balancing the personal and light-hearted social problems with the fundamental clashes of ethics and politics.
The cast of characters involved is a little hard to keep track of and Ells' habit of "hinting forward" to things he hasn't written about yet is a little confusing in parts but otherwise it is a very well-written and readable book, and should be read by any Western reader- whether you think you've got it good, or you think your own circumstances are terrible, this book will give you pause for thought.
Who knew the law was so funny! - Rated
A thoroughly enjoyable, amusing and informative read. I couldn't put it down, not just for the humour and Tuvalu anecdotes but also for the intelligent insights into the legal profession. The People's Lawyer shows the inapplicability of strict aspects of English law in a vastly different culture, but also the universal applicability of the basic concept of rule of law. Legal theory and laugh-out-loud jokes in the same book!
Wonderfully accurate - Rated
As a former volunteer lawyer in a remote island archipaelego, I wholeheartedly endorse Philip Ells comments, and congratulate him not only on finding the time and commitment to produce his personal account, but on the humour and literary skills evident throughout the book. People's Lawyer ought to be compulsory reading for all VSO and Peace Core personnel, and also for any lawyer considering a move out of big city private practice into various esoteric and underpaid areas of the law.
an interesting, informative narration about another culture - Rated
The young lawyer, Philip Ells, who gives over two years of his life to service in another land,writes of his experiences in a humourous fashion. It's doubtful that many would want to give up all the comforts of home to go to Tuvalu for any extended period such as he did. I admire his fortitude and general good humor and hope that he derived a measure of peace from his service. How much good he was able to accomplish is an unanswered question. Certainly his physical ailments got a lot of attention, perhaps too much so. His ability to adapt to deprivation and the strange laws of the island are admirable. English law was nearly useless to him. His light touch made it easy to read.
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