Download or read book Skimming the Surface written by Jan Conway and published by . This book was released on 2020-12-07 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written as creative non-fiction, Skimming the Surface is a memoir set on a remote Pacific atoll, described as 'the newest, smallest and poorest nation in the world'. It tells the story of the two years the Conway family lived on Tarawa, Kiribati.In 1979, only months after Kiribati gained independence from Britain, Andy, with Jan and their three children, was appointed as manager of the Bank of New South Wales. Told by the bank to take everything a family needs for two years, the story follows Jan as she prepares for their journey. It shares the family's highs and lows as they adapt to living on an isolated island. On Tarawa, the children become absorbed in Kiribati life. Andy and Jan find themselves thrust into an unexpected world of mixing with dignitaries, feasting with I-Kiribati at their celebrations and travelling with the president to Hawaii and Tahiti.Dissatisfied workers strike, vital infrastructure is destroyed causing fears for the family's safety. Periods of illness cause concern. Andy's workload increases and Jan's hopes for more family time fades.As the Conways prepare to return to Australia and suburban life, it's the friendships, the Kiribati people and their culture, the allure of a coral atoll that remain.