The Year of the Locust

Hayes, Terry. The Year of the Locust. New York: Scribner 2023. Print.

First Sentences:

I once went to kill a man.


Description:

Now there's a first sentence that does it's job. With those seven words that hint of upcoming violence, probably most readers will either be excited to read further or else dismiss the book as a topic they have no interest in.

 

But Terry Hayes' The Year of the Locust is, for me, a worthy addition to my "Highest Recommendation" category. It is a worthy sequel to I Am Pilgrim, my all-time favorite international thriller. 

 

Written ten years after Pilgrim, The Year of the Locust brings back Ridley Kane, the "Denied Access Area" CIA spy whose specialty is sneaking into (and successfully returning from) forbidden countries (Iraq, Afghanistan, Russia, etc.) and doing what's necessary to stop terrorists who threaten the United States and the world.

Here, the CIA is alerted to a terrorist, al-Tundra, forming his own anti-Western army of hatred in Iraq for nefarious ends. Thought long-dead, al-Tundra (identified by the huge locust tattooed on his back), is revealed as alive in a grainy photograph smuggled out of Iraq for the CIA. Kane's mission is to infiltrate into Iraq, meet with the informant, and understand what al-Tundra is plotting for the world so the CIA can figure out how to stop him.

 

What could go wrong ... besides everything.

 

And that assignment is only the first in Kane's encounters with al-Tundra over the course of 700+ pages in Locust. Adventures follow in Russia, Pakistan, and even the United States. Yes, there is violence, some very graphic, but author Hayes relies on building plotting, unraveling situations, and nail-biting tension rather than glorifying blood. You are side-by-side with Kane, in his head as he pours over even trivial or complex detail ("like digging a well with a needle") and decision as he works out to best deal with each encounter or threat he faces.

The action is compelling, and, although the book is 700+ pages, it goes along rippingly due to the very short 1-3 page chapters. It's so easy to binge-read Locust, saying "Oh, I have to read just one more chapter to see how he decides/executes/escapes this situation." I won't say it flew by, but definitely it read as quickly as humanly possible since I was completely engulfed in the action, Kane, his CIA boss Falcon, the elusive CIA traitor Magus, and al-Tundra, the Locust. 

 

Locust is able to humanize Kane more over the pages, introducing his partner Rebecca, and her dealings with his profession. Kane is a loner of a man with many worries, but his relationships with Rebecca and Falcon, as well as several characters he encounters during his "Denied Access Area" missions, make his a rounder character, someone with internal conflicts.

 

Of course, the writing by Hayes is superb. His attention to every detail and descriptions of people and environment paint a totally enveloping atmosphere that make us lucky readers get hopelessly caught up in the action. There are new age weapons like a rifle scope with a built-in GPS system, an completely undetectable missile, copious use of satellite surveillance and recordings, a deadly virus, and even a bit of science fiction in the end to make the world right again. All seems reasonable and acceptable due to Hayes able writing style, terse dialogue, and believable character personalities.

I loved it, can't you tell. Won't spoil any more of the plot, but by now you should be able to decide whether this book is for you. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but for me it was gripping and fully immersive on every page. My highest recommendation.

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out

Hayes, Terry. I Am Pilgrim.   

Simply the best, most thrilling, unexpected, spy caper ever as CIA agent Kane tries to track down an unknown terrorist threatening a nefarious, unstoppable act that will destroy America. My Highest Recommendation. (previously reviewed here)

 

The Golf Omnibus

Wodehouse, P.G. The Golf Omnibus. New York: Gramercy 1996. Print

First Sentences:

Archibald Mealing was one of those golfers in who desire outruns performance. Nobody could have been more willing than Archibald....Every morning before he took his bath he would stand in front of his mirror and practice swings. Every night before he went to bed he would read the golden words of some master on the subject of putting, driving, or approaching. Yet on the links most of his time was spent in retrieving lost balls or replacing America. 

Description:

I don't know why it's taken me so long to finally get around to recommending the wonderful P.G. Wodehouse, The Golf Omnibus. It is truly one of my all-time favorite reads, one that is always there to make me laugh out loud at the characters, actions, or witty wordsmithing. It is my go-to book to recommend and give as a gift book over many years.

The Golf Omnibus is a collection of 31 golf-related stories written in the early 1920s by the fabulously droll Wodehouse. Please don't let the age of these stories put you off. They each depict a wonderfully different world of that era, the sport of golf, and the odd ducks that play it. Players used wooden-shafted clubs called "mashies," "niblicks," "spoons," "brassies," and "cleeks." Just the names of those weapons make me smile.

And the names of the players wielding these tools are simply the outrageously best: Archibald Mealing, Ramsden Waters, Mortimer Sturgis, Mabel Patmore, Rollo Podmarsh, Rodney Splevin, Ferdinand Dibble, Herbert Pobsley, Wilberfod Bream, Cuthbert Banks, and oh, so many more delightful souls with dreams of glory on the course, or of impressing a specific person they fancy.

Most stories are narrated by "the Oldest Member," an ancient golfer always found in the clubhouse lounge sipping a lemon squash. From his comfy chair, he collars players just coming off the course to relate tales of current and formers players he knew. Each one is a hilarious gem (and I don't use that word lightly). 

• King Merolchassar who declared golf the official religion of his nation of Oom.
• Archibald Mealing who, after, six years' efforts, wins his club championship despite having a style of playing that was "a kind of blend of hockey, Swedish drill, and buck-and-wind dancing."
• Peter Willard and James Todd who play a round of golf to settle which one gets the opportunity to woo a certain young lady they both fancy, and following that, who must "leg it out of the neighborhood."

Of course, the Oldest Member has words of advice for even the most unwilling listener. Here are some of his examples picked out randomly, each accompanying a story to support his words:

• Love is an emotion which your true golfer should always treat with suspicion.
• The talking golfer is undeniably the most pronounced pest of our complex modern civilization.
• One of the noblest women I ever knew used to laugh merrily when she foozled a short putt. It was only later, when I learned that in the privacy of her home she would weep bitterly and bite holes in the sofa cushions, that I realized that she did but wear the mask.
• His walk was the walk of an overwrought soul.
• Nothing but misery can come of the union between a golfer and an outcast whose soul has not been purified by the noblest of games.
• It is not mere technical skill that makes a man a good golfer, it is the golfing soul.
  

Story after story brings readers into the off-beat world of privileges, romance, peculiarities, and of course, golf as it is played by the common sports-minded hacker. Truly delightful on every page. Highest recommendation.

Happy reading. 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Jerome, Jerome K.. Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog).   

The only book I could think of that is as funny, witty, and personable as the Wodehouse stories. Delightfully comedic in that dry, British manner of three friends deciding to take a leisurely boat trip. Disaster ensues as none has any experience whatsoever with boats. Tremendously droll and clever.

Our Missing Hearts

Ng, Celeste. Our Missing Hearts. New York: Penguin. 2022. Print.

First Sentences:

The letter arrives on a Friday. Slit and resealed with a sticker, of course, as all their letters are: Inspected for your safety --- PACT. It had caused confusion at the post office, the clerk unfolding the paper inside, studying it, passing it up to his supervisor, then the boss. But eventually it had been deemed harmless and sent on its way. No return address, only a New York, NY postmark, six days old. On the outside, his name -- Bird -- and because of this he knows it is from his mother.


Description:

Seems like almost every week lately I have come across a new book that makes my top 10 all time list. Such was the case with Celeste Ng's Our Missing Hearts, a story that often hints at out current fearful society today in America and its repercussions on the people who must bend their lives to accommodate restrictive rules, government, and even neighbors intolerant of anything not patriotic or accepting of their new world.

You see, 12-year-old Noah (Byrd) Gardner lives in the United States under the laws created and enforced for the past ten years by PACT (The Preserving American Cultures and Traditions Act). These patriotism laws were overwhelming enacted in response to the worldwide Crisis, an international depression with joblessness, poverty, inflation, and ensuing riots. It was determined, without evidence, to have been brought on by the Chinese government and its people.

The Three Pillars of PACT: Outlaws promotion of un-American values and behavior: Requires all citizens to report potential threats to our society. Protects children from environments espousing harmful views.

Therefore, PACT forces everyone to promise allegiance, support, and love for the American government, while ostracizing anyone not meeting these goals in action or speech. Neighborhood Watch groups are everywhere, seeking out dissident opinions of actions and, if found, intensively questioning (or removing) the suspects. 

Children can be forcibly taken from homes of parents determined to be a bad influence and relocated to more suitable couples, never to be allowed to communicate with their biological parents. There are no protests of this action by parents since any questioning would contribute to the suspected parents' anti-PACT leanings, risking the real possibility that the children might never be returned.

Bird's mother had left him and his father three years earlier, never letting him know she was leaving and never corresponding with him until this note. It was a mysterious single sheet of paper without any words, filled with multiple drawings of cats and a tiny cupboard. 

Margaret, Byrd's mother, was a noted poet who had written the line "All our missing hearts" in one of her obscure poems. With these words, she had inadvertently created a slogan, a rallying phrase, that was taken up by an underground anti-PACT network. Her words appeared scrawled on walls, on signs, and other locations as the network tried to raise awareness of the seized children.

Margaret, despite knowing nothing about this loose organization, chooses to leave her home and go into hiding, protecting her husband Ethan and son who must now disavow all ties to her, her and especially her writing to insure Byrd (now called Noah) is not taken from his father as an "unsuitable influence."

With this new note, however, Noah takes on the challenge to find out more about his mother and hopefully locate her. 

Along the way, we read of Margaret's backstory, her life with Ethan, her word-loving husband and Noah's father, and the life she chooses to pursue while in hiding. Along with other notable friends, enemies, and "citizens" looking for any misstep by neighbors, Our Missing Hearts is both a gripping and heartfelt story, one filled with seeming hopelessness against a government of fear, and yet containing  a glimmer of hope from individuals trying to survive and make a difference in a twisted world.

Yes, yes, yes, I would recommend this book. It's a mystery, a warning, a breath of hope, and a gripping tale celebrating family strength. It's a book of friendship and secrets, fanaticism and consequences. But most of all, it is a deeply personal tale of perseverance toward achieving personal goals in order to understand one's self and the world, and how those two fit together now and in the future. Highest recommendation.

  

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Orwell, George. 1984.   

The classic and still important story of a totalitarian society and one man who tries to fight back.

 

Murmurs of Earth

Sagan, Carl. Murmurs of Earth: The Voyager Interstellar Record. New York: Random House 1978. Print.

First Sentences:

 

On August 20th and September 5th, 1977, two extraordinary spacecraft called Voyager were launched into the stars. After what promises to be a detailed and thoroughly dramatic exploration of the outer solar system from Jupiter to Uranus between 1979 and 1986, these space vehicles will slowly leave the solar systems -- emissaries of Earth to the realm of the stars. Affixed to each Voyager craft is a gold-coated copper phonograph record as a message to possible extraterrestrial civilizations that might encounter the space craft in some distant space and time.


Description:

I cannot remember the last time a book made me say, on every page, "Wow, That's really interesting." The book which dis that for me is Carl Sagan's Murmurs of Earth: The Voyager Interstellar Record, a detailed recounting of the idea, organization, experts, and final decisions involved in sending a message from Earth's humans out into the universe.

Sagan and his team of experts, from scientist to musicians to artists, were tasked to create something that could piggyback on the Voyager spacecraft in 1977 to provide a description of Earth and its inhabitants to any life form in the universe who happens upon it. The Voyagers were sent to explore Jupiter and Uranus, then launch themselves out of the solar system and into the unknown beyond, traveling indefinitely for billions (yes, billions) of years.

Even quite optimistic estimates place the nearest civilization at a few hundred light-years, where a light-year is almost six trillion miles. It would take our present spacecraft some tens of thousands of years to go the distance of the nearest star, and several tens of millions of years to travel this estimated distance to the nearest other civilization.

So first, Sagan and team had to decide on the medium to present this information, settling on a two-sided metal record and an accompanying player as the most durable, long-lasting medium. (Remember, the project was slated to last a billion years.) Of course, the team had to also create clear instructions on what the disk and player were and how to use them in order for non-humans to interpret the data, a huge challenge in itself.

Here is what Science News writer Jonathan Eberhart said of the project at that time:

Describe the world. Not just that multi-colored ball in the spacecraft photos, but the world -- its place in space, its diverse biota, its wide-ranging cultures with their lifestyles, arts, and technologies -- everything, or at least enough to get the idea across. And do it on one long-playing record.

Oh, there's one stipulation: Assume not only that your audience doesn't speak your language, but that it has never even heard of the Earth or the rest of the solar system. An audience that lives, say, on a planet orbiting another star, light-years away from anything you would recognize as home. 

Once the concept of sending a message was approved by NASA, Sagan was given the deadline to provide a complete recording disk in six weeks. Inconceivable, but NASA made it clear that it was impossible to stretch that deadline.

So what exactly should be included in this limited space? Sagan's team concluded that there should be text and photographs on one side of the disc and music on the other. But what text? What songs or other audio? Which photos? Here is their summary of the decisions made:

Affixed to each Voyager craft is a gold-coated copper phonograph record as a message to possible extraterrestrial civilizations that might encounter the spacecraft in some distant space and time. Each record contains 118 photographs of our planet, ourselves, and our civilization; almost 90 minutes of the world's greatest music; an evolutionary audio essay on "The Sounds of Earth': and greetings in almost sixty human languages (and one whale language).

Sagan's essay in Murmurs of Earth gently, clearly walks us through each phase of this challenging selection process. To introduce different languages, representatives from the United Nations were allowed to voice a brief message in their own language. Music was suggested by experts in ethnomusicology, classical, and modern genres (including "Prelude and Fugue in C" by Bach to "Pygmy Girls' Initiation Song" from Zaire, "Tchakrulo" Georgian chant, "Navajo Night Chant," "Symphony No. 5 in C Minor" by Beethoven, and "Johnny B. Goode" by Chuck Berry). 

Photos were selected from archives of National Geographic magazine, the Cornell University library, and shots created specially for this project. Since this was to be a description of the entire world, every country naturally wanted to be consulted and represented, so addressing their needs and suggestions was an added challenge.

And wonderfully, Murmurs of Earth contains all the photos included on the Voyager disk, complete with descriptions and reasons why each particular photo was selected. All music recordings are also listed, again complete with descriptions and stories behind the selection. 

Biologist Lewis Thomas, when asked what message he would send, replied "I would send the complete works of Johan Sebastian Bach." "But that" he added in an aside, "would be boasting."

The chosen text was typed out and then photographed to more easily and permanently be placed on the record, with enough instructional information to make logical connections to language, mathematics, and astronomy for any intelligent being to (hopefully) understand.

Usually, I put torn scraps of paper in books while I'm reading to mark significant passages, unusual writing, or unexpected ideas. In Murmurs of Earth, I found myself marking almost every page. Astonishment, enlightenment, joy, and thrills were recorded in virtually every paragraph of Sagan's matter-of-fact prose, totally engrossing a reader into the complexity and importance of this project. 

 

There are also essays by F.D. Drake to explain the systematic ordering of language and scientific text; by Jon Lomberg on the photographs chosen; Ann Druyan on sounds from Earth; and Timothy Ferris on Voyager's music. Each essay is highly-readable and fascinating in its scope, as well as for the patience from each writer to ensure in layman's language that every reader understands the thorough selection process and value of the piece included.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It is readable, fascinating, awe-inspiring, challenging, and beautifully inspirational. Go get it and revel in the diversity and quality of human, their creations, and the world we live in. 

Here is a list of the complete contents of the Voyager Golden Disk:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contents_of_the_Voyager_Golden_Record

(P.S. After reading the selections made by Sagan's team in music, photography, and text, what items would you include for a new message to other civilizations? A fun, challenging thought process.)

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

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Al-Khalili, Jim. Aliens: The World's Leading Scientists on the Search for Extraterestrial Life,.   

The author assembled a team or renowned scientists to write essays on many aspects of potential extraterrestrial life, including such topics as "Identifying the Signs of Life on Distant Worlds," "Why Aliens Might Visit Us," "Abducted," "Flying Saucers: A Brief History of Sightings and Conspiracies," "Aliens in Science Fiction Writing," and many moire. Fascinating, challenging reading. (previously reviewed here)

 

The Twyford Code

Hallett, Janice. The Twyford Code. New York: Atria 2023. Print.

First Sentences:

Dear Professor Mansfield,

I am investigating a mysterious case and suspect you may be able to help. Let me explain.

An iPhone 4 is among a number of items belonging to a recently reported missing person. It is not associated with any phone carrier and at first appeared to be blank, with no call records, music, emails, texts, or photographs. Upon closer examination it was found to contain a series of deleted audio files: voice recordings in various encrypted formats, with dates that span eleven weeks in 2019. We recovered these files and deciphered them.

Description:

Ever had a fabulous meal at an exclusive restaurant, where the food was so delicious that for the next few days all other food seemed blah and uninviting? All you can think about is the layers of flavors in that restaurant meal, the carefully-orchestrated delivery of each course, and the overall atmosphere that subtly reinforced the pleasure of the dining experience.

For me, reading Janice Hallett's The Twyford Code, was such an memorable meal, one that spoiled me into dissatisfaction with all other books I tried to read over the next week. None of these books offered the complexity of characters, the hidden flavors of plot and exposition, and the aromatic pull that The Twyford Code had offered and still lingered in my mind. They probably were worthwhile books, but in comparison they just fell short. Fast food, not fine dining. Unsatisfying.

I'm not going to give you much about this book; you'll have to experience it yourself. Like trying to describe a mouth-watering dinner. People will just need to taste it for themselves.

But a brief description is necessary. The book focuses one man's search for a children's book written by Edith Twyford that might contain a secret code in its text. His search is documented solely through transcripts created from restored audio files found on an otherwise blank phone.

 

The creator of these audio files turns out to be Stephen Smith, a small-time gangster, newly out of prison after serving an 11-year sentence. Smith's recordings (shown in transcripts only) reveal that besides looking for the Twyford book, Smith is also trying to discover what happened to his teacher who first hinted there might be a code before mysteriously disappearing while leading a school field trip. He hopes the book and/or teacher will help him decipher any code and maybe lead him to a rumored treasure. 

 

His short, confusing transcripts document his searches, and also reveal tidbits about his early family life and criminal activities. Smith recorded his conversations with various people who might know something about Twyford, or narrated memos in secret to preserve his research. These text files are enticing, tangled, revealing, incomplete, and sometimes undecipherable.  But information is sketchy, contradictory, and seemingly dangerous as they evolve to include spies, stolen British gold, and betrayals.

There's truth in everything here, even if some bits are not strictly to the letter. But what's important now is all made up, constructed to hide secrets, and reveal them only to the person they're meant for.  

A great meal ends with the perfect dessert, and author Hallett saves the best for last. The final chapters are the finest I have ever read.

I admit it's a confusing narrative format, making readers try to decipher the brief transcripts that jump between Smith's current search, his boyhood recollections, his family life, and early criminal episodes. Keeping people straight about who is talking in the recorded transcripts can require going back to familiarize yourself with who is actually talking. 

 

But readers will discover the effort to piece together information and characters mentioned in the transcripts is definitely worth their efforts. And when you reach the final page, all you will want to do is begin the entire novel again to now recognize the subtle clues and twists inserted throughout.

It gets my highest recommendation for all lovers of a great mystery and amateur code-breakers. It's a meal you won't soon forget, trust me.

Some things, when you finally hear them confirmed, it's like a veil drops away from a statue. The size and shape are familiar, they've always been there, it's just the detail in the caving is obscured. All that stands before you is evidence of what you knew all along.

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Brown, Dan. The DaVinci Code.   

Probably by now everyone has read or at least heard of this book describing the convoluted trail and clues involved in code-breaking. Still, it's a great read full of excitement, intrigue, intelligent people, and puzzles.

 

Lessons in Chemistry

Garmus, Bonnie. Lessons in Chemistry. New York: Doubleday 2022. Print.

First Sentences:

Back in 1961, when women wore shirtwaist dresses and joined garden clubs and drove legions of children around in seatbeltless cars without giving it a second thought; back before anyone knew there'd even be a sixties movement, much less one that its participants would spend the next sixty years chronicling; back when the big wars were over and the secret wars had just begun and people were starting to think fresh and believe everything was possible, the thirty-year-old mother of Madeline Zott rose before dawn every morning and felt certain of just one thing: her life was over.

Despite that certainty, she made her way to the lab to pack her daughter's lunch.

Description:

I don't often read books off a best-seller list, but somehow Bonnie Garmus's Lessons in Chemistry snuck into my To-Be-Read notebook and wow, did I ever enjoy it. It is quirky, character-driven, funny, thoughtful, and always unexpected, my favorite kind of reading.

Elizabeth Zott, the main character of the novel, is a scientist, first and foremost, working as a researcher in 1961, a time when women scientists were few and those in the profession were generally delegated to bringing coffee to men scientists. This role would never do for Elizabeth Zott, a powerfully-driven woman who demands the same facilities, pay, responsibilities, and respect as her fellow (men) workers routinely receive.

She is the mother of the precocious Madeline, who "had been reading since age three and now, at age five, was already through most of Dickens". Madeline despertely wants to fit in with the other students, so tosses away her mother's daily inspirational lunchbox notes ("Play sports at recess but do not automatically let the boys win"). She trades her nutritionally balanced, but odd, food as well so as not appear any stranger. She was just starting kindergarden, so what could go wrong with this strategy?

The other day [Harriet] suggested they make mud pies and Madeline frowned, then wrote 3.1415 with a stick in the dirt. "Done," she said. 

Elizabeth deals with her own chemical research doggedly, but with little encouragement. Her boss steals her research papers and publishes them under his own name. Her lab equipment is reduced and her chances of promotion ignored.

Her grudges were mainly reserved for a patriarchal society founded on the idea that women were less. Less capable. Less intelligent. Less inventive. A society that believe men went to work and did important things---discovered planets, developed products, created laws---and women stayed at home and raised children.

That environment all changes, for better and for worse, when she sneaks into five-star researcher Calvin Evans' lab and steals some of his beakers. Soon, they become a couple.

They were more than friends, more than confidants, more than allies, and more than lovers. If relationships are a puzzle, then theirs was solved from the get-go---as if someone shook out the box and watched from above as each separate piece landed exactly right, slipping one into the other, fully interlocked, into a picture that made perfect sense. They made other couples sick.

Inevitably, (not really a spoiler since it is mentioned on the first page), Elizabeth Zott moves out of her lab. She is coerced into hosting a TV cooking show based on science and respect for women who cook for their families. While it is unlike any show and goes against the expressed ideas of the station manager, Supper at Six becomes a huge hit.

 

But Elizabeth Zott is miserable. And always, there are the challenges of childrearing as a single parent.

Every day she found parenthood like taking a test for which she had not studied. The questions were daunting and there wasn't nearly enough multiple choice. Occasionally she woke up damp with sweat, having imagined a knock at the door and some sort of authority figure with an empty baby-sized basket saying, "We've just reviewed your last parental performance report and there's really no nice way to put this. You're fired."

I cannot give away any more. All I have mentioned happens in the first chapters, so there is a lot of ground to cover in this off-beat novel of a women fighting to do what she is trained to do and for what she knows is right, a woman who faces obstacles and antagonists in every corner. And there's still more in this captivating story about rowing, cooking, and a dog named Six-Thirty who is trained to understand hundreds of words.

My highest recommended as a thought-provoking, highly enjoyable look into the 1960's era from the eyes and words of a whipsmart woman. 

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

About The First Sentence Reader blog

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Semple, Maria. Where'd You Go, Bernadette?

A fiercely-independent architect walks away from her eccentric life, neighbors, and family and heads for an unknown destination after a series of misadventures in her current life. (previously reviewed here)

 

Simsion, Graeme. The Rosie Project.   

An eccentric geneticist creates a 100-point questionaire to find the perfect wife. Unbeknownst to him, a young grad student is mistakenly identified as a potential mate, and the fun begins as the serious woman faces off with a highly-exacting man.  (previously reviewed here)

 

  

In a Sunbuned Country

 Bryson, Bill. In a Sunburned Country. New York: Broadway Books 2000. Print.

First Sentences:

Flying into Australia, I realized with a sigh that I had forgotten again who their prime minister is....But then Australia is such a difficult country to keep track of.

Description:

   

I admit that there are only a few authors that really make me laugh: P.G. Wodehouse, A.J. Jacobs, Quentin Crisp, Jim Gaffigan, Tony Hawks, Mark Twain, Donald Westlake, and Farley Mowat are at the top. While we all have our favorites, probably the humorist everyone looks forward to reading is Bill Bryson. I recently found my copy of his wonderful memories about traveling to Australia, In a Sunburned Country, and, in checking out pages marked by my little paper scraps for favorite scenes and text, found the book every bit as out-loud laughable as I had remembered.

 

Bryson is at his best, in my opinion, when he writes about his travels. In his skilled hands, all the Australia's oddities and challenges he might face (or actually does encounter) become funny. His research into the history, cities, and people is insightful and always shared in his  "everyman explorer" style of dry humor. His stream of consciousness writing make readers feel like invisible companions privy to his wandering thoughts and muttered observations of everything around him.

...my guidebook blandly observed that "only" fourteen species of Australian snakes are seriously lethal, among them the western brown, desert death adder, tiger snake, taipan, and yellow-bellied sea snake. The taipan is the one to watch out for. It is the most poisonous snake on earth, with a lunge so swift and a venom so potent that your last mortal utterance is likely to be: "I say, it that a sn---."

The Australian history he uncovers is fascinating, obscure, and always quirky. Take his description of the founding of the capital, Canberra:

The young nation had a site for a capital and a name for a capital, and it had taken them just eleven years since union [1901] to get there. At this blistering pace, all being well, they might get a city going within half a century or so. In fact, it would take rather longer.

The people of Australia and some of their notable traits don't escape his observation:

I had read in the paper that Australians are the biggest gamblers on the planet....[T]he country has less than 1 percent of the world's population but more than 20 percent of its slot machines ["pokies"]....We put in a two-dollar coin, just to see what would happen, and got an instant payout of seventeen dollars. This made us immensely joyful.

His descriptions of the rules and play for cricket matches are worth picking up this book. For him, cricket play:

...goes on for so long that by the time the match concludes autumn has crept in and all your library books are overdue....Listening to cricket on the radio is like listening to two men sitting in a rowboat on a large placid lake on a day when the fish aren't biting.

There is so much more in this delightful, informative travel memoir. In a Sunburned Country is one of my go-to books when I need a lift, a laugh, and a wallowing in great writing about a fascinating topic. I never get tired of this book and even after many readings still find things to laugh at or just be astonished by on every page. And I do mean every page. What other book can you say that about?

 

Happy reading. 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Bryson, Bill. A Walk in the Woods.   

Bryson decides to reconnect with his country by walking the 2,100 mile Appalachian Trail. He travels with his friend, Stephen Katz, a woefully out-of-shape non-hiker who eats much of their supplies on the very first day, What could possibly go wrong in the days ahead?

Letters From Father Christmas

Tolkien, J.R.R. Letters From Father Christmas. New York: Houghton Mifflin 1976. Print.

First Sentences:

Christmas House, North Pole

22nd December 1920

 

Dear John,

 

I heard you ask daddy what I was like and where I lived. I have drawn me and my house for you...I am just off now for Oxford with my bundle of toys -- some for you. Hope I shall arrive in time; the snow is very thick at the North Pole tonight. Your loving Father Christmas 

Description:

There is no book more delightful in so many ways than J.R.R. Tolkein's Letters from Father Christmas. These are hand-written letters, complete with water-color illustrations, from Santa (J.R.R. Tolkein) to Tolkein's three children, starting when John, the eldest, was three years old in 1920. Letters from Father Christmas compiles twenty years of these simple, heartfelt notes about Santa and his beautiful, often disaster-prone life in the North Pole.

 

 

Here we can read about the latest antics of Santa's mischievious Chief Assistant, the North Polar Bear, as well as descriptions of various other characters like the Red Gnome, Snow-elves, Cave Bears, and many more. Of course, Santa writes about his own life and the unexpected challenges he faced over the past year, such as when the North Polar Bear got into Santa's basement and accidently set off all the fireworks used for the Northern Lights. Or when the North Polar Bear climbed the North Pole, broke it, and fell through Santa roof, ruining many children's presents.

These letters were lovingly selected and presented by Baille Tolkein, the wife of Tolkein's third son, Christopher. She includes samples of the envelopes, stamps, and marginalia comments from the Polar Bear on Santa's original notes. 

The quality and colors of the water color pictures and letters are exquisite, while the impish writing style of Santa himself makes this small book a perfect companion for a reading session with any youngster, or just to savor by yourself alone by the fire. Tolkein truly makes the magic of Santa and his polar world come to life. 

 

You won't be sorry you picked up this imaginative, artistic collection from the mind of J.R.R. Tolkein. Of course, it earns my Highest Recommendation.

 

 

 Happy reading. 

 

Fred

Other book recommendations
About The First Sentence Reader blog

____________________

If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Rylant, Cynthis. Henry and Mudge and a Very Merry Christmas.   

If you are looking for a book to read to and look at wonderful illustrations with very young children, or let them read alone when a bit older, I highly recommend the "Henry and Mudge" books. This series focuses on the adventures of a ordinary young boy and his huge, drooling, lazy afraid-of-thunder dog, whimsically written and illustrated. The stories are highly familiar scenarios to most kids, from tree houses to visiting relatives and building forts in the snow. Delightful for adults and children alike, a rare quality.

 

Dancing at the Rascal Fair

Doig, Ivan. Dancing at the Rascal Fair. New York: Scribner 1987. Print.

First Sentences:

To say the truth, it was not how I expected -- stepping off toward America past a drowned horse.


Description:

Intriguing first sentence, isn't it? Bodes very well for an unexpected backstory, and Ivan Doig's Dancing at the Rascal Fair, comes through, delivering a wonderous story on every level: writing, characters, setting, and plot.

 

I picked this novel up out of desperation during a visit to my sister-in-law's house where I had run out of compelling books to read. Having recently finishing Doig's wonderful English Creek about turn-of-the-century life in isolated Montana, it was delightful for me to come upon Dancing at the Rascal Fair on her shelves just waiting to be read. And it turned out to be my favorite novel of the entire year.

 

The first book chronologically in Doig's "Montana Trilogy," Dancing depicts the tale of two young boys who immigrate from Neithermuir, Scotland to Gros Ventre, Montana. This tiny town is where Angus McCaskill, one of the boys and the book's narrator, has a distant uncle. The story follows Angus and his best friend, Rob Barclay, on their journey by boat, train, truck, and foot to end up in the mountainous, newly settled "town" (i.e., tents and two log saloons) of Gros Ventre. Here, Angus' uncle Lucas owned one of the two rustic saloons. It was Lucas who encouraged them to settle in the wide open valley nearby despite their lack of homesteading experience. As Lucas put it:

The Scotch are wonderful at living anywhere but in Scotland....At least Montana is the prettiest place in the world to work yourself to death, ay?

From there, we follow the boys as they explore and eventually settle on land worthy of sheep-raising, the livelihood they agreed to undertake as partners, pooling the work and any profits. They slowly become part of the community made up of early settlers who are both quirky and guarded in accepting new homesteaders. Their sheep-raising proves a challenge as well.

Rob and I were having to learn that trying to control a thousand sheep on a new range was like trying to herd water. How were the woollies? Innocently thriving when last seen an hour ago, but who knew what they might have managed to do to themselves since.

Rob and Angus slowly, surely establish a toehold in both their sheep and personal enterprises. They prove to be stubbon, hard-working, resiliant, and at times volitle, the exact combination of traits needed for survival.

Rememberd joy is twice sweet. Rob's face definitely said so, for he had that bright unbeatable look on him, In a mood like this he'd have called out "fire" in a gunshop just to see what might happen.

And that is just the beginning of their story about this wonderous Montana land, the people, the adventures in living, and the dreams they cling to throughout long winters, droughts, isolation, and disasters. And even through love.

You won't find it in the instructions on the thing, but for the first year of a marriage, time bunches itself in a dense way it never quite does again. Everything happens double-quick and twice as strong to a new pair in life -- and not just in the one room of the house you'd expect.

It is not a book about sheep-raising, although that is the background of all endeavours. It is a book about people, relationships, hard living, and dreams. There is plenty of action, loves, excitement, travels, and local wisdom filling every page to make this book my favorite of the year. It's so easy to fall in love with these characters and their lives, to breathlessly await their next adventure with interesting men and women, and the emotions that drive this community of settlers to survive and prosper.

Dancing at the rascal fair,

devils and angels all were there,

heel and toe, pair by pair,

dancing at the rascal fair.

Awarded my "Highest Recommendation."

 

[P.S. You can read more about the history of Scotch Valley, Montana and the descendents of the McCaskill and Barclay families in Doig's English Creek and Ride With Me, Maria Montana.]

 

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

Other book recommendations
About The First Sentence Reader blog

____________________

If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Doig, Ivan. The Whistling Season.   

A Chicago woman in 1909 answers an advertisement for a housekeeper for a widower and his three young sons living in an isolated Montana town. She writes that she "Can't cook, but doesn't bite," and gets the job sight unseen (by both of them). She brings her brother with her on the train and he reluctantly becomes a unique schoolteacher. Simply wonderful, a great read not to be missed.  (previously reviewed here)