In his own words
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Mr. Finchley Discovers his England
Review: A beautiful lighthearted romp through the England between the wars. Meet Mr. Finchley, a solicitor’s clerk who has never taken a holiday. Suddenly with three weeks vacation and 40 pounds in his pocket he embarks to the seaside but ends up having a series of of extraordinary adventures throughout the length and breadth of…
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Holmes for the Holidays
Review: Excellent volume of Holmesian Christmas fare. The usual blend of really good/good/just okay, but no real clunkers. Irene Adler, Moriarty, Scrooge, Cratchit, and even creepy Lewis Carroll make their obligatory appearances, but the quality is such that they can pull it off. Not great, but sort of obligatory in these pastiches. A good fast…
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The Golden Age
Review: A delightful romp through an English garden childhood. Lots of beautiful introspective moments, even though the protagonists would never admit they are introspective moments. Kaiser Wilhelm II had this book on his bedside table in the imperial yacht. This was the last age of childhood before the world changed forever in 1914. This book…
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One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovitch
Review: Read this in one day, just like the book is a journal of one day in the life of a Russian imprisoned under the Soviet regime in 1951. A brilliant, terrifying document, but captivating and gripping. I could relate to so many aspects of the prison experience, conditions for my incarceration were improved by…
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The Guns of August
Review: An absolutely pivotal work of history. It won a Pulitzer and there is no doubt why. You feel engaged with the characters and involved in the action. While following all the military maneuvers can be confusing, the narrative drives you along past this. For students of the Great War this is considered a must…
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Basic Documents in American History
Review: An actual reading of the documents that so many Americans profess to “defend unto death”, which so few have ever actually read. Americans have a racist past built into their entire socio-political system. Dred Scott, good grief. Brown v. Board of Education – good grief in 1955. A well regulated militia is not the…
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The Fabulous Riverboat
Review: A wild ride down the amazing river of Riverworld. Thought provoking and disturbing in some aspects. Suspension of disbelief taken way too far. Imagine a resurrected Mark Twain going from stone age capabilities to full industrial manufacturing and 20th century technology in about 5 years. Nope. Good but not great, worth reading, but I…
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Within the Tides
Review: Four novellas/short stories from the master of nautical yarns. “The Planter of Malata” is a dark psychological tale of passion and deception. “The Partner” is an excellent tale of business treachery and scheming. “The Inn of the Two Witches” is very reminiscent of Alamayer’s Folly or even Heart of Darkness. A boat with a…
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The Beautiful and Damned
Review: A rare gem of a book. All the glory and drama and sadness of the end of the Gilded Age. Exploring the ephemeral nature of the present moment, of each generation discovering its youth and beauty, and then slowly seeing it pass away. The slow descent into alcoholism was like looking back on my…
