The Short Take: 

If you like your thrillers with a touch of the macabre, the books of Preston and Child are custom made for you. Particularly the ones featuring the eccentric FBI agent Aloysius Pendergast.

Why?

For me, Agent Pendergast is one of the most fascinating mystery solvers of the last 20 years. While he is supposed to be a FBI agent, he seems to do exactly what he pleases with little or no supervision. Unbelievably rich, emotionally flawed, and totally brilliant, his past is a Gothic as his present is dramatic.

Pendergast was introduced in Preston and Child’s first collaboration, The Relic. For some reason the authors chose not to develop him further for their next six books. But in their seventh collaboration, The Cabinet of Curiosities, he took center stage with a vengeance and has never turned it loose. He’s been the central character in their last six thrillers, with the seventh, Cemetery Dance, scheduled for release on May 12th.

It’s best to read them in order, starting with the above mentioned The Cabinet of Curiosities. They aren’t all of equal merit, ranging from “can’t put down” to “pretty darn good.” But if you enjoy mystery thrillers where the action depends less on guns and chases than it does on brilliance and the bizarre, I simply don’t think you can do better than this dangerously prolific duo.

Want to know more about them and their books? Just click here.

I’ve been away for the better part of three weeks. You might think I would use that time to read new, just-released books. Wrong. I packed my bags with a bunch of oldies — including one that was first published around 250 years ago.

Anytime I travel I follow a “read and release” policy: After finishing a book, I leave it behind for someone else to enjoy. My office closet has a whole area devoted to books I pick up at secondhand stores or other discount sources. One of my favorite parts of packing is selecting my reading material — there’s much to chose from and variety is key.

This time I selected:

“The River King” by Alice Hoffman: Very typical of her work — which you either love or hate. I just really get into the way she uses natural imagery of flora and fauna in such an unnatural and magical way. Men beware: her books are very girly. (Sorry, Amazon offered no link for this book.)

“Shadowfires” by Dean Koontz: I get more comments from fellow travelers when reading Koontz than any other author. They always want to know if I have read some other book of his. Unfortunately I have a hard time remembering the titles. In fact, once I started this thriller I had a sneaky suspicion I had read it already. Nothing was familiar however — until the end. Oops. I need to start a “previously read” list on Koontz. Problem is, I’ve read so many but am not sure exactly which ones those are.

“Original Sin” by P.D. James: Another “previously read” mistake. But I recognized this mystery from the first sentence. Oh, well, someone else will get to enjoy it. I do keep a list of previously read P.D. James books, but hadn’t written this one down. Any list is only as good as its maintenance. I do love P. D. James, however. Her mysteries are so smart.

 






“The Secret Supper” by Javier Sierra: I had heard it wasn’t very good. It wasn’t. This is a genre I enjoy, too. Maybe a lot was lost in translation.

“The Mysteries of Pittsburgh: A Novel” by Michael Chabon: Interesting, but not near as good as his more recent titles.

“The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling” by Henry Fielding: Actually, I haven’t finished this one yet — it has close to 900 pages long in my 1950s era paperback edition. Small print to boot. This probably wasn’t the best choice for vacation reading, but it is a major hoot. Very, very funny in a low key, satirical way. I know I’m missing a lot of the humor involving other authors of Fielding’s time and it is easy to get impatient with the constant digressions into philosophical discussions, but it’s well worth the time invested.




I brought a couple of others just in case — I can’t abide being without a book. They’ll go back into the closet for another time. 

And now it’s back to reviewing new books. I’ve got one all ready to go up in a couple of days.

This past weekend I had the privilege of attending The Souther Festival of Books in Nashville, TN. I say “privilege” because this amazing event is free. Literally (and literary) more than 200 authors speak at this event which takes place in the environs of the Tennessee State Legislature.

I won’t make the obvious comment about the difference between the usual posturing and hot air you would find in that place as opposed to the second weekend in October. Oops. I guess I just did.

Ann Patchet, Richard Price, Sherman Alexie, and David Wroblewski were just a few of the very well known writers in attendance — all of them reading, talking, and signing. The only problem is that with such riches, you can only attend one session at a time. That often meant there were as many as 10 other sessions you were passing up.

I made a couple of poor choices. One biographer of an incredibly fascinating revolutionary was so boring his audience was drifting to sleep, despite the most uncomfortable chairs in the world. But some choices were sensational.

I made a point of sitting in on David Fuller’s session since I so recently reviewed his excellent Sweetsmoke. He was completely charming, very informative, and quite respectful of his audience. I regretfully came in late for Mark Winegardner’s talk about writing the sequels to The Godfather, but that was certainly eye opening.

However, I must save top honors for Rick Bragg. I heard him talk around a decade ago and he tore my heart out. He still does that, but he makes you laugh out loud as well. After reading his All Over but the Shouting, I permanently deleted the derogatory three word phrase often used to describe financially deprived Caucasians from my vocabulary. I felt ashamed to have ever used it. Bragg speaks for the rural poor, who are so largely forgotten in America. And he does it with such eloquence and grace you cannot help but be changed. Read him. Enlighten yourself.

And, make plans now to go to the Southern Festival of the Book next year. Bookmark this for updates.

When it came to history, I was an “A” student from grade school through college. But I really didn’t gain much knowledge. Dates, treaties, political figures stayed with me long enough for testing then slowly evaporated.

Since then, I’ve read many histories and even more historical novels (which send me running to the Internet for historical confirmations). I’ve come to the conclusion that my formal education in history was largely a waste of time: we were taught for easy testing not for real understanding the powers at play during any historical era. I suspect the situation has not improved with today’s even stronger emphasis on test scores.

That is just a terrible shame. With no knowledge of the complexities shaping our past it’s practically impossible to truly understand what’s going on now.

For example, take our Pilgrims. From school days you might recall the Mayflower Pact, Plymouth Rock, hardship, Thanksgiving,  and maybe even Squanto and corn. That’s probably about it. Too bad. The true story of the Pilgrims as revealed in Nathaniel Philbrick’s fascinating book, Mayflower, is disturbing as well as inspiring.  Just making the Mayflower voyage happen is an adventure in itself. Squanto becomes merely one native player among a dizzying number of tribes the Pilgrims both need and fear. Pilgrim leaders are sometimes heroic, sometimes foolish, and sometimes outright cruel.  Philbrick’s fully fleshed out history gives you a better understanding not just of the 50 or so years it covers, but of American history since then.

His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis brings amazing revelations as well. Did you know that Washington virtually started the so-called French-Indian War by himself? He certainly had no winning record before he was chosen to lead our Revolutionary armies.  It’s just incredible to learn about the real man behind the legendary  (and not true) wooden choppers.  He had the charisma of a rock star wrapped up in the dignity of a… well, President.

Of course, when it comes to world history, most of us had zero exposure to anything that didn’t happen in the Middle East or Europe. Fortunately, there’s an easy and even fun way to take care of that, thanks to Larry Gonick.  His Cartoon History of the Universe 1, 2, and III (I don’t know why the change from Arabic to Roman numerals) literally covers  everything from the Big Bang onward, including  historic events on every continent.  Written with wit and humor, you gain a true world-view that gives you a much better understanding of today’s complexities and conflicts.  If you don’t want to go back to the beginning, at least try Gonick’s The Cartoon History of the Modern World Part 1: From Columbus to the U. S. Constitution. It puts American history in context with what is going on in the rest of the world. I bet your high school teacher never did that! And, it’s a real eye opener. Frankly, I would like to see Gonick’s comic books used as basic high school history texts, and have students supplement his work with research of their own. His extensive bibliographies provide ample starting points.

George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” I would say it’s not enough to just remember the date something happened. It’s the “why” that really matters. That’s why we need authors like Philbrick, Ellis, Gonick and more to fill in the mighty chasms our history teachers left in our education.

Seeing a loved book made into a movie can be a tragedy, a comedy,or a love story. Peter Jackson did a brilliant job with The Lord of The Rings, a book I practically lived in during high school and college. I, Robot, on the other hand had absolutely nothing to do with Isaac Asimov’s book by the same name. In fact, it blatantly broke Asimov’s Rules of Robotics.

That said, here are some books I’m would like to see at the movies:

The Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum. Yes, I know it’s a really, really famous movie already. But can’t we do a non-musical version, please?

The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov. Paging Peter Jackson. This saga deserves your touch. And, what a great time for the message of solving problems with wits instead of might.

Knight’s Castle, Edward Eager. This great kid’s book from the 50s would be so easy to update. It’s filled with magic. I  keep hoping the Harry Potter craze will resurrect Eager’s books. They certainly deserve the attention. Bonus — there are built in sequels!

A Man in Full, Tom Wolfe. Maybe people are afraid to go there after the Bonfire of the Vanities mess. Too bad. This is truly an epic story. If not a movie, can it be an opera?

Odd Thomas, Dean Koontz. Odd is arguably the most engaging character Koontz has ever created. A spooky, touching, and heartbreaking book. Not to mention loaded with action. And ready made sequels are available. Maybe this one is in the works somewhere? 

Five Quarters of the Orange, Joanne Harris. This beautiful novel set during WWII has Indy hit written all over it. Friendship, disaster, love, betrayal — it’s all here. All it needs is to get made!

Undaunted Courage, Stephen E. Ambrose. The true story of the Lewis and Clark expedition is as exciting as any made up adventure. Someone, be a good American and put it on film.

Those are a few of my picks. What books do you want to see at your local multiplex?

I’m in several book clubs and right now I’m reading a book for one of them: The Friday Night Knitting Club.

While there is nothing wrong with this book I just don’t get why it is a common pick for book clubs. It’s just another version of The Jane Austen Book Club, and so many others. Basically there’s always a group of women who lean on each other while going through cancer/divorce/affairs/pregnancies/etc. Been there. Read that.

With all the excellent books out in the world, why do these type of books keep coming up so regularly? Shouldn’t book clubs be about something more? Women make up almost all the members of the book clubs I belong to, and I suspect that is the norm everywhere. Are we — as women — saying we’re too shallow to read books of substance? Something is wrong.

Somehow my education did not include the usual required reading of many respected writers. In fact, I only recall having to read The Scarlet Letter and some Shakespearean plays. Very sad.

So, I tackle one of those missed books every once in awhile. The latest was William Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom!

I kept hearing how hard Faulkner was from everybody — including people I knew were well educated and bright. So I was very nervous.

Bah!

Basically the book was a beautifully written melodrama unveiled in mystery form. It wasn’t hard at all. Honest. That said, you can’t sit down and read it in five minute snatches. Shoot, it takes longer than that just to finish some of Faulkner’s sentences. But the reading wasn’t hard. In fact, it was pleasurable.

Faulkner (at least in this novel) tends to reveal part of something and wait several paragraphs, or even pages, to reveal the rest of that something. That’s why it’s best to read for extended periods at a time. Otherwise you may not get the whole thought or meaning.

I found this created a level of tension beyond with events in the book. It added drama just to the process of reading.

There will be more Faulkner in my future. And no more fear. Now I’m ready to tackle James Joyce!