Thoughts on California Girl

I finished this book over the previous weekend. It turned out to be a good cop story with some twists and turns.

Initially, with its initial feud between two sets of brothers, it reminds me a bit of the OK corral feud between the Earps and the Clantons. The brothers-against-brothers theme faded as the story progressed. Actually, it was a sister that came to the center of the story. Also, the story ultimately followed three brothers from one family. One became a cop, one a reporter, and one a preacher. A fourth brother died in the early years of the conflict in Vietnam. It was the interplay between these brothers through the decades, and their relationship to the sister of the other family (who was gruesomely murdered) that comprised the story. It spanned the 60s to roughly the present.

This book reminded me a bit of Kem Nunn's books in its portrayal of the darker, inland side of California. It also contained an interesting portrayal of the John Birch Society and conservative Nixon California. (Nixon was actually a minor character in the book.) It was actually a rather neutral portrayal I've not seen before. Also, of course, it portrayed the cultural turbulence of the 60s. Timothy Leary had an interesting bit part, as did Charlie Manson.

One hesitatant criticism I have of the book is its style. Written mostly in fragmentary sentences. Never read a book composed almost entirely of sentence fragments. "Went to the store." "Thought of his grandmother." Pretty terse. A bit annoying at times, but not a deal-breaker.

I'd recommend the book to mystery/crime lovers. I will likely hunt down more of this author's books.

What I've Read and What I'll Read - March 28

Yesterday I finished Almost Adam. My estimation of the book remains pretty much the same: overburdened with lots of didactic prose, but fascinating all the same because of its subject matter and locale. Good but not great. The climax did get rolling pretty good and was quite exciting.

Next up, a browsing find: California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker (HarperTorch, 2004). This is one of those books that just catches your eye as you're looking over the shelves on the way to the library checkout. I think what initially grabbed me was the near-quote of the Beach Boys song title, as it suggested a possibly surfing related theme (I'm a fan of surfing). I'm also a fan of California, so that was an attraction. When I read the jacket I discovered that it is a murder mystery set in 60s California, which pretty much settled the matter!

What I'm still reading March 24

I'm still working my way through Almost Adam. This book is, in part, what I'd call a Shangri-la book. That is, it posits a place "untouched by time", sort of a Garden of Eden. The place itself is virtually a character in the book. In this case, the place is a savannah region of Kenya called the Dogilani plain. The narrator of the book keeps referring to it as a place that still has the character of the Pliocene era of earth's evolution. And on this plain and in the surrounding hills, the protagonist discovers still-living australopithecines, the most ancient known evolutionary relatives of our species. Much of the book is taken up with our hero running with the australopithecines, narrating their behaviors and speculating on their inner life and how they survived this long.

When I say much, I really mean it. There's a bit too much of that sort of thing; kind of a short course in paleoanthropology. At times it seems a little forced. But I'm a sucker for these sorts of imaginings so I'm enjoying it. The book also describes contemporary Kenyan culture and history and that's quite fascinating as well. When I was a kid I read Something of Value, by Robert Ruark (Hamish Hamilton, 1955), about the Mau Mau war for independence in Kenya, and have loved stories about the jungle and the African plains ever since. Finally, the book has a seamy little subplot about murder and scientific jealousy that I think Michael Crichton would approve of.

Onward!

I finished Tears of Autumn yesterday. It occurred to me that a better comparison than Tinker Tailor would be LeCarre's The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. Both books are spare and dark and cynical. I liked Tears of Autumn, although ultimately the assassination version is a little odd and the hero has it a little too easy. But it's an interesting book.

After finishing that one, I started Inside Job, by Connie Willis (Subterranean Press, 2005). This is a novella, about 100 pages. It's basically a cute little joke about skeptics who debunk spiritualists, and an homage to a person the author obviously considers the dean of debunkers. It's an easy read -- I've finished it already -- and fun.

Next book up: Almost Adam, by Petru Popescu (William Morrow & Co., 1996).

What I'm Reading: March 16, '06

Since I said that my primary reason to blog would be to tell what I'm reading, I guess I'll do that. I suppose I should add that I'm an avid reader. That's probably obvious, but I state it here for the record!

So...what am I reading? Tears of Autumn, by Charles McCarry (The Overlook Press, 1974).

This novel posits that the plot to assassinate JFK was conceived and launched from Vietnam in retaliation for the coup against then-President of South Vietnam Ngo Dinh Diem and his subsequent murder. I discovered this book while reading a non-fiction book that lays out this theory in more detail and with more historical perspective. That book is Triangle of Death, by Brad O'Leary and L.E. Seymour (WND Books, 2003). Maybe I'll write more at a later time about my interestes in the JFK assassination, but for now I'll just say that I find this theory interesting and well put forward though not fully persuasive. I'm still a mafia-done-it guy.

McCarry's book is very understated. It brings to mind Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy in its pacing and its "take" on the real work of espionage. The protagonist is very terse, very cynical, goes about unarmed...the very antithesis of James Bond et. al. I should add that the dust jacket says McCarry was with the CIA for a decade. Hmmmm.

Besides the seeming verisimillitude, I like the language in this book. While not overladen with imagery, there are some very beautiful -- and occasionally some very jarring -- ones when used. And I like the etheric mood he evokes. In truth, I think the book is as much about the very early years of the Vietnam conflict and the country and culture itself as it is about the JFK assassination. It was written a year after the U.S.'s final exit from Saigon, so I think it is infused with the sadness of the era. For the reader, it's eerie to read a story set before the heavy U.S. involvement...and know what's coming. (By the way, another proposition in this book is that some segment of the Vietnamese conceived of hooking large numbers of the expected American troops on heroin in revenge for the American presence in their country.)

My chief complaints so far actually revolve around some of the very things I also like. I think the pacing is a little slow, especially at the beginning. I think he does this to set that ethereal mood, but...well, it's a little slow. The other complaint is that sometimes it's very hard to understand what's being said. The characters (often intentionally) speak in riddle-like sentences, or in flip, cynical phrases that aren't always easy to follow.

More to follow.

A Reticent Hello

Gosh. I had absolutely no intention of creating my own blog when I came to blogger (or did I come to blogspot? I'm not even sure!). I merely wanted to comment on my daughter's new blog, for which I was required to sign up and create my own. And now, here I am, finally, in the blogosphere.

I'd actually thought for some years about creating what is now called a blog, only I would have simply done it as a web page or website. My only thought for it was to log what I happened to be reading, with a few comments. I had no idea whether anyone would even be interested in that, and still have no idea. In fact, in general, I must confess I seriously doubt whether I have anything interesting to say at all.

I guess we'll see.