The Girl, the Gold Watch & Everything by John D. MacDonald
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First note: I’ve held off reading this book for about 40 years. I now have a few different editions of it, along with all of MacDonald’s books. This one I held off because of my dislike of science fiction.

Review: This is as close as MacDonald ever got to writing like Hiassen and Tim Dorsey would later write like. It’s a really silly story, written as lightly as any of MacDonald’s books or short stories.

This is also the issue I have with this book. It’s really light. With the word ‘watch’ in the title, you’d think it would have a more significant spot than appearing half-way through the book and then used to mostly play with than adding anything to the plot.

There is reference that all are looking for some all-powerful Maguffin, which is the watch. Yet there is never a tug-of-war for it. It mostly sits in a box or a pocket. Pulled out to be silly with.

So much could be done with the concept and MacDonald let it slip through his fingers. The films did a better job. Referencing his science fiction books, he could have started and ended with the watch as the nucleus all else stems from. Fascinating idea.

The characters are also an odd lot for JDM. The main character is not consistent. He alters one way and then another. It’s clear he falters at ladies most of the time. Then he doesn’t.
The women are all mostly the same and are written to set men in their place. Don’t know why MacDonald did this with the vocal ladies.
The bad guys are more typical JDM bad guys. Though, in this case, a woman is the most violent.

The Florida part: JDM demonstrates his knowledge of Florida with locations in Dade and Broward Counties. It’s certainly less than most all of his other books. The Dave Dresser ‘Mike Shayne’ series does a better job of description and use of locations in the same counties.

Bottom line: i don’t recommend this book. 4 out of ten points.

View all my reviews

Davey’s Adventures with the Clyde Beatty by Jane Beatty and Ann Pinchot
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a terrific book! I’ve read quite a bit, experienced and have friends with many circus tales. This volume covers so much in such a short book. The book is intended for children as is explained early in the book. Yet, there are a number of mature instances of responsibility, not including that Davey’s family let’s him go off to the circus by himself for almost two weeks. I could see the temporary morays of today’s public being up-in-arms about some content in the book.

Setting that aside, Davey’s experiences are very well written and described. There is a lot of concisely written description included. From clown makeup application to setting up circus tents.
A little side note: If my animal rights friends had read this book,they would never have protested a circus. 🙂
Reading this book had me wondering if Beatty and Pinchot had made up situations described. But, as I read, it synced with so much I’ve read and experienced. The writing is just that well done.

I also found the descriptions of Clyde Beatty’s involvement true to life. You’d think, wife, Jane would have her husband throughout the book. Instead he only makes a few appearances involving encounters with Davey, as a circus owner would in real life.

A very impressive volume. Could it be longer? More extensive? Sure. But this works just right.

One issue is the placement of photographs. There are obviously photos that match the narrative, but, instead, the photos are scattered across the book and only early few match the writing.

Florida connection: Clyde Beatty Circus had their Winter Quarters near DeLand, Florida. The only location mentioned beyond “Today’s Town” was Snake River at one point. Otherwise, none of the circus stops described , or the photographs, mention location. Even when the Winter Quarters are noted, the location of that is not stated.

Bottom line: i recommend this book. 10 out of 10 points.

View all my reviews

Spirou – l’espoir malgré tout by Émile Bravo
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I’m going to refer those looking for my review to see the review I placed for the first part of this story.

I find this second entry as pretentious as the first. There are a few better scenes that probably should have been the core of this still-another-retread of WWII. But these are fleeting glances and the story continues on the overly-familiar ground.

Again, the characters of Spirou and Fantasio are flushed away for this emotive mess that avoids a typically creative plot.

Where this one fails greatest is the very ending with a cliff hanger of Spirou about to enter an impossible arena.
The solution in any other Spirou & Fantasio romp I could hardly wait for the creative solution.
Why do I have a sinking feeling a train wreck is ahead? That would anger me if the plot deteriorates to that level.

Bottom line: I do not recommend this book. 3 out of ten points.

View all my reviews

The Z Rises Again by Tome
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

After the first two very well done, extensive entries in this tale spread over a few decades, this is more reflective of it’s time as a much simpler, less involved story.
After the first two books, this seems more a side bar.

This smaller story takes the science fiction angle of time travel into the future in the one Zorglub story that precedes this one is continued here. The transition from one period to the other is oddly handled with a more metaphysical take, I don’t think works well.

While in this other dimension the artistic efforts are well handled depicting location and machinery.
The well-done characters are the same as before.

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 5 out of 5 points.

View all my reviews

Battle for the Big Top: P.T. Barnum, James Bailey, John Ringling, and the Death-Defying Saga of the American Circus by Les Standiford
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Often seems Les Standiford is one of the few writers today who knows how to write. Here he goes again!
This is a fantastic book bridging tough subjects and winnowing all to this tight volume of lives and pursuit of success.
Since this dovetails with Florida history, I, again, create the bulk of the review in my Swampy’s Florida podcast:

https://anchor.fm/swampysflorida/epis…

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 10 out of 10 points.

View all my reviews

Bar-Room Ballads by Robert Service
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A nifty collection of verse by Robert Service. Most are great fun or a nifty story with a twist.
Favorites are ‘The Ballad of Lenin’s Tomb’, ‘Security’, ‘The Ballad of Casey’s Billy-goat’. My favorite is ‘The Ballad of the Ice-Worm Cocktail’.
Each are well thought out and written.

Two items to note: The “Bar-Room” part of the title is misleading. The entries are not of any specific subject and just a couple even mention a bar.

Of greater note is that this collection was published in 1940 in the U.K. just as all Hell was about to break loose across England.
The last 7 or so verses by Service are anti-war and pointedly against sending soldiers to war.
I’m guessing this book sold poorly as that information got around those in Great Britain.

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 9 out of ten points.

View all my reviews

The Burning by William W. Johnstone
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Another Frank Morgan tale. This one reaches a bit too far as Frank builds a city….with random gun play involved.

It’s all very silly. The main character is strapped with too much cash. Angry at some bad guys, he takes his cash and starts having churches, banks, jails, etc built. Just to spite the bad guys. The excuse given is the “Drifter’ sometimes doesn’t want to drift and wants to stop and settle in. That would be fine,if he was to stay there and upcoming books were about his being in the town. Readers know he’s building it for no reason other to then drift. Thus the ending is apparent. I find this approach frustrating. A better approach would’ve been to have Morgan with a wealthy companion and they both built the town and the companion stayed behind.

This one also has the now, after 7 other volumes, familiar ending of chapters with a gunfight is to occur. The beginning of the next chapter has the gunfight occur. Then someone doesn’t die and a few pages goes on with drivel about why someone doesn’t get a doctor for the dying man. Geez. A few times is OK, but this happens through a few chapters and many books.

The plot is good, but construction falters in logic and, I found, the tale falls in. Making it worse is an odd stringing out of the ending which appears to be more padding than adding to the story. Adding to that is the representation of a continuation of the story in the next volume. That doesn’t happen, which is just another frivolous bit of the book.

Another complaint is another set of sheriffs/barkeeps/store owners/etc. that are near duplicates from other volumes. More of the mechanical effort.

Finally the title has nothing to do with the contents of the book.

Bottom line: i don’t recommend this book. 4 out of ten.

View all my reviews

The Haunted Hotel: A Mystery of Modern Venice by Wilkie Collins
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I usually like Wilkie Collins work. This book gets mired in being over written for the first 2/3rds and, less then than now, typical cute playing games with names ploy. I knew where the book was going early on.

The story starts with a couple characters that are caught in romance and then there’s a bit of trading places and then a death. Then a disappearance. Then the story really drags as the pieces of the story get shuffled further. The last third of the book is the best part of the story, but not worth all to go through to get there. Especially as i saw it all coming in the first 5th of the book.

The characters are very good. A few are too much alike adding confusion to the similarity of names. Very good dialogue. The settings described is the best part of the book. The exterior and interior structures well place the reader at the scenes.

Bottom line: i don’t recommend this book. 4 out of 10 points.

View all my reviews