Trouble With Lichen

 

By John Wyndham

5 Stars

Science Fiction

Adult

For me, this is a reread of a classic science fiction novel. The heroine of the story is Diana Brackley. She is a research biochemist. The story begins with her funeral and then backtracks to where it all started. That beginning didn't really grab me that strongly. Going into her back story, things pick up, and the storytelling is really quite good. 

We meet her at the beginning of her serious schooling. She is a brilliant one. Once she discovers the direction she wants to go, she pursues it with single-mindedness. She is hired to do research with Francis Saxover and celebrated biochemist. She accidentally discovers that a speck of lichen dropped into milk put out for the cat stops it from turning. The two of them study this phenomenon further and discover that it is not an antibiotic but a substance that slows the aging process. She leaves the company and starts a beauty business and continues her study of the substance. He studies it independently of her.

The story flows from there. It explores the consequences of such a colossal discovery. There are places where the author is clearly having fun with the subject, imagining how something like this might play out. 

I highly recommend this one. It's a great book.

Gallipoli

 

By Alan Moorehead

4.5 Stars

Historical/Non-Fiction

Adult

I've read bits and pieces about Gallipoli in the past but never read such a detailed account. The author takes the reader from the beginning, telling how and why the plan was developed, through the entire campaign, the evacuation and finally talks about what came out of it all. One thing to note is that some of the letters between commanders are written in French and are not translated into English. That might be an annoyance for some readers. It didn't bother me because I had no trouble reading them.

The narrative was pretty dry at times, but to be complete, those details did need to be presented. It did impact the overall readability, but it didn't tempt me to put it down. I was frustrated with the incompetence of some of the leadership and the unbelievable episodes of blind, dumb bad luck. Some people think the campaign was cursed, and I'm not sure they're wrong. At the same time, I am deeply impressed by the bravery and the sheer tenacity of the men who fought and died.

In so many ways, Gallipoli was a complete waste. Both sides suffered horrible losses. Allied victory was several times so tantalizingly close. Victory there could have been the turning point of the war, but it wasn't. It could have changed history as we know it, but it didn't. I enjoyed the book and recommend it for anyone interested in the history surrounding this event.

The SAS Survival Handbook

 

By John Wiseman

5 Stars

Survival/Reference

Adult Non-Fiction

This has been part of my personal library since shortly after graduating from college (mid-to-late 1980s). At that point in my life, I travelled by bicycle and stealth-camped along the way. While it is a reference work, I read it cover to cover right after I purchased it. In my opinion, it is the best basic campcraft and survival book available. I still refer to it today.

You don't have to be a prepper or survivalist nut to find it useful. There are excellent sections on disaster preparedness and how to manage situations that could happen to anyone. I don't religiously follow all the recommendations in the book, but I do follow some of them and keep it around as a handy reference just in case. I do live off the beaten path, and it does have some daily practicality that is useful to me.

I highly recommend this book.

It's Me Again

 

By Donald Jack

5 Stars

Historical/Humour

Adult

This is the third book in the series and brings the opening trilogy to a close. My wife searched for this book online to buy me as a gift. When it arrived, I was in for a surprise. The copy she bought was a first-edition hardcover. I've had a lot of books over the years, but I don't think I've ever had a first edition anything before. I noticed changes between this edition and the later edition that I originally read. One of the memorable scenes was completely replaced, and there were other things that were different. I don't really know if it made the book better or not. The one new scene was definitely better, but the other differences may have changed the ending feel of the book. In that case, I preferred the original.

Bandy is sent back to the Royal Flying Corps to lead a squadron. He actually demonstrates excellent leadership there. Readers won't be disappointed. He's still the oblivious anti-hero we've come to love. He blunders from one catastrophe to the next. There are some echoes of other Canadian aces from the war, but that's a topic for another time and place. In the air, Bandy is in his element.

Once again, Bandy reaches the height of heroism and falls from grace and ends up being sent to fight in the Russian civil war. After that, he goes home to Canada. The closing scene beautifully echoes the opening scene in book one. I found it immensely satisfying.

The greatest strength of this series and especially this one book is that it doesn't lose sight of the seriousness and the horror of its historical setting. It goes through the First World War, the Spanish Flu and the Russian Civil War. There is an account of personal loss for Bandy that shocked and upset me. I mourned his loss. It put everything in perspective, though.

Highly recommend this series. I think it created a character that readers just didn't want to go away and so the series continued on.

I Heard That Song Before

 

By Mary Higgins Clark

4 Stars

Mystery/Suspense/Romance

Adult

This book is clearly aimed at women readers. That's not a bad thing. Most readers are women, and the majority of people working in the industry are women. I'm a man, and I borrowed this one from my daughter's library on her recommendation. I'm glad I did.

Kay Lansing is the heroine, and most of the story is told from her perspective. Her love interest, whom she quickly marries, is Peter Carrington, who is handsome, rich and a very nice man. He's in trouble, though. He stands accused of murder, and from a legal standpoint, things are not looking good. She has to figure things out to save the day. Not a bad storyline.

What I liked is pretty simple. It was easy to read. It flowed, and even though I'm not the target audience, I had no trouble staying engaged. I liked the characters, and I liked the story. It was well told.

What I didn't like, and I'm going to nitpick. The transition from Kay Lansing to Kay Carrington was abrupt. It was like a wake-up slap. I'm not sure that is the best way to have handled that, but I'm not marking the rating down because of it. Made me sit up but didn't make me want to put the book down. Maybe I'm being too generous.

Kay was naughty when she was six years old and explored someone else's house. Peter was a sleepwalker. These two characters had virtually no flaws. Like Barbie and her ultimate accessory, Ken. I think they still had depth as characters, but it could have been stronger. 

Nick Greco, the private investigator, had a moment of observation which would have never come from a male mind, especially not one in his role.

There were two occasions when a full explanation was repeated. That might be done for emphasis, but I honestly thought that it didn't serve any purpose.

I mention all these nitpicks because I think a good beta reader or editor should have spotted them and recommended minor revisions. It would have made the book better.

I recommend the book. I felt that reading her work might make me a better writer myself.

History of the Church of God (Seventh Day)

 

By John Kiesz

4.5 Stars

Religion/History

Adult

I read this at the beginning of 1986, shortly after I read the work by Richard C. Nickels. This was found in the Ambassador College/University library. I believe there were actually two copies. The form was like that of a research paper without footnotes rather than a regular book. It was double-spaced, and someone decided to put a cover on it. He refers to his sources through the body of the text. I took the liberty of making a cover image because there doesn't appear to be an image anywhere online. The cover, as I remember it, was green, although I'm probably off on the shade. The title and name of the author were in gold letters and may only have been on the spine of the book. 

John Kiesz was a minister in the Church of God Seventh Day. He was part of a long-standing church family. I believe he was a personal friend of Herbert W Armstrong. His book covers the historical period from the beginning of America to the merger of the Stanberry and Salem branches of the Church of God.

As a reader, I did get bogged down in details at times, but the book is not long and is not very difficult to read. As a historical document, I can recommend it. His work is quoted quite extensively by Mr. Nickels in his book. If you are genuinely interested in Church of God history, you owe it to yourself to go through this. It is available online to read or download as a PDF file. The following link will access it: https://www.friendsofsabbath.org/ABC/CG7/john_kiesz/History%20of%20the%20CoG7_Kiesz.pdf

Exxoneration

 

By Richard Rohmer

5 Stars

Thriller

Adult

This is the sequel to Canadian icon Richard Rohmer's bestseller Ultimatum. I read this one almost right after reading the first one. If you are going to read one, you really need to read them both together. 

This book starts where the other left off. The United States has decided to annex Canada. The plan reminds me a little of the Nazi invasion of the Netherlands during the Second World War. The opening move is to land large numbers of American troops at all of Canada's major airports with the intention of pulling off a relatively bloodless takeover. This, of course, backfires, and outcry from the American public does the rest. The rest of the book is how the whole issue is finally resolved. I won't give away more than the opening salvo of the story.

Implausible? I'll concede that. With the current rhetoric coming from the White House, I can't help but be reminded of this story. To my American friends, reading this book will give you a taste of the depth of the understated patriotism of your neighbours to the north. We want to remain your friends, but we don't want to be Americans. No insult intended.

Does this book deserve the five stars I've given it? For me, its impact suggests yes. Those who read both books when they were first published still remember the basic story fifty years later. Only the best books stay that sharp in my mind.