book report XI

Time for another quick book review—as I sort through my desk trying to figure out which are the books I've read recently and which are the ones I've retrieved from the floor. Veronica has reached the "pulling books off the shelf" phase, another entry on the "reasons I'm done" list.

I've got three Perry Masons finished: Grinning Gorilla, Hesitant Hostess, and Vagabond Virgin. It consistently amazes me how Gardner manages to avoid writing the same story over and over again, and manages to throw in twists and turns in a very formulaic setting. For example, in Hostess Mason actually goes to trial! He begins the book in the middle of a robbery trial that he was handed as a pro bono thing. Gorilla starts because he bought a diary on a whim and gets caught up in the mystery involved. All three are solid entries into the Mason canon.

Two Louis L'Amour's: Last Stand at Papago Wells and The Outlaws of Mesquite, a book of short stories. L'Amour, as well, manages to keep every story fresh and unlike all the others. Papago Wells was a fascinating story about a stand-off, a bunch of people stranded at a watering hole under attack by Indians. There are always a few similarities—most often, in the character of the protagonist, who tends to be the rugged mid-thirties tough guy who really just wants a home and a family. But L'Amour draws the men well and they all have a bit of a different voice.

I also read From British Peasants to Colonial American Farmers, by Allan Kulikoff. I came to this book in a way that is unusual for me. Kulikoff was an author for one of the journals I proofread, and I was impressed enough by his article that I noted down the name of his book and searched for it for a couple of years before I found a copy. It is very much a scholarly text; packed with information, and fairly narrowly focused. It's a dense read, but the author's passion for his research comes through. Basically, the book describes the early colonists' journey to become Americans—their reasons for coming over, the lifestyles they brought with them, the ones they evolved into.

And, finally, I reread an old Sterling North novel, So Dear to My Heart. If you haven't read Rascal or The Wolfling, also by North, I highly recommend them. So Dear isn't quite on the same classic level as the other two, but as a picture of a lifestyle and a time that has gone by, is quite evocative. It was written in 1947, probably set in the early 20th century in a small backwoods community—probably much like that in which my own grandparents grew up. (Maternal, that is.) Possibly why it speaks to me!