Customer Reviews (1)

FYI
This is "Cape Fear". Originally published under this title and renamed after the movies. There are two movies, both worth a look. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

STILL A GOOD READ
I managed to find a few of JDM's novels back in the inner recesses of a book stall in Singapore.I wanted to re-discover why he was one of my favorite writers over 30 years ago.Except for some of the circumstances and the money exchanges, this book was every bit as good and exciting as anything on the market today.JDM's writing is polished, smooth-flowing and filled with such vivid descriptions that you can almost picture the people, good and bad, and how the islands look and feel. I have a few Travis McGee novels to re-visit and I'm sure I won't be disappointed. JDM passed in 1986 but he left volumes of relaxing and dramatic novels to enjoy on a lazy afternoon sitting in the shade of several palm trees, and drinking the fresh juice. I also enjoy the little asides about the amusing quirks of dogs, cats, fish, and of course, humans. He doesn't waste words and he keeps you on edge, waiting for the next chapter, and with a few deft strokes, brings the characters to life.He was very talented and prolific, and was a master storyteller.I suggest finding/buying a few of his books and see why we old loyalists love to visit his stretch of Florida landscapes like Yoknapatawpha County. It's fun to see some of his old cronies back on the pages, like Meyer, and of course, all the sun-tanned, bikini-wearing fair maidens.

Business thriller (almost) and picture of an era
First published in 1957, A Man of Affairs is one of John D. MacDonald's rare forays into writing a pure 'business' thriller. One of JDM's strengths is to render financial and corporate problems down to their human essences - explaining shares and dividends in terms of small towns, family homes and personal relationships.

In A Man of Affairs, the focus is solely on the lattermost point. From the set-up, JDM makes it clear that the stakes of the book aren't about life and death, or even wealth and discomfort. The conflict is about pride and ambition. How far will some men go for power, and where are the limits of self-respect?

The protagonist is Sam Glidden, an executive (not a shareholder) in a small-town manufacturing company. He owes a debt of honor to the company's founder - a debt which he maintains by sticking about at the business (despite being a 'bright young thing'). Unfortunately, the second generation of the company's ownership is not as worthy of Sam's loyalty (or are they?).

The book begins with the advent of an ambitious corporate shark, Mike Dean. Glidden and the company's current lackadaisical ownership are flown to a secluded island, so that he can seduce them into a buy-out (to be followed by a barely-legal stock inflation and unloading).

The island is filled with debauchery - 1957-style. The drinking begins at dawn, followed by sun-tanning, barracuda-fishing and prolific adultery. When the sun goes down, there's a brief and sodden discussion of business, followed by more drinking, a bit of singing and shameless bed-swapping.

Against this background, Glidden is tempted (repeatedly) by the nubile flesh of those around him (including one of the [married] bosses) and by the generous, Faustian offers of Mike Dean. Although the conflict of the book is set up nicely - Sam vs. Mike, Sam vs. the Old Guard, Sam vs. himself - everything is resolved far too neatly.

After positioning everything so nicely, John D. MacDonald effectively punts for the final third of the book. Sam makes tough, terrible decisions, but never needs to fret about them, as the rest of the world invariably maneuvers to prove him right (posthumously). Awkward interjections of physical violence make the conclusion all the sillier - despite Glidden's moral and intellectual challenges, his 'success' eventually hinges on his upper arm strength.

The one tiny, golden highlight of the book's conclusion is the final page. The denouement of the story is surprisingly romantic, and even a bit poignant. It does not, however, redeem the lackluster fumbling of the previous pages. This book is excellently set up, but poorly resolved - John D. MacDonald comes down with ill-timed cold feet and sabotages his own work.

A Man of Affairs
Would you like it if something you had spent your life building was harshly taken from you? Ol' John D. really puts it to you. A long-established business has it's founder die and the sharks are gathering. Weak family members are likely to let the company have the guts devoured, then casually sold away, reaping huge profits in the process. Only Sam Gliddin can save the day. Originally published in 1965, it is now a tad outdated, but still worth a weekend's read. ... Read more

Product Description
The works of Scottish politician, statesman and thriller writer John Buchan examined the nature of good and evil and explored the shifting boundaries between civilization and anarchy. Buchan published the best-selling The Thirty-Nine Steps in 1915, one of 40 novels of his long career, which also included 60 works of non-fiction.

This comprehensive companion to Buchan's mystery fiction includes entries on the characters, novels, short fiction, films, themes, and symbols with special attention to the serialized secret agent Richard Hannay, Buchan's most famous character. Also included are photographs, chronologies, appendices, a brief biography, a bibliography and a thorough index. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Free PDF
You can do a google search for "McDondald McGee Reading For Survival" and there is a PDF file.It's locked for printing, but just click the "open as html", copy and paste it into Word and print your own copy.

Great find!Any new words from McGee and Meyer are a treasure found...

essential reading
One of my kids showed me this treasure twenty years ago, when he was "made" to read it in high school.He was blown away by it, distracted from soccer, girls, beer.I have since purchased perhaps a hundred copies from the Broward County Library in Fort Lauderdale to give to students.

Guard your own copy jealously, and read it once a year.

A renewed interest
I have long been a MacDonald fan.Patiently awaiting each new color, and enjoying his other books as well (including the science fiction and westerns).But, as we grow, we sometimes put away old flavors for new.

This past summer ( 2003 ), I began to collect hardbound copies of MacDonald's books as we traveled.I had the distinct pleasure of renewing my acquaintance with McGee and Meyer.In fact, I was surprised but pleasantly appreciative of the curmudgeonly approach of McGee in the 7 books as I re-enjoyed.

Then, a week ago, I stumbled across "Reading for Survival."It appeared as if by magic, complete with autograph.It was wonderful in the logical development, clear and careful arguments and enchanting, realistic Socratic dialog.The little pamphlet clearly presents the need for reading and decries the lack of it in modern society.It presents a possibility for the fanatic activities we have encountered both within and without our country.

I recommend this "broadside" for teachers, voters, and readers.If for no other reason than it offers a considered opinion for a "state" of our society.

A Sense of Loss
If you have not read John D., don't start here. Find as many of his books as you can and grow, mature and enjoy the journey. Even before Travis McGee, Mac Donald had been recognized as a master. Stephen King, Carl Hiassen and scores of other writers and millions of fans are thankful for the time we spent under his spell. When your journey in time is done, read this. I did not read this until after his death. This essay made me recall the joy his writing could bring. With an economy of language, we are treated to a proof of the value of the well-read. I do miss him. I miss the anticipation of new work. I await the writer who can match his ability to teach something new while relying on the old values.

Make this book free!
For some people this could be a critical book on the journey to learning to love reading.It was that for me when I first read it many years ago. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Very noirish
The lead character is trapped in a loveless marriage to a girl who spends her life drinking, he works for her father's company and yearns for the secretary.

Enter an old war buddy who has a proposition for him, they are going to steal some money and become wealthy. He can leave his wife and job and run off with the secretary. Sounds too good to be true.

As usual, things don't go to plan and Macdonald briskly tells us what happens when there is greed involved in ones life.

The book is solid, very much like some written by Jim Thompson and David Goodis (which is a good thing), maybe a smidgen too brisk as developments take a life of their own as the 160 pages unfold.

Absolutely brilliant.
Meet Jerry Jamison, age 36, a typical law abiding suburbanite.Soft Touch starts out with Jerry contemplating divorce from Lorraine, his spoiled lush of a wife.It's the 1950s and, except for Hollywood actors, the idea of divorce is rather radical.Still, it's fair to say that Jerry is a pretty average middle class kind of guy.

Now meet Vince, an old Army buddy whom Jerry has not seen or heard from in thirteen years.Vince is a soldier-of-fortune type who makes his home in an unnamed South American country.Out of the blue, Vince pays a visit to the Jamisons in their tastefully appointed suburban home.Once Vince gets Jerry alone, he offers his old pal a business proposition.One that Jerry cannot bring himself to turn down.

Vince knows that a large amount of illicit cash will soon be arriving at the far off Tampa airport and he has a foolproof plan to steal it.All he needs is someone he can trust to drive the getaway car.That's where Jerry comes in.And for his trouble, Jerry stands to earn at least 1 million dollars, perhaps significantly more.

I won't give away any more of the plot but suffice it to say here's where things start to get really interesting.With each successive chapter, Jerry's circumstances steadily deteriorate until he ultimately finds himself trapped in a hellish nightmare of his own making.

Pulp fiction really doesn't get any better than this.The plot is an interesting one and features a number of unexpected twists.MacDonald's descriptive prose is consistently first rate; evocative and at times almost poetic.Soft Touch is a masterfully written tour de force.Very highly recommended.

... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (3)

Sometimes older references are still the best
This volume was recommended on [...] by a teacher who uses the book in conjunction with a popular board game, called Memoir 44, to teach his students. He had found that Memoir 44 and this book were related closely enough that he could use the book along with the game. He pointed out some highlights that included 3D terrain views of key battles, shown from different vantage points, that displayed how having better information can lead to better decision-making.

I have this game and appreciate its approach (more accessible to casual gamers, as opposed to a deep, 2-3 hour strategic and tactical brain-burning session!), and his comments drove me to Amazon to look for it.

Even though this book's jacket actually touts terrain images that come from "computer graphics generated by microchip" (now there's a humorous early attempt at spin), and although the graphics themselves are low resolution, it does not detract from the value of reading and learning out these decisive moments in history. Frankly, having "cooler" computer images would only update the look of the layout, and not teach any more effectively than the graphics as they look now.

There are many callouts, boxes, maps and terrain images in the book, on nearly every spread, as well as superior artwork showing these battles in a larger scale. The text is detailed and tells a good story, drawing you into the drama that unfolded at each scene.

The type is a tad small and closely leaded (line by line spacing), but of course a younger audience will have no difficulty with that.

For gaining a more accurate visual understanding of keybattles of WWII from 1940-1945, this older book remains an excellent choice.

A instant classic
Good information on important battles, with maps and extra pictures which tell about them. But the main thing about this book which lured me in were the amazing illustrations; especially the four page fold out D-Day illustration. A must have for any world war II buff.

Breathtaking Artwork
The book uses computer graphics and pictures that really make you feellike your in a Situation planning room with some the Great Generals.TheAuthor also uses breathtaking artwork of a battle in progress that absorbsyou into the bloodiest conflict of our century.From Midway to Moscow,this is definitly the kind of book every war buff should look at. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

From Back Cover
Her name was Cindy, and she was his neighbor's wife - the woman next door in kind of cuburbia that didn't make headlines. No cheep scandals here - no wife-swapping, no key games. These were real people, nice people like Cindy and Carl who fought with the desperation of damned to keep from wanting each other. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Juvenile Delinquency x Serial Killers
JDM is my favorite author. His long-running Travis McGee series is seen as something of a modern mystery classic, but his best work was done in his 80-odd standalone novels. The End of the Night is the darkest of these, and perhaps the finest.

Written from handful of disparate perspectives, it follows a small group of juvenile delinquents as they travel across the country, spreading mischief and, ultimately, terror. This is an uncomfortable book. MacDonald is never shy about illustrating human weakness, but he is rarely so thoroughly bleak. The End of the Night is a brilliant work, but not a pleasant one.

History Is Blind, But Man Is Not
Stephen King has compared John D. MacDonald's novel "The End of the Night" to Arthur Miller's "Death of A Salesman" and Theodore Dreiser's "An American Tragedy."Those are two classic American tragedies; MacDonald is still frequently regarded as a mere "pulp" writer.But King is right about this novel.It is compellingly readable but also ferociously ambitious; MacDonald's goal is nothing less than a wrenching examination of the randomness and absurdity of life; a big theme indeed.

The story is told from shifting perspectives: from the letter of a chatty prison guard, to the memoranda of a harrassed defense attorney, to the diaries of a death row inmate, to a sardonic, omniscient third-person narrator who mordantly comments from a God-like perch on the flailings of the characters.The story follows the spree of the "Wolf Pack" killers, a group of four who travel from state to state raping and killing for thrills.This novel was published in 1960, before all the chaos of that decade erupted.So the novelty, the shock and horror of such suddenly vicious crimes is vividly depicted.People thought those things simply didn't happen in America, although this novel is remarkably prophetic about the dark side of the youth revolution of the '60's.

The two most important characters are Kirby Stassen, the clean-cut, all-American college senior who becomes part of the "Wolf Pack"; and Helen Wister, their final and and most tragic victim.His prison writings detail how he slowly slipped down the slope from privileged, upper-class comfort into a noir underground.His tale involves his job with a Hollywood director and his movie-star wife.These two introduce Stassen into big-time decadence, with horrific consequences that trigger Stassen's final descent into evil.Helen Wister is in many ways Stassen's counterpart; beautiful, the darling of her hometown--but also possessing qualities Stassen lacks; genuine sweetness and innocence but also a savvy understanding that is however ultimately useless in the face of the savagery of the gang.

MacDonald illustrates through the fate of Helen Wister and the other victims how fate can seemingly single someone out for terrible tragedy for no discenable reason at all.But the author also chillingly lays out the intellectual rationalizations and self-deceptions of evil men and women in a way that doesn't let the killers off the hook.As Robert Penn Warren once wrote about fate: "history is blind, but man is not."We don't have total control over circumstances, but we still have responsibility over how we deal with them. On the last page of the novel a character describes how "he felt on the very edge of some cosmic equation which balanced a logic of love, innocence, accident and death. But it was gone before he saw its shape."This novel ponders, in an exciting way, that "cosmic equation."
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Customer Reviews (3)

Back Cover of Book
In "Ballroon of the Skies", John D. MacDonald suggest a strange and monsterous explanation. He pictures an intricate and totally convincing future society, where India rules the globe, and everyone chases the mighty rupee. The First Atomic War has just ended, and already the Second is clearly building.

Worth reading over and over
I first read this book about 20 years ago and have re-read it more times than I can count.It is a great thought provoker plus an enjoyable read for any sci-fi fan.

I liked this story enough to try to locate another copy.
This story gives answer to the constant violence and war on Earth ... Read more

Product Description
"One of the most enduring and unusual heroes in detective fiction."

THE BALTIMORE SUN

Now that Linda "Pidge" Lewellen is grown up, she tells Travis McGee, once her girlhood idol, that either she's going crazy or Howie, her affable ex-jock of a husband is trying to kill her. McGee checks things out, and gives Pidge the all clear. But when Pidge and Howie sail away to kiss and make up, McGee has second thoughts. If only he can get to Pidge before he has time for any more thinking....


From the Paperback edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

"Lament" Eloquent
Too much philosophy in a Travis McGee? That's like saying too much McDonald in a McDonald. Somebody maybe with a short attention span objected to a discourse on sand filters just when the action was heating up. Guess the term "suspense" is unknown there. I was chilled by the implications of a small female person alone on a very long trans-pac yacht with an unpredictable giant madman who is trying to make her lose her mind or take her own life or both. This painful anxiety is maintained to the point of acute distress page after page for the thoughtful reader. The climax is so graphic that I can't get the image of that body spiraling down getting smaller and smaller as it plummets toward the bay. Too much philosophy? Read Kootz!

My Favorite McGee (so far)
After reading about 11 JDM McGee series books I have to say that this is one of my very favorites.The characters interesting, the musings on target with today's worries and complaints and the story very entertaining.I was at Hilton Head and read this in a couple of days on the beach.Excellent beach read.Not too dark like some of the other McGee books.Satisfying ending. Loved the dated accounts of flying, lol.

JDM should have gotten a Pulitzer just for his creativity in naming his books.

Turquoise Lament
MacDonald aka Travis had a serious intrigue in this one. Yet, somehow and remarkably, John D. worked out a decent ending.

Interest male angst
Had Travis McGee been in a science fiction novel, we would have had books like THE PHILOSOPHY OF MCGEE, similar to THE NOTEBOOKS OF LAZARUS LONG, dedicated to the wit and wisdom of this, MacDonald's best known and best loved character.Perhaps it is for the best.While not quite given to epigrams as Heinlein, MacDonald definitely had a consistent vision of who this latter day Don Quixote was.Long before Robert Parker investigated male angst in the Spenser books, MacDonald had mined the entire territory.

In The Turquoise Lament, McGee must face doubt, guilt, and faith as the grown daughter of a deceased salvage friend is afraid that her newlywed husband is attempting to kill her.Culminating in a fight scene with a cable car that today's Hollywood would go nuts for--in fact, that gets me to wondering why we have never seen McGee on film.Maybe we have, and I just don't know about it?Sure, some of the dialogue might not work on the screen, but the mystery, adventure, and spectacular fights would surely fit today's current vehicles for male stars.Today's directors would probably make a mish-mash of it, though; MacDonald probably better fits a director like Hitchcock than Paul Rudhoven or James Cameron.

Vacation in paradise, McGee style
Travis McGee once again takes on the torch of righteousness as he saves the daughter of an old friend.She thinks she's losing her mind, which is exactly what somebody wants her to think.But McGee sees through the charade, and undercovers a shady past that explains why he's willing to travel halfway around the world to provide justice.The last 50 pages are stunning in this thriller.Like all MacDonald books, you will get a heavy dose of philosophy from a sophisticated author.Enjoy this classic. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A shelf-filler
Deadly Welcome (1958) is one of John D. MacDonald's minor, stand-alone thrillers. Alex Doyle is a State Department trouble-shooter on his most awkward mission yet. An expert in handling tricky foreign 'situations', he's uncomfortably assigned to return to his hometown of Ramona Beach, Florida. Alex is forced to confront his past (as poor white trash) as well as his present (as the whipping boy for a brutal small-town deputy).

The book mashes together many of JDM's favorite themes and tropes, most of which he's used to great success in other stories. As well as the Florida, beachfront location, Deadly Welcome contains a broad-shouldered, healthy-looking woman with sexual hang-ups, the aforementioned brutal deputy, a sultry blonde and a miserly land-owner.

However, unlike many of his other books, Deadly Welcome lacks the compelling central character to tie it all together. Alex Doyle is so bland as to be invisible - so much so that when chapter 11 starts when 'Alex walked up the beach...' my first response was 'who?'. He has the obligatory tragic past, but most of his problems and traumas are actually quite minor, and easily resolved.

As a whole, the town of Ramona Beach as littered with moral lessons as a collection of Andersen's fairy tales. The good folks get love, family and cash, the bad folks get painful, lonely deaths. The only character that visibly develops or changes is Betty, the love interest. And that transformation is between sexual frigidity to romantic glutton, the catalyst somehow being Alex's wafer-thin pheromonal presence.

An oddly satisfying short novel
"Deadly Welcome" is an oddly satisfying short novel. Odd in the sense that Macdonald breaks with the convention of the standard pulp mystery/adventure to emphasize surprisingly realistic character development over the tedium of casting suspicion upon every character. We have, for instance, a pretty fair idea of who the villain is early on and, while that may not add to the suspense, it certainly doesn't spoil the book either. The setting is a tiny Florida town that likes to think of itself as being known for its beachfront rather than its surrounding tangled swamp. It's close to being the same setting as "Cape Fear", "Key Largo", "River Rat", or the clunkier Sean Connery thriller "Just Cause". This story though is quite different than those and never easily settles into one genre or another. A State Department troubleshooter is assigned to return to the hometown he was expelled from after being framed for a robbery during a teen drinking binge years before. The hope is that he can gain access to and convince an ailing scientist mourning his wife's murder to return to defense work. It becomes clear though, to complete his task and get on with his own life, he must find and confront the murderer. Where other writers might poke fun and caricaturize the denizens of this rural town, Macdonald instills each with very human qualities. They are capable of surprising the reader (take into consideration the attitude of the stepmother upon Alex's return) and one cares about what happens to them. The subdued romance is also very realistic and remains interesting. Likewise, Macdonald deftly avoids pitfalls readers have come to expect (like not worrying about solving who had framed Alex years before) and instead works to please his audience with a continuously-gripping, well-written adventure.

An oddly satisfying short novel
"Deadly Welcome" is an oddly satisfying short novel.Odd in the sense that Macdonald breaks with the convention of the standard pulp mystery/adventure to emphasize surprisingly realistic character development over the tedium of casting suspicion upon every character.We have, for instance, a pretty fair idea of who the villain is early on and, while that may not add to the suspense, it certainly doesn't spoil the book either.The setting is a tiny Florida town that likes to think of itself as being known for its beachfront rather than its surrounding tangled swamp.It's close to being the same setting as "Cape Fear", "Key Largo", "River Rat", or the clunkier Sean Connery thriller "Just Cause".This story though is quite different than those and never easily settles into one genre or another.A State Department troubleshooter is assigned to return to the hometown he was expelled from after being framed for a robbery during a teen drinking binge years before.The hope is that he can gain access to and convince an ailing scientist mourning his wife's murder to return to defense work.It becomes clear though, to complete his task and get on with his own life, he must find and confront the murderer.Where other writers might poke fun and caricaturize the denizens of this rural town, Macdonald instills each with very human qualities.They are capable of surprising the reader (take into consideration the attitude of the stepmother upon Alex's return) and one cares about what happens to them.The subdued romance is also very realistic and remains interesting.Likewise, Macdonald deftly avoids pitfalls readers have come to expect (like not worrying about solving who had framed Alex years before) and instead works to please his audience with a continuously-gripping, well-written adventure.
... Read more