The Longest Way Home by Andrew McMarthy

Review by Mirah W. (mwelday)

When my friend Deb asked me to go to a book discussion with author Andrew McCarthy about his travel book, I thought ‘sure, I love to travel and I love books’. Once I did a little more research I realized it was the Andrew McCarthy; star of the 1980s iconic movies Pretty in Pink, Mannequin and Weekend at Bernie’s.  After learning that bit of information I was pumped for the book discussion and couldn’t wait to get the book in my hot little hands.

This book didn’t come out of the blue.  Andrew had already proven himself as a talented writer.  He had written several articles for various publications including National Geographic Traveler and The Atlantic.  In 2010 he was named Travel Journalist of the Year by the Society of American Travel Writers.  So he’s not just some actor who writes a little on the side; he’s a real deal writer.

I take travel seriously.  It may be annoying to some people but I can’t help it.  I think traveling is an opportunity to step out of my small life and see how other people experience daily living.  Traveling gives me a chance to see life from a different perspective and I am always open to that experience. I still have fun and relax but I’m always looking for a new way to see things… walking down a street not in the tourist area, eating where the locals eat, going to a local grocery store.  Quite simply, I sometimes like to get off the beaten tourist path.  In Andrew’s book he writes about his travels during the time leading up to his marriage.  He recognized his pattern of avoidance when he would plan trips instead of focusing on wedding plans.  Andrew developed a desire to learn more about himself and his issues with commitment and he decided to do that through travel.

I admit that while reading the book I thought he was being rather childish. Deb and I talked prior to the discussion and I was happy to find out I wasn’t alone in how I felt about the book.  I thought perhaps I was being too hard on him or just not connecting with him.  I am so glad I was able to attend his discussion because I felt I understood his motives and thought process more after he told supporting stories.  I was able to connect with him in a different way and it changed how I felt about the book.

There were a couple of points from his book and discussion I will never forget.  First, he encouraged everyone in the audience to ‘be a citizen of the world’, to be willing to see how other people live.  I couldn’t agree more! Seeing how other people live confirms for me time and time again we are all more alike than we are different.  Second, he believes ‘travel obliterates fear’.  I swear I wanted to jump up and say ‘Amen!’ when he said that.  I believe it is so, so true. I have traveled to places where others thought I shouldn’t go.  For example, I have traveled where I was one of a few females not wearing religious coverings.  Was I looked at a little sideways by some people? Yes.  Was I scared? No.  Was I naïve not to be scared?  Some people might think so.  Or was I not scared because there was no threat to me? I choose to think that’s true. Naïve or not, it’s how I choose to embrace the world.

We all have our moments when we see life with clarity.  We have the moments when we realize how blessed we are in our lives.  We have the moments when we decide our troubles really are inconsequential when compared to the struggles of another. We have the moments when we are reminded what a beautiful place our world can be.  I experience these moments and more when I travel.  And now I know I’m not the only traveler who feels that way.  Andrew McCarthy feels that way, too.

Mirah and Andrew McCarthy

Try Anything Once by Erle Stanley Gardner writing as A.A. Fair

Review by Matt B. (BuffaloSavage)

Besides writing 80-some Perry Mason novels under his own name, Erle Stanley Gardner wrote under his pen name A. A. Fair books starring the PI team of Bertha Cool and Donald Lam. The Cool & Lam plots are as convoluted as the Mason stories and the cops come off just as unmindful of proper procedure and derisive about the idea of civil rights. However, the tone is lighter, sexier, and funnier.

Donald Lam takes the helm as first-person narrator. Though he tells the reader he takes time out to think, he never tells the content of his thoughts. His caginess stands in contrast Archie Goodwin’s usual admission that he has no idea of what Nero Wolfe, a genius, is thinking.

In this 1962 mystery, an agitated husband hires Cool & Lam to impersonate him so his wife will not find out he was at a swanky motel with a cocktail waitress. At the time he was sneaking and cheating, a high-profile murder was committed at the same motel and the homicide squad is looking for potential witnesses.

Lam, as his wont, senses a rat and gets into trouble with rich influential people and the cops. Bertha provides comic diversion and muscle, in a neat upending of the stereotypical sensitive female and brawny male. Gardner returns to his ongoing theme of the problems of young single city women, who have their, uh, physical needs, and changing social standards.

Other Cool & Lam novels have more action. This has recapitulations of action that are rather unusual for Gardner, who usually moved plots along briskly. Still, I recommend it to both novices and fans of the characters  – there are wonderful scenes with Lam and Elsie Brand.