4. Cry Wolf by Wilbur Smith

This a random read, completely out of my schedule, a book not even in my TBR. This also happened to be my second experience with Wilbur Smith, the first being an entertaining read, River God, which was a very different kind of book, set in an entirely different time and space.

Cry Wolf is a war fiction based on the 1935 Italian attack on Ethiopia, a deplorable event,  a testimony to the ineffectiveness of the League of Nations (not that the current United Nations is doing such a stellar job). There seems to be a lot of errors and omissions from the actual event of attack, which may still be forgiven for this being a fictional account.  But the book isn't much otherwise either, some bravado, some romance, a pinch of humour and a lot of craziness; but it fails to make a mark, emotional or otherwise. I probably would have been more moved by a well written account of a war between Martians and Plutonians.

An average read, I doubt I will sample more of what Wilbur Smith has to offer.

77. Where Eagles Dare by Alistair MacLean

With this do I end my reading chronicles for 2013, not a bad read to end the year with.

This is only my third Alistair MacLean read, and I am already a fan. MacLean's books are full of action, adventure, fast paced and generally a lot more fun. So what if the protagonist is Superman, or what if they are based on the good old principle of victory of good over evil? 

The majority of MacLean's works, from what I gather are War thrillers, most of them Anti-German WW books, which he manages to write without portraying the Germans as super-villains, which I think is in itself a great achievement, yes, there is no Hitler and the war with the Germans may as well have been based in an alternative universe, with conventional warfare, a code of conduct, and no atrocities.

For all that, they are well written and all the positive sentiments expressed in the Para above, apply. What is the catch then, you ask? Even for works of fiction, they greatly lack that grossly over-rated factor, one calls "realistic". Doesn't put me off, neither should it, I think, these books don't advertise themselves to be history books; probability is not entertained either, possible is good enough for MacLean and it is good enough for me.

For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway

Book #52 - 2013

Read for a RL Book Club. My first feeling after reading this tome of a book, was that I was SCAMMED! Upon further examination, careful consideration and deeper deliberation, I came to the conclusion that my prima facie, snap judgement was indeed spot on! Scammed I definitely was, no two ways about it! Lured by reputation, snared by that horrible book-lust, I was made to read a 400+ page book, a book with little semblance of a plot, a static storyline and god-awful characters who first irritated, then agitated and later annoyed me to no end. And the character development, what to say about the character development, or the lack thereof, that even after wading through this book and making it to the end, we still have only and elementary and superficial understanding about the characters. Was the purpose to show the volatility of Spaniards? Perhaps...but it still doesn't excuse the blatant disregard to even making an attempt at understanding the thought process of any of the characters. I am at a loss to comprehend, how could this doorstopper of a thing be dubbed as a piece of Literature, a Type II error perhaps?

The Old Man and the Sea, was probably in the not-good-not-bad category, and even that had a story, which moved, even if painstakingly! Such frivolities and excesses can, however, be overlooked in short stories. My feedback – Stay away from Hemingway! Read Alistair Maclean if you want to read War stories.