Uzbekistan in da Moonlight
Three years ago Tom Bissell wrote an article for Harper's Magazine on the filming of the movie "Escanaba in da Moonlight." He'd grown up in Escanaba, and contrasted differing views of the small town: the filmmakers', the residents', and his own (having once lived there and left).
In the middle of his well-written piece, oddly, he took a large detour to trash my book "Small Town Bound." (When I wrote to him, he admitted that he actually liked my book, but he wanted a straw man to tear down at that point, and only I was comprehensive enough to fill that role.)
This month Bissell has published his own book, "Chasing the Sea," a narrative of his travels in Uzbekistan. And so turnabout is fair play, right Tom? Unfortunately I thoroughly enjoyed "Chasing the Sea." I find Uzbekistan a remarkably interesting place, one he captures with great style. There's history, humor, some personal stories, lots of new vocabulary words, and some adventures with threatening cops. His depiction of Uzbekistan reminded me of Montana, with two gigantic exceptions: major difficulties with radical terrorists and the legacy of Soviet rule.
But the best part of the book? Bissell takes a large detour to totally trash the work of eminent travel writer Robert D. Kaplan. I'm in great company!
What do YOU think? Drop a line to info@johnclaytonbooks.com. To receive these posts via email, write to johnclaytonoutreach-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. (You need not put any text in the message.)
In the middle of his well-written piece, oddly, he took a large detour to trash my book "Small Town Bound." (When I wrote to him, he admitted that he actually liked my book, but he wanted a straw man to tear down at that point, and only I was comprehensive enough to fill that role.)
This month Bissell has published his own book, "Chasing the Sea," a narrative of his travels in Uzbekistan. And so turnabout is fair play, right Tom? Unfortunately I thoroughly enjoyed "Chasing the Sea." I find Uzbekistan a remarkably interesting place, one he captures with great style. There's history, humor, some personal stories, lots of new vocabulary words, and some adventures with threatening cops. His depiction of Uzbekistan reminded me of Montana, with two gigantic exceptions: major difficulties with radical terrorists and the legacy of Soviet rule.
But the best part of the book? Bissell takes a large detour to totally trash the work of eminent travel writer Robert D. Kaplan. I'm in great company!
What do YOU think? Drop a line to info@johnclaytonbooks.com. To receive these posts via email, write to johnclaytonoutreach-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. (You need not put any text in the message.)
