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WESTWARD WHOA

Name: WESTWARD WHOA
Author: W. Hodding Carter
ISBN: 0-671-79891-X

IN THE WAKE OF LEWIS AND CLARK

by W. Hodding Carter ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 1994

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Carter and his friend Preston Maybank set out to follow the route Lewis and Clark took on their search for the Northwest Passage. This account is a bumpy mix of slacker comedy, natural history, and bathroom humor. Carter, a former staff writer at M magazine, begins with a brief description of his childhood fascination with Lewis and Clark, which was cut short by his lascivious daydreams about girls (daydreams that seem to have lingered, since an inordinate amount of space is devoted here to descriptions of attractive female teenagers encountered along the way). After christening their raft Sacagawea (after the Native American woman who acted as a guide for Lewis and Clark) with a cup of iced tea from McDonald's, the two set out from St. Louis way behind schedule and already quarreling over which of them is Lewis and which is Clark. Carter and Maybank soon begin to rely on modern conveniences, using credit cards, eating in diners, and eventually renting a car. Unfortunately, the two never seem to have a reason for their trip, other than perhaps to write this book. It seems that Carter is attempting to comment ironically on modern life, and there are glimmers of thoughtful comparison, too, as when they meet up with two Native Americans while fishing and Carter contrasts their encounter with the Lewis and Clark method, which was to shoot off an air gun to instill fear. In the end, Carter and Maybank seem to have taken themselves too seriously to satirize themselves effectively. For example, Carter is truly impressed with his own ability to identify animal droppings with the help of a guidebook. A good idea that putters out, due mostly to an indecisive narrative voice, and a fascination with young women and bowel movements. (b&w photos, not seen) (Author tour)

Pub Date: July 1, 1994

ISBN: 0-671-79891-X

Page Count: 288

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1994

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
OFF THE DEEP END
by W. Hodding Carter

- BOOK REVIEW
FLUSHED
by W. Hodding Carter

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.