Shute, Nevil

Average customer rating:

Not worth the postage
A strong women, 1200 miles in the jungle, and trying to go back
Great Book
Good read!
Great book

A Town Like Alice
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

A Town Like Alice
On the Beach
The Far Country
The Rainbow and The Rose
Pied Piper

ASIN: 0345353749
Release Date: 1987-10-12

Book Description

"A harrowing, exciting, and in the end very satisfying war romance."
HARPER'S
A TOWN LIKE ALICE tells of a young woman who miraculously survived a Japanese "death march" in World War II, and of an Australian soldier, also a prisoner of war, who offered to help her--even at the cost of his life....

Customer Reviews:

Not worth the postage.......2007-01-18

This is a so-so novel on which paying postage about equal to the cost of the book isn't worth while.

A strong women, 1200 miles in the jungle, and trying to go back.......2006-12-30

Jean Paget inherits some money. She visits a village that had helped her during the war. She then decides to go to a small town and find a soldier named Joe Harmen who had helped her during the war. This part of the story is really part two in her life.

The story of the war and remembering what happened is the first part of her life in this book. In World War 2 she was one of 80 women as well as some children that were captured by the Japanese. They were marched over 1200 miles back and forth through jungles. The women survive in part because of the march and because no one really wanted them. Their captors really did not want to hurt or be thought of as being willing to hurt women and children. The Japanese soldiers had plenty of problems of their own. The soldiers try to find every way to avoid having to deal with the women but they seemed trapped with each other.

During the march Jean meets an Australian Soldier named Joe who is also a prisoner. He tries to help and as a result he seems to have been left dying for his act as punishment.

The book offers a lot of contrasts. Going back after the war demonstrates her decision to try to help and make a difference. To do that she tried making over the town where she finds her old friend into a " Town Like Alice". Jeans impact on the people in this book is the real impact that she in her life has made. The day to day impact she made on the lives of everyone she comes in contact with while marching through the jungles may not have been conscious decisions to help people but those efforts made a lot of difference. More than anything that she can do with her inheritance, her personal impact on people seems to be the more meaningful message.

Captured by the enemy during wartime is not easier for the women and children but it is different. Few books tell a story of war from this viewpoint. Jean's impact is the real story in this book. The events from the Jungle to an effort later in life to "go back" are the backdrop for her impact.

Great Book.......2006-02-25

Normally I would read the book first and then see the movie. In this case, I saw the movie first (the Australian movie) and just had to read the book. The book takes you through the horrors of Japanese occupation and internment and shows how love can help you resolute and resiliant. A great read and a must for your llibrary.

Good read!.......2005-12-17

I loved this book. A real easy read and one you'll find hard to put down. My only one complaint is that the leading female character was a little "gushy" with too many "Oh Joe's" which irked me somewhat. The overall story is fantastic though.

Great book.......2005-10-19

This feels almost like two different books, such is the compelling strength of the section set in WW2 where our heroine (Jean Paget) is leading a group of women who are captured and are being marched hundreds of miles by the japs. The Japanese weren't going to kill women and children but barely had enough supplies for their own soldiers so they just kept moving the women on with lies of a womens P.O.W. camp in the next place. During this time an Australian soldier (Joe Harman) steals food for them and gets caught and punished. The story is narrated by Jean Pagets solicitor. After the war she inherits a lot of money and goes back to a village that looked after her to build a well. This in turn inspires her to want to go to Joe Harmans rundown old town and do it up till it's `A Town Like Alice' (Alice Springs- a thriving town).
It's a very compelling story told by her solicitor who is very enamoured of her but knows his place (he's 73) though his feelings are very subtly and respectfully represented by the author. It's not perfect- one or two too many coincidences and sometimes it's frustrating when the author delays things happening. But a great book with a beautiful bitter sweet ending. Your heart will ache for the women and children being forced to march 10 to 15 miles for two years with many dying on the way and all suffering and will ache for the sweet old man that met the perfect woman 'forty years too late'.

Average customer rating:

A Very Civilized Apocalypse
High marks for originality, but sinks under its own banality
The War that Ended War
The only book that ever broke my heart
Great EOW book

On the Beach
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Earth Abides
Lucifer's Hammer
Alas, Babylon (Perennial Classics)
The Rift
A Town Like Alice

ASIN: 0345311485
Release Date: 1983-09-12

Book Description

"The most shocking fiction I have read in years. What is shocking about it is both the idea and the sheer imaginative brilliance with which Mr. Shute brings it off."
THE SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
They are the last generation, the innocent victims of an accidental war, living out their last days, making do with what they have, hoping for a miracle. As the deadly rain moves ever closer, the world as we know it winds toward an inevitable end....

Customer Reviews:

A Very Civilized Apocalypse.......2007-06-13

In an interesting choice, Shute portrays an end of the world nuclear war novel with no violence at all. Rather we see the aftermath of a civilized country intact and waiting for inevitable radiation death. This makes it all the more chilling.

We see a variety of viewpoints through the characters, some who accept their fate yet continue going on their day to day duties as if the world would go on, mostly to fill their days with something to do and maintain their sanity. Some who hold out hope that the radiation will not reach them or they will not get sick. Some who are in outright denial, and some who are partying their life away.

The centerpoint characters are a young Australian couple, and an American submarine commander and a Australian "party girl" who is quite affected by the demeanor of the commander. Their unconsummated romance is truly heartbreaking as the commander remains faithful to his wife though she is of course dead.

The Australian couple are also touching as the wife is more or less in denial and the husband accepting of the reality, though playing along to support her emotional needs.

In no way an exciting book, but compelling and affecting. The T.S. Eliot at the beginning is the perfect summation of the ending.

High marks for originality, but sinks under its own banality.......2007-06-11

****Some Spoilers Follow****

"On the Beach" promises a riveting account of the last survivors on Earth after a nuclear holocaust. These last survivors know that deadly fallout will come to claim their lives and their only hope is a stranded submarine captain and his crew. While being strikingly original for its time, the book ends up being a dreary exercise in dignity and hopelessness.

My biggest complaint is that Shute's characters lack any color and fail to generate any empathy as they fret about their ordinary lives. Much like wooden pop-up targets at a shooting gallery, Shute's characters appear and reappear just to give a few mundane lines and then fade away until they are needed again. They talk about milk, Pogo sticks, playpens, alcohol, gardening, racing, etc. while the End of the World creeps ever closer and closer to them. Thus, the book's inevitable conclusion fails to affect the reader just as it is hard to feel sorry for pieces of cardboard.

On a plus note, Shute really knows his technical details when it comes to a submarine lifestyle and nautical navigation. Unfortunately, Shute's maddeningly simplistic writing style fails to paint any atmosphere of, well...anything.

Luckily, imitation is the highest form of flattery; several contemporary books expand on Shute's nuclear vision with much more energy, realism and humanism. I recommend a A Canticle for Liebowitz and Alas, Babylon (Perennial Classics) for more enjoyable and thought-provoking EOTW reads.

The War that Ended War.......2007-02-09

On the Beach by Nevil Shute

The book begins with Australian Lt. Cmdr. Peter Holmes being recalled to active duty. Then we learn that there is no oil or gasoline after a short war in the Northern Hemisphere. People travel by horse or bicycle now. Brown coal alone provides electricity. Holmes will be liaison officer on the USS Scorpion, an atomic-powered submarine that discovered lethal radiation at all American naval bases; there is no radio contact with the USA. They're all silent! The Russian-NATO war was followed by a Russian-Chinese war, then by an Israeli-Arab war. Only Australia remained, until the radioactivity arrived there. Holmes visits the submarine and invites Commander Dwight Tower USN to visit his home. The winds carry radioactive dust, and radiation sickness is beginning to appear. Its so unfair.

The book tells of their lives. The local church is packed. The Scorpion will travel to check the radiation levels in the northern ports. The empty streets are swarming with people, dancing and drinking like there's no tomorrow. Business is slowing down, people are working less or out of a job. When the submarine visits Port Moresby, Cairns, and Port Darwin they see no people; they're ghost towns. Chapter 3 tells of the surprise attacks and miscalculations that started the war. The ports along the eastern seaboard of America were dangerous to explore because of the sea mines around the harbors. In Chapter 4 the submarine will explore the west coast of America to test if the radioactivity is subsiding. The effects of radioactivity on a body is similar to the effects of cholera. There is no cure. The Government plans to hand out free suicide pills!

Shute uses subtle humor to mock Holmes' attitude about women: "living in a sentimental dream world" (Chapter 5)! The submarine travels to Washington state and visits Edmonds, 15 miles north of Seattle. They're all dead (Chapter 6). Life went on, but fuel for fires and little luxuries became scarce. Now motorcars appeared on deserted roads (Chapter 7). Some have saved petrol, but now the problem is tires. Money decreased in value and importance; it was the goods they bought that was important. (What happened to productivity?) Their Grand Prix for racing cars symbolized the bleak future. Does alcohol increase the tolerance to radioactivity (Chapter 8)? There is a meeting in Melbourne. Holmes notices a number of absences (Chapter 9). This chapter tells about the end of the characters in this novel. They suffer from radiation sickness, then take the suicide pills handed out as the last gift from The Best and The Brightest. Those who say it was a miscalculation never read Machiavelli as to the effects of fortune on human activity.

This is all so unfair! You would hope the primitive peoples in North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia would somehow survive. The film of this prophetic novel was a justified success, and warned and educated the public about the dangers of radioactivity. A few years later there was a treaty to ban nuclear testing above the ground. The spread of science allowed many countries to create nuclear reactors, as they did with cannon and guns in earlier ages. Will the warning in this novel ever be forgotten?

Note on the Comment. The original Amazon Editorial Review on this book mentioned the mass doom of people around the world. "They are the last generation, the innocent victims of an accidental war, living out their last days, making do with what they have, hoping for a miracle. As the deadly rain moves ever closer, the world as we know it winds toward an inevitable end...."

The only book that ever broke my heart.......2007-01-10

I generally avoid books like this because they depress me, but I finally gave in after a family member brought it home. No matter how sad, I never cry over movies and books, but in order to finish this book I had to lock myself in the bathroom; I've never cried so much in my life. I finished it yesterday and I can't stop thinking about it. Regardless of whether or not it was scientifically accurate, it drove home the futility of nations building up nuclear arms against each other. Shute's characters have dignity to the end - and his mention of how newspapers would rather have stories of (I'm paraphrasing) "pin up girls and indecent assaults" than stories like this was amazingly prescient and ahead of its time. This book broke my heart. Read it, read it, read it -but have a very large box of tissues at your side at the end.

Great EOW book.......2006-12-29

I enjoyed this book. This is one of the must read EOW books. If you like to read end of the world book this is a must buy.

Average customer rating:

An inspiring story well written
You won't know why you like it.
The Value of a Life
A perfect trust in the unexpected
a feel good book

Trustee from the Toolroom
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

A Town Like Alice
Pastoral
Most Secret
Pied Piper
The Rainbow and The Rose

ASIN: 1842323016

Customer Reviews:

An inspiring story well written.......2007-03-30

If you are a model engineer or into building small engines, this will probably become your favorite book as it is mine. I bought this copy just so I could loan it to others to read. It has no sex, no violence--just a good, inspiring story line about how the efforts of one man working in obscurity turn out to have influenced many more people than he thought. The hero builds small engines and writes articles on them for an English model engineering magazine. As trustee for his late brother's daughter, he sets out to recover her inheritence, which was lost at sea in the Pacific. Travelling on virtually no budget he meets some interesting characters along the way with the common bond that they are impressed with his tiny engines or know of him through his articles and admire him greatly. The author is actually a real-life engineer who is best known for his rather dark book of post-nuclear disaster, "On the Beach," but this is a much more uplifting tale that is equally well written.

You won't know why you like it........2007-02-20

The fascination of Nevil Shute's stories have always been difficult to explain. His hero is everything that we already are. No piece of him is especially surprising, yet he keeps us reading. Every revelation of character makes us turn a say, "Yeah...I know somebody like that." or "I feel that way too."

In _Trustee from the Toolroom_, the simple actions of Keith Stewart to fulfill his promise to family reveal more about our experience as ordinary humans than most other fiction thrust on us today. Keith does what we envy in others or take pride in ourselves: he remains honest. Yes, it is slow and utterly normal. But isn't it refreshing to read something that makes waking up every ordinary day and living honestly a hero's journey? After all else is scraped away, we are just like Keith Stewart.

While maintaining this normality in character, Nevil Shute captivates us with the heroic in this, his last novel.

The Value of a Life.......2006-10-15

Nevil Shute's main characters resemble John Steinbeck's main characters - simple, straight forward folk with the desire to do what's right not in a heroic way but in a quiet way. But unlike Steinbeck's characters who struggle in the midst of chaos and injustice, Shute's characters struggle through small problems we all might face. The terrain is not epic but quiet and thoughtful. He writes a novel here that would never be a bestseller today. There are no large, out-sized egos to fight. There are no worldwide plots of conspiracy. Instead there is a death and a little girl to honor. I recommend it for the quiet, life affirming moments we all need but too often rush by.

A perfect trust in the unexpected.......2004-04-20

This is a wonderful book. A simple story about an unassuming man who has turned his avocation of fabricating small machines into a modest occupation that makes his everyday existence a pleasure for himself and his equally unassuming and good-hearted wife. He decides to embark upon a quest to reclaim his niece's lost inheritance--a treasure chest of diamonds hidden by himself and her father on the wrecked ship in which both her wealthy upper-class parents were killed. He does not want the diamonds for himself but the education and future of his niece which he will not be otherwise able to supply on his own rather meager income. So the hero starts out on a trip half way around the world with not enough money and no legitimate assurance that he will even make it back alive, much less win the prize. He knows it is a long shot. But, with the encouragement of his wife who will hold down the fort at home, he embarks upon this high-seas, dangerous journey simply because he thinks it's the right thing to do. He wouldn't feel right if he didn't try. That he might fail is not the important thing. This very rational, prudent man who has lived what many would consider a rather dull life of habit and order will now put all his trust in the enexpected and taste a life of risk and adventure. Very inspiring.

a feel good book.......2003-04-07

If you like to have people you admire as central characters in a novel, and if you like to see them overcome their difficulties you will like this account of a modest but very gifted man who has good things happen to help him overcome the hurdles before him. This is a book which will leave you feeling good about the world and the book. I enoyed it greatly, and think it is a winner, tho there is nothing abstruse about it, except the knowledge which Keith Stewart, and various people he meets up with, have and use to have things come out as you will very much want them to.

Average customer rating:

Onlyof historical interest
Another Dream as 'Deus Ex-Machina'?
A Rainstorm of Character and Idea
Fine tale of a future logical in 1952, now somewhat dated
Strange Yet Compelling

In the Wet
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Pastoral
The Rainbow and The Rose
Lonely Road
Landfall: A Channel Story
No Highway

ASIN: 1842322540

Book Description

Georgie, a dying man who is part Aborigine, smokes opium to ease his pain. The story he tells while under the influence of the drug is of reincarnation. Except David Anderson's life is not in the past but in the future. As an aviator for the Australian Air Force he is stationed in England to fly the monarchy.

Customer Reviews:

Onlyof historical interest.......2006-07-06

I like Shute, and I am a frequent visitor to Queensland, but this novel and its characters seemed dated and unsatisfying. It was a 1952 "thought experiment" about a future for Queen Elizabeth and Australia that would bring us up to the present. There is a political agenda; this is less a "yarn" than what Shute is known for.

Another Dream as 'Deus Ex-Machina'?.......2003-10-22

Nevil Shute was a sturdily competent author. His plots are as well constructed as his planes probably were. Solid, orthodox in design and execution, no unnecessary frills - the embodiment of the stiff upper lip of the Englishman. This is no exception as it artfully tells a future tale of an England riven by an envy-based Socialism (that its author had recently escaped from)that is rapidly destroying those few institutions remaining. It has a solid emotional connection to present-day 'utopian' Australia (as wonderfully observed from the point of view of one who lived there as, say, Orwell's 'Burmese Days').

Hmmm...author wishes to tell of past or future and make politicised point therefrom. Problem - how to do this without breaking the emotional connection to the narrative of the present? Solution - make a character have a 'dream' of some kind.

I rolled my eyes - this device was becoming hackneyed (cf.'An Old Captivity', 'The Rainbow & The Rose' etc.) and one might have expected Shute to be a little more inventive with his literary devices. Nevertheless, it works and functions adequately as a means of establishing and maintaining a fluid connection between the two.

Well done, sir!

A Rainstorm of Character and Idea.......2002-09-23

This book was written in 1952, just after Queen Elizabeth took the throne, and is an odd look at what Nevil thought would happen to the British Commonwealth, and specifically to the concept of Royalty, under the influence of post-WWII economic and political pressures, over a period of 30 years from the time of the book's writing. As is typical for Nevil, the book has no bad guys, no sharp dramatic tension, but rather some fine character portraits, a properly told love story, and some very exacting insights into social and political structures.

The book is actually told in two separate pieces. One is a framing story of an elderly Church of England pastor newly assigned to a rather remote area of the Australian outback and his efforts to minister to a flock that is literally spread over an area larger than many states. Nevil's description of the area and people in this area both during the dry season and 'in the wet' is startlingly full of life, a fine portrait that does much to illustrate some of Nevil's social commentary, which creeps in almost from the side, rarely directly presented. But from this everyday world, we move to a totally different one as our priest, suffering from malaria induced fevers and hallucinations, is forced by circumstance to minister to an old, dying drunkard, Stevie. In trying to learn about Stevie's past, we enter the world of the future, as Stevie's half-incoherent words combine with the priest's inner hallucinations to form the story of David Anderson, an Australian pilot chosen to fly the personal aircraft of the Queen.

This vision of the future shows an England of near total socialism, sadly depopulated by emigration to other Commonwealth countries, poorly ruled and near bankrupt, questioning the value of supporting the royal family. Opposing this are the pictures of Canada and Australia as vibrant, growing economies, and where one of the key differences in government is the idea of individuals being able to earn more than the basic one vote, available to everyone, by education, military service, public service, travel, and by special dispensation (i.e. 'The Queen's Favor). Supposedly this form of enfranchisement has led to better, more efficient government - whether it really would is an obvious topic for debate.

What is intriguing about this is just where Nevil got events right and where his vision diverged from what really happened. Little things like his prediction that Christmas Island would be turned over to Australian governance in 1961 (actual was 1958) and his portrait of a middle-aged Queen Elizabeth (startlingly accurate) and major things like his prediction of England's economic sharp decline and turn towards socialism show just how in tune with the times Nevil was. At the same time, his predictions on technology were sadly off the mark, the 'security' procedures surrounding the Queen are almost laughably inadequate when seen from today's viewpoint, and he took the problems of England too far, not foreseeing its eventual recovery from losing its empire.

Lying atop all of this is a finely told love story between David and Rosemary, a secretary to the Queen. Nevil's characterization is always very strong, and his ability to show a slowly developing attraction is highly realistic and satisfying. And just under the surface is some commentary on issues of race, as David is one-quarter abo, and commonly goes by his nickname of 'Nigger'. Nevil is clearly pointing out the invalidity of judging people by race, and by extension he makes the point that all 'class' distinctions are artificial and, in the long run, detrimental. In presenting this point, he shows some of the treatment of the 'servant' class in ways that may offend some modern sensibilities, but his portrayal is very accurate for the times.

The last portion of the book gets into a metaphysics where all religions have a validity and circles back to the book's starting point, providing much food for thought well beyond the parameters of his envisioned future.

Each of the above items adds to the total of this very strong book, a book that has been sadly neglected and out of print for a long time. It is very encouraging to see most of Nevil's works being brought back into print in the last couple of years, as almost all of his works are deserving of a read, this one especially so.

Fine tale of a future logical in 1952, now somewhat dated.......2002-07-12

As a dying man drifts towards death in the Australian Outback (it takes place in the rainy season, thus, "In the Wet."), he tells an odd tale to a Church of England clergyman, of a pilot in 1980's Britain (the novel, written in 1952, is set in 1952) The story: David Anderson, a quarter-Aboriginal Australian pilot, is selected to fly for Queen Elizabeth, in a world where a sizable portion of the British people has emigrated, primarily to Canada and Australia. The remaining British have become "red",....

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the novel is the "multiple vote", which, when it was mentioned at the last SF convention I attended, immediately provoked a half-hour debate. Democracy has been modified, leading to the possibility of earning additional votes in elections...

OK, so Shute didn't forsee the rise of republicanism in Australia and the Parti Quebecois in Canada. And television is mentioned exactly once, there's no satellite transmissions, and a lot of other similar difficulties. All the same, Shute provides an interesting political novel/love story for us.

I withhold a fifth star on this one because I don't find the character of David Anderson believable. This guy's supposed to be a quarter-Abo born in a ditch who came up through the ranks. He talks like an Oxford grad, and knows a fair number of polysyllables. Not only this, the quarter-Abo, discussing how the Queen should allocate her time if all was fair, discusses the proportion based on the overall population of the Commonwealth, and based on the white (!) population. Shute should have avoided these obvious howlers.

Strange Yet Compelling.......2000-12-08

Nevil Shute has the most emotionally compelling writing styles I've ever encountered. "In the Wet" is a odd and lovely example of this. Without ever being maudling, in a quiet, understated way Shute weaves a beautiful combination of feeling and character.

"In the Wet" takes place in the Australian Outback. One can feel the heat, the dust, then the rain and the mud, as well as vividly seeing and being part of the scenery. The story is that of a Church of England parson well past his prime running a church in a very remote and widespread area. He's a practical man, acknowledging that "wrong isn't always wrong" in the Outback. He encounters a dying man who takes him on a trip through reincarnation, telling the tale of the life the man will live his next time around.

As science fiction the book is severely outdated, yet--I've found this works well with the bomb classics like Shute's "On the Beach"--if you read it more as alternate history rather than a look to the future (the 'future' is the 1970s in this case) you'll be able to enjoy the wonderful writing, well-rounded characters, and the solidly crafted plot.

Slide Rule
Average customer rating:

A Business History From Someone Who Could Write

But Still Waiting For Volume 2....

A Fascinating Glimpse on the Early Aircraft Industry

Highly readable, fascinating glimpse of the R.100 zeppelin

Slide Rule
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Authors | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | British | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Biographies | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Lonely Road

Pastoral

In the Wet

The Rainbow and The Rose

Pied Piper

ASIN: 1842322915

Book Description

Nevil Shute's autobiographical work charts his selected remembrances from childhood to 1938. The parallels between Shute's life and his fiction can be seen: airship engineering, the new industry of commercial aircraft and his experience of civil servants and bureaucratic military agencies.

Customer Reviews:

A Business History From Someone Who Could Write.......2006-08-03

Before he became a world famous novelist, Nevil Shute Norway started an aircraft company and built it up to over 1,000 staff. This was a company started in 1932 - the Great Depression.

How he did that and the types of issues he faced are fascinating. His thoughts on why he choose possibly inflated figures for some of his company's assets and risked going to jail as a way to obtain financing and prevent the lay off of 500 people during the depression are very memorable.

A great read.

But Still Waiting For Volume 2...........2004-02-09

This is a fascinating autobiography of the early life of one of Britain's premier aeronautical engineers (and adventure novelists!). Nevil Norway was closely involved in pioneering work in the airship industry (a fascinating technological dead-end) and writes with verve and authority on his experiences of starting his own airplane works (no threat to Boeing!).

However, the story ends with his resignantion from Airspeed (his company) as the clouds of World War 2 are gathering. Shute Norway's later life seems to have been equally adventurous and I would dearly loved to have been able to read of his wartime experiences and his solo flight to Australia in the late 1940's.

Nevertheless, this is a well written and smooth reading work which is as well crafted and entertaining as any of his novels.

A Fascinating Glimpse on the Early Aircraft Industry.......2004-01-05

Nevil Shute's autobiography is an extraordinary work, and captures the flavor and pace of early aeronautical development, as well as the challenges of trying to gain support for the burgeoning aircraft industry in the early 1920's-late 1930's. As well, it captures the dualism of the industry: the rivalry between proponents of large airships and proponents of airplanes for the future of air transportation. It is best remembered for its frank and merciless critique of the R-100 and R-101 airship programs, and the differences between the "capitalist" R-100 (which worked) and the "socialist" R-101 (which crashed disastrously, killing almost all on board). Shute writes with authority as an insider, and with the grace that characterizes his novels. In addition to this work, I would recommend that readers also read J. P. Morpurgo's biography of Barnes Wallis (entitled simply BARNES WALLIS). Shute worked for Wallis on the R-100, and Morpurgo's book offers its own very useful insights into the great British airship rivalry. As well, readers of this work should read Shute's posthumous novel STEPHEN MORRIS which is itself a surprisingly good work (it was his first attempt at a novel), and which carries on many of the themes he explores in his autobiography SLIDE RULE. In sum, SLIDE RULE belongs on the shelf of anyone interested in the history of flight, and, particularly, anyone involved in the design and development of aircraft for commercial or military purposes. An excellent read!!!

Highly readable, fascinating glimpse of the R.100 zeppelin.......2003-10-20

This book is a great read. It's Nevil Shute's non-fictional account of his years as an airplane designer prior to becoming a full time author. Over a third of the book relates his experiences as a junior engineer on the R.100 zeppelin construction project. Led by Barnes Wallis, the R.100 was built as a commercial project, simultaneously with the infamous government-designed R.101 which crashed with much loss of life on it's maiden voyage. This disaster put paid to the R.100 as well as it was never flown again.

After that, he helped found the Airspeed airplane company. His tales of keeping the start-up afloat are reminiscent of many of the dot-coms during recent years.

Shute writes very smoothly, and the book has the feel of a long conversation. If there's a flaw, it's that he doesn't talk much about the other people he met. It would be nice, for example, to see a few sentences on Barnes Wallis, designer of the R.100, the Lancaster bomber, and the dam busting bombs used in WW2.

That said, there's plenty to read here and this is one of those books you can't put down once you start.

The Far Country
Average customer rating:

Nevil Shute is excellent in this story, beyond words!

Classic Shute, e.g., magnificent read!

worth a read

A sweet, old-fashioned romance well worth reading.

The Far Country
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Historical | Romance | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Romance Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

A Town Like Alice

The Rainbow and The Rose

Pied Piper

Pastoral

Round the Bend

ASIN: 1842322516

Book Description

Jennifer fled the drab monotony of post-war London. When she landed in Australia, it was like coming home. She loved it and when she met Carl, she had every reason to stay.

But the two of them came from quite different worlds, and it is the story of their building a life together that Nevil Shute tells in his matchless way. With warmth and understanding, and with his natural affection for the people he creates, the author brings to life his characters and the pioneer country in which they live.

"New lives for old...on a fresh, vital, expanding frontier! This is the exciting background of this heartlifting novel by a master weaver of romance and adventure." (Boston Herald)

Customer Reviews:

Nevil Shute is excellent in this story, beyond words!.......2002-08-14

Jennifer Morton moves to London, temporarily, to take care of her ailing grandmother, who, before her death, speaks of times, now gone, when life was so much better in England, as though she recognizes the dissolving of a great culture, which her granddaughter will never know.
In her last day of life, she passes on the Jennifer a timely gift of money, received from her distant niece in Australia, and with it expresses her wish for Jennifer to go soon, to seek a better and new life in the opportunities offered in "The Far Country." Living up to her grandmother's words, she follows her adventuresome spirit and sails to the other side of the world for this new discovery.
Warmly received by her niece at the sheep station, she experiences the abundance of life in Queensland, where she feels at home - immediately - and can now clearly compare the differences between the continents. The new country brings refreshing contrast compared to the dreariness of her post-war nation, so plagued by needless government regulations and restrictions on all of life's commodities, even food.
Freedom is what she experiences for the first time in her life and, with it, can fully understand her grandmother's wish for her to seek it. While there, she also notices hardships, endured by others who seek alternative ways to reach this very same freedom. They are the lumberjacks - the refugees from around the globe - who have accepted two-year forestry commitments to buy into the opportunities ahead. Australia attracts them and, in return for their two years of hardship, they can gain their new beginning in their new land.
So it is with Carl Zlintner, a Chechoslovakian doctor, a World War II refugee, who has nine months to go before his own two years are finalized. He has no money and is ready to pursue life as a lumberjack in his future. However, hidden in the forest, he stumbles across the grave of a man, now dead for many years... a man with a recognizable name.
How Jennifer Morton and pursuit to learn more about this dead man bring new life to the doctor, is a moving and powerful story of willingness to endure, readiness to sacrifice and determination to reach the goals ahead.
It's a story about life and about love, wonderful and inspiring, so totally Nevil Shute!

Classic Shute, e.g., magnificent read!.......2002-02-17

What a storyteller! Shute didn't live too long. I'm so glad he found time to write these human adventures along with all the other things he did. I did not realize until I read this book how bad things were in Great Britain after WWII. Makes me want to go to Australia (in the early 1950's). One of Shute's strengths is character description and development. I'm so glad I found my own copy of this book at Amazon! It was getting difficult to locate copies at the library. Why was this great story never filmed? This has to be as good as the author's A Town Like Alice and No Highway.

worth a read.......2001-07-28

this was the second book of nevil shute's books i am reading , the first one being A TOWN LIKE ALICE-and i liked it--it tells us about two people-an younge english girl and a european doctor--who meet in australia---their's is astory of friendship and old fashioned love. the contract between england and australia is brought out well.

A sweet, old-fashioned romance well worth reading........1998-09-18

Shute's A Town Like Alice is one of my all time favourite books so I was a bit worried that The Far Country wouldn't live up to my expectations. It did. It's a great book to curl up in bed with. It is very sweet and romantic. It tells the story of a young English woman's holiday in the Australian outback just after World War Two. She travels from a grim, rainy, poor country to the land of plenty. She soon grows to love the wild countyside of Australia and meets an older doctor who came there as a displaced person from Europe. Through their friendship they learn a lot about themselves and their adopted home.

Average customer rating:

Love in the face of doom
Catching a fish....
The Young Always Believe They're Immortal
An exciting and endearing wartime love story.
A Story of Courage and Love

Pastoral
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

War | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Rainbow and The Rose
Pied Piper
Landfall: A Channel Story
Lonely Road
The Far Country

ASIN: 184232277X

Book Description

From an Oxfordshire air base, Wellington bombers fly missions into Germany. Only a handful of crews have survived the war long enough to become experienced. Peter Marshall is captain of one crew. When he falls in love with Gervase, her rebuff nearly costs him his concentration and life. Their relationship blossoms when he has only five more missions to go. As they tick by, tension mounts.

Customer Reviews:

Love in the face of doom.......2004-05-04

What is most remarkable about Pastoral is the way it manages to blend love and tragedy in an almost seamless manner. What would have been a rather conventional love story is transformed into something very different by the ever-present risk of death. RAF pilot Peter Marshall and WAAF signals officer Gervase Robinson go through an awkward and sometimes amusing courtship seemingly unconcerned about the fact that each one of his bomber missions over Germany could very easily be his last - indeed, some of the characters we meet during the story are lost over Germany. That they are able to function in a reasonably normal manner in the most terrifyingly abnormal of circusmstances is a tribute to the strength of the human spirit. In a way, this foreshadows Nevil Shute's much later book On the Beach, in which people are able to function day-to-day despite knowing that the world is soon coming to an end. A lesser writer than Shute probably would have made Pastoral heavy-handed and preachy, but there is almost none of that. All in all, a superb book, a truly timeless story despite its setting.
As an aside, the last few paragraphs of the story make me wonder whether it is based on true events.

Catching a fish...........2002-08-26

... and bringing it to the flight station marks the unusual beginning of an exquisite and delicate love story between RAF pilot Peter Marshall and flight officer Gervase Robertson.

The story takes place in the midst of world war II terror and describes, in spellbinding detail, the flight missions over Germany, the dangers of cross fire and courage, during times when others have fear.

Peter's cockiness (not always at the right times), competence (in dodging enemy fire and bringing his crew home), and courage (in face of danger) win the reader's heart and make him a hero at his home station, even though he comes very close to losing is all: his aircraft, his crew and Gervase.

A marvelous story, despite its unusual start: catching a fish!

Perhaps this is Nevil Shute's best; his detail about the cold technicalities of cockpit war activity, set against the depths of an unforgettable love story makes "Pastoral" stand out above anything to be imagined. He just never ceases to surprise his readers!

The Young Always Believe They're Immortal.......2002-05-08

Nevil Shute seems to be a very underrated author. After his On the Beach and A Town Like Alice, the rest of his works are almost totally ignored by both the critics and the public, which is a pity as almost all of his works are finely written and have something worthwhile to say.

Pastoral was written during WWII, and from a purely British viewpoint, unlike so many of the war books that were written long after the conflict by so many Americans. As such there is a totally different atmosphere to this book, a quietness, an acceptance of the conditions and requirements of the war as just something that is there, part of the daily routine. And it is within this atmosphere that Neville constructs a fine love story between the very experienced bomber pilot Peter Marshal (at age 22!) and a W.A.A.F signals officer, Gervase Robertson.

As perhaps is typical for war-time love stories, the war itself provides the conflict, the friction between the lovers, as Peter is duty-bound to continue flying bombing missions, and Gervase believes her own duties are important to the course of the war, and should not be given up merely to get married. Her decline of Peter's offer of marriage sends Peter into a mental tail-spin, seriously impacting his efficiency as a flyer. How this conflict is resolved and the events that happen because of this conflict form the main portion of this book. Before reaching that point, however, we are treated to a view of English morality and customs of the day, a code that says one mustn't go off alone with a member of the opposite sex, that married woman are expected to keep house, not have jobs, where the woman must defer to the man. A view that might seem dreadfully stifling and old-fashioned to a reader of today's world, but it shown in such a non-obtrusive way that the reader can accept it without question. Until, that is, the reader finishes the book, and realizes that Neville has been quietly showing (and mildly satirizing) both the good and bad qualities of such a code. This is typical of Nevil's writing - his points are made far more by showing, rather than telling, always a mark of a fine writer. Also noteworthy is the attitude towards the war that is displayed by all the characters here - that death is an everyday happening, but it won't happen to me, it only happens to someone else. An attitude that seems to belong to every young person.

Nevil's prose style tends towards the descriptive, especially of the countryside and everyday actions. His dialogue in this book is loaded with English slang, very typical of actual speech patterns of the day, but this does at times make it somewhat hard for the poor modern American reader to decode what is being said. And some of Nevil's expertise as an avionics engineer shows in his descriptions of the aircraft and the functioning of various parts of these machines, at times obviously assuming that reader knows more about aircraft than is normally the case. These, however, are very minor negatives, almost totally subsumed by the engagement of the reader in the story of these two very well realized characters.

One decided negative that has nothing to do with Nevil's writing ability is the production quality of the hardbound reprint edition. The typeface used is very close to an old typewriter font, with thin serifs and a fairly small point size, and the printing press seemed to have severe difficulty with maintaining an even ink flow - at places the print fades to near illegibility. This all makes for a very rough impact on your eyes. A pity that this fine work has such a botched job of production.

Regardless of the quality of the printing, however, this book deserves a look, if nothing else just to see how a romance really should be written, as opposed to the material that passes for 'romance' on the book racks of today.

An exciting and endearing wartime love story........2001-08-26

I have 3 favorite novels which I reread every couple of years. Like old friends, I know that I can always turn to them and be sure of several hours of deep pleasure. This is one of those novels. PASTORAL was written during World War 2 and concerns two young people who are serving in the military, but as the title indicates, this is not your typical war novel. Peter Marshall is a veteran pilot of an RAF Wellington bomber, even though he is still a very young man. The flying scenes are excellent, filled with suspenseful atmosphere and excitement. But when he is not in the air, he is the kind of person who takes delight in the simple pleasures of life, rambling over the countryside and fishing with his crew. And after he meets a lovely WAAF officer, Gervase Robertson, who has just joined the signals staff at his airbase, it doesn't take him long to fall in love for the first time. The love story of these two rather innocent and ordinary young people is as real as you'll find in literature, perfectly tracing the progress of their attraction and growing feeling for each other, all intensified by the immense conflict in which they play their small part. True to that time, this does not mean that they are in bed by the second date--no, these are typical, decent youngsters who accept the idea that that sort of thing must wait until marriage. Gervase does not want to give up her part in the war effort to get married, and the tension begins to affect Peter's flying and his relationship with his crew. As one of the senior officers complains exasperatedly, "The great adventure on this station isn't bombing Germany. They don't think anything of that. Falling in love is the big business here." Eventually we see that maybe falling in love is the big business after all, as the young people come to exemplify all that is best, all that is worth fighting to preserve. Nevil Shute wrote several excellent novels, but I believe that this is his best. It is a shame that it is so hard to find, but used copies are available--and well worth the hunt.

A Story of Courage and Love.......2001-07-29

This is, in my opinion, Nevil Shute's best book, surpassing even such justifiably popular titles as "On the Beach" and "A Town like Alice". With restraint and a simple, moving style Nevil Shute brings out the best in human spirit by telling this story of young people rising to the dangers and challenges of war and prevailing through dedication, comradeship and love. Why is a book like this out of print when bookstore shelves are full of stories about addicts, perverts and criminals? We desperately need more people like Nevil Shte's characters to serve as role models.

Average customer rating:

Wanted More
A Little More than an Ordinary Plane Trip
The art of disciplined writing
Mystic search for Viking and Irish connection to New England

An Old Captivity
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Lonely Road
The Chequer Board
Pastoral
The Far Country
The Rainbow and The Rose

ASIN: 1842322753

Book Description

A young airman, an Oxford don and his beautiful daughter are on an expedition to the Arctic. This time-travel story tells how they are transported by explorers of another age: the Norsemen and their long ships of a thousand years before.

Customer Reviews:

Wanted More.......2005-09-07

I enjoyed every bit of this story, but it wanted more. More of an ending. More of a wrap-around of set-up plot elements. More expansion on some very critical scenes.

And yet, the book as is remains vividly and fondly in memory a couple weeks after reading it. The writing is lovely, the main character soundly developed (secondary characters are somewhat shadowy at times), with a lot of excellent and smoothly written detail. But... the thrust of the story came in a bit late and without complete set-up. Elements that were set-up and needed resolution were left undone with some characters left hanging.

What was extremely good... the wonderful detail of flying from England to Iceland to Greenland. Beautifully done. The book is worth the price for that alone.

A Little More than an Ordinary Plane Trip.......2002-11-13

Most people today think nothing of getting on airplane, and a few hours later, arriving at their destination half the world away with no more to complain about than poor service by the stewardess. It wasn't always this way, and even today going to some remote locations has at least some difficulties associated with it. This book details the adventures of three very disparate people, an Oxford don, his class conscious daughter, and an independent-minded pilot as they embark on a trip from England to Greenland during the mid-thirties in an attempt by the professor to prove that the Celts came along with the Norsemen during their exploration and colonization period of about AD1000.

Greenland is not a very hospitable place, with few inhabitants, almost no ports, unpredictable and typically highly inclement weather, and ice-locked most of the year. The preparations needed to go there at the time of this novel were extensive, approaching the level of effort of the Scott and Amundsen polar expeditions, though on a much smaller scale. Almost all of this effort falls on the shoulders of the pilot, from purchasing, assembling and testing an appropriate sea-plane to ordering supplies, obtaining the required documents, setting up logistical support bases, and finding and hiring an appropriately skilled photographer, all while working under a time deadline dictated by Greenland's very short summer.

Nevil's description of all of this work and the thought processes of his pilot are vivid, detailed, and highly believable. While progressing in the story line, his characters are richly developed. There is a natural antipathy between the working-man pilot and the daughter, who has led a very sheltered upper-class life, who naturally can't believe the cost and preparation required for the trip, so naturally believes that the pilot is merely out to pad his own pocket. But once they embark on the trip itself, the pilot's unstinting devotion to his work slowly wins her over, and a very predictable attraction starts to form between the two.

This is very typical of Nevil's work, as he was excellent at characterization and defining romantic attractions in a very believable and satisfying manner. Also typical is the fact that there are no bad guys or any high dramatic tension here. Instead his stories revolve around his characters, often very ordinary people dealing with the very mundane realities of life. This is a somewhat slow-moving book, typical of English novels written prior to WWII, but once adjusted to this novel's pace, I had no trouble remaining engrossed in the story.

There are some items here, though, that are not so good. Shute was an avionics engineer, and his knowledge of airplanes is very much on display here, probably a little too much so, with too many details about the plane gone over multiple times. There is a section near the end that digresses violently from the main story, almost a separate story in itself, that I did not think Shute did a proper job of preparing the reader for. The final ending that ties the main story and this other one together reeks of mysticism and was, I felt, unnecessary to completing his character's story arc.

Still, a very likeable read, probably not at the incredibly high level of things like his On the Beach or A Town Like Alice, but worthwhile reading.

The art of disciplined writing.......2000-05-31

Nevil Shute's style will probably not please the modern reader much, and that is unfortunate. His love of detail and the pains he goes to make sure of what he is stating are characteristics that I enjoy in his texts. Sometimes, he goes to an almost ridiculous extent to flesh out the reality of his background, when it probably would not be missed. Yet just as he does this, you can see him entering a truly fictional world in which, whoops, his characters suddenly do resemble real people and his narrative suddenly comes to life. It might be the extra effort Donald Ross goes to get the wireless to work, something banal and silly like that, but we know, almost without realising it that Shute is suddenly expanding a fictional context to include the all too likely possibility of future danger, and we realise just how much care is being taken. The work is not sloppy; it is methodical and I admit, at times a little dry. Yet when Shute's work really fires, it is because of this attention to the right kind of detail.

"An Old Captivity" has long been one of my favourite Shute novels. In a way it's an experimental sort of book: it takes the long wide arc of a journey from Britain to Canada via Iceland and Greenland, as its background. The path of a small seaplane is traced with infinite pains to capture the solitariness and the arduous nature of the voyage. Its three passengers are linked together in interesting and diverse ways. Slowly, against the further background of the Icelandic sagas, the tale emerges and, as usual with Nevil Shute, it is not what we are expecting. Just when the clean, crisp, almost mechanical prose has us thinking one thing, Shute leaps off into a void composed of history and imagination. It's an extremely disciplined piece of writing and I hope you'll enjoy the ride.

Mystic search for Viking and Irish connection to New England.......1998-05-16

Initially published in 1940 it is a touching story of a pilot, a scientist and his daughter who in the early 1930's are early North Atlantic aviators as they fly from England to Iceland and on to Greenland to search for evidence that the Irish may have accompanied the Vikings in their year 1000 AD colonies. Nevil Shute combines his incredible love of aviation and his admiration of pilots, with the mysticism which later becomes very much of a trademark in many of his books. A sensitive love story ties the present day characters to the ancient Norse sagas. Further underlying the tale is the question of how far west did the early voyagers to Iceland and Greeland actually get. I personally find it fascinating to note that years after Nevil Shute wrote this book, compelling evidence of Viking settlements on the North American continent itself has been found.

Average customer rating:

A Remarkable First Novel and a Good History as Well

Stephen Morris
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: Amereon Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Lonely Road
Landfall: A Channel Story
No Highway
Pastoral
Marazan

ASIN: 0848820320

Book Description

These two linked novels have flying as a shared theme. In Stephen Morris we see the eponymous hero leaving Oxford University unable to marry his girl because of a lack of prospects. He starts as a mechanic and a pilot at a friend's aerodrome business. In Pilotage, Peter Dennison is to start as a junior partner at a firm in China. The woman he wishes to marry can't accept his proposal if it means going to live in Hong Kong. Dennison has to find a way to make money and marry.

Customer Reviews:

A Remarkable First Novel and a Good History as Well.......2004-01-05

STEPHEN MORRIS (inc. PILOTAGE) is both a compelling work of fiction and a very fine and thinly disguished memoir/history of the early days of British aviation immediately after the First World War. It is so good, in fact, that one wonders why he chose not to publish it: it did not appear until after his death. In its graceful and arresting writing, it anticipates his later aviation-theme novels, and in its glimpse of the proto-British aircraft industry, it calls to mind his autobiography SLIDE RULE. Shute, of course, made his living as a professional aeronautical engineer and stress calculator (as Nevil S. Norway), working for de Havilland on early biplane transport development, then the Vickers concern during the great days of British airship development, and then as a founder of the Airspeed company, a firm noted for the production of small, very high quality executive aircraft and trainers. As a novel, STEPHEN MORRIS and PILOTAGE (the two works are linked) anticipate those great novels of Saint-Exupery, SOUTHERN MAIL and NIGHT FLIGHT. As well, they call to mind Ernest Gann's best fiction, particularly his book BLAZE OF NOON. Shute understands the world of the airman (he was an accomplished light aircraft pilot), and, given his participation in the industry at the time, naturally understands the course of the field as well. This, too, echoes Saint-Ex and Gann. I would recommend that readers read all of these works to gain their own perspective on Shute, Saint-Ex, and Gann, as novelist-airmen and (in the case of Shute) as a designer and entrepreneur as well. In sum, STEPHEN MORRIS and PILOTAGE need to be read far more widely than they have been, and considered as major contributions to the early popular understanding of flight.

Average customer rating:

Trustee from the Toolroom
Nevil Shute
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B0000CKJAI

Authors:

Authors

Authors