{"id":19781,"date":"2016-12-21T10:31:15","date_gmt":"2016-12-21T17:31:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pwoodford.net\/blog\/?p=19781"},"modified":"2016-12-21T10:31:15","modified_gmt":"2016-12-21T17:31:15","slug":"trashy-novels-trashier-opinions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pwoodford.net\/blog\/?p=19781","title":{"rendered":"Trashy Novels, Trashier Opinions"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m on the second of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher novels, “Die Trying<\/a>.” Normally I review every\u00a0book I read, then publish those reviews here on Paul’s Thing and on my Daily Kos diary<\/a>. Since the 21 (to date) Jack Reacher novels are all of a piece, though, I’ve decided wait to write and publish one review for the entire series.<\/p>\n

I must say, Child’s\u00a0trashy novels are great reads. They evoke pleasant memories\u00a0of John D. MacDonald’s\u00a0Travis McGee novels,\u00a0which I devoured\u00a0almost 40 years ago (and may take a look at again, to see how they’ve held up).<\/p>\n

Couple of months back the New Yorker published a glowing review of Tana French, the Irish writer of mysteries and thrillers. I bought a Kindle copy of her first Dublin Murder Squad mystery, “In the Woods<\/a>,” which I’m partway through. The contrast between Tana French’s troubled but methodical Detective Andy Ryan and Lee Child’s taciturn righter-of-wrongs Jack Reacher could not be more stark. Ryan is a sensitive fellow who constantly examines and second-guesses himself. Jack Reacher kicks ass.<\/p>\n

Perhaps it’s the times, but\u00a0I find myself in need of a Jack Reacher. We all need a Jack Reacher.<\/p>\n

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There’s some bullshit meme making the Facebook rounds where you’re supposed to express unpopular non-political opinions. It’s a transparent attempt to get people to roll over and quit complaining about the tainted election of the second-place finisher, but okay, I’ll go along. Not on Facebook, that sad cesspool of advertising, propaganda, and cut & paste feel-good bromides, but here on my own blog:<\/p>\n