Travel books, from literary pilgrimages to tours
Winslow’s ‘Force’ takes graphic look at NYPD
NEW YORK, June 22, (AP): Whether you’re an armchair traveler, a road tripper or a frequent flier, books about travel can inspire and inform. Here are a few out this season on a variety of travel themes.
“Great American Railroad Journeys.” This book is a tie-in to a BBC series of the same name that airs on public TV this summer, hosted by Michael Portillo, who wrote the forward to the book. In the show, Portillo travels by train across America from New York and Boston to Atlanta and New Orleans, then on to Chicago, Colorado, New Mexico and San Francisco. The book (Simon & Schuster, $25) consists of essays about the development and expansion of rail routes across 19th century North America, with maps, photos, illustrations and lots of history.
“Footsteps.” This collection of essays is subtitled, “From Ferrante’s Naples to Hammett’s San Francisco, Literary Pilgrimages Around the World.” It walks readers in the footsteps of famous writers, looking at the destinations and landscapes that inspired them, whether the familiar locales of their childhood or a trip they took to a faraway land. Ernest Hemingway’s Madrid, Jamaica Kincaid’s Antigua and Mark Twain’s Hawaii are among the places featured in “Footsteps” (Three Rivers Press, $16).
“Madrid After Dark.” This guidebook is subtitled “A Nocturnal Exploration” (Interlink Books, $15) and it takes readers on a tour of the Spanish capital many visitors may never see. Though the city is known for nightlife and late dinners, author Ben Stubbs reveals the hidden side of Madrid’s nighttime world, from all-night taxi drivers and party-goers to stories of religious observances and the lives of the poor.
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Don Winslow takes a graphic and gritty look inside the world of the NYPD in “The Force.”
The complexity of the narrative starts right away, when the reader meets Denny Malone, a NYPD detective who runs a special unit of fellow cops who battle street gangs and drug dealers while putting their lives on the line to keep the citizens of New York City safe. Malone is considered the king of Manhattan North, and he has been decorated with numerous awards for his actions in over 18 years in service. The time immersed in such a hostile world has taken its toll, and where once Malone was a cop trying to do the right thing, he’s now a corrupt officer barely hanging on to his sanity and life.
The descent into the criminal side of the equation began with a slight deviation here and there. Soon Malone and his team abscond with millions of dollars in drugs and cash after a massive heroin bust. Now it’s about covering for each other and living with constant lies while still trying to do the right thing.
The immersion into the world of the NYPD is so brutal and honest that it’s difficult to imagine that Winslow was never a policeman. This novel doesn’t shy away from any uncomfortable subject.
Hawk and her young son aren’t safe if what she believes to be happening is reality. She hides her son with someone she can trust, then goes so far off the grid she cannot be tracked by technology, although she is still able to utilize the benefits of the internet. Someone who can do that, and Hawk is an expert, is said to be in the silent corner.
What Hawk is trying to uncover is truly baffling, and the paranoia and mystery increase as the story unfolds. The payoff doesn’t quite work when the buildup is so intense and complex, and some might wonder if all components of the story truly resolve.
In the end, none of that matters since Koontz has created such a wonderful character in Jane Hawk that minor nitpicks don’t take away from the enjoyment of the novel. Readers will clamor for more tales involving Hawk and her quest for justice. Koontz rocks it again.
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is enjoying the picture book business.
The talk-show host is working on his second illustrated story, “Everything is Mama,” Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group announced Wednesday. The book is scheduled for Oct. 10 and is being billed by Macmillan as a “hilarious ode” to motherhood, told from the baby’s point of view. Fallon’s “Your Baby’s First Word Will Be Dada” was a best-seller published in 2015.
is the illustrator for both releases. Fallon, 42, is the father of two girls,
and