Hiatus

The (almost) Daily Wreck is going on hiatus for two weeks!

Please enjoy catching up on the 200+ posts I've published so far this year, and I'll see you again in mid-September.

List #9: 6 British TV Comedies to Watch Instantly on Netflix

1. Coupling: "Friendship's more lasting than love, and more legal than stalking."

2. Gavin & Stacey: "I know the dress is white, right, but who can honestly say, hand on heart, that they're a virgin these days?"

3. The Office: "The people you work with are people you were just thrown together with. I mean, you don't know them, it wasn't your choice. And yet you spend more time with them than you do your friends or your family. But probably all you have in common is the fact that you walk around on the same bit of carpet for eight hours a day."

And three sketch shows:

4. A Bit of Fry and Laurie: "Then I was Princess Anne's assistant for a while, but I chucked that in because it was obvious they were never going to make me Princess Anne, no matter how well I did the job. It was a question of who you were, rather than how well you did, you know, and I hate that."

5. The Catherine Tate Show (Rec. #81): "You ever see those women who leave their money to the cats. Oh, that do make me laugh. What do the cats want with it? What are they gonna do? Go on a cruise? They're fucking cats!"

6. That Mitchell and Webb Look: "How can I possibly introduce you to the manager? You haven't shaved, you're not wearing a tie, and you hold your ladle like a pen. Now take your gaudy but gratifyingly mute girlfriend and get out."

Rec. #177: The Princess Bride

What: So, this is all going to be based on the assumption that you have already seen and enjoyed the generally beloved and endlessly quotable 1987 movie The Princess Bride. And you're probably sick of people telling you that the original, book version of [fill in the blank] is better, but, really: William Goldman's book The Princess Bride is so much better than the film adaptation. This is through no fault of the movie, which is, of course, delightful. The book is just so much more. For example, Westley doesn't even leave the farm until page 53, and a lot of great stuff happens before that.

When the movie is shown on cable, the description is usually something like: "Rob Reiner's cheeky adaption of William Goldman's novel." Well, to be more accurate the description should be amended to: "Rob Reiner's mostly faithful, if severely abridged, adaptation of William Goldman's cheeky novel."

Comparable to: As I've said, it's like the movie, but more so.

Representative quote: "The boys. The village boys. The beef-witted featherbrained rattleskulled clod-pated dim-domed noodle-noggined sapheaded lunk-knobbed boys. How could anybody accuse her of stealing them? Why would anybody want them anyway? What good were they?"

You might not like it if: You miss Peter Falk and Fred Savage. (That frame story is based on something from the book, but the book's frame story is more complex.)

How to get it: Buyable, borrowable, Kindle-able. Although, hello, my graphic designer friends? You know what could use a new, excellent cover? This book. Current cover designs do not capture the book's sense of rollicking, snarky fun.

Rec. #176 (abbrev.): The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye

What: A.S. Byatt, five short stories, fables for grown-ups, sailors, daughters, villages, kings, queens, the Dead, dragons, wishes, coffins, tailors, fields, storytellers

Representative quote: "Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the air on metal wings, when they wore webbed feet and walked on the bottom of the sea, learning the speech of whales and the songs of dolphins, when pearly-fleshed and jeweled apparitions of Texan herdsmen and houris shimmered in the dusk on Nicaraguan hillsides, when folk in Norway and Tasmania in dead of winter could dream of fresh strawberries, dates, guavas and passion fruits and find them spread next morning on their tables, there was a woman who was largely irrelevant, and therefore happy."

Also: Mentioned during Personal Wreck Week (List #5).

Rec. #175 (abbrev.): What a Way to Go

What: 1964, black comedy, Shirley MacLaine, poor but happy, rich but not so happy, Paul Newman, Robert Cummings, Gene Kelly, Dick Van Dyke, Dean Martin, Robert Mitchum, painting chimp, IRS, wigs, pink Rolls Royce, psychiatrist, dead husbands, Edith Head costumes, Paris beatniks, utter joyous ridiculousness

Representative quote:
"Put it down here, baby."
"Gee, I wish I'd said that."

Also: Yes, all those people really are in this movie.

Rec. #174 (abbrev.): The Frequency of Souls

What: Mary Kay Zuravleff, debut novel, refrigerator engineers, electrical sound waves of the dead, the Veteran, cryogenics, Dino Park, hearing aids, miracles, control, Niagara Spense, real estate, homemade clothing, music theory, farce, piquant turns of phrase, science fair, Washington, D.C.

Representative quote: "His intentions of telling a simple story had led him out on a personal limb, and he wasn't sure if it could hold his weight until he was finished."

Also: Zuravleff followed this novel with The Bowl Is Already Broken (Rec. #46).

Rec. #173: The Unusuals, season 1 and only

What: ABC must be kicking itself that it canceled The Unusuals right before Jeremy Renner hit it big. The series also features an all-grown-up Amber Tamblyn, a post-Lost Harold Perrineau, and a very Adam Goldberg-like Adam Goldberg. Set in New York City's Second precinct, the darkly witty series follows some oddball cops and their oddball cases.

Comparable to: You should know I like oddballs. I also like the word "oddball." I think I use it a lot. You could probably find similar movies/television shows by searching for the word "oddball" on this here blog.

Representative quote: "Here's what you need to know about the Second: Alvarez talks about himself in the third person, Banks sleeps in a bulletproof vest, and yesterday Delahoy named his mustache."

You might not like it if: The show was canceled without tying up loose ends, and that might be kind of annoying for you.

How to get it: The ten episodes are available to watch instantly on Amazon and Netflix.

Rec. #172 (abbrev.): Saki's Complete Short Stories

What: H.H. Munro (a.k.a. Saki), public domain, Edwardian satire, nature vs. society, children, wolves, railways, hunters, toys of peace, England, liars, drawing rooms, hyenas, gypsies, talking animals, Carpathian mountains, ruthlessness

Representative quote:
"Well, we can't stay here all night with a hyena," she retorted.
"I don't know what your ideas of comfort are," I said, "but I shouldn't think of staying here all night even without a hyena."

Also: I mentioned a different collection by Saki during Personal Wreck Week (List #5).

Rec. #171 (abbrev.): Fraud

What: David Rakoff (not David Sedaris), debut essay collection, This American Life, New York City, hiking trip, Aspen, Loch Ness monster, New Age retreat, Steven Seagal, wilderness survival camp, elves in Iceland, editorial assistants, daytime soap opera, department store Freud

Representative quote: "I know I sound like the Central Casting New Yorker I've turned myself into with single-minded determination when I say this, but the main problem with working in the fields is that the sun is just always shining."

Also: Rakoff followed this up with Don't Get too Comfortable (Rec. #76).

Rec. #170 (abbrev.): Run Lola Run

What: Film, crime thriller, German, lost bag of money, running, 20 minutes 3 ways, punk, ambulance, dog, running, guns, subway train, bank manager, stolen moped, running, supermarket robbery, Berlin, free will vs. determinism, running

Representative quote:
"What if I were in a coma, and the doc says, 'One more day?'"
"I'd throw you into the ocean . . . Shock therapy."

Bonus representative quote: "What happened to you? Did you run here?"

Connection to previous Wreckage: Same writer/director and star as The Princess and the Warrior (Rec. #71)

Rec. #169: The Clothes They Stood Up In

What: One evening, Mr. and Mrs. Ransome return home from the opera to discover that all of their belongings are gone. More than just electronics and jewelry have disappeared --- gone too are the toilet paper holder, the carpeting, the curtain rings, the light bulbs, and the casserole warming in the oven (not to mention the oven itself). The Ransomes suddenly find themselves in the uncomfortable position of discovering who they are without their possessions. One adjusts better than the other.

Comparable to: The Clothes They Stood Up In was written by Alan Bennett. Like many of his plays, the story of this couple's struggle is witty, cutting, subversive, charming, and satirical.

Representative quote: "Once they had asked some newcomers on their floor around to sherry, but he had turned out to be what he called 'a big band freak' and she had been a dental receptionist with a time-share in Portugal, so one way and another it had been an awkward evening and they had never repeated the experience."

You might not like it if: You are not a fan of Bennett's style of humor.

How to get it: It's Kindle-able, and the print version is conveniently pocket-sized, which means this is an excellent book for a commute on public transit.

Connection to previous Wreckage: Watch The History Boys (Rec. #115) to see one of Bennett's plays in action.

List #8: Smart, Non-Blockbuster Crowd Pleasers: The Base for Almost Every Personalized Recommendation List I Make

As I mentioned earlier, there are some things I didn't include on any of the personalized list this past week because I probably would have added them to all of the lists.

They are books, movies, and television shows that most people would enjoy, regardless of their personal taste preferences. Also, there's often a good chance people haven't read/watched them before, unless I've already given them the suggestion.

Here are 10 things I tell almost everyone to read or watch:

1. Hark! A Vagrant, by Kate Beaton (Rec. #95)

2. Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell (Rec. #140)

3. The Bullfighter Checks Her Makeup, by Susan Orlean (Rec.  #126)

4. Don't Get too Comfortable, by David Rakoff (Rec. #76)

5. The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip, by George Saunders (Rec. #18)

6. To Say Nothing of the Dog, by Connie Willis (Rec. #100)

7. Harold and Maude (Rec. #45)

8. Shadow of a Doubt (Rec. #78)

9. State of Play (Rec. #104)

10. Wonderfalls (Rec. #2)

Personal Wreck Week: List #5

***For the Friend Who Finishes Everything, No Matter What***

(Dear friend --- I located my copy of the earlier list I already gave you. It was a list of 100 things! Why do you need a new list? Regardless, here it is. None of these items are repeats from the previous list.)

Reminder: Click on Rec. #s (where available) for more information. The other recommendations will eventually get their own posts, as well.

To Read

1. Crewe Train, by Rose Macaulay (Rec. #84): This society satire is a lot like Cold Comfort Farm, but in reverse. Starring a rebel.

2. Day for Night, by Frederick Reiken (Rec. #128): A dazzling web of interconnected characters. Try not to get dizzy.

3. The Box Garden, by Carol Shields (Rec. #146): It's about how people are basically jerks, especially when they're trying to "find themselves."

4. The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye, by A.S. Byatt: A collection of some grown-up fables.

5. The Cabal and Other Stories, by Ellen Gilchrist: In the opening novella, a group of wealthy and influential people all go to the same psychiatrist. Then the psychiatrist goes a little nuts. Town-wide paranoia ensues.

6. Ant Farm: And Other Desperate Situations, by Simon Rich: This collection of comic vignettes was written by a 22-year-old. This is only forgivable because the book is very funny.

7. The Heir, by Vita Sackville-West: An insurance salesman inherits a manor in this novel by a Bloomsbury author.

8. Short Stories and the Unbearable Bassington, by Saki: In these satires, Edwardian society does battle with nature. Nature wins.

9. Aiding and Abetting, by Muriel Spark: A fraudulent psychiatrist has two patients claiming to be the missing Lord Lucan.

10. Blackout/All Clear, by Connie Willis: I fell in love with this two-volume World War II story as soon as characters from The Importance of Being Earnest started blowing up tanks. I stayed in love with it until the end, even though it often made me so anxious I felt like vomiting.

To Watch

1. Kamikaze Girls (Rec. #52): A story of an unlikely friendship, for whenever you miss living in Japan.

2. Tristram Shandy (Rec. #112): Because I know how much you enjoy Steve Coogan.

3. In Bruges (Rec. #135): It's exactly your flavor of dark humor.

4. Trust (Rec. #165): A movie about oddball misfits that doesn't drift into quirk.

5. In July: Two young Germans embark on a European road trip, en route to Turkey.

Personal Wreck Week: List #4

***For the friend who really needed this list earlier in the summer, because she had actual vacation time.***

(Dear friend, my first impulse was to just give you a long list of musicals. Wouldn't that have been hilarious? No?)

Reminder: Click on Rec. #s (where available) for more information. The other recommendations will eventually get their own posts, as well.


To Read

1. Last Night at the Lobster, by Stewart O'Nan (Rec. #8): The audio version of this is excellent for a commute. It might make you feel better about your own job.

2. The Bowl Is Already Broken, by Mary Kay Zuravleff (Rec. #46): This profile of a fictional Washington, D.C., museum is a nice balance of the global and the personal.

3. Mr. Chartwell, by Rebecca Hunt (Rec. #85): Hunt's debut novel is imaginative in the right places, perceptive in the right places, and funny in the right places.

4. A Few Corrections, by Brad Leithauser (Rec. #117): A novel set mostly in Michigan. It's not about how the state is dying.

5. Not the End of the World: Stories, by Kate Atkinson: Yes, Atkinson also wrote a collection of unsettling stories. They're kind of George Saunders-esque.

6. The Witch of Exmoor, by Margaret Drabble: This novel sharply explores the conflicts between political ideology and everyday life, in the context of one family with a missing matriarch.

7. Calamity and Other Stories, by Daphne Kalotay: The stories in this solid collection shine pinpoints of light on pivotal moments in ordinary lives.

8. The PowerBook, by Jeanette Winterson: From the vantage point of 2000, the author leapt into the future of the internet.

To Watch

1. Shameless (Rec. #14): It's fun for the whole family. Including your dog.

2. Wait Until Dark (Rec. #26): Audrey Hepburn and Alan Arkin face off.

3. The Princess and the Warrior (Rec. #71): A fable of life in a psychiatric institution.

4. The Business: This IFC television series from 2006 is a caustic and clever look at the workings of a film production company.

5. The Daytrippers: Hope Davis, accompanied by her family (including Anne Meara, Parker Posey, and Liev Schreiber), drives to the city to confront her husband. Lots of good sister scenes.

6. The Spanish Prisoner: A con, some murder, and corporate intrigue, as written and directed by David Mamet.

7. The United States of Tara: You wouldn't necessarily expect the episodes to be half an hour, but they are, which means you could likely find yourself watching a whole season in one sitting.

Personal Wreck Week: List #3

***For the Friend Who Feels Like a Fake Lit Major, and Who Is Also Nostalgic for Her Time in England***

To Read

1. The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood: A different view of Homer's Odyssey.

2. Middlemarch, by George Eliot: A stone-cold classic. One of the best, ever.

3. The Portable Dorothy Parker: Stories and poems about vulnerability, told in a jaded voice.

4. Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut: The list's token dystopian vision-dream.

5. Leaves of Grass, by Walt Whitman: Americana at its finest.

5 Wreck-Approved Adaptations of Classics (But Read the Books First)

1. Pride and Prejudice (1995), from the Jane Austen novel: This miniseries was wildly popular (in some circles) for a reason.

2. Jane Eyre (2006), from the Charlotte Bronte novel: OK, we completely solved this one five years ago. It really was close to perfect. Can we stop making new versions now?

3. Our Mutual Friend (1998), from the Charles Dickens novel (Rec. #88): A banquet of a novel became a banquet of a miniseries.

4. Wives and Daughters (1999), from the Elizabeth Gaskell novel: People forget about Gaskell, a contemporary of Dickens, but they shouldn't. She's brilliant.

5. Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1998): Justine Waddell seems born to play this role, but remember that Thomas Hardy's heroines get put through the wringer.

To Watch

1. The Up series (Rec. #33): A fascinating (and legendary) documentary series.

2. The History Boys (Rec. #115): Charming smart-alecks try for places at Cambridge and Oxford.

3. My Family and Other Animals (Rec. #125): Like the Mitfords, but with fewer Nazi connections.

4. Party Girl (Rec. #141): The best club scene/library movie of all time.

5. Sliding Doors: A missed train splits a woman's life in two.

Personal Wreck Week: List #2

***For the Newlywed Friend Who Needs Something to Take the Post-Wedding Edge Off***

To Read

1. Loitering with Intent, by Muriel Spark (Rec. #13): You'll want to become the main character. Restrain yourself.

2. The Gate of Angels, by Penelope Fitzgerald (Rec. #79): It has a nice mix of the cerebral and the earthy. Plus bicycles!

3. Human Croquet, by Kate Atkinson (Rec. #137): A touch of surrealism is the icing on the well-mixed cake.

4. Here Beneath Low-Flying Planes, by Merrill Feitell (Rec. #151): A collection of highly-relatable tales of small transformations.

5. I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere, by Anna Gavalda: You will feel so, so, so French after reading this. So French.

6. Do the Windows Open?, by Julie Hecht: This is modern life as we know it.

7. Three Men in a Boat, by Jerome K. Jerome: This was an inspiration for Connie Willis. The subtitle is "To Say Nothing of the Dog."

8. The Center of Things, by Jenny McPhee: All about a (fictional) legendary film star. And physics.

Three Page-to-Screen Combos

1. Tales of the City, by Armistead Maupin (Rec. #67), and the 1993 miniseries adaptation: A saga of San Francisco in gumdrop-bites. Laura Linney is a perfect Mary Ann Singleton.

2. Auntie Mame, by Patrick Dennis (Rec. #70), and the 1958 film adaptation: If Rosalind Russell doesn't make you want to be Mame Dennis when you grow up, you're not the person I thought you were.

3. Personal Velocity, by Rebecca Miller, and the 2002 film adaptation: Miller wrote the book and directed the movie, which is based on three of the stories in the collection. It's not fair that she can do both so well.

To Watch

A New Leaf (Rec. #56): Elaine May is a genius, and we should all take more time to celebrate that.

Inconscientes (Rec. #86): It's a super fun movie, but honestly, you'll be really excited about the protagonist's hair, I bet.

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men: Given all the constraints for this adaptation, it's actually pretty successful. And it's nice to see a shout-out to feminism.

Next Stop, Wonderland: As far as I'm concerned, this is the Boston movie. Too bad all the posters for it are pretty terrible and non-representative.

Personal Wreck Week: List #1

***For the Friend Who Needs an Update on a Rec. List That's Now Several Years Old***

(Dear friend --- with one exception, I have not repeated any items from the earlier list. If you've already read/watched any of these, let me know, and I'll try to swap in a replacement.)

Click on Rec. #s (where available) for more information. The other recommendations will eventually get their own posts, as well.


To Read

1. Saturday Night, by Susan Orlean (Rec. #15): You'll love the cross-country armchair travel as seen through Orlean's eyes.

2. Guys and Dolls, by Damon Runyon (Rec. #44): Approach this as you would approach Wodehouse.

3. The Enchanted April, by Elizabeth von Arnim (Rec. #113): How did you not read this before you went to Italy earlier this year? How? How?

4. Bad Machinery, by John Allison (Rec. #138): You will appreciate and enjoy this sense of humor. And then you will become addicted. Ha!

5. Uncertain Voyage, by Dorothy Gilman (Rec. #167): Gilman writes some retro-fun introspective action-suspense.

6. Loves Lies Bleeding, by Edmund Crispin: This mystery features a blackmailing dog. Enough said.

7. The Semi-Attached Couple, Emily Eden: It's a comedy in the vein of Jane Austen and it's in the public domain.

8. Gentlemen and Players, by Joanne Harris: This psychological suspense novel is set at an elite British boys school.

9. The Angel's Game, by Carlos Ruiz Zafón: You must, must, must get the audio version as read by Dan Stevens. Trust me.

10. The Ivy Tree, by Mary Stewart: Stewart's story of an elaborate con is beautifully plotted and deliciously written.

To Watch

1. Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself (Rec. #108): You'll come for the accents and stay for the story.

2. East Is East (Rec. #163): It's either a comedy with a serious side or a drama with laughs. You decide.

3. Berkeley Square: This miniseries will amply fill any costume drama gap in your life right now.

4. Desert Flower: You might have missed this film when it was released in U.S. theaters earlier this year --- it's a depressing/uplifting true story.

5. Young @ Heart: Old people singing Sonic Youth!

Personal Wreck Week: What to Expect

As promised, I'm going to devote one week of posts to recommendation lists for specific people. (That week is this week!) The lists will include books, movies, and television shows. There will be a mix of things I've already featured on the blog and things I haven't.

The recommendations within the lists will be quite pithy, so the ones that haven't yet been covered on the blog will be getting their own posts at some future date.

Also, a caveat: some things that I basically recommend to everyone won't show up on any of these lists. At the end of the week, I'll be posting what I consider the near-universal basis for most personalized recommendation lists I make. Enjoy!

Rec. #168: Veronica Mars, seasons 1 and 2

What: If you somehow missed the widely-beloved Veronica Mars when it was on the air, and you still haven't caught up, now's the time. Seriously.

Comparable to: A cleverly-written show starring a tough-ass blonde girl who tosses off sarcastic comments while fighting baddies? Within the framework of a larger story mythology that's bracketed on all sides by snappy dialogue? Plus dramatic betrayals and twists, many "hey! it's that actor!" moments, an eclectic assortment of sidekicks, and a surprisingly deep emotional core? Cue the Buffy comparisons.

Representative quote:
"I hear you do detective stuff for people."
"I do favors for friends."
"I can pay."
"Sit down, friend."

You might not like it if: You are annoyed by the stylistic flourishes and mistake them for shallowness.

How to get it: As much as I absolutely adore the first two seasons of Veronica Mars --- which is really quite a lot --- that is how much I loathe the tone-deaf, misogynistic third season. I know this is a pointless plea, but I beg you to pretend the show stopped after two seasons.

Connection to previous Wreckage: If the show's nods to the tropes of classic noir whet your appetite, go full-fledged high school noir with Brick (Rec. #62). If the show left you longing for more high school drama against the backdrop of socioeconomic disparity in California, with bonus teen thugs, you need to watch Some Kind of Wonderful (Rec. #101).

List #7: Lesser-Known Books from Some Big(gish) Names (part 2 of 2)

[See Part 1 here.]


11. Author: Susan Orlean

Best known for: The Orchid Thief (basis for the film Adaptation), The Bullfighter Checks Her Makeup (Rec. #126)

Also check out: Saturday Night (Rec. #15)

12. Author: J.D. Salinger

Best known for: The Catcher in the Rye

Also check out: Franny and Zooey (Rec. #131)

13. Author: George Bernard Shaw

Best known for: Pygmalion, Caesar and Cleopatra, Man and Superman

Also check out: Misalliance (Rec. #30)

14. Author: Carol Shields

Best known for: The Stone Diaries, Unless

Also check out: The Box Garden (Rec. #146)

15. Author: Muriel Spark

Best known for: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Also check out: Loitering with Intent (Rec. #13), Open to the Public (Rec. #107)

16. Author: Elizabeth von Arnim

Best known for: The Enchanted April (Rec. #113)

Also check out: Christopher and Columbus (Rec. #61)

17. Author: Oscar Wilde

Best known for: The Importance of Being Earnest

Also check out: Lady Windermere's Fan (Rec. #148)

18. Author: P.G. Wodehouse

Best known for: Jeeves and Wooster books

Also check out: Jill the Reckless (Rec. #136) and Earl of Ickenham books, such as Cocktail Time (Rec. #24)

19. Author: Virginia Woolf

Best known for: Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse

Also check out: Freshwater --- A Comedy (Rec. #98)

20. Author: Paul Zindel

Best known for: The Pigman

Also check out: The Undertaker's Gone Bananas (Rec. #16)

List #7: Lesser-Known Books from Some Big(gish) Names (part 1 of 2)

1. Author: Douglas Adams
Best known for: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Rec. #42)
Also check out: The Salmon of Doubt (Rec. #4) and Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (Rec #162)

2. Author: James Baldwin

Best known for: Go Tell It on the Mountain, Notes of a Native Son

Also check out: Going to Meet the Man (Rec. #23)

3. Author: A.S. Byatt

Best known for: Possession

Also check out: On Histories and Stories (Rec. #154)

4. Author: Charles Dickens

Best known for: Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist

Also check out: Our Mutual Friend (Rec. #88)

5. Author: Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Best known for: One Hundred Years of Solitude, Love in the Time of Cholera

Also check out: Chronicle of a Death Foretold (Rec. #64)

6. Author: Elizabeth Gaskell

Best known for: Cranford, Wives and Daughters

Also check out: Mary Barton (Rec. #57)

7. Author: Edward Gorey

Best known for: The Gashlycrumb Tinies

Also check out: Ascending Peculiarity (Rec. #80)

8. Author: Mark Haddon

Best known for: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Also check out: A Spot of Bother (Rec. #27)

9. Author: Shirley Jackson

Best known for: "The Lottery"

Also check out: Just an Ordinary Day (Rec. #134)

10. Author: Peter Lovesey

Best known for: the Peter Diamond series

Also check out: The Reaper (Rec. #21)


[Continue to Part 2 here.]

Rec. #167 (abbrev.): Uncertain Voyage

What: Dorothy Gilman, suspense novel, solo voyage to Europe, post-nervous breakdown, reluctant enlisted adventurer, Copenhagen, mysterious traveler, mysterious request, Paris, secret mission, secret code, enemy agents, self-discovery, Anglo-Majorcan Export Company

Representative quote: "She'd made a fool of herself --- she knew it even if he didn't --- and it was better to put it out of her thoughts lest she conclude again that reality was a world she dared not inhabit."

Rec. #166 (abbrev.): Strangers on a Train

What: Alfred Hitchcock, Patricia Hitchcock, a train, an overbearing father, an inconvenient wife, a murder pact, a senator's daughter, an amusement park, a pair of glasses, a runaway carousel, a cigarette lighter, the most suspenseful tennis match evah

Representative quote: "My theory is that everyone is a potential murderer."

Connections to previous Wreckage: Farley Granger also starred in Rope (Rec. #5). Want even more Hitchcock? Have Shadow of a Doubt (Rec. #78) and Family Plot (Rec. #120).