Saturday, May 22, 2010

Dolphins Under My Bed - Sandra Clayton

This book makes me say 'meh.' I enjoyed the concept--husband and wife sailing away in middle age--and most of the sailing-related narrative was well done, especially the waterspouts they were chased by and the vagaries of passage-making. However, speaking of vagaries, the pace of the book is bogged down with the regularly interspersed little vignettes in which this woman would complain about the annoyances she encountered in each new port of call. It was pretty obvious she missed the familiarities of home. It was also pretty obvious that she's one of those sorts of English people you don't want to meet. The sort who have a permanent facial expression seeming to ask the question, "Who farted?"

6 comments:

David said...

Ok, first I have to admit that although the book is sitting on my shelf, I have not yet read it. But, if you're looking for another book about a couple sailing, you might try this one.

O Docker said...

Haven't read - yet.

But you must admit the question you pose in the last line is one that has tormented mankind since we first dragged ourselves out of the primordial ooze.

The O'Sheas said...

Heh, heh, he said, "primordial ooze."

Margarita Mirasol said...

I liked that review. Ha ha.

Karen and Jim said...

Just stumbled onto your blog and it's a fun read. Humor, good writing, book reviews and sailing--what's not to like? We have similar cruising plans to yours and are having a knockabout cruise this summer before we cast off for good next year. Maybe we'll see you down the line!
Cheers,
Karen Sullivan and Jim Heumann
http://karenandjimsexcellentadventure.blogspot.com/

Tillerman said...

Hey, we English people can't help having that expression. It's genetic. We just look like that all the time. It may seem like we are asking the question, "Who farted?" but really we are thinking, "Where is the tequila bottle?"