Number fourteen in the Travis McGee series, and I continue to devour the things like they were popcorn, even though I want to slow down and examine how MacDonald can be so amazingly readable page after page. Maybe a MacDonald novel is like light in that famous physics conundrum (Michaelson-Morley?)--to define light, one must "stop" it in its tracks, and then it isn't light anymore, i.e. the observation of it affects it.

This time McGee is trying to recover some stamps that have gotten switched for cheaper versions. Along the way McGee makes his typical observations about life and politics, adds a few more scars to his battered body, and becomes a little wiser.

Travis McGee embarks on another of his trademark "salvage" missions involving a fortune in missing rare stamps. McGee's ruminations on people, relationships, human aspirations, money, politics, etc. are amusing social commentary, albeit thirty years later. Some of the observations of life in the '70s seem dated, but not enough to matter. Beyond this slight quibble, there is the vicious killer, and the complex mystery of the missing stamps. In addition, we have Mary Alice McDermit, a dark-haired giant of a woman with a healthy sex-drive and a troubled past. The lovable Meyer is present, still pontificating on economics and human foibles. As mystery-suspense novels go, the Travis McGee series is a perennial favorite. John D. MacDonald stresses introspection and character development rather than blood and thunder action. The typical Florida setting is exotic. Altogether, good lightweight reading material for summer vacations or anytime. ;-)

If you like Travis Mcgee, you'll like this one.

I have not read this book but know the story well. In 1997, while state director of MUFON of Georgia, I was contacted by John A. Vasquez to help investigate his claims of alien contact at Ft. Benning, Georgia. I found John A. Vasquez's account intriguing and his sincerity during several phone conversations over the next year sincere. In the course of MUFON's investigation a former drill instructor and Company Commander of his training unit were talked to by myself. The former Commanding General of Ft. Benning in 1977 was talked to by Tom Sheets, then a MUFON investigator in Fayetteville (now state director of MUFON of Georgia). All gentlemen, two still active Army, were cordial and interested in Vasquez's account. Unfortunately, none of them supported his claim of alien contact. His former drill instructor, however, on hearing of Vasquez's assertion that the Army said his training unit never existed at Ft. Benning in 1977, said flatly the Army was wrong as he was there and at the time Vasquez was there. Since Vasquez's claim, another Ft. Benning recruit says he was involved in a secret UFO incident in April of 1977. He also claims possible alien contact/abduction. What impressed me most about Vasquez was not his claims but his effort over many years to find out what happened at Ft. Benning. This at least suggests he believes what he thinks happened. I and others then in MUFON of Georgia wonder if, perhaps, some kind of secret Army psy ops took place with recruits that produced tramatic results. Please disregard my rating as my purpose was only tell of what I learned of the Ft. Benning incident and my thoughts on Vasquez's honesty.

This book is in many ways confusing and bewildering. The writing is not as clear as could be, and coupled with the extreme strangeness of the subject matter, it is hard to follow. I recommend this book highly to knowledgeable students of the UFO enigma, but it should not be your first book on UFOs.

I have rated this book very highly, because as documentation of a UFO incident, it is a primary resource. John Vasquez is a simple, honest person who got caught up in a series very strange events. He has presented documentation of his military records, and other correspondence concerning his attempt to find out what really happened to him and other members of his battalion.

John Vasquez is a San Diego county resident and has spoken to both Orion and the San Diego UFO Society. I have not personally investigated this case but I have met John and believe he has had an experience. Although it is possible that he was part of an hallucinogenic experiment of some kind. It is also possible that there were real UFOs involved. As more evidence of water and/or life on Mars is discovered it is less controversial to suggest that there have been interactions with extraterrestrial intelligences. John remembers large groups of soldiers being transported instantly from one location to another. He remembers everyone falling asleep in formation when a bright light passes them. He remembers injuries from beams of light. The book contains a large amount of documentation suggesting something happened. There is no reason why this couldn't be explained as the confused memories of a victim of hallucinogens though and He is open to the possibility that there is a terrestrial explanation for all this, but will continue searching for the truth. His book is entertaining and though many of the actions taken by himself and the other soldiers are questionable, the circumstances are extraordinary. He also hopes that the book and any mention of his experience will trigger a memory in one of his buddies and that they will contact him with any additional information.

This is one of the McGees that I end up not rereading as much, because for me it doesn't hold up quite as well. I realize that in this decade, LSD was a completely different thing than what we know it to be now, but it still throws me off guard; plus I am a little harsher on the perfect Dr. Fort Geis than the book would like me to be. If you're a T. McGee fan, read it and it may hold up better for you, but if you're new to the series, it probably won't make the best starting point.

I'm new to the Travis McGee series- this is my second-- and I enjoyed it for MacDonald's style, McGee's machismo, and the overall mystery.

However, there's lot of exposition in "One Fearful Yellow Eye" and MacDonald is better at showing rather than telling. It wasn't as good as "Deadly Shade of Gold" and I'm sure there are others that are better also.

It's worth the time just for the rant on why Americans should carry their own paper towels and toilet paper. A good read, way better than any Kellerman, Grafton or Jance.

Like a fine local wine, Travis doesn't travel well. His lack of enthusiasm for the Windy City is boundless, and willy-nilly, this is where he must be to assist his latest lady in distress. The architecture, politics, and citizenry are bad enough, but my God, the weather is freezing!

"One Fearful Yellow Eye" is an intricate tale of "where's the money?". Brilliant, kind, and wealthy neurosurgeon Dr. Fortner Geis had converted all his assets into cash before his death, and left his young wife Glory in a precarious situation. The cash was not to be found and Glory not only faced the prospect of being poor, but heavy suspicion as well.

This is an intricate tale with an excellent whodunit complement. MacDonald is sure enough of his Travis creation by this time to let Trav display a fine self-deprecating sense of humor as well as the usual speed, strength and purity of purpose. The many threads to the story are all kept well in hand and dovetail neatly into a grand finalé. The two stereotyped ungrateful stepchildren turn out to be not so typical after all. The leading ladies have a hard time in this book, emotionally and physically. My only complaint is that widow Glory was a bit much with her oh-so philosophical bravery and fawning adoration of Trav.

This is superior McGee-good pace, characterizations and a very twisty story.

This 2nd of the Travis McGee series takes place in New York City where Travis fits about as well as Crocodile Dundee. John D. has not quite found his way with Travis yet, and it shows.

Travis is enjoined to look out for a buddy's little sister in the big bad city. Little sister is a babe (surprise!) and has her share of troubles. Her fiancé has just been murdered, and she has found a stash of $10,000 that she fears he scammed. Nina is distressingly a 'will you respect me in the morning' type of young lady that rings no truer now than it did in the early '60s, and Travis' famous philosophizing is really put to the test, however enchanted he is.

'Nightmare in Pink' is worth the price of admission just for the middle third of the book where Travis is captured in a private mental hospital and loaded with psychedelic drugs. His hallucinatory terrors are brilliantly and horrifyingly described, and the after-effects linger through the entire book.

The plot is a convoluted financial scam that MacDonald loves, but doesn't suit Travis too well (Meyer is not yet on the scene). Also cold, urban settings are not kind to a knight errant beach bum. Grade C-

I once dated a guy who was always quoting Travis McGee. It's not often that a genre fiction hero is a source of quotes. But it is the philosophical aspect of McGee that keeps this series from being a totally dated antiquity. Travis loves women. Travis is a chauvanist, but a thoughtful one. This is only my second McGee novel (trying to read them in order) but I find myself most entertained by his musings on women, loyalty to friends, work and - in this book - the role of New York in the downfall of humanity.

The plot is described only too well in other reviews. Suffice it to say that most of the action takes place in the third quarter of the book with a medical scenario that would make Robin Cook proud. It's all a bit far-fetched but the pages turn easily enough. I'd give it 3 and 1/2 stars overall if the system allowed.

A classic McGee. Which is to say . . . THE BEST

"Turquoise Lament" is a poorly told tale of missing buried treasure documents, damsel in distress and some interesting locales: Pago Pago and Hawaii.

The positives were an extremely well drawn character Howie Brindle. We have all known the type, but he is elusive as a wisp of smoke. MacDonald does a great job of nailing him down. The descriptive scenery was interesting and set forth in a very reader-friendly way.

Travis did not behave well and showed some monstrous poor judgment. Perhaps this made MacDonald grumpy. Travis's voice was lost through the incessant monologues by the author. We expect a certain amount of authorly philosophizing in a McGee novel, but this one went so far over the line as to be mere self-indulgence. Just when things are getting exciting, we get a three-page diversion about the inner-workings of a sand filter.

Travis has a few affairs too many, falls in lust with a girl called "Pidge" who has all the charm of a juvenile hysteric, and is so irresistible himself that merely his voice on the phone causes ladies' hearts to beat faster and pour out their innermost secrets to him. We really can't blame Travis for getting out of line; his author deserted him.

Had Travis McGee been in a science fiction novel, we would have had books like THE PHILOSOPHY OF MCGEE, similar to THE NOTEBOOKS OF LAZARUS LONG, dedicated to the wit and wisdom of this, MacDonald's best known and best loved character. Perhaps it is for the best. While not quite given to epigrams as Heinlein, MacDonald definitely had a consistent vision of who this latter day Don Quixote was. Long before Robert Parker investigated male angst in the Spenser books, MacDonald had mined the entire territory.

In The Turquoise Lament, McGee must face doubt, guilt, and faith as the grown daughter of a deceased salvage friend is afraid that her newlywed husband is attempting to kill her. Culminating in a fight scene with a cable car that today's Hollywood would go nuts for--in fact, that gets me to wondering why we have never seen McGee on film. Maybe we have, and I just don't know about it? Sure, some of the dialogue might not work on the screen, but the mystery, adventure, and spectacular fights would surely fit today's current vehicles for male stars. Today's directors would probably make a mish-mash of it, though; MacDonald probably better fits a director like Hitchcock than Paul Rudhoven or James Cameron.

Travis McGee once again takes on the torch of righteousness as he saves the daughter of an old friend. She thinks she's losing her mind, which is exactly what somebody wants her to think. But McGee sees through the charade, and undercovers a shady past that explains why he's willing to travel halfway around the world to provide justice. The last 50 pages are stunning in this thriller. Like all MacDonald books, you will get a heavy dose of philosophy from a sophisticated author. Enjoy this classic.

Really, don't do it. It starts out well enough warning that history can be disturbing and assures a reader would find no comforting myths within these pages. Unfortunately the book immediately plunges into just that delivering what it promises to avoid, "fond fallacies and delicate untruths".

It begins with the usual thrust of these myths, marginalizing the native peoples. Civilization for John A DeMay is something that comes from the East. He doesn't accord that status to Indian societies nor even the white frontier families. He talks of the "silent, primeval country" being "changed from desolate wilderness to civilization". In fact things weren't all that wild. As one traveller of the period is quoted as noticing the forests of the area were mostly clear of underbrush. The northern woodlands had been tended by the Indian civilizations for centuries in order to supplement crops with fresh meat. The woods were kept clear of brush because they were hunting grounds. These were the lands the whites were "taming", parkland and farmland. The author brushes aside the Indians to the point of invisibility. He is able to baldly state on page 29 that "In 1750 no one was here in Western Pennsylvania".

The author claims descent from early white settlers of the area and seems to have inherited their views and prejudices intact. He claims that they "understood war" but they couldn't accept behavior such as a warrior killing a baby or scalping screaming kids. Yet an armed mob of men removed Frederick Stump and his accomplice from jail because they didn't want to see them convicted of killing Indians in just this manner. DeMay's hero worship leaves him unable to realize the contradiction here. It has him white washing away many uncomfortable facts.

You wouldn't, for instance, realize from reading this book that Frederick Stump was a murderous brute. DeMay actually lionizes this man telling a story of rowdy drunken Indians demanding liquor being stoutly resisted by two whites who killed all four men and two women and subsequently "They went several miles away and killed some other Indians they suspected were connected, somehow, to the group at his home." Left out of the story is that Stump fed the Indians rum and it was only after they passed out that he killed them one by one in their sleep. There is no mystery who these "other Indians" were. They were Stump's neighbors after all, living in a couple cabins a few miles up Middle Creek. Stump and his partner went there and killed four more females; the wife of one of the earlier victims, two girls, and an infant.

The Paxton Boys Uprising is similarly sanitized to assuage white guilt and distorted to accent the exceptionalism the author wants to see in his ancestors. Incredibly, the Natives are completely removed from the tale. The opening act, the massacre, is just forgotten. The story of the final annihilation of the once mighty Susquehannock tribe is left untold as is the motive of marching to Philadelphia to kill more pacifist, friendly, Christian Indians. The convictions of the Paxton Boys are overstated while those of their antagonists are slighted. It is true that some "wet" Quakers did take up arms to defend against the alarming rural invasion but they did so knowing they would be disavowed by the Meeting; they would no longer be Quakers. To claim that the Society of Friends abandoned their religious principles en mass and in panic mustered into an army is insulting and wrong. No such help was required in any case as Philadelphia was well defended by troops and cannon as DeMay acknowledges claiming, "It is outrageous to think that it would, or could, be attacked by a mere fifteen hundred men - but those men were willing to try." In actual fact, most of them were not. Reportedly the marchers did number fifteen hundred men at one time but when the extent of the reception they could expect became clear most of them melted away. Only around two hundred crossed the Swede's Ford.

In truth, I would like be able to recommend this book. I have driven by the McDonalds out by South Hills Village countless times without noticing the historical marker for Fort Couch. I'm grateful to John DeMay for making me aware of it. I wish I could trust the stories he relates about events in this area but he has proven such an unreliable reporter that recommending the book would be irresponsible. The historical details are wonderful. It's too bad the author is so interested in justifying the beliefs of his ancestors. Passing on history is commendable. Perpetuating racism is not.