Robertson Books

THIS BOOK IS THE BEST BOOK I HAVE EVER READ ON DIVIN

My husband and I read this book together (his French is better than mine) and we're both in stitches from laughing.

Ambush in the Alleghenies



Deep in the wilderness of western Pennsylvania, a young George Washington suffered his first military defeat, and rekindled a centuries-old feud between Great Britain and France. The battles that followed would be fought across virgin territories, from Nova Scotia to the forks of the Ohio River, and it would decide the fate of the entire North American continent. It is against this setting that William P. Robertson and David Rimer start their exciting new series Ambush in the Alleghenies, four daring trappers get snared in the conflict soon to be known as the French and Indian War.

Robertson and Rimer have spent fifteen years creating their series of seven novels about the famous Civil War rifle regiment, the Bucktails. Now the authors are back with a new adventure set in the wilderness of colonial Pennsylvania. Ambush in the Alleghenies details the exploits of Lightnin' Jack Hawkins, Bearbite Bob Winslow, Will Big Cat Cutler, and Alexander MacDonald, four mountain men struggling to survive the savage land and fierce enemies.

The book begins with the opening phase of the French and Indian War. George Washington is sent on a spy mission to Pennsylvania. The protagonists, beaver trappers by trade, are dragged into the conflict when the French invade their trapping territory and interfere with their way of life. They meet a very young George Washington, who employs them as scouts. The book finishes two years later with the defeat of British General Edward Braddock near Fort Duquesne.

Robertson and Rimer realistically illustrate the everyday life of Eastern mountain men. The clothing, food, weapons, trapping techniques and even the rough humor are meticulously depicted. There are some great photos are fellow re-enactors which bring the book and time period to life. The book brings history to a younger generation of readers; though I know of more than one adult (other than myself) who is going to love this series.

I find the book to be well researched and a must read for anyone who enjoys historical fiction and action-oriented prose. When I asked William how he writes the novels, he answered, " The way we write the books is this. First, we both do research to find out the time period. Using the history as the template, we come up with a creative plot. I then write the rough draft and give it to Dave for editing. He corrects the grammar, finds weak places in the plot, and checks for logic and possible historical errors. After that, I add in his corrections and find other mistakes, too. The book goes back and forth 5 or 6 times until we work the bugs out of it. I am the creative force behind the books, while Dave is the technical writing expert." The authors have even included bibliography and a glossary so that interested readers can discover out more about this exciting period of history.

The novel also includes elements of tall tales and myth making, for which the American frontier is known. Each frontiersman possesses strong medicine* that enables him to thwart Bold Wolf, an evil Ottawa chief, and their archenemy. Lightnin' Jack, uses his speed to beat the chief's gauntlet, while Will Cutler has an amazing skill with weapons.

Danger lurks everywhere in the dense hemlocks of the Alleghenies, with ferocious cougars, scalp-stealing savages, and Frenchmen full of fight. I'm looking forward to the next thrilling book in the series, but in the meanwhile, I think I'll grow my beard out and practice my shootin', cause I ain't planning on getting ambushed or missing the next one...

French? Indian? Or born to be a mountain man? Email me at frommyshelf@epix.net Miss a column? Don't get mad, get caught up at www.frommyshelf.blogspot.com Don't miss the exciting adventures of Hobo. He doesn't wrassle cougars, or take any scalps, but he does venture into the wilds of Tioga County in "Hobo Finds A Home", a children's book for the kitten in all of us.

With a wit similar to Dorothy Parker, and a unique personality all her own, Pauline Avery Crawford was one the more interesting American women during World War II. Robertson does an excellent job atpresenting her spirit as well as her paranoia, and in drawing a complex portrait of a very strong-willed and brilliant woman. Highly recommended! Her poetry is not to be missed.

If you're only familiar with Frank Moorhouse's work from the movie "The Coca-Cola Kid," this collection of stories will not only flesh out the adventures of a hapless American Coca Cola salesman in Australia, but introduce you to Moorhouse's brand of laugh outloud storytelling. Moorhouse's funniest characters are frequently the ones who go psychotically too far and yet are unaware they have overstepped the boundaries. In "A Person of Accomplishment," a woman goes home with a nut-job do-it-yourselfer (he even makes his own cheese) and in my personal favorite, "The Letters to Twiggy," a fan writes ever more crazy letters to the 1960s model.

Most Americans know Frank Moorhouse, if at all, from a little-seen movie from the 1980s: "The Coca Cola Kid" with Eric Roberts. This is the collection of stories upon which Moorhouse based the screenplay. "The Coca Cola Kid" is a somewhat hapless corporate rep from Coca-Cola in Australia. But the best stories don't actually feature this character: a story about a fanatical home craftsman (and home cheese maker and home winer maker) who can't sustain a relationship and a story consisting of letters to the 1960s model Twiggy (that become progressively more insane and pornographic) are two of the finest short stories you'll ever read. The Twiggy story will make you laugh outloud.

"Anne of Windy Willows" is the English title of "Anne of Windy Poplars," because apparently the concept of a Canadian tree was too much for their English brethren (remember, these are the same people who changed Harry Potter's philosopher's stone into a sorcerer's stone). This is definitely the most atypical book in the Anne of Green Gables Series by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Although it is sold as the fourth book in the series it was actually one of the last one written, originally being published in 1936. Anne Shirley, B.A., has taken a job away from Green Gables and as Principal of Summerside High School for three years while she waits for Gilbert Blythe to finish medical school so they can get married. So Gilbert is only present when Anne writes to him as Redmond College in Kingsport (although Montgomery tactfully omits the romantic part of her letters). However, despite these oddities, "Anne of Windy Willows" has sort of become the second most significant novel in the series since it provides the foundation for both sequels to the "Anne of Green Gables" movies, both the 1940's "Anne of Windy Poplars" (with Anne Shirley playing Anne Shirley) and the 1987 "Anne of Avonlea." The latter purports to cover the second through fourth volumes in the Green Gables series, but clearly it is this one that readers will most recognize when they watch.

Anne's adventures as a teacher in a town where the haughty Pringle family aligns against her is but one of the three major plotlines in the novel. There are also Anne's experiences at Windy Poplars on Spook's Lane, where the figure of Rebecca Drew figures largely in Anne's correspondence, along with Aunt Chatty and Aunt Kate. Then there is the mystery of little Elizabeth Grayson, who has been looking forward to Tomorrow as long as she can remember. You see, her mother died when she was born and her heartbroken father has gone off in search of Yesterday. Of course, Anne Shirley is no more likely to put up with something so wrong any more than she would Jen Pringle's fake illness or Katharine Brooke's sourness. There are also visits home each summer to visit Marilla and Mrs. Rachel back at Green Gables. Consequently, "Anne of Windy Willows" is not just an afterthought from Montgomery, who manages to make it fit into the grand scheme of Anne Shirley's life. But let's face the truth here: Anne Shirley as a mother is not the "real" Anne, so going back and reading about her continued misadventures before she married Gilbert is just fine

The 1977 (or 1978) Hyperion edition is a reprint of P. E. Mattheson's 1926 edition. There have been two recent translations, one by John R. Russell (1996) and the other by Ritchie Robertson (1997). I cannot speak authoritatively about either translation, having not examined them in detail, but I can tell you that Robertson's includes the 'Gedankenstriche' (long dashes) that Moritz used, rather than converting them into more modern punctuation. This and the price would lead me to order Robertson's paperback edition.

I was a regular reader of the Any Fools Principles of Dairy Farming in the British magazine Dairy Farmer, this book is every bit as funny, being a Dairy Farmers son myself I could relates to so many of the awkward situations. Dairy cows are really cool animals with a total mind of their own, some are real characters. Excellent.