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Clive casts his entertaining eye over some of the brightest places in the world
Although dated for the most part still well written travel stories.
Super funny, great writing.
Obviously outdated now, most of it was written in the late 70s, but a very entertaining and funny collection of travel pieces. I used to love Clive James when he was on TV so it's a pleasure to start getting into his writing too.
Because Clive James was the sort of early influence on me who can easily fade into the background, and for years I'd been accumulating his books here and there without actually reading more than the odd essay from Cultural Amnesia (itself the sort of delightful dipping cornucopia I'm likely never to finish, nor as such add on here). And his death, for all that it was further behind schedule than even the tardiest of flights recounted here, reminded me that maybe I ought to read one of the damned...
Well written and insightful, there can't be many nicer ways to earn a living.
I enjoyed the first half of this book, I thought James was really atmospheric and his insights on the countries were interesting, witty, and observant. Toward the end those things tapered off and it got a bit dull. Ultimately, I kept reading this because I found it to be an interesting study for my own writing. I have to write some stuff for a non-fiction/ memoir class this coming semester and I was interested in the way that James approached travel writing. Even though I said I didn't really li...
Another peerless offering from Clive James. Some of the offerings were, predictably, over the top, but most of the rest were vignettes that precisely captured the essence of the places he visited. It is disconcerting how often I could hear his voice actually speaking the sentences I was reading. Three of the pieces stand out above the others. Japan, for precisely articulating my thoughts about the place in a way I never could; China for his savage send up of their long-view of history and their
Many classic gems littered throughout.
Flying Visits is a collection of travel pieces (or 'postcards') written for The Observer between 1976 and 1983. The postcard is a form perfect for James's witty, aphoristic style, and each brilliantly captures the essence of the place he is visiting. The destinations range from a first return home to Sydney, twenty or so years since he left, to New York, Paris, Salzburg, Los Angeles, Jerusalem and many others. The fact that these were written over thirty years ago does not detract from the enjoy...
When I was younger, I think a bit of my sense of humour was shaped by Clive James. I remember him being on TV, counting down gaffes of the year or offering his own (admittedly self-amusing) takes on world figures. I didn't quite understand why it was funny that Leonid Brezhnev looked like he was operated by a foot pump, but there was enough stuff I got to make the confusion worthwhile. As I grew up (and his TV appearances grew fewer, perhaps) I didn't pay that much attention to him. Now, he's ba...
Clive James is a genius of prose and storytelling.
I loved this book. Witty and sharply observed.
Strange to be both open-hearted and snide about other cultures.
I brought this book on an 8 hour train trip. I had only read the preface and half a postcard (chapter) beforehand, so probably less than 10% of the entire book.When I put it down again I still had 2.5 hours to go. I just inhaled the thing. Very well written and extremely entertaining and a real page-turner.Fact:When I read the chapter "Mrs T. in China", I made a mental note to check Wikipedia whether Margaret Thatcher was still alive. She died a few hours later. Creepy, eh?