Revenge of the Saguaro: Offbeat Travels Through America’s Southwest by Tom Miller Reviewed by Mark D. Walker As someone who has travelled the world and spent much of my adult life in the Southwest, I appreciated the author’s perspective and insights on this unique and often crazy part of the country. I learned about parts of the region I’d never heard of, as well as appreciated parts of the area I was aware of, but not in the way the author tells it, such as the filming of “The Milagro Bean War” and the mining wars of Bisbee. The title […]

The Quiet American by Graham Greene Reviewed by Mark D. Walker I’ve been meaning to read this book for years as it’s considered one of the best novels about the war in Indo China and even though it was written in 1955 it anticipated many of the flaws in American character and history which would result in what many now consider a catastrophic military debacle. Greene, regarded by many as one of the great writers of the 20th century is also one of my favorite global storytellers with “Journey Without Maps” leading my list. I’d worked in Sierra Leone where […]

Secrets of the Moon: A Novel by Tema Encarnacion (Dominican Republic 2000–01) Reviewed by Mark D. Walker (Guatemala 1971–73) Author Tema Encarnacion couldn’t have chosen a timelier theme for her debut novel, than the circumstances that force families to flee violence from Central America and embark on a perilous journey across the border into the U.S., as the immigration crisis continues unresolved. Alternating narratives from the daughter, Luz, and her mother, Esperanza, help the reader appreciate how the experience will traumatize everyone in the family from Luz’s grandmother, who has been bringing Luz up in El Salvador alone for six years, […]

Mister Johnson By Joyce Cary Reviewed By Mark D. Walker Having worked in West Africa (Sierra Leone) for several years, I looked forward to reading this book, which took place in Nigeria. I also wanted to see how the relationship between an African clerk and his British bosses developed. And I wanted to read what some say is the best novel to be written about Africa, despite its author’s inconspicuous formative years when he barely earned his degree from Oxford in 1912. Mister Johnson is a warm-hearted, enthusiastic, but incompetent, government clerk on probation at the outpost of Fada, Nigeria […]

Miguel Street, by V. S. Naipaul Reviewed by Mark D. Walker As is the case with Graham Greene, I occasionally pick up one of their many novels, as they’re two of the great global storytellers. The stories in Miguel Street are a collection of linked short stories based on childhood memories in the Port of Spain. The street appears to be based on Luis Street where the author lived with his family in the 1940s. When I was in the Port of Spain five years ago doing some consulting work, I saw some of the slums, which seemed similar to […]

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris Reviewed by Mark D. Walker I’d heard enough about the author’s wit and humor to finally purchase one of his books. I didn’t realize it was a compilation of his short stories which was initially confusing but I found a number of them hilarious. Although he’s no Mark Twain, I found his insights and cultural euphemisms and political correctness helped lighten up my day. I can’t imagine him trying to convince family members to share some of the more outrageous stories about them. He’s teamed up with his sister Amy on several […]

House Made of Dawn By N. Scott Momaday Reviewed by Mark D. Walker I learned about the author on an “American Masters” documentary, “Words from a Bear” that portrayed him as a voice of Native American Renaissance in art and literature, which led to a breakthrough of Native American literature into the mainstream. Like many Americans, my awareness of the Native American was raised by historian Dee Brown’s 1970 best-selling book, “Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee,” which told about the massacre of several hundred Lakota Indians (mostly women and children) by soldiers of the U.S. Army. The author was […]

BOOK REVIEW DROP DEAD by Dick Lipez writing as Richard Stevenson (Ethiopia) Nov 25 2016 KickAssQueer is a gay Web site thousands go to for news, gossip, and as a forum to exchange often heated opinions about GLBT life in America. When one of KAQ’s editors is savagely murdered, it’s PI Don Strachey’s job to uncover whether one of the site’s many harsh critics, gay or straight, is responsible for this young man’s death—and possibly for other brutal assaults on gay men in and around New York City. What Strachey is soon forced to confront is a side of the […]

BOOK REVIEW OF “DEAD COW ROAD” By Mark D. Walker by Mark Wentling (Peace Corps Honduras 1967–69, Togo 1970–73; PC Staff: Togo, Gabon, Niger 1973–77) Page Publishing March 2017 506 pages $24.93 (paperback), $9.99 (Kindle) I’ve been looking forward to the author’s next book after thoroughly enjoying “Africa’s Embrace”, which is part of his African Trilogy. I resonated with the author’s story as we are both Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and pursued careers promoting overseas development. The author’s work and travels over a span of 46 years have taken him to 54 African countries. The author also worked with USAID, the […]

Benito Cereno By Herman Melville Reviewed by Mark D. Walker I decided to pick up this classic novel by Herman Melville to explore issues of slavery, race and human depravity as part of my research for an article about an American author in Ecuador and is Black fisherman partner – and I was not disappointed. Set in 1799, the crew of an American trading vessel, the “Bachelor’s Delight,” notices a Spanish slave ship has fallen into distress. The circumstances seem strange since the Spanish ship displays no flags to identify it. The American Captain, Amasa Deleno, notes some oddities, especially […]