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Summary: "As the Crow Flies is a great historical novel
Review: "As the Crow Flies" is an excellent book. I enjoyed it from cover to cover. Here's why...This book is about a man named Charlie Trumper and the hard ships faced by him while he makes his corner vending business into one of the largest department stores. It also tells of his family problems. Charlie overcomes monumental personal and business problems. Some examples are his son's suicide and the taking over of his business. If you like books about business and history then this is definitly the book for you!
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Summary: This is a great historical novel
Review: "As the Crow Flies" is an excellent book...It tells of the hard ships faced by Charlie Trumper while he makes his corner vending business into one of the largest department stores in England. Charlie has to deal with World War I and II along with family problems. I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys history and reading about the working world.
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Summary: EXCITING, WONDERFUL, THRILLING
Review: A BOOK THAT IS REALLY WORTH READING, IT GIVES EMOTIONS AT EVERY PAGE. SINCE I BEGAN READING IT (10 DAYS AGO) I LOST LOTS OF SLEEPING HOURS BECAUSE I WAS JUST UNABLE TO OBLIGE MYSELF TO STOP READING FOR A WHILE AND SWITCH THE LIGHTS OFF. THANKS AGAIN LORD ARCHER FOR WRITING ANOTHER OF YOUR WONDERFUL BOOKS!
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Summary: Page Turner Throughout
Review: A masterpiece. Jeffrey Archer has a remarkable talent. No meesing with drawn out character studies. The story continues and the characters develop. In my opinion, this is the finest of Archer's works.
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Summary: Pleasent Experience
Review: A poor boy from London's East End, Charlie Trumper inherits a fruit and vegetable barrow (English term for wheelbarrow) from his grandfather whom he adored. Charlie goes off to fight in WWI and quickly makes enemies of one Mr. Guy Trentham, a rich snob from London's upper class, an enemy that goes beyond the war front and lasts a lifetime. Upon returning to England, Charlie dreams of selling his wares out of a store instead of a barrow. But his dreams don't stop here, no, Charlie has bigger dreams, he wants to build the largest department store in all of London. Is he successful? You'll have to read to find out. If your looking action packed adventure, look elsewhere. This is a story of love; hate and dreams come true. At time you will be rolling with laughter, and others on the brink of tears. I have only read one other book by Mr. Archer, "The Eleventh Commandment". These two books are like night and day. Mr. Archer shows his ability at being a master of storytelling in his ability to go from "As the Crow Flies", to a political thriller in "The Eleventh Commandment". Since I have only read two of his books, or should I say read one and listened to this one, it would be unfair of me to attemp any comparison of Mr. Archer to any other author. I'm sorry Mr. Archer, but I can only give this book 3 stars. Not because I didn't like it, but it didn't get me so wound up I couldn't quit listening to it. To me 3 stars is average. I say it again, Mr. Archer, you truly are a master storyteller.
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Summary: Good Friends and Evil Villains
Review: A truly captivating story with superb characters. The friends are realistic and the villain is unrelenting and truly evil.
There is love, drama, evil, revenge, and a truly wonderful ending.
Definitely 5 stars!
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Summary: Oustanding novel.
Review: About 6 months ago I read my first Jeffery Archer novel, Kane and Abel. I couldn't put it down. I have read several more of his novels since, but As The Crow Flies is the best yet. His writing is top notch: great characters and an intriguing plot -- what more can you ask for?
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Summary: A good book to read!
Review: Although this book is quite long, I must say that Jeffrey Archer has written a very good novel. This book tells of a sacrificing, kind, gentle and tolerant man, Charlie, which somehow is lacking in this crazy world of ours right now. I wish all abusive "people" who take advantage of other people like Charlie should read this and be conscientious.
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Summary: Birth of an Empire
Review: As the Crow Flies is a standard rags-to-riches story, with characters progress from humble beginnings to eventually rule a business empire. I really can't help by compare this to "A Woman of Substance" by Barbara Taylor Bradford in some respects, since they are both England-based department store stories covering the same time period.
However, Archer's story behind the story of a store I can't help but compare to Harrods focuses on the real problems facing a young entrepentuer, particularly the growing pains of expansion, particularly obtaining access to the capital market. Here the duchess character provides extremely shrewd insights, first backing the shop with 60 pounds, then later suggesting a front man, in the form of Charlie's old army Colonel. In those times, the man with the right tie and a nobility title got access to capitial.
Of course, there is the obligitory villain, in this case a lady only a few generations down from a merchant, but who inherited none of the good sense, and all of the snobbishness of the gentry. She doesn't see what her own husband and father see - all she cares about is the success of her two boys. Unfortunately, one takes absolutely no responsibility for his actions, and ends up at the end of a hangman's noose in the end, and the other has no merit, but she attempts to give him control of the empire Charlie built.
Are there flaws? Sure there are. Guy crosses paths a bit too often, though admittedly it's a key focus of the book. Cathy also gets elevated from outsider to inner circle. Certainly she was Daniel's fiance', but she was also referred to in his suicide note. However, she remains in the inner circle after Daniel's death.
Still, I loved the writing technique of each chapter covering a time period as seen by a certain character - and the next one backing up and summerizing it from a DIFFERENT character's perspective. Some things one character might have thought was hidden may be an open secret to others, or one character may be deceiving another as to what they knew, and how they acted on it.
Archer tends to try to twist his tales at the end with a surprising revealation, though except in his short stories (which I highly recommend), he usually doesn't succeed with me. Old Charlie's secret was completely predictable to me, and totally in character.
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Summary: The Best Archer Book I've ever Read.
Review: As the Crow Flies is undoubtedly the best Archer book I've ever read. In fact, it's the BEST BOOK EVER! ATCF is another one of Archer's novels about ordinary people pursuing great ambitions. Although Kane and Abel is the clear favourite among Archer fans, I have to say that the conflict in ATCF is much clearer and stronger. Also, the way Archer makes the characters' paths cross in such unexpected ways is absolutely superb. It's so unbelievable that you have to believe it. The writing style is distinctly different from most books, because each chapter beginning is told from the first person POV, so you get to see the story told from different angles. One more thing I really liked about this book is the way Archer uses the past to build upon the present. The reader sees how the characters in the story have to face events of the past, and the way their present is affected by it. Life turns a full circle. A touch of humour is added when the characters reminisce about their past, repeat old habits, do things they have always done. Irony is present throughout the story and everything seems to be linked together in a woven web of intricacy. To me, the characters seem much more alive. In all, a seemingly simple story of a man with one great ambition but with many twists and turns and wonderful subplots. Absolutely the best!
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