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Summary: Two Words for Charles Slack: "Keep Driving"
Review: A perfect blend of of travel journal and salute to public golf. Anyone with a high handicap, who has played with bare-chested strangers with even higher handicaps, on crowded bald fairways with bumpy greens, will appreciate this book.
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Summary: Even Bessie the Cow would Enjoy this Book
Review: Blue Fairways is thoroughly enjoyable. Slack's sense of humor, coupled with his self-deprecating writing style, make this a must read -- golfer or not. I laughed out loud and also cringed as he described some less-than-stellar golf moments. For those of us who do golf, who couldn't identify with The Look of Pity? Non-golfers will enjoy the way Slack captures what most of us will never have a chance to witness first hand -- the essence of what remains of small towns and hospitality as they teeter on the brink of chain restaurants and cynicism.
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Summary: I feel I am playing with the author
Review: From the opening lines I felt I was walking thes documented fairways with him. His handicap is around mine as is the number of shanks, duffed shots, the times in a bunker and the emotional roller costers of this amazing games called golf. The author is able to place us as his playing partner and it has been a joy to share 'the game' with him. Dr Terry Hannan Australia
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Summary: Could have been better
Review: Great book on golf. Gives a great look at courses up and down the east coast. There was, however, too much on the history of the towns instead of more on the history of the course and more on the actual rounds he was playing. Was "On The Road" for the golfing enthusiast.
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Summary: the perfect gift for an avid golfer
Review: I gave Blue Fairways to an uncle who's a golf nut. He thoroughly enjoyed the read, especially the vivid descriptions of the courses, as well the golf "game" of the author. I am getting ready to buy another copy, for yet another "hacker" friend, who I know will especially enjoy the parts about Maine. Thanks, Charles.
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Summary: Slack scores an ace
Review: If you've ever topped a drive off the first tee or missed a three-footer on 18 while trying record your career low round, you'll be able to identify with Charles Slack's golf game. When it comes to writing, though, he's scratch. One brief example will suffice. Describing the contrast between the front and back nines at the Ponce De Leon course in St. Augustine Florida, he says, "The back nine plunges into the jungle with the suddenness of a Disney ride, into a lush, dark, secretive world of mangrove swamps and ponds curving tantalizingly like lost lagoons. Moving from the ninght to the tenth holes is like putting down a volume of P.G. Wodehouse and picking up Heart of Darkness, all in one morning."The book is filled with wonderful insights like that one and reminds us on nearly every page of the real reasons why golfers love this sometimes maddening, often magical, game. For those of us who never will have the pleasure of sharing a round with Charles Slack, this book is a delightful substitute.
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Summary: Slack scores an ace
Review: If you've ever topped a drive off the first tee or missed a three-footer on 18 while trying record your career low round, you'll be able to identify with Charles Slack's golf game. When it comes to writing, though, he's scratch. One brief example will suffice. Describing the contrast between the front and back nines at the Ponce De Leon course in St. Augustine Florida, he says, "The back nine plunges into the jungle with the suddenness of a Disney ride, into a lush, dark, secretive world of mangrove swamps and ponds curving tantalizingly like lost lagoons. Moving from the ninght to the tenth holes is like putting down a volume of P.G. Wodehouse and picking up Heart of Darkness, all in one morning." The book is filled with wonderful insights like that one and reminds us on nearly every page of the real reasons why golfers love this sometimes maddening, often magical, game. For those of us who never will have the pleasure of sharing a round with Charles Slack, this book is a delightful substitute.
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Summary: More than just a golf trip...
Review: It's a book about golf - but it's also a book about life. Every page reveals something beautiful. From quirky courses and companions, to nostalgic pictures of childhood golf, Charles takes us down life's path via Route 1. His descriptions are stunningly vivid, painting the picture of his journey. Long overtaken by interstate 95, Charles describes a stretch of Route 1 in the south: "Here the old highway seems to have lost its reason for being. Hollowed-out husks of roadside motels molder in the sun like beetle shells..." Just beautiful! I find these jewels on almost every page. Humorous, nostalgic, and clever, and cloaked under pretense of Golf, Blue Fairways gives us all a little more insight into ourselves.
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Summary: More than just a golf trip...
Review: It's a book about golf - but it's also a book about life. Every page reveals something beautiful. From quirky courses and companions, to nostalgic pictures of childhood golf, Charles takes us down life's path via Route 1. His descriptions are stunningly vivid, painting the picture of his journey. Long overtaken by interstate 95, Charles describes a stretch of Route 1 in the south: "Here the old highway seems to have lost its reason for being. Hollowed-out husks of roadside motels molder in the sun like beetle shells..." Just beautiful! I find these jewels on almost every page. Humorous, nostalgic, and clever, and cloaked under pretense of Golf, Blue Fairways gives us all a little more insight into ourselves.
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Summary: Mark Twain had the Mississippi River . . .
Review: Mark Twain had the Mississippi River. Charlie Slack has Route 1. He transforms his journey down this has-been highway--once the transportation glory of the east coast--into an insightful, fun, laugh-out-loud look at the soul of America. And he improves his handicap at the same time! A must read.
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