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Summary: I'd rather have Redmond O'Hanlon as a travelling partner
Review: I quickly grew weary of his haughty and disdainful attitude towards nearly every person he encountered.
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Summary: I think it's a good book for little kids to read like 4-9.
Review: I think that kids 2-13teen should read this book just like any other person.
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Summary: a very good book.
Review: I think that kids 2-adults should be able to read the book even if that means some one reading it to them at least they will get to read it or even hear about it.
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Summary: Enjoyable Journey
Review: I've always enjoyed Theroux's books, and this one was no exception. What I like about Theroux is that his books are not merely descriptions of the landscape or brief snippets of cities, but actually attempt to capture the journey he undertakes. Pillars of Hercules is a trip around the Mediterranean- not just the traditional countries associated with it, but also going into Albania and North Africa- some of the more interesting parts of the book.
What I like is how he talks with so many of the people he meets; it gives a sensation of what the country is like in the time while he is there. The literary meetings that he has with a variety of authors throughout the book add something that most travel books lack.
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Summary: A wonderful journey,
Review: If you are ever told to get lost, take this book with you, I was lucky enough to read it travelling the length of Italy down to Sicily, Paul gave me an extra pair of eyes to really see things, I agreed with what he saw, obviously I did not have the contact with people as he did, not as many anyway! Observation is his great gift and he certainly makes you take your blinkers off. Buy it, read it, you'll love it.
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Summary: Fear of history?
Review: In a way it's an interesting idea for someone professedly uninterested in history to write a book about the Mediterranean, probably the most historically imbued geographical entity on the face of the earth. Ultimately, though, it's a bit pointless.
The author is an engaging, observant writer, unafraid of coming across as a miserable old bugger when required (generally a positive in this case). However, his aversion to historical background stands in the way of anything really worthwhile coming out of this book.
In writing about a place like the Mediterranean a bit of historical knowledge or interest is necessary to give current events, people and observations some context. History is staring you in the face everywhere in the Mediterranean; it must take extraordinary (and incomprehensible) strength of will to avoid and ignore it to the extent that this author does. Fair enough, he's more interested in the literary attachments of the place, but writers tend to be uninvolved (and often irrelevant) interlopers on the landscape. Tracing the haunts and movements of some of Theroux's favourite writers may be of interest to many, but ultimately says nothing about the place itself.
I don't mean to be too harsh though; this is a fairly enjoyable read, and I guess that's what "travel writing" as a genre is all about (especially since it doesn't seem to be about much else).
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Summary: A moving account from the master of travel writing
Review: Mr. Theroux infuses this book with his famously mischievous eye for the unusual, the hidden, the something-is-other-than-it-seems and above all an all-prevading sense that though we may be geographically worlds apart, we are still very much one in our common hopes, fears, insecurities and even eccentricities. The things that stayed in my mind and touched my heart are not the accounts , splendidly colourful as they were, of the historic monuments in Greece or Turkey, or the fierce Corsican hills, or the lovely Mediterranean. Instead, they are the seemingly mundane but strangely mesmerizing conversations he sometimes provokes and sometimes attracts magnetically. Conversations that at times brought lumps to my throat, and at other times, whoops of belly-laughter to my lips. And I understood that in all that grand background of the Mediterranean and the land hugging its shores, Mr. Theroux was telling a simple story of a humanity that is, as always, defending its individuality and its proud local heritage while trying to find a common ground with the rest of it. When I put down this book, I was sorry there weren't a few hundred more pages to go.
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Summary: TALENTED WRITTING OR POLITICALLY WRONG?: BOTH
Review: Mr. Theroux is making an attempt to achieve something very difficult; to make a trip through lands of different culture, history and political status and describe their people, mentality and way of life. I followed his path step by step. Sometimes feeling like a secret fellow traveler somewhere hidden in the same bus, the same train the same ship. I passed through lands I have never visited and his eyes became my eyes. I was discovering paths and myths I had never encountered. New worlds revealed to me: Spain, Sardinia, Croatia, Albania, Turkey. Apart from that, I was expecting to cure my homesickness; to virtually visit my motherland Greece and walk together with Paul Theroux into the same streets I had grown up, look the same sunsets and smell again a scent, just a scent, of the classical dream. On the contrary his view on our country frightened me. Through his eyes the sun became black and the people ugly, aggressive, illiterate and dirty. Through his descriptions monuments became pissed stones. In his 200 Km bus trip, only shepherds existed. It is not my intention to judge a famous and distinguished writer whose writing always excited me. The writer has the freedom to reflect his thoughts into the paper and his eye is always valuable and welcomed whatever unfair we feel it is. I would only like to discuss certain parts which I find to be politically incorrect and kindly contribute some ignored information. In page 326 the author claims that 'The Greeks were not Greek, but rather the illiterate descendants of Slavs and Albanian fishermen (sic!)' and 'Beyond the headland was the Greek island of Chios, where Homer was born - if there was a Homer (sic!)' (p.355) According to that, not only the modern Greeks do not exist, but probably not even the ancient ones. The above is a surprising statement since it is very difficult for a two day village visitor to conclude on the cultural and historical continuity of a whole nation during the centuries. It is also notable and rather unexpected ! for an educated man like Mr. Theroux, that his travel to Greece he does not even visit one of the 1614 museums, or at least a theater performance and an exhibition. 'many words that we think of as distinctively Greek are in fact Turkish: kebab, doner, kofta...' : all Turkish.' (p.332) In fact most of these Turkish food nouns are not used at all in Greek and in any case, it can not eliminate the contribution of the Ancient Greek in thousands of words of the western languages. The above especially applies in science and medicine or words starting with (ana, anti, para, ev, syn)- (i.e. anaesthetic, antithesis, paranoia, parameter, evangelist, synopsis, apart from other words such as economics, electronics, stereotype, geography or Europe) - the tasteful kofta cannot change that. 'After almost two thousand years of neglect, during which Greek ruins had been pissed on ...- the ones that were not hauled away (indeed rescued for posterity) by people like Lord Elgin...' It is true that the marbles started attracting scientific attention after 1821 when Greece became an independent state after a four century rule of the Ottoman Empire. The motives of Lord Elgin though, who 'hauled' two statues from the Parthenon were indeed impressive. He sold them to the British Museum where they are still exhibited. A huge discussion is open at the moment in the United Kingdom about the feasibility of their return to Acropolis. The new archaeological museum of Athens which is already built for the Olympic Games of 2004 has kept a place for them. ' The litter in Greece was remarkable- the roadsides, the beaches ...' Apart from the fact that the author did not visit any beach, the Greek seas were voted as the second cleanest in Europe for 1998 after Belgium. (by the European Commission relevant authorities). They are also 'voted' every year by more than six million tourists. 'The average Greek was just as pathetic as the average Albanian' (p.288) and 'Greece was a successful version of Albania' (p.339). On th! e contrary, the total income per capital for Albania (C.I.A. factbook , 1997) is almost the 10% of the Greek one and no serious comparison can be made. 'They boasted in their glorious past , but were selective... in the 1960s these passionate democrats had welcomed a military coop.' (p.332) No coop in the history was welcomed - otherwise it would take on power through elections. In fact, after seven years of difficulties and fighting, a stable democracy was reestablished in 1974. Seven years later the country became a full member of E.C.. It is also interesting that during the last 50 years all the Mediterranean countries had a period of dictatorship. (Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey) During the author's visit in Cyprus , an always difficult objectivity test, the northern of the two divided parts is treated as having the same legal status although it is the result of the 1974 Turkish invasion and it is not recognized by any country in the world (including U.S.). It is obvious that I agree that the visit of the author in both sides is helpful and also that simple people are usually the victims of politics. Nevertheless the care given to the people talking about the Greek-Turkish 'differencies' is substantially disproportional (pages 341-416 vs. only 465-469). Apart from the above I would recommend the 'Pillars of Hercules' and I did not abandon the journey due to its inaccuracies. It is very well written , very human, and the 'Therouxish' type of humor is remarkable. Besides, the Greek people will never feel insulted by a writer. They can only welcome another visit of Mr. Paul Theroux, probably together with less prejudice and more information. But even if this is not feasible, the invitation is still valid.
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Summary: Again a great travel book of the master of travel
Review: Mr.Theroux has such a great way of writing, He is not making the journy better, but still you would want to pack your backs and take the same routte.
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Summary: Good humored misanthropy in the Mediterranean
Review: Nobody ever accused Paul Theroux of looking at the world through rose colored glasses. His critically acclaimed travel books are replete with smelly natives, loud tourists, and scheming vendors. The Pillars of Hercules is no exception. From the ape-teasing tourists on Gibralter to the rude and heavily-armed Israelis, Theroux seems to have met every disagreeable character the Mediterranean has to offer. It is almost enough to make one swear off visiting the region forever.
Almost. For while Theroux liberally sprinkles his account of his year-long Mediterranean tour with all sorts of unsavory characters, he captures the region's terrific beauty and breathtaking history. He visits the old haunts of such literary giants as Hemingway, Gaddis, Greene, Joyce, Burroughs, and many others; these palces have as much significance for him as the Parthenon and the Pyramids have for the gawking tourists he detests so much. The book's final scene, in which Paul enjoys a conversation and marijuana cigarette with an aging Paul Bowles is particularly priceless. The Pillars of Hercules is a fantastic read- but if you're planning on making a trip to the area, stick with a travel guide.
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