Books: Highland Laddie Gone
>> Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Stop the presses: I've re-read a book.
Yes, it's true. Many moons ago, when I was a young lad in college, I read many Sharyn McCrumb mysteries. I'm particularly fond of the Elizabeth MacPherson novels, as well as her Edgar award-winning Bimbos of the Death Sun and Zombies of the Gene Pool. (Both fun mysteries.)
I'm working on a mystery set at the Gatlinburg, TN Highland Games, so I thought it only fair to revisit McCrumb's take on the same idea: Highland Laddie Gone. Her murder mystery is set in Virginia, but the festivals are much the same.
McCrumb writes incredibly well. I read part of this aloud in the car to my wife on a long car trip, and it was written so conversationally and so cleverly that it was a joy for us both. I think I would have liked to see the murder happen a little sooner in the book - there's quite a lot of set up and very little detecting that actually goes on - but she's created a great cast of characters that it's fun to follow without a murder investigation. Then again, we know pretty much from the start who's going to get it (the guy nobody likes) and half the fun is trying to see who hates him most - or perhaps just enough to stick him with a traditional Scottish dagger.
There's also a subtext of Shakespeare throughout this book, particularly as lines from the Scottish play are key to one part of the mystery. But McCrumb shows an easy felicity with the Bard in other ways, too, belying the super-regional Appalachian setting and tone.
Perhaps my favorite thing about McCrumb is her ability to immerse the reader in quirky sub-cultures, honoring their earnestness while at the same time poking good-natured fun at them. (See Bimbos of the Death Sun for a great send-up of sci-fi/fantasy conventioning.) She walks a fine line here, showing us both the fun and the foolishness of American Highland festivals, but her amateur detective, Elizabeth MacPherson, is just naive enough and just self-conscious enough to not only pull off that balance, but also epitomize it.
Well worth the re-read!
We were also honored to have James "Red" Moore on hand. (And of course, I don't have a picture of him! D'oh! My uncle got one - I'll have to get him to e-mail me one.) Red was a first baseman with the Baltimore Elite Giants, the Newark Eagles, and the Atlanta Black Crackers of the Negro Leagues of the Thirties and Forties, and was just this past week inducted into the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame. He was playing ball here in America at the same time the Japanese professional leagues were getting started! Congratulations to Red, and thanks to him for making my signing special.
Being a AAA game (that's the highest level in minor league baseball) we saw some great players for both teams. Recent major-leaguers Junior Spivey and Skip Schumaker were in the line-up for Memphis, while Ryan Church, Henry Mateo, and the fabulously-named Larry Broadway played for the Zephyrs. We were also treated to a match-up between starting pitchers Pedro Astacio, who is a long-time major-leaguer trying to make a comeback, and Cardinals uber-prospect Anthony Reyes.
The crowd - and it was a big crowd - was much younger than my book's intended audience. The picture book author down the way was moving far more books than me, but I got to talk to a lot of families, and I handed out a lot of school visit fliers to teachers. I hope those fliers bring in some calls for the fall!
