Terry Fallis

It simply kills me to give Terry Fallis' comic sequel, The High Road two stars. Throughout the entire reading, and subsequent post-deliberation, I kept wondering why it was did I not only find Fallis' humour lacking, but sometimes outright condescending, and what was it about the story arc left me feeling as though I needed a real, fully-balanced meal instead of some meal replacement drink.

We again spend time with many of the main characters to whom Fallis introduced us in The Best Laid show more Plans. They walk on and off stage without much further development, little by way of evolution, and so Fallis leaves the interest and momentum of the novel to the plot. Which is perfectly fine. The plot, however, again looks vaguely familiar, with another unlikely campaign and election happening, the usual bout of falling on ice (instead of dog droppings), misadventures and misdemeanours. It's all rather deus ex machina.

The humour, however, devolves much in the way Canadian parliamentary procedure and decorum has devolved, smacking somehow of insincerity, self-service, and partisan posturing. This go round humour comes at the expense of anything or anyone ill-fitted to white male, middle-class, liberal privilege. The two keen youths, endearingly monickered Pete1 and Pete2, are ridiculed for architectural and colourful hair, body art, as well as artistic expression in their clothing choices. Fat people are shoved into stereotypes and ridiculed. Middle-aged women are likewise labelled. After awhile the entire slap-stick, heavy-handed humour wears thin to the point I kept listening for the percussive ba-doom-ching of the vaudeville band.

Along with what is, in my opinion, failed humour, is a condescension by way of education and literacy which in itself became humorous, simply because our erstwhile hero, Angus McLintock, on his way to correcting the abuse of the English language to any who dare speak, was foiled by poor copy-editing and proof-reading. There were many instances of a missing comma in dialogue, or a mis-spelling. Normally I would simply read over these omissions and forgive them as the foibles of human nature. But when you have a main character painstakingly particular about correct grammar and punctuating skills, well, you had better bloody well be sure the grammar and punctuation is perfect. Terry, your self-published first novel was better-edited than this sequel, I'm sorry to say.

All considered, a disappointing sequel to what had been a brilliant debut. show less

WARNING: This review contains spoilers.

****

Be warned, this review may be somewhat spoilery if you haven't read this book's predecessor, The Best Laid Plans (hereafter referred to as TBLP).

This was a highly entertaining sequel, at least once Angus's re-election campaign kicked in. For some reason I just didn't engage with the story right out of the gate the way I did with TBLP. I think part of me was just not in the mood for grammar correction, especially of things like split infinitives and show more ending sentences with prepositions (ideally, you should just recast the sentence to avoid the problem entirely -- otherwise, shunting the component parts around sounds really stilted in all but the most formal writing, so if there's no elegant way to solve the problem you can usually leave it in), and part of it may just have been that I already had the first book in my head for this one to live up to.

But don't get me wrong: once we got into the election campaign and the madcap hijinks started (canvassing by hovercraft, the cookie-filled candidates' debate, etc.), the smile was back on my face and I was really enjoying myself. The typo involving Angus's name on the press release earned a smirk and a stifled snort, as did the continual jokes about Angus's amazing hair and beard. If this ever becomes live action, there is no way anybody will ever be able to live up to my imaginings of Angus's coiffure.

In terms of reader engagement, I was especially pleased with myself for correctly predicting which of Ottawa's bridges would collapse -- note: this is not a spoiler event, as it is mentioned on the back cover. Had I not been on the bus when I read that part I would definitely have done a victory dance of some kind. So Fallis is true to life on that part, and similarly so with the reasons Angus finds for the collapse. I was also very pleased to read the part about the crucial role the English-to-French translator plays in getting the report done quickly so that it can be released to the public at the same time Cabinet receives it (Angus of course is a stickler for integrity and insists that the public have equal access to the report's findings). Funnily enough I was wondering to myself about the translation aspect (call it professional curiosity) and then lo and behold here comes the translator! And again, had I not been on the bus I would probably have bellowed "TRANSLATOR!!!!" or something equally ridiculous. (As I said with the first book, this was written pretty much specifically for me, so expect me to be very easily pleased.)

Again, some of the characters on the other side of the debate were a bit cartoony (Flamethrower Fox was almost unreal, although sadly even he could be a very realistic portrayal depending on where you look), but the characters on the good side developed a bit. We delve more into Angus's relationship with his late wife, Marin, and some of Angus's diary passages addressed to her are particularly touching. Daniel and Lindsay's relationship evolves, although I would have liked to see a bit more Lindsay in this book, not merely as the supportive girlfriend. Naturally there are limits to first-person narrative but it would be nice if she had been around more. Perhaps she'll be finished her Master's in time for the next book. Speaking of which, the ending to this book is very satisfying, being capable of standing on its own but also cleverly paving the way for a sequel, which I will be eagerly awaiting.

To sum up: recommended if you liked the first book. show less

Crusty, intelligent, and opinionated Angus agrees to have his name put on the ballot in an election that he has no chance in winning, and that's just the way he wants it. He lives in a riding that always votes for the other guys, the incumbent is the most popular finance minister ever, and expected to become Prime Minister of Canada one day. But then scandal hits, and Angus finds himself elected to office. With no desire for re-election, and no desire for a political career, Angus can be show more that politician who actually does the right thing rather than being a politician.

The Best Laid Plans won the Stephen Leacock Award for Humour and the 2011 CBC Canada Reads competition (the theme that year was the most important book of the past decade).

It took me a while to get into it but once I got to around page 30, I started to enjoy it. I don't find the humour especially funny, and some of the writing makes me cringe, and it's predictable . . . but many parts are clever, and while the humour isn't laugh out loud, it does make me smile. It's not difficult to read, yet I'm learning about how my country ticks. And best of all . . . I kept looking for opportunities to pick it up, and when was reading and needed to put it down, I'd think "one more chapter."

Recommended for: Well, as I said, it won CBC Canada Reads, so that means it's a must-read for all Canadians, obviously. I'm trying to think if someone who doesn't live in Canada would get anything out of it, and I'm not sure. Maybe; probably not. show less

For David Stewart, former assistant to the minister responsible for the Canadian Space Agency, his new employer, PR firm Turner King, may as well be a different planet. How appropriate then that he ends up playing a major role on the firm's latest account: NASA, which is looking to revive interest in the space program. David is something of a space buff himself, so he devises a plan to get the general public on board: have a contest for one Canadian and one American to join the crew of the show more space shuttle and take part in a mission to the International Space Station. It's an incredible idea, and it will take all of David's resources to pull it off successfully.

This was exactly what I needed when I picked it up. It's very fast-paced; I could barely put it down over the two or three days I read it (on the bus). David is an amusing protagonist and narrator, very generous with the self-deprecating humour while playing the straight man to some of the more eccentric characters such as Landon Percival and Crawford Blake. Those who have read Fallis's earlier books will recognize Landon as sharing some characteristics with the delightfully forthright Angus McLintock -- so if you were disappointed not to see Angus in this book, never fear. And in a would-have-been-laugh-out-loud-had-I-read-it-at-home moment, Fallis slips in a nod to CNN correspondent Ali Velshi, who successfully defended The Best Laid Plans in the 2011 edition of Canada Reads.

What I really liked about this book was the enthusiasm Fallis, also a space enthusiast, brought to the subject of space travel. The technical details he brings in during the shuttle launch and the mission itself are fascinating and made me want to read more about the space program myself. I also liked that Fallis took his work in a different direction from his previous two books. Actually, as much as I liked those other two books, this may be my favourite of his works so far. Recommended for space enthusiasts who want something cheery, fun and just a little bit wacky for their weekend reading. show less