Mackenzie Ford
Author of Gifts of War
About the Author
Works by Mackenzie Ford
un amour dérobé 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Watson, Peter Frank
- Other names
- Watson, Peter
- Birthdate
- 1943-04-23
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Durham University (BA, Psychology, 1964)
University of London (PhD)
Rome University - Short biography
- Random House: Mackenzie Ford is the nom de plume of a well-known and respected writer of history whose books are published in seventeen languages. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the London Times, the Observer, the Spectator and the Sunday Times. He was for ten years a research associate at the Macdonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge, during which time he wrote a book that was voted by Time magazine as one of the ten best books of 2006.
http://www.randomhouse.com/author/res... - Nationality
- UK
- Birthplace
- Birmingham, England, UK
- Places of residence
- London, England, UK
- Associated Place (for map)
- England, UK
Members
Reviews
This was a VERY frustrating novel, because the plot and the ideas underlying it are extremely compelling, while the writing is blah and the execution uneven.
The story unfolds at a paleontological research camp in a Kenyan gorge, on the eve of independence in 1961/62, and the plot begins with a discovery and a murder and climaxes in a trial and its consequences. (The main characters seem to be very loosely based on the Leakey family, who excavated in Olduvai Gorge, in the sense that there's a show more family dynasty in charge of the dig.) The main character is Natalie Nelson, who has just received her doctorate at the same time her mother dies and her married lover leaves her, so Kenya is a great refuge. But it soon proves more than that, as she becomes the key witness in the murder trial, one which pits Kenya's white community against the Maasai, Kikuyu and other native inhabitants and highlights rival views of what the country's future may hold. But while the ideas are fascinating, the execution is flawed. Natalie spends a lot of time in repetitive agonizing over what the consequences of her testimony will be, and the love triangle at the heart of the book isn't always convincing (or well executed, in the sense of well written.) Few of the characters come alive. Had a very good editor gotten his or her hands on this and cut and shaped the narrative, it could have been a very good book. As it is, it's written in a rather pedestrian way, and while I'd recommend it, it would only be with some caution as it's a bumpy narrative. Still, if you're looking for something set in Kenya in this era, it's lively and it grabbed me. The problem, I think, is that despite all his books, Peter Watson (the author behind the nom de plume) simply isn't a natural storyteller. He has the instincts (i.e. can identify a great plot) but can't follow through. 3.5 stars; I've been generous overall, I think, because I was so fascinated by the setting and the ideas. (I also deducted about half a star for a couple of small but obvious and easily-avoided bloopers, such as the fact that the author has Natalie in attendance at Jesus College, Cambridge, nearly two decades before that institution admitted its first female undergraduates. Tsk, tsk.) show less
The story unfolds at a paleontological research camp in a Kenyan gorge, on the eve of independence in 1961/62, and the plot begins with a discovery and a murder and climaxes in a trial and its consequences. (The main characters seem to be very loosely based on the Leakey family, who excavated in Olduvai Gorge, in the sense that there's a show more family dynasty in charge of the dig.) The main character is Natalie Nelson, who has just received her doctorate at the same time her mother dies and her married lover leaves her, so Kenya is a great refuge. But it soon proves more than that, as she becomes the key witness in the murder trial, one which pits Kenya's white community against the Maasai, Kikuyu and other native inhabitants and highlights rival views of what the country's future may hold. But while the ideas are fascinating, the execution is flawed. Natalie spends a lot of time in repetitive agonizing over what the consequences of her testimony will be, and the love triangle at the heart of the book isn't always convincing (or well executed, in the sense of well written.) Few of the characters come alive. Had a very good editor gotten his or her hands on this and cut and shaped the narrative, it could have been a very good book. As it is, it's written in a rather pedestrian way, and while I'd recommend it, it would only be with some caution as it's a bumpy narrative. Still, if you're looking for something set in Kenya in this era, it's lively and it grabbed me. The problem, I think, is that despite all his books, Peter Watson (the author behind the nom de plume) simply isn't a natural storyteller. He has the instincts (i.e. can identify a great plot) but can't follow through. 3.5 stars; I've been generous overall, I think, because I was so fascinated by the setting and the ideas. (I also deducted about half a star for a couple of small but obvious and easily-avoided bloopers, such as the fact that the author has Natalie in attendance at Jesus College, Cambridge, nearly two decades before that institution admitted its first female undergraduates. Tsk, tsk.) show less
This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.
MacKenzie Ford’s Gifts of War moved me from the very first page. Ford begins his book with The Christmas Truce of World War One. For one day, English and German troops spontaneously lay down arms and join together to sing Christmas carols, shake hands, and agree to have a day of peace in the middle of battlefields all over Europe. It is during this amazing encounter between enemies that Englishman Hal Montgomery meets German Wilhelm Wetzlar in the no man’s land between their trenches. show more Wilhelm hands a photograph to Hal and asks him to deliver it to his English sweetheart, Sam, to let her know that he is alive, well, and thinking of her. Back in England, Hal meets Sam, discovers that she has borne Wilhelm a son, but falls in love with her himself. He decides not to tell Sam of his encounter with Wilhelm. At this point in the novel I began to fear that the story would become nothing more than an angst-filled romance. Happily, that is not the case. Hal’s work in British intelligence, letters from the front written by Hal’s animated sister, Sam’s turbulent relationship with her sisters in England and Hal's growing love for Sam's son make for engrossing reading. The inclusion of new technologies of the day, such as the innovation of blood transfusions and the introduction of air warfare make the narrative historically convincing. This love story set against the backdrop of war, complete with espionage, treason & murder and peopled with credible characters makes Gifts of War hard to put down. Recommended! show less
This story begins with the Christmas Truce of 1914, when all along the Western Front of WWI, soldiers on both sides laid down their arms and fraternized in No Man’s Land in between the trenches of the Allies and the Axis.
During this truce, Henry “Hal” Montgomery, a 23-year-old second lieutenant in the British Army, was given a photo by a German soldier of similar rank, Wilhelm Wetzlar. Wilhelm asked Hal to deliver the photo to his fiancé, known as Sam, back in England. He knew his own show more mail wouldn’t get through, and wanted Sam to know he was alive and thinking of her.
A short time later Hal suffered a groin injury and was permanently removed from the front. He got reassigned to intelligence work coincidentally close to where Sam lived. When Hal went to give the photo to Sam he decided he wanted her for himself; he neglected to tell her he met her fiancé and proceeded to try and take her away from him. He also discovered what Wilhelm himself did not know, that Sam and Wilhelm had a baby. Hal, impotent from his injuries, also wanted this baby for his own.
Over the war years, Hal stayed with Sam and convinced her to love him in return. The boy “Will” came to love Hal as well. But when the war ended, Hal was afraid Wilhelm might still be alive. ...
Evaluation: I notice that other reviewers on Library Thing liked this book a great deal. I did not. I loathed Hal for his betrayal, his lust, and his deceitful manipulation. Sam had some despicable traits as well. Ironically, only Wilhelm comes off well in this novel, but he is mostly a missing presence. It was difficult for me to like a book in which I couldn’t stand the main characters. But I do want to emphasize that I may be alone in this opinion. show less
During this truce, Henry “Hal” Montgomery, a 23-year-old second lieutenant in the British Army, was given a photo by a German soldier of similar rank, Wilhelm Wetzlar. Wilhelm asked Hal to deliver the photo to his fiancé, known as Sam, back in England. He knew his own show more mail wouldn’t get through, and wanted Sam to know he was alive and thinking of her.
A short time later Hal suffered a groin injury and was permanently removed from the front. He got reassigned to intelligence work coincidentally close to where Sam lived. When Hal went to give the photo to Sam he decided he wanted her for himself; he neglected to tell her he met her fiancé and proceeded to try and take her away from him. He also discovered what Wilhelm himself did not know, that Sam and Wilhelm had a baby. Hal, impotent from his injuries, also wanted this baby for his own.
Over the war years, Hal stayed with Sam and convinced her to love him in return. The boy “Will” came to love Hal as well. But when the war ended, Hal was afraid Wilhelm might still be alive. ...
Evaluation: I notice that other reviewers on Library Thing liked this book a great deal. I did not. I loathed Hal for his betrayal, his lust, and his deceitful manipulation. Sam had some despicable traits as well. Ironically, only Wilhelm comes off well in this novel, but he is mostly a missing presence. It was difficult for me to like a book in which I couldn’t stand the main characters. But I do want to emphasize that I may be alone in this opinion. show less
When Dr. Natalie Nelson arrives in Kenya at the archealogical dig of her dreams, little does she know how much her world will change. It's 1961 and against a backdrop of quite a bit of political and social strife as Kenya begins its' journey to independence, the very existence of the Deacon's Kihara dig is jeopardized by murder. The tribal customs of the Masai are well presented as are many of the dig protocols. I found this methodical pace to be daunting at times, but I suppose the pace show more echoes the care and slowness carried out on a dig. show less
This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.You May Also Like
Statistics
- Works
- 4
- Members
- 408
- Popularity
- #59,621
- Rating
- 3.3
- Reviews
- 55
- ISBNs
- 16
