greatest legacy. For 60 years, he has covered every corner of the globe, bringing a totally unique vision to his many books. And what books! Through his eyes, we have been taken everywhere from the most exotic sun-drenched vistas to the darkest, most dangerous corners of the world. Just a few sentences into his new book,A Voyage by Dhow, and we're reminded why Graham Greene described Lewis as "one of our best writers--not of any particular decade, but of our century". This fascinatingly diverse collection reveals an unparalleled career: from the intrigues of Aden before the War to the fetid jungles of South America; from the beauty of Naples to an unsettling journey to the Russian Steppes (courtesy of the Writer's Union of the USSR)--all of these are conjured for us in prose of maximum vividness. The most bizarre encounters are conveyed in writing that is either lush or astringent (depending on whichever is most appropriate), and the characters he meets (from a persuasive colonial pimp to a frightening Huichol shaman) are brought to teeming life. Even if you have some of these pieces already, the collection functions perfectly en masse--as a way of looking at the world through the eyes of one of its most perceptive observers.Joseph's profession was Senior Officer's Pimp. We talked for a while of his occupation and he assured me that Aden City possessed in all 8,000 prostitutes, and that those under his protection could perform tricks that would cause a guest's enemies to disappear and be seen no more, although they naturally demanded a higher fee...--Barry Forshaw
Containing new as well as previously published work, it recalls some of his most memorable journeys throughout Europe, South America, Asia and the Pacific. With such an astonishing reach, both in terms of time and distance, Lewis convincingly provides the reader not only with a magical diversity of geography, but also with a comprehensive slice of history. His vast experience inevitably means that one story sparks off another. Investigating aphrodisiacs in Liberia reminds him of Ernest Hemingway's impotence for instance, and this discursive approach, along with his unquenchable human interest in his subjects, is one of the great pleasures and strengths of the book. Whether he is charting the despoliation of a Spanish fishing village by the arrival of mass tourism, chronicling the trials of Mafioso in Sicily or claiming to be one of the few people to have been tipped by a taxi driver in Burma--"an unforgettable moment of illumination between the cultural and spiritual divide between east and west"--his responses remain fresh and undulled. And all this despite the fact Lewis, more than anyone, can legitimately claim to have "been there, seen it" a hundred times over. Although one, of course, doubts that he ever bought the T-shirt. --Nick Wroe
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3 Similar Reviews of Naples 44: An Intelligence Officer in the Italian Labyrinth - NormanLewis
See Naples..... Review ofNaples 44: An Intelligence Officer in the Italian Labyrinth - NormanLewisby
minigrile
Advantages: Sharp, superb writing Disadvantages: So much tragedy in war
...In September 1943 NormanLewis, an officer with the Field Security Service, a division of the Intelligence Corps of the British Army, sailed with the American 5th Army to Salerno as part of the force which was to invade Italy. With the 5th Army HQ he landed at dawn at Paestum, and hauled his motorbike into scenery of great antiquity and beauty and a region filled with all the chaos, panic and irrationality of war.
Although they landed with the Americans and were ostensibly there as a kind of intelligence back up unit for the 5th Army, Lewis and his fellow officers in the FSS were treated as hangers on and left to their own devices. They found an abandoned farmhouse in which they made themselves comfortable for a while and they dreamed away a few days contemplating the nearby Greek temples while they waited for the invasion forces...
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very helpful 30.04.2004
I liked it buy it Review ofLearn to Video in a Weekend - NormanLewisby
Luce100
Advantages: Interesting, non-obvious storyline Disadvantages: No proper appearance by the pirates
...This one is a bit of a sleeper as far as the Asterix series goes. It doesn't have the instant crash-bang-wallop appeal of some of the other adventures, but give it time and it will grow on you, to become one of the most interesting and involving of all the books.
The plot is a rather convoluted one by Asterix standards: Chief Vitalstatistix's nephew, the wild, partying Justforkix, has been sent to the Gaulish village by his father in Lutetia to have a few corners rubbed off him, and to be toughened up a bit. Once in the village, his love of popular culture (the Rolling Menhirs) leads him to strike up an unlikely friendship with the (awful) bard Cacofonix, recommending he visit the palace of Varietix and try to make it big as a bard. However, the discovery of a Norman landing party on the beach terrifies him and he leaves in a great...
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