The author's experience "bears no resemblance to that of the millions of sailors who have gone to sea in big gray ships." LA Times
It makes no sense. I'm sure I read the description of the story inside the dust jacket. I'm reading it now, and it's got all the great stuff I love to read and write about:
Another Great Day at Sea chronicles Dyer’s experiences on the USS George H.W. Bush as he navigates the routines and protocols of “carrier-world,” from the elaborate choreography of the flight deck through miles of walkways and hatches to kitchens serving meals for a crew of five thousand to the deafening complexity of catapult and arresting gear. Meeting the Captain, the F-18 pilots and the dentists, experiencing everything from a man-overboard alert to the Steel Beach Party, Dyer guides us through the most AIE (acronym intensive environment) imaginable.
All my stories and novels are set in this environment, populated with these characters, wrapped tightly around these plots and themes. It defies the laws of reason as to why I did not snap up this book the instant I saw it. I am constantly on the prowl for books about ships and sailors. The simple fact is, I am constantly on the prowl for this exact book, and yet the day I found it, I set it back on the shelf and walked away, deciding not to read it. And my question is, why?
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| USS George H.W. Bush |
Today, 4 years later, after I did pick this book out of the bin in the dollar store and read it (in one afternoon), I can say that I should have listened to whatever told me to not to read it in the first place.
It's not that the writing is bad. The man is a good writer. Descriptions are clear, the language is colourful and accurate. In ever scene you know exactly where you are, and that is no small feat when describing flight deck operations, the ship's bridge, the galley, the living compartments, sick bay, and store rooms. The author provides detailed accounts on how massive quantities of food are brought on board, stored, prepared and served. He describes the catapults used to launch aircraft and the arresting gear used to land them with descriptive flair. And he peoples the story with intimate encounters with everyone from the captain to the cook, from the chaplain to the mechanic. But the author doesn't stop there, he doesn't simply describe the spaces and the people, he actually takes you into the lives and into the hearts of the crew. In chapter after chapter, there are accounts of one-on-one interviews with many of the key people who make the ship and it's crew go. And each and every one of these situations, it's clear that the author has the ability to put people at ease and get them to open up and tell their story. And the author, this guy Geoff Dyer, clearly has the writing skills to put you as the reader right into every single scene where you really get to know the men and women he is interviewing. We hear and deeply feel their lives, including the personal relationships, hardships, professional achievements and shortcomings of each and every person we meet. And that is where this story is ruined. Absolutely ruined.
You see, what the author does, and he does it really well, is he takes you aboard the ship (which is a massively difficult thing for a writer to do because it's a completely alien environment). And he explains all the mechanical systems (which is difficult to do because everything is large and complicated and unlike anything on land in the civilian world). He's fascinated by it all (along with the reader - because the author has a great gift in his ability to take you aboard a super-carrier with words). Of course he uses a bit of humor here and there as all sailors do. And he even drops in a little sarcasm, which is extremely refreshing at first, because you get the sense that this book isn't going to be a politically correct Navy press release. At first, the author's sarcasm and complaints are subtle. It makes sense that someone would complain about the noise, the cramped spaces, the food, the announcements blasting at all hours through speakers in ever space, all the acronyms. But the author's chronic whining doesn't level off. It's not a snarky remark here and there. The author's chronic whining takes over the story and begins to color every interaction, begins to fill every page.
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| Inconsistent Reviews on Amazon |
Page by page, the author's complaints, his whiny attitude, his criticism of each and ever member of the crew (who open up and share their inner lives with him) begins to overshadow the entire story. It's like a slap in the face to the reader. We are brought aboard the ship, taken down below decks, shown all this gigantic and amazing mechanical, aeronautical shipboard machinery. We meet the actual people who are working hard, serving their country, spending months at sea away from their loved ones. The author puts them at ease and they open up to us about their professional and personal lives. As they open up to us, it's all described so well, but in every situation the author drops in his constant snide and crude and cranky remarks.
Here are excerpt from two 2-star reviews on Amazon that summarise my critique of this book:
Dyer presumably spent 2 weeks embedded on a US aircraft carrier. He never got mastery of his material. Reading in stretches like the tantrums of a precocious and spoiled child, his report is little more than a series of high-handed put-downs and cynical gags groping for an organizing metaphor, which never emerges. From a two-star review on Amazon
Compared to Dyer's previous books, this is pathetic. "Great Day" is at least half about Dyer himself- his preferences in food and movies, his ageing body, his health and diet, even his bowel movements. He put zero effort into reflecting on his material; there's nothing of his dazzling connections of disparate findings, his evocation of a deep background that sets his observations in a more profound context. Only twice does he even wonder about what he's observing, and both excursions are commonplace trivialities. And actually, he doesn't even observe very much. His previous works feature references to an extensive literature, but "Great Day" references mostly movies, and contemporary American movies at that. Probably worst of all is his effort to be humorous, tongue-in-cheek funny. It's not funny at all; it's pathetic. This book is the work of a self-absorbed SoCal fluffhead. From a 2-star review on Amazon
If you enjoy a good sea story, these two are free on all eReaders.
Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble Nook, Smashwords
Malcolm Torres is the author of many original Sea Stories.
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