Young Men and Fire

I have heard many times the story of men and women who died or were lucky to escape death when the fire they were sent to extinguish overran them.  Part of our wildland firefighter training each year includes the lessons learned from recent or old fatalities or near misses to fire.

I had never read anything from Maclean until this documentary of the Mann Gulch fire.  I enjoy his writing style, and I especially enjoyed the way he told this story – as one who had fought fire.  He was employed by the forest service in Montana in his youth and experienced battles with fire there.

The tragedy of the fire in Mann Gulch is dissected and examined from several angles in order to learn all that is possible as to how it happened - the painstaking study of documents related to the investigation, of the science related to fire and how it played a part that day, the two survivors who returned to the gulch to relive a terrible event in their lives.

The emotions I felt when the events were retold were powerful. I can only imagine what it must have been like. Near the end of the book we can catch a small glimpse: “When a firefighter is told to drop his firefighting tools he is told to forget he is a firefighter and run for his life.”

Playing for Pizza by John Grisham

Who doesn’t love the classic underdog story? In the face of crushing defeat we find our hero grasping at any chance to rise above. He joins an unlikely group of men in a foreign country, hoping to ride out the ridicule back home until the next big opportunity. The deck is stacked against his new companions, together they battle their way through difficulty not imagined.

When given the chance to follow his dream, I was very impressed with the pride of organization and team shown by our star, Rick, by choosing to stay with his commitment instead of taking a selfish path. He’s still not perfected as we soon learn, but he is maturing. No life and death consequences exist, but I was happy to see him caring for the dreams of others more than his own.

A quick read compared to many of Grisham’s other works, I enjoyed the easy light feel of this novel. I would guess that a book like this is as fun to write as it was to read. In its own way this story reminded me to look around and see what can be done for the benefit of others. Doing just that improves attitude and more than likely the outcome.

The Broker, by John Grisham

I have finished my second reading of THE BROKER by John Grisham.

I really enjoy Grisham’s ability to tell a story.  It had been quite awhile since my first reading of this novel, and I found the experience was as enjoyable as reading it the first time.

I continue reading Grisham’s work because he can weave a story that pulls me in.  I am often at odds with the choices the characters make and the overall outcome – the bad choice and minimal accountability scenario – of some of his stories.  I can usually overlook that because I don’t feel that the purpose of the story is to promote the lifestyle that produces such choices and outcomes.

“Marco” if that is his real name … with potential for danger looming closer and closer, thrust into a situation he can not control, wins me to his cause because of the vulnerability he feels.  His resourcefulness in a difficult situation is also laudable.  I also enjoyed sampling another culture through the pages of this book.

I was so interested in the day-to-day events of the story that I was seldom anxious to discover the mystery that had started it all in the first place.  When it was time to reveal the key pieces of the puzzle it was done quickly and appropriately, not belaboring the point.

I will definitely put this back on the list of re-reads, and expect to enjoy it even more the third time.