A review by giantarms
The Balloonist by MacDonald Harris
4.0
Yes, hello, do you need a book where half of it is an expedition to the North Pole in a hot air balloon and the other half is a mixed up remembrance of a gender-bending romance? Would you like all of the people involved to be absolute weirdos? How do you feel about page-long walls of introspective text?
Sounds good? Yes?
All right. HAVE I GOT A BOOK FOR YOU.
. . .
It's, uh, it's this one.
. . .
What? Do you need more? Fine.
It took a while to get into, which can be a problem in my current child-related attention deficit problem, but luckily I brought it along while I got my oil changed. Alone. Glory be!
You see, one day I was up in the stacks and a bright red book with a golden blimp* on it caught my eye. "READ THIS BOOK. THE GUY'S DEAD. LAST CHANCE. NOBODY KNOWS THIS GUY. WHAT IS YOU PEOPLE'S PROBLEM? Also, he wrote the The Balloonist."
Now, I can't tell you why I thought it would a good idea to go get two books when I can barely read one these days, but there I was with a bare yellow cover I didn't even notice the title had been embossed into until I finished reading it. Which is to say, I went in blind. Had I read the bright red book with the glowing reviews and therefore developed some reason to trust its recommendation? No. Did I look up some critical reviews and make a decision based on their opinions? Not really. Have I been disappointed by random books plucked off the shelves before? Yes.**
Nevertheless, I found myself reading about this orderly man going about his orderly ways with his competent, yet colorful companions and then . . . he does . . . an insignificant thing, but a bonkers one. And from there, complementary oatmeal creme pie in my belly, tire fumes in the air, I had to know what the heck was going on.
So I read the book. Ta-da! Now I know and you don't and I won't tell you! Ha-ha! Find your own oatmeal creme pie, sucker!
* [b:The Carp Castle|16479529|The Carp Castle|MacDonald Harris|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1441199761s/16479529.jpg|22675918]
** Jose Builds a Woman
Sounds good? Yes?
All right. HAVE I GOT A BOOK FOR YOU.
. . .
It's, uh, it's this one.
. . .
What? Do you need more? Fine.
It took a while to get into, which can be a problem in my current child-related attention deficit problem, but luckily I brought it along while I got my oil changed. Alone. Glory be!
You see, one day I was up in the stacks and a bright red book with a golden blimp* on it caught my eye. "READ THIS BOOK. THE GUY'S DEAD. LAST CHANCE. NOBODY KNOWS THIS GUY. WHAT IS YOU PEOPLE'S PROBLEM? Also, he wrote the The Balloonist."
Now, I can't tell you why I thought it would a good idea to go get two books when I can barely read one these days, but there I was with a bare yellow cover I didn't even notice the title had been embossed into until I finished reading it. Which is to say, I went in blind. Had I read the bright red book with the glowing reviews and therefore developed some reason to trust its recommendation? No. Did I look up some critical reviews and make a decision based on their opinions? Not really. Have I been disappointed by random books plucked off the shelves before? Yes.**
Nevertheless, I found myself reading about this orderly man going about his orderly ways with his competent, yet colorful companions and then . . . he does . . . an insignificant thing, but a bonkers one. And from there, complementary oatmeal creme pie in my belly, tire fumes in the air, I had to know what the heck was going on.
So I read the book. Ta-da! Now I know and you don't and I won't tell you! Ha-ha! Find your own oatmeal creme pie, sucker!
Spoiler
Hello, me. It's me, me. This is a note to remind you there's a sad, melancholy ending to this one. It's beautiful and appropriate, but if you're looking for a pick-me-up, try something else, ok? Good, I love you, good-bye.* [b:The Carp Castle|16479529|The Carp Castle|MacDonald Harris|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1441199761s/16479529.jpg|22675918]
** Jose Builds a Woman