From cocktail rooms to the depp jungles, Ill Wind: Contango will keep you entertain with the classic "What If" genere novel with each chapter leading to a new character being introduced. "A common soldier, a child, a girl at the door of an inn, have changed the face of fortune, and almost of Nature." "History seen from a distance produces the illusion that it is rational." "To reflect how easily the course of things might have been different is to learn perspective and humility." "The random element in the Universe always increases." We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.
James Hilton was an English novelist and screenwriter. He is best remembered for his novels Lost Horizon, Goodbye, Mr. Chips and Random Harvest, as well as co-writing screenplays for the films Camille (1936) and Mrs. Miniver (1942), the latter earning him an Academy Award.
This is a series of short stories interconnected with each other.
3* Lost Horizon (1933) 3* So Well Remembered (1945) 5* The Passionate Year (1924) 4* Terry (1927) 4* Catherine Herself (1920) 4* Good-Bye, Mr. Chips (1934) 4* The Meadows of the moon (1927) 4* Morning Journey (1951) 5* Random Harvest (1941) 4* Nothing So Strange (1947) 4* Time and Time Again (1953) 2* Knight Without Armor (1935) 3.5* To You Mr. Chips (1938) 4* The Dawn of Reckoning (Rage in Heaven) (1925) 2* Contango (Ill Wind) (1932) TR We Are Not Alone (1937) TR Twilight of the Wise TR Storm passage (1922)
I finished this little gem, and went straight back to the beginning and am reading it again, mostly for this review. Not many people have rated it and no one has reviewed, so here I go with plans to update this after the second reading. This. Is. An. Excellent. Book! (Are you getting tired of that "emphasis" punctuation? Me, too, but I wanted to make my point.) As I read from one short story to the next, I kept trying to find stand-out sentences that I could quote as examples of great writing. I gave up because there were too many. Here is a textbook on how to write such that each sentence contributes to moving the story along. I don't think there's a way to condense or summarize any of it. (Second reading - no updates, still a great book.)
A favorite author of mine. A favorite book, Lost Horizon was also written by Hilton. And I've been looking for a good copy of this for years, finally settling for a cheap paperback from a US Army library. I have all his other books in hardcover and will still search for this one. A story of nine individuals linked together, their stories woven into a lovely narrative. Hilton is still a well deserved favorite. I wish he had lived longer, written more.