What do you think?
Rate this book
Better than Working
Memoir of well-known journalist Patrick Skene Catling, now resident in west Cork, which covers his hugely varied career and the wonderful characters - famous and notorious - he encountered along the way.
As a young boy Patrick Skene Catling's father sat him at the desk of his office at Reuters and encouraged him to two-finger type on his old Underwood typewriter. Following his father's advice some years later that writing was 'better than working' he embarked on a lifetime as a writer and journalist. Based at various times in England and the United States, he traveled to Korea, Guatemala, Greenland and Australia covering wars, revolutions and press conferences that could give a man a terrible thirst.
At the same time his writing enabled him to plunge himself into cultural milieu that fascinated him. He interviewed Louis Armstrong and James Baldwin. He encountered Jane Russell, married Peggy Lee and was kissed by Billie Holiday. He became a close friend of P.G. Wodehouse. Self-deprecation, charm and a wry sense of humour draw a veil over tremendous achievements, serious discussion and an extraordinary fund of anecdotes.
Better Than Working is a hymn to a vanished era in British and American journalism, as well as being an utterly enjoyable book about a remarkable life.
As a young boy Patrick Skene Catling's father sat him at the desk of his office at Reuters and encouraged him to two-finger type on his old Underwood typewriter. Following his father's advice some years later that writing was 'better than working' he embarked on a lifetime as a writer and journalist. Based at various times in England and the United States, he traveled to Korea, Guatemala, Greenland and Australia covering wars, revolutions and press conferences that could give a man a terrible thirst.
At the same time his writing enabled him to plunge himself into cultural milieu that fascinated him. He interviewed Louis Armstrong and James Baldwin. He encountered Jane Russell, married Peggy Lee and was kissed by Billie Holiday. He became a close friend of P.G. Wodehouse. Self-deprecation, charm and a wry sense of humour draw a veil over tremendous achievements, serious discussion and an extraordinary fund of anecdotes.
Better Than Working is a hymn to a vanished era in British and American journalism, as well as being an utterly enjoyable book about a remarkable life.
302 pages, Paperback
First published March 30, 2004
17 people want to read
About the author
Patrick Skene Catling
32 books49 followersPatrick Skene Catling is a British children's book author and book reviewer best known for writing The Chocolate Touch in 1952.
Catling was born and schooled in London and was educated there and at Oberlin College in the United States. Catling served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a navigator and as a journalist at The Baltimore Sun and The Manchester Guardian.
He has traveled extensively. His present home is in the Republic of Ireland. He continues writing books, and writes reviews for The Spectator, The Telegraph, and other publications.
His first publication of The Chocolate Touch in 1952 received enthusiastic responses from several reviewers. The New York Herald Tribune remarked, "it has already proved a hilarious success with children," and The Saturday Review said, "it is told with an engaging humor that boys and girls will instantly discover and approve." Catling has since written dozens of books, and has developed the popular The Chocolate Touch character John Midas into the children's book series: John Midas in the Dreamtime (1986), John Midas and the Vampires (1994), John Midas and the Radio Touch (1994), and John Midas and the Rock Star (1995). Of John Midas in the Dreamtime, School Library Journal wrote, "...children who have been dragged around tourist sights will relate to John's boredom".
Catling was born and schooled in London and was educated there and at Oberlin College in the United States. Catling served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a navigator and as a journalist at The Baltimore Sun and The Manchester Guardian.
He has traveled extensively. His present home is in the Republic of Ireland. He continues writing books, and writes reviews for The Spectator, The Telegraph, and other publications.
His first publication of The Chocolate Touch in 1952 received enthusiastic responses from several reviewers. The New York Herald Tribune remarked, "it has already proved a hilarious success with children," and The Saturday Review said, "it is told with an engaging humor that boys and girls will instantly discover and approve." Catling has since written dozens of books, and has developed the popular The Chocolate Touch character John Midas into the children's book series: John Midas in the Dreamtime (1986), John Midas and the Vampires (1994), John Midas and the Radio Touch (1994), and John Midas and the Rock Star (1995). Of John Midas in the Dreamtime, School Library Journal wrote, "...children who have been dragged around tourist sights will relate to John's boredom".
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
No one has reviewed this book yet.