Post by tintin on Mar 4, 2013 18:42:25 GMT 1
This book intrigued me for a long time with its original premise of having to train a horse adverse aviator to be a showjumper. My curiosity got the better of me, but I read the first book “Jacqueline Rides for a Fall” first to introduce the characters. Now I have got round to this one.
First off I found this a gripping well written book with some interesting facts about show jumping and some well described competitions. This led it to overcome some, in my view, fairly serious flaws to be a very good read.
On the flaws side it uses the tired plot device of a will (which conveniently changes at the last moment), the equine characters are more than a little in the background and, for a book plugged as a comedy it is not that funny (though I accept that is a matter of taste.) However, it must be very good as despite these flaws, and its being very short and having a rather pointless section about Captain ffox RN and his mechanical horse, I still greatly enjoyed it.
Secondly, the Darcy character is spot on. I am sure Pat Smythe must have known some actual pilots. Darcy is an RAF test pilot on a short service commission – this means that he is very clever and a very good pilot. His commission has not been extended (the book was written in 1961, there had been a defence review in 1958 which massively cut back the RAF). He is faced with the classic dilemma of so many ex-servicemen in that he is massively skilled at something no one is interested in in civilian life. In typical service style of “be more than you appear to be” most of these pilots display to the world a “silly ass” Bertie Wooster type persona. If you want to know how bright, and how brave, a test pilot had to be “Feet Wet” by Rear Admiral Paul T Gilcrist USN is a very good book.
Along comes the will with its great inheritance, which can save the day, but Darcy is horse adverse. However, he does have all his test pilot attributes – brave, aggressive, extremely quick witted, fit, intelligent, highly committed to the mission and willing to learn. He comes on very well and learns a lot. However, he also has a certain sort of stupidity only possessed by the very intelligent and the crashing indifference to etiquette for which fliers are so well known (displayed here in the hunting field, but familiar to anyone with knowledge of joint service messes).
There is a very nice romance in the book which, surprisingly, survives an appallingly stupid argument. All ends well.
I thought the book had great character and good values.
Weirdly I even saw an advert for tuition on a mechanical horse the other day…
First off I found this a gripping well written book with some interesting facts about show jumping and some well described competitions. This led it to overcome some, in my view, fairly serious flaws to be a very good read.
On the flaws side it uses the tired plot device of a will (which conveniently changes at the last moment), the equine characters are more than a little in the background and, for a book plugged as a comedy it is not that funny (though I accept that is a matter of taste.) However, it must be very good as despite these flaws, and its being very short and having a rather pointless section about Captain ffox RN and his mechanical horse, I still greatly enjoyed it.
Secondly, the Darcy character is spot on. I am sure Pat Smythe must have known some actual pilots. Darcy is an RAF test pilot on a short service commission – this means that he is very clever and a very good pilot. His commission has not been extended (the book was written in 1961, there had been a defence review in 1958 which massively cut back the RAF). He is faced with the classic dilemma of so many ex-servicemen in that he is massively skilled at something no one is interested in in civilian life. In typical service style of “be more than you appear to be” most of these pilots display to the world a “silly ass” Bertie Wooster type persona. If you want to know how bright, and how brave, a test pilot had to be “Feet Wet” by Rear Admiral Paul T Gilcrist USN is a very good book.
Along comes the will with its great inheritance, which can save the day, but Darcy is horse adverse. However, he does have all his test pilot attributes – brave, aggressive, extremely quick witted, fit, intelligent, highly committed to the mission and willing to learn. He comes on very well and learns a lot. However, he also has a certain sort of stupidity only possessed by the very intelligent and the crashing indifference to etiquette for which fliers are so well known (displayed here in the hunting field, but familiar to anyone with knowledge of joint service messes).
There is a very nice romance in the book which, surprisingly, survives an appallingly stupid argument. All ends well.
I thought the book had great character and good values.
Weirdly I even saw an advert for tuition on a mechanical horse the other day…