Louis

Thanks for your response. I suspected you were a Scot from the books you've posted. I'm quite familiar with Kirkaldy having lived in Dunfermline for a year. I also spent a few days in Santa Barbara a number of years ago and I remember seeing "Raiders of the Lost Ark" in a wonderful little movie theater which was done up to look like a Mexican village.

You may be interested to know that before his death I corresponded with Robin Jenkins. When I first read "Fergus Lamont" I recognized that Gantock, the town where the story is set, bore a strong resemblance to my home town of Greenock. I wrote to Mr Jenkins to ask if he was in fact writing about Greenock. In his reply he confirmed it, telling me that for a time he taught in Greenock Academy and, tragically, his son who had died in a car accident, was buried in Greenock Cemetery. He also told me that he'd been to the States many times, mostly to visit his daughter who lives in San Diego.

Being a Californian yourself, I recommend you read "Childish Things," one of his later books, which for the most part is set in southern California. If you can overlook a few stereotypical American characters, it's a highly entertaining read with Jenkin's mix of humour and tragedy.

Thanks again for your response. I look forward to seeing the rest of your library when you have it posted. I still have to add a good number of books myself.

Cheers,
Dave

Lähettänyt: David1312 8:16 pm (EST) Mar 12, 2007

A Californian drawn to Robin Jenkins? How did that happen?

Lähettänyt: David1312 12:10 am (EST) Mar 11, 2007