Philip Caputo's Blog, page 11
May 24, 2017
SOME RISE BY SIN REVIEWED BY “THE VETERAN”
Here is a link to a review of SOME RISE BY SIN that appears in the official magazine of the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA):
https://vvabooks.wordpress.com/
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May 14, 2017
SOME RISE BY SIN SEATTLE TIMES REVIEW
SOME RISE BY SIN REVIEWED IN SEATTLE TIMES
http://www.seattletimes.com/entertain...
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May 9, 2017
SOME RISE BY SIN ON TV
Click on this link, http://www.newschannel5.com/talk-of-t.... SOME RISE BY SIN gets a plug at the 1:43 minute mark.
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May 8, 2017
ANOTHER LAND GRAB
Conservatives complain (and complain and complain) that there is too much government in our lives. In reality, we live in an age when the corporation, especially those companies in the high-tech, digital sector, dominate. They reign supreme. This link, from the Authors Guild, shows what one famous online retailer is trying to do to my industry, publishing.
https://www.authorsguild.org/industry...
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April 28, 2017
FERGUSON LIBRARY EVENT
Click on the link below for more info on the Ferguson Library event on May 11 in Stamford, CT.
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April 25, 2017
THOMAS SANCHEZ’S REVIEW OF SOME RISE BY SIN.
A mighty narrative in a brutal land of old gods and new devils where darkness pierces the heart in an unholy war for souls. Beyond the realities of vicious narco-hombres, crooked good guys, innocents torn asunder and acts of selfless grace, Caputo reaches for a high moral compass not seen since Graham Greene’s magnificent Mexico set classic, The Power And The Glory.
Thomas Sanchez is the author of Mile Zero and Rabbit Boss
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April 18, 2017
Article about Some Rise By Sin
This article, giving a summary of Some Rise By Sin and some background about the novel’s genesis, appeared today, April 18.
The post Article about Some Rise By Sin appeared first on Philip Caputo.
Article about Some Rise By Sin.
This article, giving a summary of Some Rise By Sin, and some background about the novel’s genesis, appeared today, April 18.
The post Article about Some Rise By Sin. appeared first on Philip Caputo.
April 1, 2017
Upcoming SOME RISE BY SIN readings and book signings
Some Rise by Sin publishes in early May, and I’ll be updating here my various appearances to promote the book.
Hope to see you at one of these events.
Thurs., 5/11
7 pm: Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT
http://fergusonlibrary.org/event/book-launch-some-rise-by-sin-a-novel-by-philip-caputo/
Mon., 5/15
7 pm: Brazos bookstore, Houston, TX
http://www.brazosbookstore.com/
Wed., 5/17
7 pm: Changing Hands Bookstore, Phoenix, AZ
Fri., 5/26
7:30 pm: Seattle Town Hall, Seattle, WA
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March 28, 2017
UP THE MEKONG TO ANGKOR WAT — DAY 5 (Feb.27)
The Mekong is the 12th longest river in the world. It surges more than 2,700 miles from its springs in the glaciers of the Tibetan plateau, coursing through China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia to the humid delta in Vietnam, where its brown waters spill into the blue South China Sea.
The Jahan cruised to a remote Vietnamese town, Chau Doc, where we took trishaw rides through its teeming markets, riotous with the colors of every fruit you imagine. Returning to the river, we watched the shorelines passing by, mile after mile of villages, fish farms, barges and boats, decorated with flowers to appease river spirits (in case the painted eyes on the bows didn’t work their magic). Around mid-afternoon, the ship dropped anchor at the Cambodian border. While the first officer handled customs and other formalities, I again sang for my passage in the Jahan’s lounge, delivering a lecture on my two post-war visits to Vietnam. Lighter stuff than the previous talk, and it, too, came off pretty well. It was followed by a presentation by a cultural specialist, David Brotherson. Married to a Cambodian, he’s an Australian expat who lives in Siem Reap, Cambodia. His lecture was titled, “Cambodia and Vietnam: Next Door Neighbors, Culturally Distinct.”
I didn’t think this particularly unusual; the U.S. and Mexico are next door neighbors and culturally distinct. To sum up, the principle cultural and linguistic influence on Vietnam is Chinese, on Cambodia, Indian; Vietnamese is a tonal language; depending on the speaker’s inflection, one word can have six different meanings; Khmer, the language of Cambodia, is atonal; Vietnam, with twice the land area and six times the population, is far more developed; its GDP is $193 billion, compared with Cambodia’s $18 billion; Vietnam, its educational system based on Confucian principles, is a meritocracy; education in Cambodia, in Brotherson’s estimate, “is a joke,” and the main reason it is less developed. But there is one area where the two countries draw closer together: corruption. In Transparency International’s corruption index of 167 countries, Vietnam ranks 112, Cambodia 150. (If you’re curious, Denmark holds first place, the U.S. comes in at 16).
The ship weighed anchor, crossed the border, and sailed up the Tonle Sap, a Mekong tributary, toward Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital. There, we would encounter some mind-bending contrasts.
Boat on the Mekong.
Chau Doc market scene
Chau Doc riverfront
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