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The Canal House
by
Photojournalist Nicky Bettencourt thinks he's seen everything until he teams up with the legendary war correspondent Daniel McFarland. To Daniel, the story is everything; people come later. But after a plane crash nearly takes his life, Daniel begins to see the world in a different way. He falls in love with Julia Cadell, an idealistic British doctor, and together they fin
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Paperback, 368 pages
Published
July 5th 2004
by Mariner Books
(first published April 11th 2003)
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I won this book on Goodreads. It was a stunning story of war and the journalists and photographers who cover these events. A love story involving a doctor who goes to these war torn places to help the innocent victims merges in their stories. Extremely well written and vivid.
Nov 30, 2008
Christina
rated it
really liked it
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Future Journalist
The Canal House by Mark Lee intrigued me. Lately, I’ve been on a bit of a journalism kick, for example, Forgive Me by Amanda Eyre Ward.
I really liked how this book shifted from the point of view of Nicky, the photojournalist, to Julia, the doctor.
“But everything was simpler there [at the refugee camp]: you never thought about how you looked and what you should wear, you never had to deal with rush hour and over drafts at your bank, there were no hospital administrators criticizing how much time ...more
I really liked how this book shifted from the point of view of Nicky, the photojournalist, to Julia, the doctor.
“But everything was simpler there [at the refugee camp]: you never thought about how you looked and what you should wear, you never had to deal with rush hour and over drafts at your bank, there were no hospital administrators criticizing how much time ...more
If you can keep up with all the traveling and the switching of narrators I think anyone could enjoy this book. It's the journey of a journalist, a photographer and a relief aid doctor. It has adventure, romance and heartbreak. I really enjoyed reading it.
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I may be stepping out on a limb by giving this book 5 stars, but I really did LOVE it. Maybe because of the topic of relief work in 3rd world countries, maybe because of the photography references, maybe because the characters were just so awesome. Whatever it was, this book was great!
One of those books which hit me very strongly at the time I read it -- bits of it are still clear in my mind and those bits are enticement to revisit it one day. Highly recommend this one.
There are some books that you can't seem to put down because you are so entrenched in the story. Then there are books that feel so real, so alive, that you want to take your time in it, to absorb every little detail and you feel as if you are part of the characters' lives, feeling everything with them. This book falls in the latter category. It's a sorry you don't want to end. The characters are people you could actually know, not stock characters drawn from a textbook. They have real lives, rea
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I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
Thank you to everyone involved.
This book is very well written. Great characters.
You won’t want to put it down.
Thank you to everyone involved.
This book is very well written. Great characters.
You won’t want to put it down.
I received my copy free through Goodreads Giveaways.
Great story
Brilliant!
Interesting story from the perspective of an in field photographer and a Dr. Very well written.
"The Canal House" is told in two acts and an intermission across territory as far-flung as the UK to Italy to Uganda to East Timor. It is the story of foreign correspondents, international aid workers, and the mercenaries who rush toward disaster to collect gold and glory. Mark Lee's novel and his characters are players in a complex global ecosystem. Each must choose how to live with others, and ultimately whether or not they can live with the versions of themselves that they choose to be. Lee e
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Good read. Lee's experiences ring true in his fiction. Nice pacing, good character development and, 6 years removed from it's original publication, a still relevant reflection on modern war, peace-keeping, and the commercialism of International Aid efforts. You get to learn something and enjoy a thrilling plot, while not being preached to.
I recommend picking it up from your local bookseller. Mine are Bailey Coy and Elliott Bay Books.
Philip Swanstrom Shaw ...more
I recommend picking it up from your local bookseller. Mine are Bailey Coy and Elliott Bay Books.
Philip Swanstrom Shaw ...more
I'm glad to be finished. For some reason, I never really got into this book. The relationships just seemed a little false to me and I really just don't believe guys go around caring if another guy calls him his "best friend". Sometimes the writing was pretty decent. But I just felt at such a distance from all the characters and that just made me simply not care all that much. I like the cover.
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a book about journalists and photographers traveling the world to cover disasters, genocides and the such. This was the view of one of them:
Idealists are dangerous to themselves and the people around them. If you truly wanted to live a good life, it was a revolutionary act....If you want to be a saint, you have to risk looking like a fool.
Idealists are dangerous to themselves and the people around them. If you truly wanted to live a good life, it was a revolutionary act....If you want to be a saint, you have to risk looking like a fool.
I just finished the book this early morning, in less than 48 hours, and really liking it.
The descriptions are detailed but not overdone, the plot was flowing and intriguing. The characters are strong, and almost real. I would really love to meet these person in life, Daniel, Julia and Nicky.
The descriptions are detailed but not overdone, the plot was flowing and intriguing. The characters are strong, and almost real. I would really love to meet these person in life, Daniel, Julia and Nicky.
I enjoyed this one about life as a war correspondent in some of the most dangerous war zones in current memory. Interesting work, especially in Africa and East Timore. Recommended to everyone who wants an "interesting" life...
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I would definitely recommend this book. Even though my world is very different from the one described, I found it very easy to feel involved in the story line and close to the main characters. The writer knows how to increase the intensity level at the end, I could not put it down. A good read.
Very sad story. But finally a book about news writers with a conscience. The war correspondent and photo journalist in East Timor, risking their lives to get interviews and the truth to the international press.
Wonderful book about war, refuge camps, journalism, and even mild politics.
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first novel that I've read that I really liked in quite a while. I'm just sad I can't find more books like it
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Nogo awau
I really enjoyed the book however I felt that there was way too much of an interval between scenes of action. Daniel had an unfortunate ending.
gripping fiction about a photographer's growth through experiencing modern danger spots with a fearless journalist
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Not a perfect book. But what it does--it does completely. Creates a world on a page. Satisfying.
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Mark Lee is a highly regarded novelist, playwright, journalist and children's book author.
You can learn more on his author website: http://www.markwlee.com
Or read a short Wikipedia entry:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Le... ...more
You can learn more on his author website: http://www.markwlee.com
Or read a short Wikipedia entry:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Le... ...more
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