MASH Goes to Paris

M*A*S*H #4

by Richard Hooker, William E. Butterworth III

FIRST IN WAR...
FIRST IN PEACE...

Once again, the intrepid gang from M*A*S*H - Hawkeye, Hot Lips, Radar and the General - are called to their country's service. This time they've been called to rescue the U.S. Government from a ticklish diplomatic spot.

And by the time their wenching, wine-soaked tour of duty has ended, they've all but drawn and quartered Gay Paree - from the Quai d'Orsay to Les Champs Elysees, from the Grand Opera to Le Tour Eiffel.

- From the back cover

Genres: Fiction, Humor

222 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Richard Hooker is the pseudonym of Hiester Richard Hornberger Jr. who was born February 1, 1924 and died November 4, 1997. He was an American writer and surgeon. His most famous work was his novel MASH (1968). The novel was based on his own personal experiences during the Korean War at the 8055th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital. It was written in collaboration with W. C. Heinz. The novel took 11 years to write. In 1970, and then again from 1972-1983 it was used as the basis for a critically and commercially successful movie and television series of the same name.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
Richard^Hooker

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Madcap antic in the city of lights. Building on the New Orleans adventure, the MASH crew is once again more of a framework for new characters, but all are just as vibrant as in the first exploitive volume.

[Christopher Rush · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than I remembered it to be - nice to see Henry alive again.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating 3.5

Just the sort of book to read on my last day of leisure before returning to work, and on a day where the weather consisted of heavy rain and wind all day.
Not a story with any substance or weight to it, but it wasn’t that badly written I thought , it moved along at a fast pace and the humour was just right for me.
It was nice to meet the characters from MASH again and see what had happened to them. Henry Blake being in charge of Walter Reed was a bit of a stretch although he appeared as inept as ever.
I did laugh a couple of times and considering the book is over 40 years old it isn’t that bad. Yes there is some non-pc language or imagery at times but that was okay then and tbh non of it is as offensive as some of the things you read or see at the present time.
So …
Rating was difficult as it should be a 3.5 moved to 3 on goodreads but it feels like 4 due to the enjoyment factor? Will have to think it over for a couple of days.

Overall recommend but at least read the first 2 books in the series first. From this point on the stories get a bit repetitive from what I remember vaguely .

[Jeff Mayo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought and read all of these in the 1980’s, when I became a fan of the original novel and the 1970 movie. These exist in a different universe than the TV series. Hawkeye, Hot Lips, Radar, and General Blake are in Paris. They are mostly secondary characters while a new group takes over the antics. This would have been just another 2 star flop, but I gave it a third. At a time when the TV show was killing off Henry Blake, the source material had him alive and promoted.

[Erik Deckers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the general looniness of the MASH stories, having recently discovered them. My mission is to buy all of the paperback versions and read them. So I'm reading them in a random order, not that it matters. Each story is a standalone although there are some chronological threads running through everything.

[Gregory · Rating 2 out of 5]

Being a M*A*S*H fan and having read the original book, I picked this up used on a whim. It's not very good. It's an unrealistic story intended to be funny, where the characters we know are actually often in the background.

[Mira · Rating 1 out of 5]

A full on farce featuring our favorite medical staffers. The humor is dated and the large ensemble of characters left me parboiled.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just love Hawkeye and Trapper's friendship in this so much. Great to read about Henry and Radar as well.

[Don LaFountaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a an interesting installment in the MASH series of books. Though it is not as good as the original MASH book, it is one of the better one's I have read.

This book starts with the French government offering to give out medals to a number of people to try to offset that the US Government was starting to ask about being paid back for World War I debts. It seems to work, until they get to the name of Mr. Jean-Pierre de la Chevaux. Having done background research, the Secretary of State summons General Henry Blake. They tell him that the need his help because the only two people that can keep Mr. de la Chevaux sober for medal ceremony were two surgeons who worked under Henry in the Korean War...Hawkeye Pierce and Trapper John McIntyre.

Though it takes some doing, the two surgeons leave their Maine clinic, and then pickup Radar and Hotlips along the way before heading to Paris. Once there, havoc reigns! The Knights of Columbus guards get into a fight in on the airport runway; a radical liberal Congressperson forces her was onto the plane and ends up knocking down a man she see coming towards the plane after it lands; Boris, a famous opera singer needs to get "exercise" before his sister shows up; his Arab friend, who is a Prince, try to help him find a suitable companion, only to have things become such a mess. It was thought that Hotlips was taken hostage by Arab terrorists, Boris is not sure about Radar and does not want to have the surgeons examine him, all the while a man in love with Hotlips flies to Paris to search out his love!

Though I have not yet read MASH goes to New Orleans, (which seems to take place prior to this book) the reader does not need to read the book in order. This book will appeal to fans of MASH, though I am not sure if non fans of MASH will like the book.

[Benn Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Despite the back cover listing the then current of the TV series, "M*A*S*H", "M*A*S*H Goes to Paris" (and really this applies to all the M*A*S*H novels) has nothing in common with the TV show. While the TV show was steeped in '70s liberalism, the novels tended to be more conservative, thus giving both sets of series very different tones. If you're expecting television's Hawkeye, you'll be disappointed.

For me, the "M*A*S*H" books have always been mildly amusing and not for political reasons. The books by Richard Hooker and William E. Butterworth lack the wit and cleverness of the TV show, relying mainly on broad slapstick humor. Some of it I do find funny, but mostly I feel the books try too hard. They are also very formulaic, particularly those with Butterworth as a co-author: Various characters from the original novels converge on a city/country for some flimsy excuse (the excuse in "...Goes to Paris" is really flimsy), misunderstandings and mishaps occur amidst bouts of drunkenness and fornication with some mild satire thrown in for good measure. It's not the most sophisticated comedy, but it can bring a smile or two.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find people either hate MASH or love it. I am a lover all the way. This book is junk food reading but it is silly and hilarious and makes me smile just to think about the zany group and their antics across the pond. Plus, Radar finds love!

[Phil Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just an awful continuation of the MASH world. Hawkeye and the gang head to Paris to accept a medal given by the French government. A preposterous idea that was only made worse by the nearly incoherent writing style of William E. Butterworth. Terrible, just terrible.