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Clive Sinclair
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Book
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Publisher | Picador | ||
ISBN | 978-033042643 | ||
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Reviewer
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Ann
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Synopsis
Today's Wild West is not what it was, though it wishes that it were. The old certainties are gone, leaving only questions - but can anyone separate truth from legend, fact from fiction? Two cousins set out to attempt just that: the one is Peppercorn, a fading photo-journalist in search of his inner cowboy; the other is Saltzman, lecturer in American Studies at the University of St Albans. On their travels they encounter many of the great heroes of the Wild West - or at least the men and women who impersonate them - as well as other larger-than-life characters such as innocent Mercy Sweetbriar, runner-up in the 'Appearance, Personality, and Photogenics' category of South Dakota's Miss Rodeo contest, not-so-innocent Miami Bitch, Kevin Costner, and Bill Janklow, Governor of South Dakota, and latter-day Indian fighter.In order to fully capture the extravagance of these people and the landscapes they inhabit, Clive Sinclair has been driven to invent a new genre. He calls it Dodgy Realism, a melange of fact, fantasy, and fiction. Call it what you will, his new book is both an erudite investigation of, and a glorious romp through, the heartland of America.
Review
An unusual and clever approach to depicting and determining the history of the American Wild West.
This is written as the travels of two jewish cousins from England, Peppercorn and Saltzman, the first a photojournalist and the other an academic professor, who visit historic cowboy and indian sites in the western states of America in the course of their respective profesions. Their experiences, interspersed with maps and photos, are related with an humorous eye for the banal and bizarre, and show how the myth has become intertwined with reality through its interpretation by novelists and movie producers. As one character puts it "This is a fine lunancy that cannot distinguish between a genuine National Monument and a tacky stage set".
The real acts are dispensed through the cousins' interaction with guides, rangers and publications from the various, now mainly tourist, sites and re-enactments. But this is also about how Americans now see their past.
Despite not having a great interest in the subject, I found the book strangely compelling, an aficionado would love it !
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