Billy and the Devil, by Dean Lilleyman

This bizarre novel (told through a large number of very short, fleeting chapters from varied perspectives) tells the story of Billy, an alcoholic. Billy is viewed by those around him as a devil of sorts because he hurts everyone with his actions when he's drunk. He is, by all accounts, a terrible human being.

I like stories about terrible human beings because usually there is a reason for what they do, and in real life we seldom look for that reason. Yet, in novels, sometimes we can find sympathy for the devil. Yes, that's the name of a Rolling Stones song, and yes that song is mentioned a handful of times through the book.

We follow Billy's life from before he was even born up until an ambiguous ending of sorts, and always we see the side toll of addiction. We know that if Billy was a player in our own lives, we would be harmed by him and push him away for the awful things he does, but as a character in this novel we pity him.

Billy is drinking heavily from age eleven. As an adult he cannot drink without pushing on through to complete drunkenness, and when he is drunk he invariably ends up doing awful things. He cheats, he starts fights, he alienates everyone.

There is one scene when he actually - uncharacteristically - goes to Alcoholics Anonymous and ends up telling a sad story and cries in front of everyone in the room. Of course, for a working class Glaswegian this is too much to bear and he goes start to the "offy" (off-licence) to buy more booze and get drunk.

The book is depressing in many ways, and it takes a while to get into it. The fragmentary nature of its composition is challenging at first, but soon you realize this is how Billy sees his own life. This is how life can be. It ends up being a rewarding, powerful book. 

Kingdom of Rarities, by Eric Dinerstein

This past week I've been reading the wonderful Kingdom of Rarities, by Eric Dinerstein on my Kindle. As soon as I read the synopsis I was excited to get into it, and it absolutely did not disappoint. Though it may sound a bit inaccessible, it is a thoroughly readable look at species on this earth which are rare, exploring why exactly they aren't in abundance.


Dinerstein has spent his life travelling the world, studying rare animals, and his knowledge and experience guide the reader from chapter to chapter. We are taken on a trip around the world, from South America to the Himalayas to Southeast Asia. His descriptions of his surroundings are vivid and impressive. I've travelled much of my adult life and I envy his ability to capture the magnificence of a locations.

Moreover, he knows a lot about biology and the workings of the world, and where he isn't the expert, he talks to those who are, and eloquently captures their perspectives of rarity. He describes jaguars and rhinos and other amazing creatures, explaining why these animals are rare and what exactly their place in nature is.

The book is filled with fascinating information. For example, in the UK there are 15 species of trees which occur naturally, while in the tropics - where rarities abound - there are 70,000 species. 1,000 of these exist on a single mountain, which harbors numerous rarities. Elsewhere, he describes the tropics canopies and methods scientists are using to explore the life they support. All of it is surprising and informative.

Sadly, though many of these animals exist naturally in small numbers, many of them are endangered due to human activity, and many naturally occurring rarities are pushed from rare to extinct due to our own growth. It is incredible sad how Dinerstein details amazing creatures all across the globe over his career, and yet whenever he draws close to the present day, he finds them extinct or nearly extinct. It is nothing short of heartbreaking just how much destruction we are doing to our planet, and much of it is irreversible.

He talks about the Vietnam War and its aftermath - the battle between conservation and development. Unsurprisingly, the conservationists are losing all the way. Where American bombs damaged populations of wildlife, now the population is hunting every remaining species and ensuring that natural diversity disappears.

Though Dinerstein often seems optimistic about conservation, it is hard to read this beautiful book without feeling the opposite. I've been lucky in my life to have come face to face with the most incredible animals, yet if I have children I'm sure I'll have to explain to them how so many of these animals are no longer with us. 

The Worst Motorcycle in Laos, by Chris Tharp

This fantastic collection of travel essays takes its title from a shorter piece near the end of the book. The author details a comedic journey through Southern Laos on a motorcycle that may very well be the worst bike in the whole damn country. The essay is typical of Tharp's style - witty, descriptive, and no-holds-barred. He barely manages to get the bike through a trail called The Loop, suffering a series of comic misadventures, before coming to the realization that sometimes we need these calamities in order to see the real side of a place.

Throughout this short and enjoyable collection, Tharp takes us off the beaten track to a number of weird and wonderful locations across Asia, from Western China to the Philippines, from Japan to Thailand. In every instance he presents the world as fascinating, colorful, and mysterious. He lopes around drunkenly for the most part, stumbling from misadventure to misadventure, but never forgetting to clue us in on his surroundings. The result is a very funny, very informative, and strangely poignant book.

If you love travel or are interested in the food, the culture, or even the landscape of Asia, check out this cool book. If you're sick of Lonely Planet and sugary-sweet travel blogs, I'm pretty sure you'll get a kick out of Tharp's tales.