Monday, November 06, 2006

What about Webb, the writer?

Want to know more about James H. “Jim” Webb, Jr., the writer?

Webb has actually done quite well in the word biz, but is the Vietnam War combat veteran and former Sec. of the Navy really a smut-peddler, as his rather desperate opponent, Sen. George Allen, has been crying since Webb pulled ahead in the opinion polls?

If after Allen’s most recent avalanche of television ads -- which charge that Webb writes in a “deviant” fashion -- you’ve gotten a little curious about his reputation as an author, then perhaps you should take a few minutes to look at that side of his life. Click here to go to jameswebb.com.

LA Times: "'Lost Soldiers' is a strong and unusual novel. On its face, it is a standard tale of intrigue, adventure and mystery. James Webb has written a well-plotted story about Americans and Vietnamese in Vietnam more than a quarter-century after the war’s end. You want to know what will happen next. You will not be disappointed. Yet, in retrospect, the plot fades away, and what the reader remembers most is the deep pull of affection the Americans feel for Vietnam and the Vietnamese. It's not just that love that comes through; there is also powerful nostalgia for lost youth, friends dead, forever-missed possibilities of life.”

Washington Post (on “Something to Die For”): “Webb is not just a writer of war thrillers; he is a genuine novelist of ideas...A century hence, James Webb will be studied for the light he sheds on military life and civil-military relations at the climax of the American Century.”
Photo: SLANT

1 comment:

Catzmaw said...

I brought my copy of Fields of Fire to my sister on a family visit this weekend. Somehow, I kept leafing through the book, re-reading passages and finding meanings in things I hadn't noticed on the first go-round. I think he is indeed an extraordinary novelist and hope he someday finds the time to write again. Perhaps after his first term in the Senate he'll have a new pile of grist for his mill.