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Round the Bend
Round the Bend | Nevil Shute
5 posts | 3 read
When Tom Cutter hires Constantine Shaklin as an engineer in his international air freight business, he little realizes the extraordinary gifts of his new recruit. Shaklin soon proves to possess a charismatic power that inspires everyone he meets to a new faith and hope for humanity. As Cutters business expands across the Middle East and Asia, so does Shaklins fame, unifying people from a wide array of cultures and religions with his unusual blend of the practical and the spiritual.
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review
KelsiTaylor
Round the Bend | Nevil Shute
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Panpan

I would rate this book 0 stars but my Grandpa asked me to read it as it‘s his favorite book so I will give it a 1. Yes it‘s a “product of its time” but tries to be enlightened with unpopular takes for the time on racism, religion, and colonialism, all while the main character does not exhibit the ideals he pretends to be enlightened about. A gross simplification of Eastern philosophy and religion. Absolutely do not recommend

CarolynM Yeah, Shute's politics were pretty awful. Some of the stories are good, but I'd definitely advise you to skip this one 3y
KelsiTaylor @CarolynM is the rest of his writing the same way because the narrator just felt so condescending? 3y
CarolynM It's such a long time since I read them I probably didn't perceive them as condescending in a way I might now. 3y
6 likes3 comments
review
DGRachel
Round the Bend | Nevil Shute
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Panpan

Per Goodreads, mine is an #unpopularopinion. I found this book tedious, boring, imperialist, and racist. The writing was plain, with a lot of short, declarative sentences, but also bogged down by airplane specifications. I did this. I did that. My business grew. I needed another airplane. I needed a loan to buy another airplane. There‘s a secondary “plot” involving one of the MC‘s employees who becomes a religious guru. It‘s bizarre.

Librarybelle Sometimes I differ greatly from GR opinions. I think I‘ll stick with your opinion and sidestep this one. 4y
GingerAntics That is an interesting combination of plot lines. 4y
BarbaraBB Your review makes me laugh out loud! The book sounds ridiculous 😀 4y
56 likes4 comments
blurb
DGRachel
Round the Bend | Nevil Shute
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If you are participating in #readingasia2021 and looking for a book for #bahrain, SKIP THIS ONE. I‘m 30% through the audiobook and so far it is the most boring, tedious, racist pile of steaming 💩 I have ever had the misfortune to listen to. The only reason I am finishing it is because I bought it for this challenge. I cannot believe it has a 4.1 rating on Goodreads. Did I get a different book???? 🤬🤬

squirrelbrain I had this one included on my spreadsheet (as the library has it) but can‘t remember now if it got superseded by another book... it just did now! Thanks for taking one for the team 🤣 4y
DGRachel @squirrelbrain I am happy to spare anyone from this. I try not to be “burn it” about books, as we all have different tastes, but you can really tell it was written in 1951. 🤦🏻‍♀️ I‘m still waiting for the plot. 4y
BarbaraBB That‘s quite the warning. Weird, since Nevil Shute is an okay writer as far as I can judge. But I won‘t try this one! (edited) 4y
See All 12 Comments
DGRachel @BarbaraBB I stand by what I said, but I‘m in the minority if Goodreads is to be believed. I‘m just stunned by those ratings. But even most of the 4 and 5 star reviews state that it‘s not his best. So YMMV I guess? 4y
Bookwormjillk Good to know! 4y
BarbaraBB I‘m not gonna find out 😉 4y
vivastory Completely unrelated to Shute, but have you by any chance read the new Alma Katsu 4y
DGRachel @vivastory I have not. I still have The Deep on my TBR shelf. I bought it because the cover was so pretty. Should I hunt down a copy of Red Widow? 4y
vivastory I haven't read Red Widow yet but it sounds right up your alley. It's an espionage novel. It's been getting great reviews. 4y
DGRachel @vivastory I just realized it‘s already on my to buy list. 🤣🤣🤣 4y
Librarybelle Yikes! Thanks for the warning! 4y
Hooked_on_books Oh yikes! I get why you‘re planning to finish, since you paid for it and I‘m finding Bahrain to be a tough one (I found a book but haven‘t yet acquired it). Good luck getting through the rest of that! 4y
53 likes12 comments
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CarolynM
Round the Bend | Nevil Shute
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I read a lot of Nevil Shute's books a long, long time ago. This one is about a guy running an airline in the Persian Gulf. I think it fits #bigjetplane

Cinfhen Thanks for joining in! Im not family with this title or author..thanks for posting💚 7y
CarolynM @Cinfhen he wrote a lot of novels in the 40s and 50s, they're mostly good stories if you can put up with the British imperialism. Probably the best known one is On the Beach, about the end of the world following nuclear war. A Town Like Alice is also pretty well known, and much more cheerful! 7y
Cinfhen Oh , I have heard of both of those books but never knew the author 🤓#liveandlearn 7y
12 likes3 comments