"I must say that the one thing that rather amused us was that just before one starts the descent into Death Valley there is perched in the middle of nowhere a 'comfort station.'"
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Spitfire Troubadour by Tony Snell Trafford Publishing
book review by Cynthia Collins
As a World War II pilot in the RAF, the author spent five years flying single-seat fighter planes known as spitfires. After the war, he became an actor. His performances in plays and one-man shows have taken him all over the world, from Piccadilly to South Africa, Europe, and across the USA. This memoir reads like a fast-paced travelogue that jumps from one country to the next with stops on various islands along the way. Such is the life of a wandering minstrel, also known as a troubadour. The book is filled with pages containing copies of stage bills, reviews, pictures of him in costume and of various leading ladies who performed with him, as well as photos of his family and many locations of his travels.
His story is not limited to his fighter pilot and acting careers. After he married, he and his wife moved to the British Virgin Islands and managed a fleet of sailboats. While there, he bought a supper club which, to this day, attracts many yachtsmen and celebrities. He continues to entertain audiences with his blend of singing and comedy.
The layout is not up to the level of this well-crafted story. The first lines of the paragraphs are not indented. The only way to distinguish between paragraphs is when one sentence ends and another begins on the next line. The photos contain some amazing views, such as a highway winding through the Alps, but they are in black and white making it difficult to fully appreciate the scenic view. Some photos are too dark to be able to distinguish details. However, the craft of the story is in the author's ability to let the reader see this performer as he really is—after the stage lights are off.