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A Good Place to Die (Panther)
by James Buchan
Product Group: Book
Publisher: The Harvill Press (2000-09-21)
ISBN: 1860467423
EAN: 9781860467424
Dewy Decimal #: 823.914
Paperback: 320 pages
Edition: New Ed
SKU: B449-1055
Condition: New
Comments: In stock - Immediate despatch from an efficient and professional leading British bookselling firm.
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Editorial Reviews
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Amazon.co.uk Review
James Buchan's debut novel A Parish Of Rich Women has been singled out for many literary awards, and deservedly so--he writes with a rare intelligence and originality. However, it's his background as a foreign correspondent for the Financial Times that richly informs A Good Place To Die. At its heart, it is about the love of a young Englishman, John Pitt, for Shirin Farameh, the daughter of a general in the Imperial Air force of the Shah of Iran. Spanning the period 1974-1997, Buchan's complex story follows Pitt through his initial obsession with Shirin and, after the two elope, his discovery of the fact that his romantic ideal and reality do not match.When Shirin vanishes as the pair and their infant child try to escape Iran, Pitt is imprisoned and tortured, but never gives up hope of finding the way back to his family. As the story unfolds, Buchan's rich descriptions of Pitt's surroundings and acceptance of his fate draw the reader in and provide a strong backbone to the traumatic events that seem to stalk him. Pitt is essentially a dreamer and his journey is a moving one. Despite the many trials he faces, he continually strives for a better life. In the early chapters, events move a little too quickly, but that's a minor detail in what is otherwise an enjoyable and challenging novel. --Paul Doyle
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Customer Reviews
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Correction
Rating  (5)
Date: 2005-03-19
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
Please pardon my ignorant self. Evidently this book was published as "A Good Place to Die" in the UK and "The Persian Bride" in the US. It's still superb.
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Misidentification
Rating (5)
Date: 2005-03-19
I think that other readers of these reviews should know that the publishers' blurb and the first customer's review associated with "A Good Place to Die" are actually descriptions of "The Persian Bride." This is probably not the place to mention it, but "The Persian Bride" is superb. I cannot comment on "A Good Place to Die," as I have not read it.
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Unfortunately vague and disappointing
Rating  (2)
Date: 2002-06-22
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Buchan's novel begins well. In his first section, depicting the narrator's exploits as an English teacher who falls for a woman who is theoretically out of his reach, the narrative is admirably crisp and the writing engaging. Sadly, Buchan then decides to confuse the reader by suddenly changing scenario and time without any real indication as to what is happening. While this may be construed as a marvellous literary device in that it conjures a definite sense of confusion, Buchan does not contrast this with any concrete details that would manage to keep the reader's attention. One leaves the novel feeling disappointed and cheated. Which is sad, as the novel does contain some marvellous writing.
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Love and Loss in Iran
Rating  (3)
Date: 2000-05-07
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
With a premise so intriguing this book could have been great. In the end, however, it misses.The problem lies in two areas. The writing, at times exquisite, is also maddeningly vague. Alluding to mysteries going on behind the scenes in Iran, the narrator at times is so oblique that you find yourself wondering "what on earth is he talking about?" The second area is in the plot. The beautiful Shirin disappears almost immediately, and the rest of the novel is a painful account of the narrator, John Pitt's, imprisonment and his desolate search for news of his family. Maybe my expectations were wrong, but I expected more on their relationship and less on John Pitt's trials. One does learn a lot about Iran at the time of the Shah's deposition, but how I wish the writer had been clearer, even about that! His knowledge of, and love for, Iran clearly runs deep, but he expects a bit too much from his readers.
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Forever in my Heart
Rating (5)
Date: 2000-04-10
What an amazing book. Thank you, Mr. Buchan for putting down in words so many feelings I have felt over the years of getting to know an Iranian wife and things I discovered in Iran recently from traveling there. I don't know how you did it, but you dug into the soul of this amazing culture in only ways that someone who has come to know it deeply could have. I could not put this book down. I recommend it to everyone, but if you haven't read it, you should first go to Iran, find an Iranian love, and experience what only a few western men have ever discovered, that the passion and beauty of a Persian woman is unmatched in the world.. and that this passion has never waned nor failed for all of the thousands of years of Persian history. Shirin Farameh was so good, ready to love, kill, and love John again in the same sentence. Anyone who understands that understands an Iranian woman. Your story gripped me as I felt so many of the emotions and frustrations of John Pitt trying to understand this culture, and could picture him walking by the khaju bridge in esfahan...I too as an American discovered the unmatched love of a Persian girl at a young age...and her deep black eyes have taken my soul ever since. Khayly, khayly mamnoon Mr. Buchan.
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