Customer Reviews

The Casting Away of Mrs. Lecks and Mrs. Aleshine

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Frank Stockton was an amazing writer. He wrote about the most outlandish happenings in the most whimsical style, and made them all as humorous as they could be by doing so with a totally straight face. Understatement was his forte. In this, one of his very best novels, two plucky elderly women encounter all kinds of adventures and misfortunes, but face all difficulties with courage and resourcefulness, no matter how ridiculous the situation might appear. They are shipwrecked in the Pacific Ocean and make their way to a tropical island. They set up house in a comfortable deserted home, being sure to deposit rent money in a ginger jar. Soon back in the US again, they journey from the West Coast eastward, enduring a stagecoach wreck, sliding down a mountain during a terrific snowstorm, and finally making it back to their home in Pennsylvania, none the worse for wear. These two women have the uncanny ability to look life right in the eye unblinkingly and with great humor. We laugh at and with them as they tackle one problem after another with aplomb and good common sense. And Stockton relates it all as if it was just another day, no big deal. It's a wonderful, lighthearted comical novel.