Customer Reviews

Fear of Landing

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I discovered by accident that this novel is connected to a book of short stories by the same author; called One Foot in Heaven. The characters in "Fear of Landing" are people one will become familiar with from the short stories, and in fact, the novel is an extended variation which fits, chronologically speaking, into the middle of the collection of short stories. I had, just by pure happenstance, read halfway through the short story collection when the novel arrived in the mail, so I suspended finishing the first book to read the novel. When I went back to the short stories, I realized that I was picking up in fictional time where the novel left off! It worked out rather well, really! The book of short stories is a bit like moving into a neighborhood of people who all know one another already. By the end, you get to know them all. Because their stories are intertwined, the collection serves as sort of an expanded information source: you learn about the childhoods of these people, get to know their siblings and parents, etc. as well as finding out what happened to the main characters of the novel, down the road. There is also a great deal more information about the Mennonite community, their history, and belief structure, as well as compelling stories about some of the other characters (a few of whom are referred to in passing in "Fear of Landing"). I was surprised to learn that there is so much in common between the Russian Mennonite immigrant story and my father's Russian Jewish immigrant ancestry. Even the Yiddish is similar in comparison with Old ("Low") German-- as is the sense of humor. And then there's the scientific side of things as well as a glimpse of what veterinary school is really like... Read together, these books offer a rich tapestry spanning time, place, and fascinating (occasionally harrowing) human experience.

An illuminating view of an aspect of the culture that I've heard small references to in the past, but when I've asked residents for more info, the conversation immediately shuts down.

Reviewed by Stephanie Rollins for Reader Views (3/07)

In "Fear of Landing" Abner Dueck is a Russian-Canadian Mennonite who is also a veterinarian. He has a nasty sunflower seed problem. He travels to Indonesia to monitor a program the Canadian government began. The program involved giving unwanted North American cows to Indonesia. Suddenly, the North American cows began to die. Were there normal physiological reasons for this? Was it slaughter? Was it poison?

"Fear of Landing" was disappointing. I expected an intellectual mystery that would grab my attention from the beginning. I had to force myself through the book. What little excitement there was did not begin until the middle of the book.

Some of the descriptions are disgusting, but well describes the day in the life of a veterinarian. "The left flank of the cow is puckered wide open where I have just pulled the calf out, her body heat steaming around my arms. I take my time up to my elbows inside her, sewing up the uterus, and hold my hands inside so they thaw sufficiently for me to sew up the flank muscles, quickly, flaking the ice off my surgical instruments."

The character of Abner was not developed enough. I wanted to learn more about his past, his religious upbringing. I wanted to know why he acted like such an awkward bachelor around women. This was all touched upon, but I wanted to know the character. He has a former love that his childhood friend/colleague married. That love, Sarah, was bright and full of career plans, but she married and had babies. This put her career on hold, much to the disdain of Abner.

The answer to the death of the North American cows ends up being cultural and political. I had lost interest in "Fear of Landing" by the time the answers began to appear. The font is large. There are 221 pages. David Waltner-Toews is an epidemiologist and veterinarian. He is a professor at the University of Guelph and founded Veterinarians without Borders--Canada. He has worked in many countries, including Indonesia. I have no doubt that David Waltner-Towes is an intelligent clinician and academic. With a little fine tuning, "Fear of Landing" can be a hit. The main character just has to be more developed.

Received book free of charge.

Canadian Mennonite Abner "Ab" Dueck is in Indonesia working on a project to import cows from North America to Java. He is a veterinarian stationed there for two years keeping the cattle healthy and training his local successor to take over once he leaves.

However something is amiss when the cattle begin dying at Gandringan in Boyclali and from anthrax at Susu Senang. Ab learns that were poisoned so that the butchers can get the meat for free when they die and serve it at the Festival of Eid al Fitr. No one has a clue as to whom the culprit is where the anthrax is. Ab's childhood friend and boss George is not concerned with the cattle problems. He is only interested in the Kris dagger he found. He visits Ab's assistant Soesanto to find out whether it is a genuine artifact or a cheap souvenir. The same day Ab finds Soesanto's bludgeoned corpse sliced by a dagger he fnds George's murdered body near the cattle. Officials tell Ab to leave the country within a week. George's coffin reaches Canada where inside is stones. Despite the danger Ab investigates the two homicides.

This tale takes place in the 1980s when President Suharto backed by the US government ruled Indonesia with an iron fist as millions vanished and or were murdered. Readers obtain a deep look at what it was like to live under a strict dictatorship where a person must be careful with what they say and to whom they say it. Ab is not the heroic type yet he seeks the truth knowing full well the danger he risks by stubbornly doing so. Feeling like a historical though only two plus decades have past, the exotic locale, the interesting cast, and the double murders turn David Waltner-Toews novel into an exciting read.

Harriet Klausner

Fear of Landing has a fear of clarity. While the book has some amazing moments of brilliant description about Indonesian life complete with expatriates and NGO's, and insight into tropical vet practice, the whole point of a mystery is to keep the plots and counter plots clear. Unfortunately by the middle of the book, I no longer cared about what semblance of mystery there might have been because the whole enterprise had become muddled and confusing. I forced myself to finish the book and to piece together the story...but it remained illegible to the end. Also the repeated metaphors about fear of landing were kind of overworked, and what references to Mennonite life there were, were scant and unpromising. So I gave it three stars mainly for the descriptions of life in Indonesian under Suharto.