Customer Reviews

Rat Scabies and the Holy Grail: Can a Punk Rock Legend Find What Monty Python Couldn't?

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

You can classify this book many ways: road trip story; buddy book; coming of age tale; psychic mystery; historical quest; hysterical slice of life. Whichever you seek, you will find it within these pages.

But how can that be true? Did Christopher Dawes set out to wrap all of these genres into one? Or is he just an excellent story teller, recounting his life in a small British town, where he is suddenly drawn into a fantastic treasure hunt across Europe by the kind of person we would all love as both a neighbor and a friend?

What do you like in your books? Is it a good mystery, unsolved over centuries? How about unforgettable characters who pop up when you least expect them? Care for car crashes and attacks by killer bees? And do you like laughing out loud while you read?

The author's greatest gift is his ability to see the events that unfold before him with a clarity that most of us lost when we were children. He describes people, places, and events in a way which gives the reader a chance to evaluate everything without the author's manipulation. Although the tale is sometimes earthy, it never loses its innocence.

The book was a page-turner where I laughed at each new event and welcomed each new comrade on the journey. I really felt the friendship that was discovered during the trip.

And I even learned some history about the Holy Grail along the way!

We could all use a neighbor like Rat Scabies. We could also use a friend like Christopher Dawes. You will enjoy their adventures. And you will regret when the book comes to an end.

"Holy Blood Holy Grail" - and this one.

The first because - despite the fact that other books on the subject preceeded it - it's the one that really put the subject on the map. And Dawes' book because it's the only one I've read that really seems to pick up where the first one leaves off, with a very entertaining and comical, yet touchingly personal, spin. Is there anything to the mystery after all? Who knows? But with a book like this, the quest is just as beguiling a read as any blockbuster revelation could be.

What happens when a journolist and a punk rock legend go off to find the Holy Grail? Well read this to find out. An hilarious account of adventuring in the misty world that most people have only heard of due to The DaVinci Code. A good travel book and mystery book. Highly recommended.

Dawes presents an objective overview of an interesting historical mystery in this entertaining memoir/travelog. I highly recommend this book, it's well-written, informative, and fun.

While most of the plot deals with the Rennes-le-Château mystery, deep inside this book is about friendship. It is also quite funny.

This book is awesome! I've read it three times already...It just doesn't get old. I originally got it because I'm a fan of The Damned. Any fan of The Damned, the DaVinci Code, the esoteric, or anybody who just wants a laugh-out-loud read should buy this!

Funny as hell, interesting, mysterious, spooky, and, oh yeah, funny as hell!! Great book!!

If you've read/see the Da Vinci Code this is a must read book. The same basic idea, just a little more tongue in cheek.

I suspect it's almost a pre-requisite that you be a fan of the Damned in order to truly enjoy this book. The historical element is well executed, but the real fun comes in following the (mis)adventures of a couple of, really, men who find themselves post-major-career with a bit too much time on their hands. Rat is charming and Mr. Dawes does a nice job of trying to wring some meaning out of his experience without laying it on too thick. Great to read on a road trip of one's own!

The title really says it all, it's a great buddy/travel/paranormal book for cynical jerks who hate buddy, travel, and paranormal books. It's a real-life story about the famous punk rock drummer and a rock journalist attempting to solve a mystery along the lines of the DaVinci Code, but fear not, it's written for people who wouldn't read the DaVinci code in a million years.

My favorite line (paraphrased) comes on a bus tour of "Rennies" (believers of the Rennes-le-Chateau mystery) and the author notes that Rat Scabies is the *least* odd person on the bus. That's saying something. It's really sort of a true-believer story, the author does a great job of debunking the legends even as he accepts them as truth, and of gently (maybe even subconsciously) mocking other "Rennies" even as he shows honest affection and camaraderie. He's never mean, and the friendly tone makes the story enjoyable even for someone who doesn't buy the legend at all.

A less abrupt and vague ending would have won it 5 stars, though I dont' have any suggestions, ha! I obviously didn't expect they found it, (you'd think we would have heard about that) and the ending's actually better than I expected, but still just not as conclusive or poignant as it could have been.