Nicholas Evans: "The Brave"
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-10-14/nicholas-evans-brave
In 2008, writer Nicholas Evans came close to death. The author of “The Horse Whisperer” was poisoned after eating wild mushrooms found on a country hike with family. He now says this ordeal enriched the writing of his fifth novel. It is the story of an estranged father and son. Both harbor dark secrets and struggle with notions about bravery. The plot moves from a brutal English boarding school, to the glamorous Hollywood of the 1960s, then the modern battlefields of the Iraq War before returning to the setting of all his novels – the American West.
Guests
Nicholas Evans
author of five novels, including “The Horse Whisperer.”
Comments
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DR
It is slightly maddening to those of us who are amateur mycologist that Mr. Evans does not identify the mushroom that he and his companions ate. From his description of the effects and the delay of their onset I would guess that it was an Amanita, perhaps the Destroying Angel or the Death Cap?
Wikipedia describes it as a deadly webcap.
Just wondering why your books seem to center around MT when you are from England.
Dear Diane: I have been listening to your show for two years on KUNR, Reno, NV. I am a fan, even though I consider myself to be "right of center." I love in-depth, civil conversation even though it comes primarily from liberals. I listen to NPR during the day, when possible. I admire your correcting guests and callers when you believe they have misstated history.
I was dismayed today at your acceptance of a caller's claim during "The Brave" portion of your program that the Europeans introduced scalping to this country. I waited for the caller to be challenged, but neither you nor Mr. Evans questioned him. Where was your usual demand for facts? It took another caller who described himself as an archeologist to object to the prior caller's take on history.
I have never watched Fox News. I stopped watching MSNBC. But I continue to understand and take into account the leftist slant of NPR and PBS because Public Broadcasting is the least objectionable of the biased networks.
Respectfully, Jack McKinney
I am listening to the rebroadcast, but feel compelled to comment anyway. I just listened to Mr. Evans say he was reluctant to take family and friends up on their offer to be tested for kidney donation. 3 years ago, I donated a kidney to an aquaintance and it has unquestionably been one of the greatest blessings of my life. I would not have wanted to miss this unique opportunity to impact another person's life. I would encourage Mr. Evans to allow anyone who is willing to be tested to have the privilege of doing so. When I made the donation, I was 54 and the recipient 27. We are of different races and different genders, but none of that mattered. It was an incredible journey through the 3 months of testing. I would never trade the opportunity. Now, my recipient and his wife are less than 2 weeks away from welcoming their first child. When I meet her, I will feel special pride in helping make her life possible.
Best regards,
Kathy
Diane - I am listening to the rebroadcast. I was absolutely amazed by the lead in to the break at 10:37 past the hour, where you reeled off the string of questions about the title of the book. It was absolutely wonderful, and worthy of the cliff hangers of any good western movie serial. Thank you so much!
Following my retirement from full-time teaching, I spent several years working with science teachers on the Rez—i.e., the Navajo and Hopi reservations. On occasion I also observed student teachers who might be expected to teach in Northern Arizona schools. An amusing incident occurred during one of these classroom observations, but first some background:
Since traces of the Beale Wagon Road* are still apparent in the Flagstaff vicinity, local teachers often incorporate its history into their lessons. In 1858 a young (12?) girl named Sallie Fox became one of the first to traverse the road. As her party passed through Arizona, Sallie had two notable experiences, one of which was an arrow wound and the other was picking up some walnuts. One of the walnuts grew into a huge tree around which California’s Nut Tree Restaurant was developed. (Though I did not see it myself, I am told that Sallie's dress with its arrow hole was on display there.)
Back to the classroom. The student teacher was presenting background on the Beale Road in preparation for a field trip to walk part of it on a subsequent day. She quite obviously had her fifth-graders engaged in the lesson (a good sign) as they hung on every word and often asked questions or made comments. The surprise came when she told of the encounter with Mojave Indians and Sallie's being struck by an arrow. Half the class stood up and cheered!
The student teacher received high marks from me; and she had most likely discovered that in border towns such as Flagstaff and on the Rez itself many of her students and their parents see history from an unaccustomed perspective.
* In 1857, a Navy Lieutenant, Edward Beale, was lured out of retirement to survey a suitable route from Fort Smith Arkansas to California.
Beale employed camels as pack animals. On August 27th, 1857, Beale and his survey team of 50 men left Fort Defiance and by late fall of the same year, reached the Colorado River.
I so appreciated your conversation with Nicholas Evans, and look forward to reading "The Brave"!
I did want to mention that during your interview, in discussing the reference to Native Americans, you spoke of Dances With Wolves as the first time that Native Americans had been shown in their true light, instead of the traditional "western movie" portrayal... while I agree that Dances With Wolves is an amazing film (and one of my personal favorites), there were two films much earlier, in the early 1970's, that also showed a truer version of Native American life, and the horrors that European-Americans inflicted on them... the first is Soldier Blue, with Candace Bergen, and the second is Little Big Man, with Dustin Hoffman. Both of these movies had a tremendous impact on me as a teenager, and continue to inform my understanding of Native culture, and the tremendous debt the American people and government owe.
I grew up in Pasadena, CA, very close to Hollywood, CA. There are a lot of real people living in both cities and although this is a rebroadcast, I feel I must comment to this fact. Who recently created a campaign that broad to light the upcoming stoning of an Iranian woman accused of adultery. Why, I do believe it was the "Hollywood" you speak of. And it was the same in the 60s and 70s as I grew up too. There will always be good people in any profession and those who take advantage of their status and position in life. But let's not sweep all of the rest of us aside.
And as to not knowing the ugly truths about the American Indians, I was taught about the measels epidemic, spread from blankets given to the Indians, in the late 1960s. I went to public school in Pasadena and this is long before the movie you spoke of.
Please don't assume we're all plastic, selfish, thoughtless people.