The adventures of Tintin

As a child, I loved reading Tintin and getting swept up in his thrilling adventures with the fiery but lovable Captain Haddock. As a dog lover, I had a soft spot for Snowy — brave, clever, and always at Tintin’s side. Created by Belgian artist Hergé in 1929, The Adventures of Tintin became one of the most beloved comic series in the world, translated into more than 70 languages. With its exotic locations, daring escapes, and sense of curiosity about the world, the series may well have sparked my own lifelong love of travel and exploration. Hergé was known for his meticulous research, often spending months studying the culture, geography, and history of the places Tintin would visit — all before the internet — which gave the stories a vivid sense of realism and depth.  

The llama incident

At the London Zoo once, I got a little too close to a llama. Thinking I could connect with it the same way you can with a horse — by gently breathing into its nose — I leaned in with all the calm and goodwill I could muster. It promptly spat in my face. In retrospect, I really should have seen it coming. I’d read Tintin as a child, after all — and the exact same thing happened to Captain Haddock! As you can see from the scene below, I was in good (and very soggy) company.

Books read (2024)

 Self-illusion

• The Ego Tunnel (Thomas Metzinger)
• There is No You (Andrew Halaw)
• Seeing no Self: Essential Inquiries  that Reveal Our Nondual Nature (Katrijn Van Oudheusden)
• Beyond Illusion: Exploring the Six Illusions that Cause  Our Mistaken Belief in a Separate Self (Katrijn Van Oudheusden)
• Selfless Service  (Katrijn Van Oudheusden)
• The Ego Tunnel (Thomas Metzinger)
• There is No You (Andrew Halaw)
• What Am I? A Study in Non-Volitional Living (Galen Sharp)

Idealism

• The Grand Biocentric Design (Robert Lanza)
• Being Myself (Rupert Spira)

Left versus right brain

• The Matter with Things  (Iain McGilchrist)
• The Master & His Emmisary (Ian Gilchrist)

Other books

• The Power of Movies: How Screen and Mind Interact  (Colin McGinn)
• God is Nothingness  (Andre Halaw)
  
  

Fiction books read (2009)

• The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
• The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follet)
• World Without End (Ken Follet)
• The Hobbit (J. R. R. Tolkien)
• The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
• The Shell Seekers (Rosamunde Pilcher)
• I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith)
• Rebecca (Daphne du Maurier)
• Dances with Wolves (Michael Blake)
• Gaurds, Gaurds! (Terry Pratchett)
• Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
• The Lord of the Flies (William Golding)

Fiction books read (2008)

• The Wire in the Blood (Val McDerend)
• Retribution (Jullianne Hoffman)
• Angels and Demons (Dan Brown) 
• The Last Don (Mario Puzo) 
• Monsoon (Wilbur Smith)
• A Time to Die (Wilbur Smith)
• The Blue Horizon (Wilbur Smith)
• The Genesis Code (John Case)
• The Count Of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
• The Partner (John Grisham)
• Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
• Prey (Michael Crichton)
• About a Boy (Nick Hornsby)
• Self Defense (Jonathon Kellerman)
• Nick Hornsby (A Long Way Down)
• The Last Temptation (Val Mc Dermid)

Books: Jack Reacher (Lee Childs)

Another of my recent addictions is Jack Reacher. I'd go as far as saying I have a bit of a "school boy" crush on him. He's the invention of Lee Child and the protagonist of 12 books all of which I have now voraciously read.

So who is Jack Reacher? Here are some facts about Reacher for your interest and enrichment…

• Jack Reacher is the modern day equivalent of the enigmatic stranger who rides into town to sort everything out with fist and gun.
• He was born on October 29th, 1960 on an Army base in Berlin. His father is a Marine who served in Korea and Vietnam. As kids, Jack and his family moved non-stop from one military base to another.
• Reacher mustered out of the army with the rank of Major in 1997 when defence budget cuts made him "lose interest".
• Since leaving the army in 1997, Reacher has been a drifter. He travels around the United States, exploring the one country he never got to see in his childhood. He is always on the move.
• Reacher owns nothing except the clothes he is wearing. He wears his clothes 4 days or so, then throws them away and buys more clothes. He is weighed down by nothing.
• Reacher makes money by doing odd jobs. He also tends to pocket the money he takes from thugs.
• Reacher has blue eyes and fair hair. He is a giant of a man, standing at 1.96m tall with a 50-inch chest, and weighing between 100-115kg. He is exceptionally strong. He is also crack shot.
• Reacher has a knack for finding and tackling trouble where ever he goes. As well as helping people in distress.
• Reacher has no doubts about his objective: to rid the world of bad guys. And nobody does it better. However, Reacher is also that rare kind of action hero who always takes the trouble to think things through and solve the puzzles (using his brilliant investigative skills) before sorting the bad guys. He thus combines brute force and brilliant deduction.
• Reacher capitalises on his past career as a Military Policeman. He served for 13 years. He is a hell of a good investigator. Maybe the best the army ever had.
• Some of the baddies he comes across are real heavy weight nasties who have a penchant for cutting peoples' balls off.
• Reacher has the uncanny ability to know what time it is, at any time of the day, without referring to a timepiece.
• He has the ability to take on multiple thugs at once and he generally comes out unscathed.
• He has a fascination with mathematics and a love for blues music.
• He is addicted to coffee.
• He has a passion for pretty women (particularly if they are in distress) and tends to bed at least one per book (surprise, surprise!).

So there you go. Welcome to one of the truly memorable tough guys in modern fiction. Don’t let it be said I don’t try to enrich my readers through my blog…