I am a long-time fan of Colin Cotterill. I love his series of historical mysteries featuring the septuagenarian coroner of Laos, Dr. Siri Paiboun. Cotterill has a double-edged sense of humor that can be gentle with humans yet skewer political ideology. I don't know how he does it, but over the years, he's made me laugh while simultaneously seeing the truth of things. I jumped for joy when I came across The Motion Picture Teller because it has been a long three years since his last book.
Supot and Ali are the lovable yet hapless characters that Cotterill creates so well. While readers can be amused at their feckless ways, they're also learning about life in Thailand, both the average Thai's daily life as well as how the country's politics affects everyone. In The Motion Picture Teller, Thai life under military regimes is touched upon subtly yet powerfully. So much so that readers may wonder how the people of Thailand can be so well known for their smiling faces.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book. Being with Supot and Ali in the video store was like a trip down Memory Lane for this movie buff, and Cotterill's descriptions of Western movie posters being "translated" for the Thai audience certainly had me cringing and laughing. But once Supot decided to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding Bangkok 2010, the story unraveled a bit, leaving me vaguely dissatisfied. Even though I didn't find The Motion Picture Teller to be a complete success, it was still wonderful to spend time in Colin Cotterill's world again. Please don't make me wait another three years for a new book!
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
Supot and Ali are the lovable yet hapless characters that Cotterill creates so well. While readers can be amused at their feckless ways, they're also learning about life in Thailand, both the average Thai's daily life as well as how the country's politics affects everyone. In The Motion Picture Teller, Thai life under military regimes is touched upon subtly yet powerfully. So much so that readers may wonder how the people of Thailand can be so well known for their smiling faces.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book. Being with Supot and Ali in the video store was like a trip down Memory Lane for this movie buff, and Cotterill's descriptions of Western movie posters being "translated" for the Thai audience certainly had me cringing and laughing. But once Supot decided to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding Bangkok 2010, the story unraveled a bit, leaving me vaguely dissatisfied. Even though I didn't find The Motion Picture Teller to be a complete success, it was still wonderful to spend time in Colin Cotterill's world again. Please don't make me wait another three years for a new book!
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
