Book #24
Air Mail: Letters From The World's Most Troublesome Passenger by Terry Ravenscroft
Terry Ravenscroft is the world's most eccentric air traveller. He is the only man who has ever wanted to buy aeroplane lasagne for his personal consumption; been concerned about the likelihood of being sucked out of the window of an aircraft; lost sleep over the meaning of the name 'Aer Lingus'; or wanted to enjoy his flight with his inflatable rubber woman on his knee. "Air Mail" is a comic anthology of letters that demonstrates how one man bamboozled and exasperated over forty international airlines, from British Airways to Air Malta.
This was terrible, and failed to amuse me.
Many of the letters seemed far too fantastical to believe that they had actually been sent and replied to. Ravenscroft tried too hard to be hilarious, and failed miserably to get even a tiny smile from me.
Also, I'm not sure if I'm being a bit of a prude here, but I found some of the letters to be quite racist and patronising. I understand it was all in jest, but surely there are better ways to incite laughter in someone than to mock their mistakes when using a language that isn't their mother tongue?
I had planned to read another of Ravenscroft's letter-based novels, but have decided against it. Please avoid him at all costs if you value your time.