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  • LIFE

    Twists and turns

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 15/11/2019

    » It is said that truth is stranger than fiction. That's debatable. Authors have lively imaginations. Many have concocted plots for their novels that are at least as strange as anything real life has offered. Readers of long standing sometimes can't be certain which is which. Which is where gut feeling is not necessarily reliable.

  • LIFE

    Down Mexico way

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 17/01/2020

    » Brit turned American Lee Child is perhaps the most respected author in the crime-thriller genre. His 6-5, 250-pound literary creation Jack Reacher is the most popular of heroes. No small part of the reason is that he's played on the screen by -- rather shorter -- star Tom Cruise. On his own, the behemoth is likeable.

  • LIFE

    Beware the internet

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 10/08/2015

    » With 7 billion fellow humans on the planet we tend to keep our family, friends and acquaintances in very small circles. The rest we ignore as much as possible. Classmates and colleagues are temporary. Instead of loving our neighbours, we keep one another at arm's length.

  • LIFE

    Be wary of your spouse

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 16/05/2016

    » It's said that men marry for sex, women for security. An oversimplification yet consistent with the undeniable fact that each party enters matrimony with expectations. Before exchanging vows, they've probably discussed and agreed on children, one or two jobs, family relations, domicile, time with friends.

  • LIFE

    Show me the motive

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 24/08/2015

    » Motives for acts of violence range from crimes of passion to drive-by shootings -- that is from defending family honour to reducing the food chain indiscriminately. They aren't justifiable under law and are equally penalised. There are a myriad of motives, often the perpetrator unable to explain what made him or her do it ("maybe I drank too much").

  • LIFE

    Good cops, bad cops

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 18/05/2018

    » Few things are more disheartening than learning that those sworn to protect us from society's predators are corrupt, indeed evil themselves. Then who are the good guys, if any? Many a crime novelist raises this question without presenting a satisfactory solution.

  • LIFE

    Big city, small town

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 11/05/2018

    » People are natural actors. Observe how they tell stories to their friends, passing on telephone conversations or what they saw or heard. They mimic and flap their arms for emphasis. Hoping for smiles or groans. Novelists aim to do the same with more words. Alas, only the better ones succeed. All too many try and fail.

  • LIFE

    Fact or fiction?

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 21/02/2019

    » It is common knowledge that the KGB weren't above using sex in its spying activities. Books were written and movies made about it. What isn't generally known is that the Russian Federation's FSB are not only continuing the practice but expanding it.

  • LIFE

    Isis foiled

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 15/02/2019

    » Until a few years ago, no Western publisher dared say a word against Isis, the Muslim terrorist extremists infamous for taking umbridge and reacting violently. No longer. Isis is now targeted by the media and by novelists with impunity.

  • LIFE

    Expert Advice

    Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 13/04/2018

    » In several Peanuts comic strips, little Lucy sets up a booth. For a nickel she'll solve a problem bothering you. Her advice is quite good, indicating insight unlikely in the young. The thing about advice is that virtually everyone offers it, asked for or not, free and costly.

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