Review: Life-Affirming!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 7, 2014
Fracking:  “The process of injecting liquid at high pressure into subterranean rocks, boreholes, etc., so as to force open existing fissures and extract oil or gas.”  We do love our oil.  Despite the seriousness of the subject matter, James Browning manages to present us with a new literary hero. Win Crwth (rhymes with “truth”) is a more sociable Holden Caulfield:  A Scrabble player extraordinaire attending private school after being awarded a scholarship from Dark Oil & Gas, frackers extraordinaire.  As a Philadelphian, now misplaced in Tampa Bay, I chose this book as my monthly Amazon Prime Kindle First Pre-Release.  As a Pennsylvanian, I remember the town of Centralia.  Once the seat of Molly Maguire activity it is now a virtual ghost town because of the fire burning the mine underground since the 1960’s.  The state took away people’s property claiming eminent domain and the US government revoked their zip code. No more than 10 people still live there despite toxic gas and smoke escaping,  ruining air and water. Centralia, a lesson for the advent of communities about to be fracked.  But please do not let my negative comments on the pollution of a beautiful place influence your desire to read this book.  Despite the beauty queen governor and the fire that shoots out of the bathroom tap, this is not really a political story; it is truly a humorous, life-affirming, coming-of-age, cleverly-written book peopled with unique and enjoyable characters!