James Whorton

Here's a book that I enjoyed for no observable reason. I started it once, then quit. When I picked it back up and got into the rhythm of the writing, I continued to read and enjoy. Some very subtle humor. Lots of info on President Andrew Johnson, and a single minded main character that I can only compare to Portis's Norwood or very lightly to Toole's Ignatius.

In a sense, the exploits of young Ms. Sloan occur in a landscape no less fantastical than that of Oz or Wonderland. This is the uncanny milieo of Watergate, hippies, anarchic radicalism, and the insane serpant-eating-its-own-tail, Ouroboros, of the espionage world. Whorton's writing is unpredictable, and touch melancholy, and filled with deliciously wry, deadpan humor. A must-read for fans of Charles Portis's "True Grit." -Adam

Quirky and fun. Want to read more of him!

A disappointing book. I think it was trying to be funny, but hardly ever was. A hapless amateur historian follows the trail of a long-missing scrapbook about President Andrew Johnson to Johnson's home area in rural eastern Tennessee, where the historian has a series of encounters with the usual set of rural Southern characters. It doesn't amount to much more than that.