Add a Dash of Pity - Hardcover

USTINOV, PETER

3.76

74 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1573920959 ISBN 13: 9781573920957

Publisher: Prometheus, 1996

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Peter Ustinov was revered as one of the world's truly legendary entertainers. As an actor, producer, director, novelist, playwright, and columnist, his body of work was not only vast and thoroughly impressive, but enduring. Add a Dash of Pity, a superb collection of short stories, shows Sir Peter at his narrative, perceptive best.

Ustinov possessed the uncommon ability to amuse and touch readers simultaneously, a talent which has nowhere been better displayed than in this fascinating array of short stories, which includes: "The Man Who Took It Easy," "The Wingless Icarus," "The Man in the Moon," "A Place in the Shade," "A Word in the World's Ear," "There Are 43,200 Seconds in a Day," "The Aftertaste," and the title piece, "Add a Dash of Pity."

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Synopsis:

Exploring themes of nationalism, pride, heartbreak, aging, war, survival, misused authority and human fragility, raconteur Ustinov ("The Old Man and Mrs. Smith") unmasks pompous poseurs and reveals obscure heroes in a series of eight humorous, often touching narratives whose protagonists span countries and walks of life. In the title story, a court-martialed British brigadier willingly lives in ignominy for the failures of the weak general he served but never liked. Bilious former film composer Erhardt Von Csumlay, "The Man Who Took it Easy", now resentfully scrapes by as a gypsy violinist at a Hungarian restaurant in L.A. The xenophobic mayor of Alcaonde la Sagrada Orden brings disgrace to his town in pursuit of Spanish glory ("A Place in the Shade"). "The Man in the Moon" concerns British aerospace genius John Kermidge, who becomes a virtual political prisoner for viewing his discoveries as advances for the world rather than an edge in the international space race.

Goodhearted Martha Gorbchek, a resident of Manhattan's 'little Czech colony', makes a tragic mistake in following the advice of a self-help talk-show panel ("A Word in the World's Ear"), and sheltered innocent Edwin Applecote, the voice of a rabbit on a BBC children's show, is similarly destroyed by authorities meant to protect him in the poignant "There are 43,200 Seconds in the Day". Ustinov writes with great wit and fills these memorable tales with clever, parenthetical insights along with a clear moral thrust.

About the Author:

The late Peter Ustinov traveled the globe as an entertainer and actor and served as ambassador at large for UNICEF. For his work in film and the arts he received two Academy Awards, three Emmys, and one Grammy. He was also a producer, director, and playwright, and the author of Life Is an Operetta and Other Short Stories, Add a Dash of Pity, Quotable Ustinov, and Ustinov Still at Large. He was knighted in 1990.

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