Title: The Global Adventures of Arguille MacGregor
Author: Arguille Macgregor
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 9781532081569
Pages: 62
Genre: Fiction / Short Story Collection
Reviewed by: Jake Bishop
Pacific Book Review
Within this collection of short stories, readers are made privy to the comings and goings of the author, one Arguille MacGregor. The scribe maintains that while names have been changed (one assumes) to protect the innocent, the tales themselves revolve around instances which actually occurred in real life. If that’s the case, the author is certainly a well-travelled man with interesting adventures to look back on. In fact, the actual events that transpired frequently surpass the author’s telling of them. But just as in life, it is often what one does rather than what one says that actually garners the most attention.
Nine stories spread over less than seventy pages make up the content of this collection. They traverse multiple cities and continents. What holds them together is Arguille’s involvement in each and how he views what he learns or doesn’t learn from his experiences. From the stories themselves, one gets a picture of the author as a hearty fellow well met who worked hard and played just as earnestly. Strong drink is often a common denominator of these tales, as is a sincere interest in the enjoyment of existence regardless of the perils that often surround it. One gets the feeling that Arguille might be a fine fellow with which to share a drink or two.
In The Kidnap Attempt, Arguille is kept from being captured by Columbian guerilla forces by the sheer luck, or ill luck where the bad guys are concerned, of one private plane being substituted for another. Aussie Cruise Lines finds the author and mates attempting a sailing voyage from Auckland to Bora Bora. It doesn’t work out particularly well. The Pink Flamingo is not only the title of this yarn but also the main character (in an artificial sort of way) in a chronicle of the potential pitfalls of a prank being taken seriously. Females of South America introduces readers not only to Arguille’s lust for Latin beauties but also to his future wife. A Brazilian Bank Robbery details just what its title implies.
Tiananmen Square is a bit of history not just of Chinese brutality, but also of Arguille’s early entry into the world of expatriate engineering and the potential precarious situations that can arise from it. Urich whisks Arguille away to Poland, a night of carousing, plus victimhood at the hands of muggers and thieves. Indonesia finds our hero partying to excess with a well-to-do Norwegian family and becoming involved in a traffic accident that takes a harrowing toll. Three Walked In, And Four Walked Out brings readers back to Cartagena, Columbia. In this escapade, Arguille is separated from his friends and has to infiltrate an unknown group of club goers to avoid a potential police bust and internment in the local constabulary.
While the stories are told well with extensive detail regarding technical aspects of equipment and the events they’re involved with, there is an ongoing problem with tense switching and point-of-view that manifests itself repeatedly. Still, if one is in the mood for travel tales with liberal doses of good humor, one should look into The Global Adventures of Arguille MacGregor.
