There was breath of fresh air infused in Bangkok Bob and the Missing Mormon.
Private Dancer, on the other hand, was a serious read.
Give me the light, breezy Stephen Leather any day.
It works on many levels.
Big Ron was right.
‘He’ll be lying on a beach somewhere with a dark-skinned beauty.’
This is a personal book.
But where is the follow-up?
I might have to re-read Private Dancer to get my Sukhumvit fix.
The writer knows his Thai, and his Bob character even reads it.
I enjoyed the book, especially about Washington Square.
Who hasn’t been tugged off by one of the waitresses?
And then escorted to one of the aircon rooms.
I am digressing.
There will never be another Washington Square or Big Ron again.
It’s an age that has long passed us.
I’m glad Stephen Leather has documented it in his fun and light-hearted way.
We don’t really see much of the Mormon boy.
Not until the last chapter.
And it’s no great loss that he didn’t appear earlier, he seemed a bit dull.
If you have ever taught English in Thailand, read Bangkok Bob and the Missing Mormon, you might learn something.
Bob has everything going for him.
Not even Cancer can stick.
Next time you visit an antique dealer in Bangkok, just make sure it’s not Bob.
He won’t sell you fakes and you won’t feel ripped off. And what would Bangkok be without being ripped off?
Some Amazon reviewers have called this book pandering towards sex tourists.
Not once did Bangkok Bob enter a go-go bar.
But boy was he right about why English teachers came to Thailand.
