"Modern day pirates hijack this action adventure!"
Djibouti
By: Elmore Leonard
Genres: Thriller
Posted: January 8, 2011
Award-winning documentary filmmaker Dara Barr heads off to Djibouti on the Horn of Africa to film her next project -- documenting Somali pirates who are hijacking ships and holding them for ransom.
Dara is accompanied by her assistant, Xavier LeBo, a six- foot-six African-American septuagenarian and former seafarer, who is ready and willing to defend Dara when she gets in a little too deep for his liking. They met a cast of characters including a pirate chief who longs to retire to Paris, a suave Saudi diplomat who is also a gun-runner, a Texas billionaire sailing around the world with a world- weary model who has hopes of marrying him (if she can keep from throwing up!), and an American al-Qaeda recruit who wants to blow up something, anything, as long as it's big.
As Dara and Xavier work to get the footage they need, they also have to work equally hard to keep from being the next pirate victim. But when the action is hot and the champagne is flowing freely, the adrenaline rush is well worth the bit of danger now and then.
Leonard populates his books with a huge but lively cast and keeps the dialogue moving along nicely. The only spot that bogged down for me was when Dara and Xavier are going over the footage they shot in great detail. Other than that "Djibouti" was a great introduction (for me) to this master of storytelling. Leonard's faithful fans are sure to enjoy the book as well.
Book Summary
Elmore Leonard, New York Times bestselling author and "the hippest, funniest national treasure in sight" (Washington Post), brings his trademark wit and inimitable style to this twisting, gripping—and sometimes playful—tale of modern-day piracy
Dara Barr, documentary filmmaker, is at the top of her game. She's covered the rape of Bosnian women, neo-Nazi white supremacists, and post-Katrina New Orleans, and has won awards for all three. Now, looking for a bigger challenge, Dara and her right-hand-man, Xavier LeBo, a six-foot-six, seventy-two-year-old African American seafarer, head to Djibouti, on the Horn of Africa, to film modern-day pirates hijacking merchant ships.
They learn soon enough that almost no one in the Middle East is who he seems to be. The most successful pirate, driving his Mercedes around Djibouti, appears to be a good guy, but his pal, a cultured Saudi diplomat, has dubious connections. Billy Wynn, a Texas billionaire, plays mysterious roles as the mood strikes him. He's promised his girlfriend, Helene, a nifty fashion model, that he'll marry her if she doesn't become seasick or bored while circling the world on his yacht. And there's Jama Raisuli, a black al Qaeda terrorist from Miami, who's vowed to blow up something big.
What Dara and Xavier have to decide, besides the best way to stay alive: Should they shoot the action as a documentary or turn it into a Hollywood feature film?
by: Elmore Leonard
William Morrow
October 1, 2010
On Sale: October 12, 2010
Featuring:
288 pages
ISBN: 0061735175
EAN: 9780061735172
Hardcover