Curse of the Pogo Stick (A Dr. Siri Paiboun Mystery)

The latest book with Dr. Siri continues to maintain what makes the series so wonderful - good mystery, witty characters, interesting historical background - to name a few of the key ingredients. For "Curse of the Pogo Stick", the author touches upon the plight of the Hmong in Laos. All in all, a really good book that is a great read without ever becoming too cute or too gory. Highly recommended, and look forward to more in the future from Mr. Cottreill.

The Curse of the Pogo Stick is the fourth entry in this idiosyncratic detective series that features the septuagenarian Dr. Siri Paiboun as the crime-solving national coroner of Laos. Oh yes, and he's sort of possessed by the spirit of an ancient shaman, Yeh Ming. Standard fare. The series is set in the 1970's after the Pathet Lao came to power in the wake of the Indochinese wars that devastated the region. Siri himself was for many years an active member of the Communist resistance. He was even briefly a fighter until it was determined he was useless with a weapon and more useful treating the sick and wounded. Siri's enthusiasm for the Pathet Lao has waned due mostly to the fear and paranoia the regime creates as it looks for enemies of the people it thinks lurk everywhere. I read this book out of sequence and enjoyed it enough to seek out the first book in the series (The Coroner's Lunch). I enjoyed this book more than the first simply because the stage setting has been done and we can get on with the stories. As odd as it may sound, Cotterill has created an English cozy kind of atmosphere. This reader found himself rooting for Siri and his rather motley assistants not so much to solve the crimes, but to find happiness in life and victory over the young largely clueless bureaucrats ruling the roost. Cotterill recreates the extreme privation of post-war Laos and some sense of what life would be like in the country aside from the war's impacts. The mysteries (there are at least a couple that need solving) are good, if not great. Some will be put off by the mystical element that Yeh Ming introduces. The thousand year-old spirit more resides in Siri's mind next to his own mind rather than actually possessing him. I strongly favor realism over romanticism and I certainly am not a big fan of mysticism, but somehow Cotterill makes the Yeh Ming element work. Highly recommended.

Cheers to the talented Colin Cotterill who, like his wily septuagenarian protagonist Dr. Siri Paiboun, gets deeper and savvier with each new installment of this refreshingly unique crime mystery series. In this outing, Cotterill splits his plot, leaving sidekick nurse Dtui and her new policeman husband, Phosy, with Mr. Gueng tagging along, to crack the case of a booby-trapped corpse, while a Hmong tribe in northern Laos waylays Laotian national coroner Siri and his insufferable boss. Consistent with its predecessors, Cotterill's characters are thoughtfully rendered - this is a guy who has great love and respect for the people he captures so well on paper. His prose is light and easy to read - we're not talking heavy atmospherics or deep psychological drama here - and despite the macabre and gruesome nature of a day in the morgue, the author does not rely on excess violence or gore to substitute for story or setting. With a keen dry wit reflected through Siri, Cotterill's skewering of communism and its incompetent practitioners becomes rapier-sharp, yet plot is never overshadowed by the politics. The mysterious Hmongs, who've dropped in and out of the fringes of previous books in the series, play a pivotal role here (including the background of the bizarre title), lending additional cultural depth and poignancy while opening old Viet Nam-era war wounds. The parallel stories come together with an unusual a very Cotterill-like humorous twist, laying the groundwork for the next entry. While Colin Cotterill is not the in-your-face, hip, brash and brutal contemporary crime lyricists in the vein of Charlie Huston, Duane Swierczynski, or Ken Bruen, he is nonetheless a maverick in his own right - a sensitive and creative writer who values intelligent plotting and carefully drawn casts, choosing a unique time and unusual setting to practice his magic. Here is an author that deserves much more exposure - do yourself a favor and get acquainted.

I am a huge fan of Dr. Siri and this latest installment did not disppoint in any way. Excellent read and I am looking forward to the next volume!

First an admission, I love the Dr Siri Paiboun books. And despite what others have written, I do not think this one is the weakest although it is a little different. The book is far more descriptive of the lives and foibles of the people of Laos and in particular explore the wretched lives and wonderful nature of the Hmong. It's different in this respect. I'm not sure Cotterill can afford to use this difference often but it has added a more human dimension to the series. However it is also, like the others, very funny. Well written, well edited and very polished. A great read.