Round The Bend

Tom Cutter, tired after World War II and the loss of his wife (he blames himself for her suicide), comes to the Persian Gulf to begin a small-scale aviation business. He throws himself into the business and makes a success of it. The business really takes off after he hires childhood friend Connie Shaklin as chief engineer, and soon after, Connie's sister Nadezna, as his secretary. But Cutter soon notices--Shaklin is giving semi-religious talks as he works, which are attracting attention and support not only from his co-workers, but from the Arab population, as they previously did in Cambodia, and when Shaklin is forced to go to Indonesia, again, he attracts attention and support, somewhat to the confusion of Cutter, who nevertheless is unfailing in his support of Shaklin, who seems to be beginning a religion that crosses religious boundaries.Shute's most thought provoking of novels, as a new prophet arises in the form of an aviation engineer who adamantly denies he is a prophet, somewhat to the confusion of his friend and his sister.Even the small characters (a gunrunner who, in seeing Shaklin and his work, is reminded of the small town and church in the Midwest where he grew up, for example) are finely drawn. And Shute often gets rather subtle--Cutter, whose first name is Thomas, three times denies Shaklin's divinity in a talk with the British officer, Captain Morrison.Beautiful and gentle work by a master storyteller. You will look for villians in vain in this book. His best.

"Round the Bend" is an adventure book that will take you with the protagonist through the pioneering atmosphere of early aviation, from the daredevil "barnstorming" era through early commercial aviation. In this book, Nevil Shute has a lot to say about the importance of finding your calling and doing good work. Besides eating, drinking, sleeping, and relating to loved ones, work is a fundamental dimension of human life, well captured by Shute in his portrayal of people's motivations, the conventional wisdom, and an encounter with a not-so-conventional attitude toward work in general that has promising implications for story characters and readers alike.I first read this book at university, in a political theory course that read twentieth-century novels (as well as important essays) as a springboard for discussion of the best way to live in society (the ancient problem of reconciling the One and the Many). This book gives an intriguing vision of how impersonal society at work becomes a dedicated community through devotion to good work. Just as importantly, such devotion is individually enriching: airplane maintenance, and all good work in general is, at a deeper level, soul work.A truly marvellous, inspirational story.

This novel captures the romance of the age of aviation. Shute adds to it with a twist of universal religious experience. As the airplane ushers in a reduced sized world, Shaklin offers a reduced sized, compressed overview of the religious experience and becomes the guru of the Fifties. With today's focus on the Persian Gulf, this snapshot from past adds flavor to our knowledge of the area through Tom Cutter's eyes. This is a book that that will leave you with a glow.

A fantastic example of how apparent contradictions can become the most desired compliments to each other. How can there be room for selfless spiritualism in the midst of so much fast-paced technology? How can eastern ideals coexist with western ways? And how can a man serve his god while serving himself? These are the things that are explored in this amazing tale of tolerance, written in a way that will have you impatient to read the next page every moment you're away from it.

This is the story of an Englishman,Tom Cutter, who runs an airplane charter service from Arabia to the Far East and his best friend,the Russian-American Connie Shaklin, who persuades men of all religions that doing their job honestly and responsibly is the best way to serve God, any God.One of the best examples of Shutes' simple,compelling style, it is also an indicator of the change in his attitude from the xenophobic Englishman of his early novels to a citizen of the world. For anyone despairing of combining religious belief with the modern work world, this book provides an excellent solution without preaching to the reader.