The Moonshine Mule by Tom Fremantle
In the summer of 1863 Colonel Arthur Fremantle travelled through America at the height of the Civil War, a time when the nation was ripping itself apart. Ironically, almost 140 years later Tom Fremantle strode off in his swashbuckling ancestor's footsteps to walk the 2700 miles from Mexico to Manhattan just ten days before the 11 September attacks on New York - and witnessed a country seemingly never more united. Their journeys could not have been more different. Colonel Arthur rode stage coaches, steam trains and Mississippi river skiffs while his less sensible descendant slogged the entire way on foot. Colonel Arthur flirted with saucy belles; Tom Fremantle kept company with Browny, a cantankerous 17-year-old mule. The Colonel ate skunk meat and was arrested twice as a spy before witnessing the devastating Battle of Gettysburg and sailing home from New York. The twenty-first century Fremantle ate grits and was chased by a buffalo before leading the hapless Browny over George Washington Bridge and into Central Park. On his travels through 14 states, Colonel Arthur met many great characters of the time, including General Robert E. Lee and the legendary Texan, Sam Houston. The colonel's observations give a fascinating insight into the Civil War era and a rip-roaring view of American frontier life. To emulate the simplicity of his ancestor's journey Tom Fremantle slept under the stars or in the homes, gardens, barns, churches and even greenhouses of generous strangers. Both Fremantles relied heavily on the kindness of those they met and did not hesitate to trust them. This moving and often hilarious story, of two men, two contrasting worlds and a cynical but heroic beast of burden, sheds a whole new light on America, mules and the vagaries of the human spirit.
Author Tom Fremantle's 19th century American ancestor Colonel Arthur Fremantle travelled through America in 1863, when the country was gripped by the turmoil of Civil WarHe travelled on stagecoaches, steam trains and Mississippi rafts, ate skunk meat, met General Robert E Lee and witnessed Gettysburg before sailing home to New York. His 20th century relative strikes out on a similar journey, aiming to walk the 2,700 miles from Mexico to Manhattan with just a mule for company, starting his journey just ten days before the events of September 11. This is engaging comic travel writing that illuminates America past and present with its uniquely peripatetic method. Like his ancestor, the modern Fremantle beds down each night outdoors, sleeping as well as walking his way across the American landscape.
Tom Fremantle's restless career has included time as a teacher, journalist, dustman, bar tender in a Hong Kong nightclub and jackaroo on an Australian sheep station. He is the author of Johny Ginger's Last Ride.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781841197258 |
| ISBN 10 | 1841197254 |
| Title | The Moonshine Mule |
| Author | Tom Fremantle |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Little, Brown Book Group |
| Year published | 2003-10-17 |
| Number of pages | 288 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |