book review beach road

Book Review: Beach Road by James Patterson and Peter De Jonce

A friend loaned me this book as a “quick summer read.” I put it on a stack that got misplaced over the summer, and I recently found it again.

Quick—she wasn’t kidding! Even going to bed exhausted, I was able to finish this book in about three days, reading it before bed and while keeping an eye on the kiddo in the bathtub. The font is large and spaced out, and the pages fly by quickly. Chapters can be read in about two minutes.

When I read that it was about the murder of someone in East Hampton, I couldn’t imagine it would be a good read. I didn’t want to read about rich folks and their problems. But it starts off in an engaging way and keeps it up the whole time. The book is about the millionaires of the Hamptons and those who have very little. It’s about detectives, lawyers, townies, aspiring sports stars, drug dealers… the diversity in character helps keep the work engaging.

The premise: an aspiring basketball player named Dante is charged with the murder of three—and then four—people. Tom Dunleavy believes Dante is innocent, and he takes it upon himself to defend the boy.

As Tom makes headway on the case as almost an amateur detective, he faces discrimination from his former friends, who believe Dante is guilty, and he can’t seem to get his love interest to forget about his past mistakes. In the meantime, essential witnesses and others begin disappearing, murdered by someone who has many of the cops under his control.

The narrative is told in alternating chapters—the list of characters and a brief description appears at the start of the novel for ease in reading. The use of varied points of view both adds and detracts from the suspense. For instance, when we read from Dante’s perspective, we learn whether he is actually the killer or not. On the other hand, the varied use of perspective builds dramatic irony. And without spoiling it, there is a narrative voice that we cannot trust, and that makes for the twist advertised on the back cover. I did feel a bit betrayed by the one dishonest voice.

It was a book without much substance but a quick read with enough intrigue to keep someone interested. A perfect beach read.

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Book summary and reviews of Beach Road by James Patterson & Peter de Jonge

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by James Patterson & Peter de Jonge

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Montauk lawyer Tom Dunleavy's client list is woefully small--occasional real estate closings barely keep him in paper clips. When he is hired to defend a local man accused in a triple murder that has the East Hampton world in an uproar, he knows that he has found the case of his lifetime.

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"Fans can only hope that Patterson soon returns to the level he achieved with his Alex Cross series." - Publishers Weekly.

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James Patterson & Peter de Jonge Author Biography

James Patterson has created more enduring fictional characters than any other novelist writing today with his Alex Cross, Michael Bennett, Women's Murder Club, Private, NYPD Red, Daniel X, Maximum Ride, and Middle School series. As of January 2016, he has sold over 350 million books worldwide and currently holds the Guinness World Record for the most #1 New York Times bestsellers. In addition to writing the thriller novels for which he is best known, he also writes children's, middle-grade, and young-adult fiction and is also the first author to have #1 new titles simultaneously on the New York Times adult and children's bestsellers lists. The son of an insurance salesman and a schoolteacher, Patterson grew up in Newburgh, New York, and began casually writing at the ...

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Nikki Robinson

SEVENTEEN AND CRIMINALLY CUTE, Nikki Robinson sulks through the sultry afternoon trying to keep from staring at her useless shocking-pink cell phone. She hasn't heard from Feifer in three days and is getting the awful feeling she's already been dumped and just hasn't been told yet.

So when Nikki's cell rings while she's waiting in line to pay for her drink at Kwik Mart, her heart goes off with it. She grabs for the phone so fast her best friend, Rowena, behind the counter flashes her a disapproving look that says, "Chill, girl."

Rowena is all about maintaining dignity under romantic duress, and as usual, she's right. It's only Maidstone Interiors calling about a cleaning job for Nikki out in Montauk.

Nikki has been working for Maidstone all summer and likes it okay, but the thing about Maidstone is that she never knows where they're going to send her.

It takes Nikki forty minutes to drive from Kings Highway in Bridgehampton to Montauk, and another five to find the hilly neighborhood perched just above Route 27 where all the streets are named for dead presidents --- and not the recent ones, the ones who have been dead awhile.

Forty-one Monroe is neither a mansion nor a dump, but somewhere in between, and as soon as she gets through the door, she sees it's nothing catastrophic and was probably rented by a couple, maybe a small family.

Besides the steady money, what Nikki likes best about this job is that she's alone. She may be cleaning white folks' houses, but at least they aren't standing over her shoulder, watching and supervising her every move. Plus she can dress how she wants, and so she pulls off her jeans and T-shirt, revealing a skimpy two-piece bathing suit underneath. She puts on her headphones and some R. Kelly, and gets busy.

Nikki starts with the ground-floor bedroom. She gathers the dirty towels and strips the sheets, balls them up in a giant damp pile, and wrestles it down the steep basement staircase. She quickly gets the first load of wash running, then races all the way up to the second floor, and by now her dark skin, which she sometimes loves and sometimes hates, is shimmering.

When she reaches the landing, there's a funky smell in the air, as if someone's been burning incense or, now that she gets a better whiff, smoking reefer.

That's nothing too out of the ordinary. Renters can be stoners too.

But when Nikki swings open the door to the master bedroom, her heart jumps into her mouth, and yet somehow she manages to scream and to think, The white devil.

POISED ON THE BED with a long, curved fishing knife in his hand, and wearing nothing but boxers and a twisted grin, is a skinny white guy who looks as though he just got out of prison. His hair is bleached white, and his ghostly pale skin is covered with piercings and tattoos.

But the scariest part, maybe even scarier than the knife, is his eyes. "I know you, Nikki Robinson," he says. "I know where you live. I even know where you work."

For a couple seconds that feel much longer, those flat, horror-movie eyes freeze Nikki in the doorway and seem to nail her Reeboks to the floor.

Her lungs are useless now too. She can't even get enough air to scream again.

Somehow she breaks the paralyzing spell enough to lift one foot, then the other, and now she's moving, and screaming, running for her life toward the bathroom door at the far end of the hall.

Nikki is fast, a hurdler on the Bridgehampton High School varsity team, faster than all but a handful of the boys, and faster than this snaky, beady-eyed intruder too.

She reaches the bathroom door before him, and even though her hands shake, she manages to slam and lock it behind her.

Her chest heaving so hard she can barely hear his footsteps, she leans her head against the door, her terrified reflection looking back at her in the full-length mirror.

Then turning and pressing her back against the door, she desperately scans the room for a way out.

The window leads to a roof. If she can get on the roof, she can find a way down or, if she has to, jump.

And then she sees it. But she sees it too late.

The brass doorknob twists in the light.

Not the doorknob that's pressing into her back, either. A second doorknob on the other side of the sink, attached to another door, a door she didn't know was there because she's never been to this house until now, a door that leads directly from the bedroom.

As she stares in horror, the doorknob stops turning and the door slowly pushes open, and he's in the tiny bathroom with her. The white devil.

There is nowhere to go, nowhere to go, nowhere to go, she thinks, her terror bouncing back at her from every mirror.

And now the devil is pressed up against her, breathing in her ear, the razor-sharp blade tracing a line into her neck. When she looks down he pulls her hair back until their eyes meet in the mirror.

"Don't cut me!" she begs in a weak whisper. "I'll do whatever you want."

But nothing she says means a thing, and those pitiless eyes laugh at her as he pushes her shoulders and stomach down over the sink and roughly pulls her bikini bottom to her knees.

"I know you'll do whatever. Don't stop looking."

Nikki looks at him in the glass just as she's been told to and takes a shallow breath. But when he pushes himself inside her, he shoves so hard her head hits the mirror, and it falls into a million pieces. And even though the blade is pressed against her throat, and she knows it's against the rules, she can't keep herself from moaning and begging him to never stop. But it's not till he's finished that Nikki leans into the mirror and says, "Feif, I love it when you come up with this freaky romantic role-play shit. You are the devil."

It's not until twenty minutes after that, when they're both lounging around on one of the stripped-down beds, that he tells her the smell in the room isn't reefer, it's crack.

And that's how the story begins --- with Feif and Nikki, and the crack they smoke that lazy afternoon at somebody else's summerhouse in the Hamptons.

Tom Dunleavy

IT'S SATURDAY MORNING on Labor Day weekend, and I'm rolling down what some might call the prettiest country lane in America --- Beach Road, East Hampton.

I'm on my way to meet four of my oldest pals on the planet. The '66 XKE I have been working on for a decade hasn't backfired once, and everywhere I look there's that dazzling Hampton light.

Not only that, I've got my loyal pooch, Wingo, right beside me on the passenger seat, and with the top down, he hardly stinks at all.

So why don't I feel better about another day in paradise?

Maybe it's just this neighborhood. Beach Road is wide and elegant, with one ten-million-dollar house after another, but in a way, it's as ugly as it is beautiful. Every five minutes or so a private rent-a-cop cruises by in a white Jeep. And instead of bearing the names of the residents, the signs in front of the houses belong to the high-tech electronic security companies that have been hired to keep the riffraff out.

Well, here comes some prime riffraff, fellas, and guess what you can do if you don't like it.

As I roll west, the houses get even bigger and the lawns deeper and, if possible, greener. Then they disappear completely behind tall, thick hedges.

When that happens, Wingo and I have put the sorry land of the multimillionaire behind us and have crossed, without invitation, into the even chillier kingdom of the billionaire. In the old days, this would be where the robber barons camped out, or the guys who had invented something huge and life-enhancing, like the refrigerator or air-conditioning. Now it's reserved for the occasional A-list Hollywood mogul or the anonymous mathematicians who sit in front of their computer screens and run the hedge funds. A mile from here, Steven Spielberg slapped together three lots on Georgica Pond, then bought the parcel on the other side so he could own the view too.

Before I get pulled over for rubbing the rich the wrong way, or being a grouch for no good reason, I spot a break in the hedges and rumble up a long, pebbled drive.

Beyond a huge, sprawling manor built in --- no, decorated to look like it was built in --- the 1920s is a shimmering pack of cars parked on the grass, each one chromed and accessorized.

Just beyond them is the reason they're here, and the reason I'm here too --- a brand-new, custom-built, state-of-the-art, official NBA-length-and-width basketball court.

But if there's a Hampton sight more welcome and less expected than a full-size basketball court with an ocean view, it's the dozen or so people hanging out beside it, and they immediately come over to greet us --- the guys lavishing attention on my vehicle, the ladies giving it up for my faithful dog, Wing Daddy.

"This baby is pure class," says a hustler named Artis LaFontaine as he appraises my antique Jag.

"And this baby is pure cute!" says his girl, Mammy, as Wingo gets up on his hind legs to lay a big wet one on her pretty face. "Can I adopt him?"

The warm way they all greet me feels as terrific as always --- and not just because I'm the only white person here.

I DON'T HAVE the honor of being the sole Caucasian for long.

In less than five minutes, Robby Walco arrives in his mud-splattered pickup, WALCO & SON , the name of his and his old man's landscaping company, stenciled on the cab.

And then my older brother, Jeff, the football coach at East Hampton High, shows up with Patrick Roche in his school-issued van.

"Where the hell is Feif?" asks Artis. Artis has never actually volunteered what he does for a living, but the hours are highly flexible, and it pays well enough to keep his canary-yellow Ferrari in twenty-two-inch wheels.

"Yeah, where's the white Rodman?" asks a dude called Marwan with dreadlocks.

Artis LaFontaine and crew can't get enough of Feif, with his bleached-white hair, the piercings and tats --- and when he finally rolls in barefoot on his bicycle, his high-tops dangling like oversized baby shoes from the handlebars, they practically give him a standing ovation.

"Be careful with this one, fellas," says Feif, meticulously lowering his kickstand and parking his eight-dollar bike between two hundred-thousand-dollar cars. "It's a Schwinn."

I've depended on Jeff my whole life, but all these guys are indispensable to me. Roche, aka Rochie, is the deepest soul I know, not to mention a terrible sculptor, a mediocre poker player, and a truly gifted bartender. Walco is pure, undiluted human earnestness, the kind of guy who will walk up to you and, apropos of nothing, pronounce Guns 'N Roses the greatest rock-and-roll band of all time, or Derek Jeter the finest shortstop of his generation. As for Feif, he's just special, and that's immediately obvious to everyone, from the Dominican cashier at the IGA to your grandmother.

This whole place is owned by the movie star T. Smitty Wilson, who bought it five years ago. Wilson wanted to show his fans he was still keeping it real, so after dropping $23 million for a big, Waspy house on four acres, he dropped another half mil on this sick basketball court. He used the same contractor who built Shaq's court in Orlando, and Dr. Dre's in Oakland, but he hired Walco & Son to do the landscaping, and that's how we found out about it.

For a month, we had the court to ourselves, but when Wilson invited his celebrity pals out to the country, it got to be even more fun.

First came a handful of actors and pro athletes, mainly from L.A. and New York. Through them word leaked into the hip-hop crowd. They told their people, and the next thing you know this court was the wildest scene in the Hamptons --- ever --- a nonstop party with athletes and rappers, CEOs and supermodels, and just enough gangsters to add some edge.

But as the celebs thinned out, one of the most expensive residential acres on Beach Road was starting to seem like a playground in a South Bronx housing project.

At that point, Wilson made his retreat. For weeks he barely ventured from the house; then he began to avoid the Hamptons altogether.

Now about the only person you can be sure of not running into at T. Smitty Wilson's Hamptons compound is T. Smitty Wilson.

ME, JEFF, FEIF, Walco, and Rochie are stretching and shooting around one basket when a maroon SUV rumbles up the driveway. Like a lot of cars here, it looks as if it just rolled off a showroom floor, and its arrival is announced well in advance by 500 watts of teeth-chattering hip-hop.

When the big Caddy lurches to a stop, three doors swing open and four black teens jump out, each sporting brand-new kicks and sweats.

Then, after a dramatic beat or two, the man-child himself, Dante Halleyville, slides out from the front passenger side. It's hard not to gawk at the kid.

Halleyville is the real deal, without a doubt the best high school player in the country, and at six foot nine with ripped arms and chest tapering to a tiny waist and long, lean legs, he's built like a basketball god. Dante is already being called the next Michael Jordan. Had he declared himself eligible for this year's NBA draft, he would have been a top-three pick, no question, but he promised his grandmother at least one year of college.

The reason I know all this is that Dante grew up nine miles down the road, in Bridgehampton, and there's a story about him every other day in the local paper, not to mention a weekly column he writes with the sports editor called Dante's Diary. According to the stories, which suggest that Dante is actually a pretty sharp kid, he's leaning toward Louisville --- so rumor has it that's the academic institution that leased him the car.

"You fellas want to have a run?" I ask.

"Hell, yeah," says Dante, offering a charismatic smile that the Nike people are just going to love. "We'll make it quick and painless for you."

He slaps my head and bumps my chest, and thirty seconds later the crash of collapsing waves and squawking gulls mix with the squeak of sneakers and the sweet pock of a bouncing ball.

You might think the older white guys are about to get embarrassed, but we've got some talent too. My big brother, Jeff, is pushing fifty, but at six five, 270 he's still pretty much unmovable under the boards, and Walco, Roche, and Feif, all in their early twenties, are good, scrappy athletes who can run forever.

As for me, I'm not as much of a ringer as Dante, and I'm pushing thirty-five --- but I can still play a little.

Unless you're a basketball junkie you haven't heard of me, but I was second-team All-America at St. John's and in '95 the Minnesota Timberwolves made me the twenty-third pick in the first round of the NBA draft. My pro career was a wash. I blew out my knee before the end of my rookie season, but I'd be lying if I told you I couldn't still hold my own on any playground, whether it's a cratered cement court in the projects or this million-dollar beauty looking straight out at the big blue sea.

PARADISE COULDN'T BE too much better than this.

Seagulls are flapping in the breeze, sailboats are bobbing on the waves, and the green rubberized surface is bathed in dazzling sunshine as I dribble the ball upcourt, cut around my brother's double-wide pick, and snap off a bounce pass to an open Walco under the basket.

Walco is about to lay it in for an easy hoop when one of Dante's teammates, a tall, wiry kid I will later find out is named Michael Walker, comes flying at him from behind. He blocks the shot and knocks Walco to the court. It's a hard foul, and completely unnecessary in my opinion. A dirty play.

Now the Kings Highway squad is bringing the ball upcourt, and when one of their players goes up for a little jumper, he gets mugged just as bad by Rochie.

Pretty soon, no one stretched out on the grassy hill beside the court is noticing the flapping seagulls or bobbing sailboats because the informal Saturday-morning game has escalated into a war.

But then a beat-up Honda parks beside the court, and Dante's pretty seventeen-year-old cousin, Nikki Robinson, steps out in very short cutoffs. When I see the way Feifer checks her out, I know the Montauk townies still have a chance to win this shoot-out by the sea.

Beach Road by by James Patterson and Peter de Jonge

• Genres: Fiction , Thriller
• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Vision
• ISBN-10: 0446619140
• ISBN-13: 9780446619141

James Patterson, Peter Y. de Jong, . . Little, Brown, $27.95 (390pp) ISBN 978-0-316-15978-4

Reviewed on: 03/27/2006

Genre: Fiction

Analog Audio Cassette - 978-1-59483-224-6

Compact Disc - 6 pages - 978-1-59483-225-3

Compact Disc - 978-1-60024-251-9

Compact Disc - 978-1-4789-0956-9

Downloadable Audio - 1 pages - 978-1-60788-118-6

Hardcover - 403 pages - 978-0-316-16711-6

MP3 CD - 978-1-4789-6359-2

Mass Market Paperbound - 400 pages - 978-0-446-61914-1

Mass Market Paperbound - 384 pages - 978-0-446-61915-8

Open Ebook - 978-0-7595-1592-5

Other - 978-0-7595-1594-9

Other - 978-0-7595-2106-3

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Paperback - 423 pages - 978-0-7553-2313-5

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James Patterson – Beach Road

Beach Road is a book by James Patterson and Peter de Jonge.

This novel had a publication date of May 1, 2006.

Beach Road book description

Montauk lawyer Tom Dunleavy’s client list is woefully small – occasional real estate closings barely keep him in paper clips. When he is hired to defend a local man accused in a triple murder that has the East Hampton world in an uproar, he knows that he has found the case of his lifetime.

The crime turns the glittering playground for the super-rich into a blazing inferno. Dunleavy’s client is a local hero, but Dunleavy knows the case rests atop a volcano of money, deception, and forbidden desires. His client is the perfect fall guy – unless he can find the key that unlocks the secret rooms of the gilt-shrouded set.

When Dunleavy is joined by his former flame, the savvy and well-connected attorney, Kate Costello, he believes he has a chance. But payback is a bitch – especially from the rich. The violent retaliations of billionaires threatened by his investigation exceed anything Dunleavy has ever seen.

With the entire nation’s eyes on him in a new Trial of the Century, Dunleavy orchestrates a series of revelations that lead to a stunning outcome – only to find afterward that the truth is wilder than anything he ever imagined.

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By James Patterson

By Peter de Jonge

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• Mystery & Thriller

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James Patterson

About the author.

James Patterson  is   the most popular storyteller of our time. He is the   creator of unforgettable characters and series, including Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane   Effing   Smith, and Maximum Ride, and of breathtaking true stories about the Kennedys, John Lennon, and Princess Diana,  as well as our   military heroes, police officers,   and ER   nurses. He has coauthored #1 bestselling   novels   with   Bill Clinton and Dolly Parton, told the story of his own life in  James Patterson by James Patterson,  and received   an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Learn more at  jamespatterson.com

Learn more about this author

Peter de Jonge

Book Review: Beach Road

Beach Road, a road peppered with mansions in East Hampton, is the epitome of the haves and have nots. The wealthy who travel to the Hamptons on weekends and holidays, and those that take care of the homes and properties throughout the year. One such home, owned by the movie star, T. Smitty Wilson, had a brand-new basketball court which the local kids were invited to use. One kid, Dante Halleyville, who had been drafted to the NBA, played on that court with his friends and neighbors, including Tom Dunleavy, a resident of East Hampton and small-town defense attorney.

One day, after a heated game of basketball someone grabs a gun. No one is hurt, but later that evening 3 of the players are found dead on the beach and Dante is the prime suspect. During the investigation, two other key witnesses are found shot and a crooked cop is pulling the strings. Dante’s family wants Tom to represent Dante and Tom enlists the help of his ex-girlfriend and NYC attorney, Katherine.

Twists and turns as are typical of Patterson’s stories run throughout the investigation, trial, and post-trial story in this book. The end was completely unexpected – thus why Patterson has been so successful in his writing!

Each chapter in the book is written from the perspective of an individual character, Tom, Dante, Katherine, etc. At the outset, the format of the narrative is a bit confusing. I had to force myself to keep reading after the first few chapters in hopes that it would all come together – which it did. As I read further and understood the story and the characters it was easier to read and worth the time.

Beach Road would be a good book to bring on vacation with you this summer. Nothing like reading about a murder investigation in the Hamptons while you dig your toes into the Jersey Shore – or wherever you may be.

Until next time – happy reading and don’t forget your sunscreen!

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The Bookshop on Beach Road

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Book Review

Reviewed by Nino Lobiladze for Readers' Favorite

In The Bookshop on Beach Road by Janet Morris Belvin, Finn Ingram, the Coast Guard's flight operations officer, protected the North Carolina coastal waters from attacks by German submarines, or U-boats, in 1942. Finn's mission was to spot the enemy U-boats, the destroyers of ships that delivered supplies to the Allies, bomb them, and rescue the survivors from the damaged ships. A beautiful waitress named Louise Gates stole Finn's heart. But Finn's dangerous missions put his future with Louise at risk. In 1994, Della Gates returned to the seaside town of Kitty Hawk after losing her job at Colony Books and breaking up with her fiancé, Dylan Metcalfe. Della's great-aunt, Louise, offered her a position in her small bookshop, which needed a modern approach and a caring hand. But Dylan had his plans for Aunt Louise's shop. Della must choose between him and her new love interest, a handsome firefighter named Luke Howard. Janet Morris Belvin's The Bookshop on Beach Road is a fascinating story of loyalty, love, and self-sacrifice for fans of historical fiction, romance, and drama. Narrated from two historical perspectives, the book has a well-researched background. The author's love for North Carolina's coastal towns shines through the pages. It is easy to feel a strong emotional connection with Della and Louise, two independent, loving, hard-working women. Della puts her heart and soul into the bookshop's restoration. She is ready to get her hands dirty and respects her elderly great-aunt's wish to keep an old couch that means so much to her unchanged. The author shows how an old bookshop brings two generations together, thus becoming a symbol of hope for a better future. Janet adds intrigue and a startling twist to the plotline. The novel's centerpiece is a touching romance that gives hope to those who believe in true love. The thrilling battle scenes will appeal to military-themed historical fiction fans.

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It was a great read - full of suspense and sweet love!

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The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World

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In "The Fabric of Civilization," Virginia Postrel explores how the history of textiles is akin to the story of civilization as we know it. As evidenced throughout her book, Postrel treats each chapter as a standalone story of its production and journey, all the while masterfully weaving it together to show the story of human ingenuity. While academic in nature due to its incredibly well-researched methodology, the general reader will enjoy the book's unique style and approach to world history.

In The Fabric of Civilization : How Textiles Made the World , Virginia Postrel expertly demonstrates how the history of textiles is the story of human progress. Although textiles have shaped society in many ways, their central role in the development of technology and impact on socio-economics have been exceedingly overlooked. Attempting to remedy this issue, Postrel organizes her book into two distinct sections: one focusing on the different stages of textile production (fiber, thread, cloth, and dye) and the other on the consumers, traders, and future innovators of said textiles. To strengthen her argument, Postrel pulls from different primary sources across many regions and cultures, such as the works of people like entomologist Agostino Bassi and the accounts of disgruntled Assyrian merchants. However, Postrel goes beyond relying solely on books and peer-reviewed articles; she personally interviewed textile historians, scientists, businesspeople, and artisans who offered their own insight regarding the importance of textiles in the world. To help the reader envision the intricacies of textile manufacturing, the book is riddled with images that range from ancient spindle whorls and Andean textile patterns to nineteenth-century pamphlets raging over improved cotton seeds. It is quite a laborious task to explain the history of textiles, but Postrel’s way of organizing her chapters and style of writing does an excellent job of conveying her argument.

In Chapter One, Postrel illustrates the many uses of fibers and how their multipurpose functionality served its role in world economies. From the domestication of cotton in the Americas to sericulture in ancient China , such fibers left an indelible mark on trade and technology. Chapter Two looks at the use of thread's connection with social and gender roles as Postrel argues that dismissing fabric as feminine domesticity ignores its integral role in the social innovations that products like clothing and sails provided. Chapter Three connects mathematics with weaving through handwoven textiles by Andean artisans and in the notations written down in Marx Ziegler’s manual, The Weaver’s Art and Tie-Up Book (1677) . Chapter Four explains how dyes not only contributed to the distinction between social classes, such as the use of Tyrian purple by Roman emperors but also the ingenuity of humans to ascribe meaning and beauty to a variety of colors. Furthermore, the increasing and competitive trading of dyes in the 16th and 17th centuries would eventually contribute to the discovery of synthetic dyes.

Textile traders and consumers also helped to foster cultural exchanges. Postrel then highlights how traders often also served as innovators. The implementation of the Fibonacci sequence in European trading not only helped traders with bookkeeping but also gave a new perspective to the practicality of learning math by helping traders understand profits and calculate prices. Readers explore in Chapter Six how the Mongol Empire expanded across many different lands for their desire for valuable woven textiles. Under the Pax Mongolica, the textile trade flourished as the Mongols protected the Silk Road , resulting in cross-cultural and technological exchange between Europe and Asia. Lastly, in Chapter Seven, Postrel introduces synthetic polymers like nylon and polyester, where the efforts made by scientists like Wallace Carothers, Rex Whinfield, and James Dickson have revolutionized the use of textiles. Companies like Under Armour use polyester to create water-repellent clothing. Despite synthetic polymers currently being used innovatively, many still seek to look into the future of textiles. As Postrel explains, imagine your pockets can charge your phone or your hat could give you directions. The future of textiles is incredibly exciting.

As an avid writer of socio-economics, Postrel expertly showcases her knowledge of the subject. Postrel’s previous books, such as The Future and its Enemies (1998) and The Power of Glamour: Longing and the Art of Visual Persuasion (2013), cover the interconnectedness between culture , technology, and the economy . Postrel has also worked as a columnist for several news sites, is the contributing editor for the magazine Works in Progress , and was a visiting fellow at the Smith Institute for Political Economy and Philosophy at Chapman University. This book is a wonderful intellectual contribution that feels like a documentary series, perfectly threading the reader through cultures and regions like a needle through fabric.

Buy This Book

About the reviewer.

Related Content

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Cite this work.

Carrodeguas, R. (2024, July 31). The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World . World History Encyclopedia . Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/review/463/the-fabric-of-civilization-how-textiles-made-the-w/

Chicago Style

Carrodeguas, Roberto. " The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World ." World History Encyclopedia . Last modified July 31, 2024. https://www.worldhistory.org/review/463/the-fabric-of-civilization-how-textiles-made-the-w/.

Carrodeguas, Roberto. " The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World ." World History Encyclopedia . World History Encyclopedia, 31 Jul 2024. Web. 03 Aug 2024.

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Beach Road Kindle Edition

Tom Dunleavy has a one-man law firm in East Hampton, summer home to billionaires and Hollywood celebrities. But his clients are the people he grew up with, the people who make a living serving the rich. When an old friend, Dante Halleyville, is arrested for a triple murder near a movie star's mansion, Tom agrees to represent him, and recruits super lawyer, and ex-girlfriend, Kate Costello to help fight the case. As Tom wonders if he can ever get Kate to forgive him for his past sins, the case takes on astonishing dimensions, revealing a world of illegal pleasures, revenge, and fear amongst the super-rich...

• Print length 436 pages
• Language English
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• Publisher Headline
• Publication date May 12, 2011
• File size 1579 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
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From publishers weekly, from booklist.

"The novel has a rich characterization often absent in legal potboilers...Anyone who likes to relax with a Grisham novel will enjoy this superior story."

"With a fast-moving plot, a dose of courtroom drama, and a dash of romance, James Patterson's latest book has all the ingredients for a great Sunday read. Patterson has delivered another killer thriller."

"Patterson readers know to expect a surprise ending."

"A clever and powerful mystery-thriller."

"Gripping...The novel races toward a conclusion so shocking that even longtime Patterson devotees won't see it coming."

About the Author

Peter de Jonge is the author of the critically acclaimed crime novels Shadows Still Remain and Buried on Avenue B . Before collaborating on Miracle at St. Andrews,  he and James Patterson cowrote Miracle on the 17th Green and Miracle at Augusta . 

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Little brown and company, chapter one, chapter two.

Continues... Excerpted from Beach Road by James Patterson Copyright © 2006 by James Patterson. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

From AudioFile

Product details.

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004VF627K
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Headline (May 12, 2011)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 12, 2011
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 1579 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 436 pages
• #2,590 in Conspiracy Thrillers (Books)
• #2,610 in Legal Thrillers (Kindle Store)
• #3,571 in Serial Killers

About the authors

James patterson.

James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time. He is the creator of unforgettable characters and series, including Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride, and of breathtaking true stories about the Kennedys, John Lennon, and Tiger Woods, as well as our military heroes, police officers, and ER nurses. Patterson has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton and Dolly Parton, and collaborated most recently with Michael Crichton on the blockbuster “Eruption.” He has told the story of his own life in “James Patterson by James Patterson” and received an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Peter de Jonge

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

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Customers say

Customers say the characters are great and the ending leaves them speechless. They also find the book easy to read and a good story. However, some find the story hard to read, while others say it holds their interest. Opinions are mixed on the entertainment value, with some finding it interesting and others boring. Readers also differ on the pace, with others finding it quick and suspenseful, while other find the first couple of chapters slow.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Customers find the ending of the book very surprising, stunning, and entertaining. They also say the plot is great and has plenty of action.

"Another wonderful book by this author . A great piece of work and you will never believe the ending. Simply mind blowing!..." Read more

"...The book got better and more suspenseful as it went on and the end was very riveting and unexpected. Another good novel by an extraordinary writer." Read more

"...I literally gasped when it was revealed. Great read and suspense . Thanks." Read more

"I enjoy this book, it was an easy read with a good story . Although it was not out standing. It was an easy book to read." Read more

Customers find the characters in the book great.

"...The end was not what I expected at all. I liked that the characters were all laid out from the start" Read more

"...I'm glad I did. I'm of two minds with this book. It had some interesting characters , but I wish that they had been more fully drawn...." Read more

"...Great colorful, believable characters and their stories." Read more

"thought it was pretty good i liked the characters it kept moving along at a pretty good pace held intrest" Read more

Customers find the story hard to put down and appreciate the quick, easy chapters.

"...Easy read. James Patterson has really refined his writing with quick easy chapters . The flow of the book was smooth and easily readable." Read more

"... Very hard to put down ." Read more

"...Excellent read. This is one of those books that's almost impossible to put down ." Read more

"...I recommend this book highly for an easy , suspenseful read." Read more

Customers are mixed about the reading pace. Some mention that it's a quick read, and keeps moving along at a pretty good pace. They also say the flow of the book is smooth and easily readable. However, others say that the first couple of chapters are a little slow and difficult to follow along.

"...Although it was not out standing. It was an easy book to read ." Read more

"The way this book was written it was kind of difficult for me to follow along towards the beginning...." Read more

"This book, like other Patterson novels, is a fast, easy read ...." Read more

"Great book. Easy read . James Patterson has really refined his writing with quick easy chapters. The flow of the book was smooth and easily readable." Read more

Customers are mixed about the entertainment value of the book. Some mention that it holds their interest, while others say it's boring and difficult to read.

"I really enjoyed the story. It held my interested . I was caught completely caught by surprise by the ending. Great." Read more

"...It was such a tasteless change of pace in the novel , that it was really difficult to finish the book...." Read more

"Great story. Lots of twists and turns. Keeps you interested right to the last page. A good read to take on a holiday !" Read more

"...So, although this was not one of his best reading adventures , as usual, Mr. Patterson never disappoints on his endings." Read more

Customers find the book hard to read, with convoluted script and a story that makes no sense.

"...However, this was just too much of a misstep ." Read more

"...ending violates the rules of the genre in a way that makes it unattractive to read , and I didn't read it. Just imagine it ends earlier than it does." Read more

"..." twist, but will say that the reason it is a surprise is that it makes no sense ...." Read more

"A bit boring, difficult to read ." Read more

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Around Town: Designer of Beatles’ iconic ‘Abbey Road’ album cover to appear at OC Fair Saturday

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Grammy Award-winning art director and designer John Kosh — creator of the renowned Beatles’ “Abbey Road” album cover, along with the Eagles’ “Hotel California” and ELO’s “Out of the Blue” — makes a special Orange County appearance Saturday.

Kosh will sign limited-edition album covers at the OC Fair’s “ Art of Music Experience ” exhibit, now in its second year inside the Costa Mesa fairgrounds’ Huntington Beach Building, starting at 5 p.m.

Beginning his career in London in the 1960s, as creative director for Apple Records, Kosh attended the Beatles’s last rooftop concert in 1969 before heading out to Los Angeles, where he would create the logo for the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Buffett and countless others.

Prints and vinyl records will be available for purchase on site at the Art of Music Experience’s Fingerprints Music pop up. For more on the artist, visit koshdesign.com .

County’s draft Climate Action Plan ready for public review

Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley announced Friday the publication of the county’s draft Climate Action Plan , starting a 20-day public review period before the plan goes before the Board of Supervisors in September.

“Orange County’s first ever Climate Action Plan outlines our strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the significant carbon footprint from the County operation of three landfills, nearly 19,000 employees, more than 800 facilities, and 3,000 vehicle fleet. The draft plan outlines measures for a resilient future through waste reduction, improved air quality, accessible and clean water, and expanded tree canopies countywide. Additionally, the plan reimagines our infrastructure and transportation systems to better protect our natural resources, beaches, parks and open spaces for future generations,” Foley stated.

Foley urged the public to study the document, provide feedback and attend a community meeting at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 6, at the County Administrative South Building, 400 West Civic Center Dr., Santa Ana. Comments must be made by Sept. 21. They can be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to Orange County Office of Sustainability, Attn: OCWR/Tara Tisopulos, 601 N. Ross Street, 5th Floor, Santa Ana, 92701.

Hibiscus, plumeria show coming to Sherman

The Southern California Hibiscus Society and the South Coast Plumeria Society will put on a colorful show at Sherman Library & Gardens the weekend of Aug. 24 and 25, from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days.

Experts from both plant societies will be available throughout the weekend to give advice and share information, including talks and demonstrations. Vendors will be selling a wide range of plants and supplies to those interested in these tropical plants. Admission is free for garden members; $5 for nonmembers.

Sherman Library & Gardens is located at 2647 E. Coast Hwy., Corona del Mar.

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• Arts & Entertainment

At Circus Smirkus, coming to Maine on Aug. 5-6, kids entertain kids

The Vermont-based family circus will stage shows in Cumberland, Kennebunkport and Fryeburg.

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Sayad Moudachirou brought his daughters to see Circus Smirkus last year, figuring it would be a fun family thing to do.

It was. But he also left the show with a couple aspiring circus performers on his hands.

CIRCUS SMIRKUS

WHEN : 1 and 6 p.m. Aug. 5 and 6

WHERE : Cumberland Fairgrounds, Cumberland

HOW MUCH : $25 to $40

INFO : portlandovations.org

WHAT ELSE : Circus Smirkus will also be performing Aug. 8-9 in Kennebunkport and Aug. 11-13 in Fryeburg. For more info, go to smirkus.org.

“As soon as the show ended, they wanted to enroll in circus camp. They appreciated that all the performers are still kids, and that makes it so relatable,” said Moudachirou of Scarborough.

Circus Smirkus will be back in Maine for more than a dozen shows under the big top this summer. The Maine tour begins with four shows at Cumberland Fairgrounds on Aug. 5 and 6.  There will also be four shows at Rockin’ Horse Stables in in Kennebunkport on Aug. 8-9 and five shows at Fryeburg Fairgrounds on Aug. 11-13.

Moudachirou will be there with his daughters, Maya, 9 and Shoshana, 7. Both are interested in taking classes at their local neighborhood circus school, The Gym Dandies Circus School of Maine. Last year, when Moudachirou and his family saw Circus Smirkus, the show was at Payson Park in Portland. But this year, the presenter of the Portland-area shows, Portland Ovations, picked the Cumberland Fairgrounds to provide more parking and a better site for the giant tent, which holds 750 people.

Circus Smirkus features performers between 10 and 18 years old.   Photo by Justin Miel

Circus Smirkus is a traveling advertisement for the new generation of circuses, focused on young, skilled performers who take classes and study things like juggling, acrobatics or unicycling. The days when circuses were known largely for lion tamers and elephant riders are gone. Advertisement

Circus Smirkus was founded in 1987, as an arts and education organization, training performers, offering camps and classes, and putting on family shows. It’s based in Vermont.

The performers are between 10 and 18 years old, and this year’s tour theme is “The Imaginarium,” a magical toy shop that comes to life with performers taking the roles of tumbling teddy bears, high-flying marionettes or a jumpy Jack-in-the-Box.

One of the performers coming to Maine is Cora Williams, 18, of Ithaca, New York, in her third summer season with the circus. She took lessons at a circus school near her home, then studied at a circus school in Montreal.

Circus Smirkus, based in Vermont, is a circus for kids by kids. Photo by Justin Miel

She remembers seeing traditional circuses as a kid, including Ringling Bros. and Big Apple Circus. But when she first saw Circus Smirkus, she realized entertaining people under the big top was something she could do sooner, rather than later.

Williams said she loves the fact that when she does a show, she could be inspiring the next generation of circus performers.

“The nice thing is this is a show for kids by kids, but we don’t dumb it down. I love it when the kids (in the audience) come and talk to us,” said Williams. “We have lots of little kids who come up to us. That’s how I got into it. We teach them some tricks, and we get lots of hugs.” Advertisement

Williams says it took her three or four months to learn unicycle tricks. She can do spins and pirouettes and “wheel walking,” where it seems as if the cycle’s one wheel is walking, one step at a time. She’s also an acrobat, standing on others’ shoulders and being flipped and tossed through the air.

Because she’s 18, Williams is “graduating” from Smirkus. She’s excited to be part of a “new generation reimagining what circus is” without animals and without limits. She says that young performers go on to careers using their circus skills in a variety of places and fields, including with touring circuses, as part of cruise ship shows, or in companies that put on shows for businesses.

Circus Smirkus is coming to Maine this month. Photo by Justin Miel

Moudachirou said his is one of about five Scarborough families he knows that are going to the show this year. Some went last year, and some heard from others about how engaging the performances are for kids.

He said that, as a parent, he’s glad to see groups like Circus Smirkus and The Gym Dandies offering a fun activity and a chance to learn a skill, besides the traditional offerings of sports or music lessons for kids. He also thinks that from what he’s seen so far at Circus Smirkus, the performers learn more than just juggling or acrobatics.

“For me, as a parent, it was great to see the performers taking ownership of what they were doing. It goes beyond performing; it’s almost about leadership,” Moudachirou said of the show he saw last year. “They were going into the crowd and talking to people, sharing their excitement.”

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