3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
One of the best books I have ever read, May 22, 2008

This book was one of the most unusual overlying threads to the plot that I have ever seen. Hamish Macleod is on a trip to Southeast Cambodia in 2005 and he decides to take a late-night stroll on the beach. A little fatigued, he decides to sit down under a coconut palm. There are few things that he could have done that would be worse, for the audible click and the hard pressure on his buttock inform him that he has just sat down on an unexploded land mine.
As common folklore dictates, he mind begins to recapitulate his life. It begins when he and his twin brother Angus are born, an event that claims the life of his mother. His father, a fisherman plying the stormy waters of the North Atlantic off the coast of Scotland, dies before returning home when his ship is wrecked by a storm. Hamish and Angus are split up and it is decades before they learn of the others' existence.
Using interleaved threads, Hamish relives Angus' life as well. Both boys and then men live wild lives, crime and drug involvement are prominent. The story ends with the lines "Free of thought, he closed his eyes and found himself tottering on the brink of a great abyss. He jumped." While this line could mean that Hamish got up off the mine, it could also be metaphoric, where his mind is just continuing to work.
What stands out in this book is the incredibly creative imagery that the author uses to describe the events. At times it is hysterical; there is no part better than the section on the pillow being used as a masturbatory organ by the boys. After it reaches the point where it is ripe from overuse, the pillow was thrown into the seas. Caught by a fisherman, he samples the contents and finds it tasteful and capable of mimicking the highest quality Viagra. Being the enterprising sort, he uses it to mix up a liquid elixir and sells it to his friends.
From the information on the title page, this is "The First Book of the Landmine Chronicles." I am eagerly anticipating the sequel as this book is remarkably imaginative and one of the most engaging books I have ever read.