When Eight Bells Toll – Book and Movie Comparison

Just as I was finishing the book When Eight Bells Toll, I found the movie on the Hulu Website. I wondered how well this film was adapted from the book. They did well with the adaption of Where Eagles Dare. They did not do so well with the adaption of The Guns of Navarone  and Force 10 from Navarone.

As stated in Wikipedia, “The story is very close to the novel, and features some of the same witty dialogue – not surprising since MacLean elected to adapt this film himself. Some of the twists in the ending have been changed, however, and an explosive shootout replaces MacLean’s original Agatha Christie-style summation.” Anthony Hopkins did a fantastic job in the role of Philip Calvert. I would recommend both the book and the movie.

The Race by Clive Cussler

I just finished The Race by Clive Cussler and Justin Scott, which I enjoyed very much. One of the reason I enjoy the series is because it takes place in the early 1900’s. This was a time of great change and technological advancement.
As usual, Cussler’s research is excellent and the details about the technology and mechanics make the story interesting and believable. While reading the story I wanted to learn more about early airplane technology. I have been to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum where I saw the Early Flight exhibit. I remember seeing the Wright Military Flyer, the Curtiss Headless Pusher and the Bleriot, which were all mentioned in the book. I found an excellent resource about the early airplane engines mentioned in the story at the US Centennial of Flight Commission Website. Their site mentions the Antionette engine used in Josephine’s plane. They have a photo of the rotary air-cooled Gnome engine used in Issac Bell’s plane.