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Usually ships in 1 business days | | | | | | Pink Tanks and Velvet Hangovers: An American in Prague, by Douglas Lytle, is a travel book that takes place in the months following the fall of the repressive Socialist government in Czechoslovakia. From the vantage point of an American journalist who went to Prague with his Czech girlfriend, Lytle documents the first shaky steps to democracy and capitalism, including the 1992 division of the country into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. He writes of the awkwardness and slights of a country in transition, the sights, smells, and incredible beauty he witnesses, and of a people and a government on the cusp of massive change. | | | |
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| | Product Details | | Author: | Douglas Lytle | | Paperback: | 250 pages | | Publisher: | Frog Books | | Publication Date: | March 07, 1995 | | Language: | English | | ISBN: | 1883319242 | | Product Length: | 8.96 inches | | Product Width: | 6.08 inches | | Product Height: | 0.9 inches | | Product Weight: | 0.81 pounds | | Package Length: | 8.46 inches | | Package Width: | 6.68 inches | | Package Height: | 0.96 inches | | Package Weight: | 1.24 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 6 reviews |
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review: ( 6 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
 A Rambling, Likable, Barely-edited and Unnecessary Work Dec 13, 1999
By Donald Frades
I lived in CZ for four years (outside of Prague, a mysterious wilderness to this writer), where a lot of Americans have aspirations to write. Horribly enough, this book was the "first" to describe that whole Prague scene. I say horribly, because this book is likable -- but the narrator does nothing unusual, thinks nothing daring -- he more or less transcribes banal journal entries into a long artless book. I could go on about the amatuerish writing style (a good editor would have cut the book to about the length of a Lonely Planet review) -- or about the lazy typesetting (full of typos), and the benefit a little fact checking would've had (it's "Havlova" not "Havelova", "vul" is "ox" not "bull", and so on....). It seems this book is the kind that would make a mother proud, but would be met with sneers and jeers by all other "expats." A lot of them held off writing this kind of book because they were waiting to synthesize and compose artfully from their Czech experience. What we have here, for all its description, is a "nice" American doing "exciting" things in a foreign country. I thought it was hard to get travel writing published, but now I see it doesn't take a hell of a lot of work. The author does nothing original, thinks no original thoughts, and pretty much stole the fire from anyone else who might put out a "real" chronicle of the Prague experience. Too bad.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
 Boring Aug 12, 2002
The first reviewer got it right -- this is an artless and boring book. It totally fails to capture the excitement of the time it's purported to cover -- and contains a great many inaccuracies. The first "half" (I think it's actually less than half) of the book consists of entries from the author's own journal, which he obviously stopped keeping after a very brief period. The second part of the book picks up, chronologically, where the author's meagerly journal left off -- by summarizing the news and events of the period -- in rapid succession and without background information, personal or otherwise. As the author had ceased to keep his journal, this part of the book is sourced from archival stories from the Prague Post. Whether it is from that newspaper or from the author's own misperceptions that the numerous factual errors arise, it makes for a boring and inaccurate read overall.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Usefull reading if you're going to travel to Prague Aug 12, 1999
Because I would be spending a semester studying in Prague, I decided to pick up Douglas Lytle's book. I must say I was very pleased with the results. Lytle writes like a good friend, filling you in on the social and political climate of the country without ever coming off as boring professor. Lytle managed to change my attitude towards Prague (that being from a kid only concerned about partying and going out to someone who is actually concerned and interested in a foreign culture) and for that alone i am gratefull. Lytle is first and foremost a reporter, and that is often revealed in the way he tells his story. All in all, i would label the book essential to anyone planning on spending any significant time in the Czech Republic.
A more sensible review! Dec 23, 2004
By Graham P. Gardner
"AO 1831"
I think the correct review lies somewhere between the worst and best review of this book. It never pretends to give an "artful" description of the Czech and Slovak transformation after Communism. It is simply a book of a journalist's notes (note the conclusion where he describes looking back on all of his notes from his years in Prague - he never hides this fact).
Don't ignore this book simply because you are jealous the writer was published for writing something many of us can and wish we could do. If you are going to be in Prague for some time, it is an eye-opener, especially if you were not there during the transition period. There are probably some ex-pats who could have done it better, but they don't have a book published.
The book is a little long. It is organized very haphazardly. There are many annoying typos. But it is a quick read and does contain some interesting bits. I thought some of his personal experiences were interesting and he made some good points. There were other times where I had no clue where he was going with his writing.
Bottom line: this is not literary masterpiece, but how many travel journals really are? Check it out.
Essential reading for anyone going to former Czechoslovakia. Nov 01, 1999
Mr. Lytle's experiences roughly paralleled mine though I spent a year teaching in the less trendy Slovak half of Czecho-Slovakia.His experience of a society in transition and attitudes toward the West are especially resonant. He was right about the beer; it's great and the women are beautiful (the best kept secret of the Cold War) I should know, I met my wife in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia.
See all 6 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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