YANKEE PEDDLER
ISBN: 0-7599-4695-7 paperback
ISBN: 0-7599-4694-9 ebook
Robert L. Hecker
Mainstream
Hardshell Word Factory
5 Ambassadors
Elizabeth Sullivan Wexford Adams receives her first post as an American Ambassador. She is one in a long line of Adams ambassadors and diplomats. This is a job she has prepared for all of her life, and though young, she knows she will be successful. She's been successful at everything thus far. Her first assignment is to the tiny country of Litania, and she is sent there in secrecy with just one man, Captain Anastasios, of the U.S. Air Force. Her mission is to persuade the people of Litania to let the Americans keep several missiles on Litanian land. Even with the cold war over, America must be sure that the U.S. and other countries are safe from Russian aggression. Captain Anastasios would rather be flying airplanes not shepherding a female ambassador, but a depth perception problem has grounded him until such time as this fault can be corrected. Everything seems to be going well until one night several Russians show up. Will Ambassador Adams win over the people and set in motion industrialization in a backward nation? Will the United States get permission to install their missiles or will the Russians somehow beat out the Americans? These and other problems are masterfully tackled in Yankee Peddler.
It is wonderful to find a gem of a book, an intelligent, humorous book that's hard to put down. I've found such a book in YANKEE PEDDLER by Robert L. Hecker. Mr. Hecker is to be congratulated for his insightful, tongue-in-cheek work. His characters are very real which makes for delightful reading. I believe I'm going to go back and read it again. I'd love to see YANKEE PEDDLER made into a movie. I think it'd be on a par with The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming and The Mouse that Roared, two of my favorite movies. I heartily recommend YANKEE PEDDLER. I give it 5 Ambassadors, our highest, but I'd happily rate it six.
Jaye Dee Tyrack, Reviewer, Gotta Write Network
January 4, 2006
