Popular author from the 1960 - 70s, John D MacDonald presaged the Surfside condo collapse*… in 1977.
Change some details… but the basic issues are the same.
Many of MacDonald’s books revolved around these same basic issues. Greed, infidelity, ego, narcissism, libertarianism ,… and a knight in shining armor to save the girl.
Welcome to Golden Sands, the dream condominium built on a weak foundation and a thousand dirty secrets. Here is a panoramic look at the shocking facts of life in a Sun Belt community – the real estate swindles and political payoffs, the maintenance …
(Loved all those books - and Meyer slightly influenced my decision to take up economics in college, which was not the silliest way to pick a major).
Travis MacGee books! Mandatory reading for the sailing set. Lived on the Busted Flush, buddies with Meyer.
Other staple book ‘buddy series’ in the yacht club and marina reading rooms, Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino, Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala, Horatio Hornblower and Bush, Capt Jack Aubrey and Doctor Maturin.
Got to read them all, and understand that Steve Zahn was miscast as Al Giordino.
I’m new to John MacDonald/Travis McGee–can I start with Condominium, or should I start with another book?
It’s been a very long time since I read Condominium, but my recollection is that the Travis McGee books are better. If you recall (and enjoyed) the cheesy Robert Hays flick The Girl, the Gold Watch & Everything, that was based on a MacDonald book as well.
Or did you mean sexist/racist/antisemitic language?
It’s been some time since I read the series, but I don’t remember anything racist or anti=semitic.
But I would expect that any sexual politics won’t have aged well at all. McGee’s more of a Don Quijote knight errant surrogate than a hard-boiled private eye, so he’s got more idealism around the edges than the typical help-for-hire protagonist of the era. But he’s definitely what a 1960’s person would have thought of as a ‘ladies man’ in a lot of ways, with all that implies.
Condominium is NOT a Travis McGee novel.
It’s basically a stand alone story.
I enjoyed it.
I read the Travis McGee books out of sequence, and had no problems, even though there are “historical” references from time to time.
I’ve read the McGee stories a couple times.
All the McGee have a color in the title. If you can, try to read them in order of publication. While not essential to understanding the main plotline, McGee and Meyer add depth over time and you will miss some of the development if you read out of order,
McDonald was prolific, and Condomimium is an excellent insight into Florida land development. It is is a fine place to start with McDonald though not a T. McGee book.
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