The Hunting Trip by
William E. Butterworth III, aka W.E.B. Griffin, is a humorous
novel, in the same style as his previously written MASH books.
People who need an escape from today’s dark times might
want to read this novel. He pokes fun at the future CIA, the
OSS, military graduates, and Southern small towns.
Butterworth III told blackfive.net, “I started out writing
a serious story of a hunting trip that had sexual implications.
But it was not working so I decided on a funny book like when
I wrote the MASH books. I thought it was funny and hope readers
get a couple of laughs from it. They can take their minds
off of Obama, Kerry, and Hillary for a few hours.”
The novel begins in 1975 with an attempt by a bunch of wives
of prominent citizens, living in Muddiebay Mississippi, to
convince their spouse to go on a hunting trip in Scotland,
while they go on a shopping spree in London. It then flashes
back to Philip W. Williams III who is expelled from boarding
school for committing a prank, and on the train home naturally
wonders about his future. It never enters his mind that he
will become a world-class marksman and a special agent of
the U.S. Army Counterintelligence Corps in postwar Germany,
play a key role in the defection of a Soviet officer, and
then court danger as a courier for the CIA. He marries a beautiful
Austrian ballet dancer, becomes a renowned bestselling novelist,
and meets his lover on a hunting trip to Scotland.
Readers might question how this book parallels Butterworth’s
life. People may recognize that he was actually writing about
the small town in Alabama where he now resides part time.
Yet, those who think that Phil Williams’ Austrian wife
is based on Butterworth’s first wife would be wrong.
He noted, “Yes, my ex-wife was an Austrian ballet dancer,
but she was a good woman and I would never write anything
nasty about her. My son Bill would never let me get away with
it. Although she did have a red Mercedes convertible who did
believe the car had two speeds, on and off.” The other
similarity is that he went on a hunting trip to Scotland,
as shown by the picture on the back cover. He further commented,
“I wanted to zing my friends who were former OSS and
those graduates of West Point who are a little stuffy.”
Another interesting point about the book is that for cuss
words he substitutes “expletive deleted.” When
asked why, he stated, “I didn’t think the dirty
words were appropriate. It is much more crude when you read
them than when you hear them. I wanted to let people’s
imagination go to work. I don’t think they will have
a hard time understanding what I meant.”
Readers will enjoy the lighthearted spirit of The Hunting
Trip. This story will allow them to take their minds
off of their problems and this country’s problems. Fans
of Butterworth III will enjoy a raucous series of adventures
across Europe and the United States that will have them immersed
in laughter. |