Sunday, June 7, 2009

Dinner with Mugabe: 7/10

Can there be a better book on the history of modern-day Zimbabwe? In Dinner with Mugabe: The Untold Story of a Freedom Fighter Who Became a Tyrant journalist-turned-author Heidi Holland has managed to track down ALL the important players who shaped Mugabe's mutation into a monster: everyone from Ian Smith - the last leader of Rhodesia to waiters that served him at a Victoria Falls hotel. The book culminates in a rare interview with the man himself.

My only criticism would be that Heidi Holland feels the need to interject her own views and analyses after almost every interview. She repeats, time and again, how Mugabe's troubled life - including stints in jail, possible torture, the death of his older brother etc - played a part in his becoming the "man" he is today.

But this is an insightful, valuable book, one which will no doubt be studied by historians, diplomats and anyone with even a passing interest in Africa's most enduring dictator.

Wilkinson Sword Razors: 1/10

Like most of the world's male population, I've always been a Gilette man. Their razors have always been sufficient, so why change?

Scouring my local Boots for some Mach3 blades for the third time, I spotted a special offer: Wilkinson Sword razors, including three blades, half price. The total cost was about the same as five blades of Mach3 (which were - as usual - out of stock), so I figured, why not?

Now I know why. Wilkinson Sword's motto of latter years has been that their blades are so sharp, they need to put bars on them. Sadly, those bars get in the way of shaving: where the Gilette would mow down everything in its path, the Wilkinson misses hairs; the blades are hard to clip on and off; the strip at the front of the razor peels off; and the whole package is clunky.

I won't be buying them again.