Good, Clean, Oldtimey Fun!

[pyat]

"...you can ride back with me. I'm going, and I'll show you what my new electric car can do."

"Good!" cried the young bank cashier. "You're just in time. I was wondering how I could kill two hours, but now I'll get in your new car and--"

"And maybe we'll kill a few chickens, or a dog or two when we get her speeded up," put in Tom, with a laugh in which Ned joined."

- Tom Swift and his Electric Runabout, 1910

Comments

[easyalchemy.livejournal.com]

I was at an antique book store in Lakefield that has an enormous collection of Tom Swift books - I nearly bought one, but then was put off by the racist stereotypes in the one I picked up to browse.
I guess I should get over my squeamishness - time and place and all that.

[pyat.livejournal.com]

In the first run of books, Swift had a "comical" black servant, yeah... In the 2nd run, the character had been replaced by a stupid/good-natured Texan cook.

[sassy-fae.livejournal.com]

The premise of the books is something I would have really enjoyed, but I'm not sure if I would ever get through that first series. I realize the casual racism is just as much an artifact of the times as the inventions are, but it ends up leaving me with a less enjoyable read.

[pyat.livejournal.com]

Happily, the first series doesn't have much real connection to the later series, which stand alone. Though, that said, the inventions in the first books are a lot quirkier, and sort of grounded in reality.