Clancy.............................

By now lots have folks have commented on the passing of Tom Clancy.  My only knowledge of him is only through his fiction.  In his early days, he wrote some seriously good books.  The Hunt for Red October, Red Storm Rising, The Sum of All Fears, Without Remorse, and Debt of Honor were books that kept me up all night reading.  I feel honored to have those books on my shelves.  Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger,  The Cardinal of the Kremlin, Executive Orders, and Rainbow Six were good reads, but not books I lost sleep over.  Starting with The Bear and The Dragon, Clancy lost his touch.  It seemed more than anything that he needed a strong editor, but didn't have one. A 1,000 page book that should have been 500 pages.  It feels sad to complain about a guy who wrote so well and so often, but I guess I got spoiled by his early excellence.  Still, a great loss.