The Extra Dimensions of John D. MacDonald

I was saddened to read of the death of John MacDonald. While it might seem, at first, foolish or trivial to say that the author of adventure-mystery novels touched my life, he surely did.

I grew up, if the 30-to-50 passage is indeed the age of growing up, and grew older with Travis McGee, that knight-errant of the salvage business. His fictional journey from the somewhat callous but introspective young man in “The Deep Blue Goodby” to the aging hero rediscovering life’s meaning through laughter and friends, the simplicity of a job well done and the revelation of an unknown daughter in “The Lonely Silver Rain” paralleled my own.

John MacDonald’s words remind me during the confusing times that life, at its best, is a simple thing. You live, you love, you do what’s right as often as you can.

JIM TURNER

Thousand Oaks