Great Review for The Portal!

Review by Myles Knapp continued...

However, if you are looking for a book with all the entertainment, story and character values that make Cussler a perennial bestseller, grab your pogo stick, “boing” down to the bookstore and pick up a copy of “The Portal.” What Cussler’s Dirk Pitt does for maritime adventure, White’s “The Portal” does for pilots.

“The Portal” by Keith White. ($23.95, 446-pages. Hard. Little Moose Press.) www.theportalanovel.com

Here’s a sample:

UNDER HEAVY WIND SHEAR and driving rain, the small, single engine Ballanca floatplane appeared lost—dwarfed beneath the tempest mercilessly tossing from above and between the jagged cliffs threatening on both sides. The granite walls precariously funneled any advance toward the canyon’s end, hidden in the mist ahead. Pushing eastward through the dark sky, the pilot struggled against the violent conditions in the gorge, the aircraft strained to the limit.

A bolt of lightning shot across the sky, the jagged shape striking a nearby cliff, then came the thunderous crack as the brilliant flash instantly changed the sky to blinding white. The Ballanca’s cockpit and two faces inside the craft instantly lit up, their expressions frozen in time.

Ray Dobbs had flown this route many times in all kinds of weather and marshaled a cautious respect for the mountaintops imbedded in the clouds around him. He also knew his plane’s limitations, limitations that had been exceeded long ago. At any moment he expected the storm to deliver a final blow, a pummeling strong enough to snap the plane’s wings clean off. He squinted forward unable to tell the fog on the windshield from the clouds outside.

“Portal” combines the international adventures of James Bond, with Pitt’s dashing-daring-do to create a book which achieves that rare and unique combination: intriguing characters, painlessly educational facts and an imaginative story.

Local author, adventurer and dentist, White has written an excellent first novel. Grit-lit and the Times are pleased to have been able to spend some time with this exciting new author.

Our interview was held sitting on an oil drum near White’s Cessna 182. White loves to fly as much as Clive Cussler loves classic cars. Cussler has an amazing collection of cool, classic cars and it is my bet that White hopes one day the Cessna will be just one of several planes in his collection.

Rare times during your life you will meet someone who seems to get more out of a day than is humanly possible. Keith White is one of those guys. Well known, successful Walnut Creek dentist. Private pilot. Real estate developer. Moroccan adventurer. Airplane Fishing in Baja. Husband. Canyon rappelling. Father. Canoeing in Venezuela. Grandfather. Plus, a couple of times a year he “helps out” for a week or two at a free Rotary Dental Clinic in Mexico. And he is the author of a very good first novel.

During our interview White revealed several of his secrets. Read good books and watch movies to learn about story lines and characters. Keith’s inspiration and admiration goes out to characters like Bond, Indiana Jones ... entertaining stories like Raiders of the Lost Ark ... and authors like Ludlam, Grisham, Crichton ... where you learn and are entertained at the same time.

Dr. White glosses over one of the key reasons for his success. Discipline in the face of disappointment. For over 2 ½ years he got up at 4 in the morning – YIKES isn’t that when normal mortals start thinking about going to bed!!!?? – and wrote till 7 am. Then went to work and put in a full day looking in people mouths and saying things like, “This might cause some discomfort.” And “You can expectorate now!”

“I was really bad at first,” says White about his early morning endeavors. Remember, we are talking from 4 am – 7 am (about 2500 hours!). 2500 hours that other “normal people” would have spent getting some serious rack time. White says, “Sure getting up was something. But it only took about 10 minutes to get started. And lots of mornings when 7 am arrived I was really disappointed that I had to quit.”

So, in addition to discipline, White’s other key motivation type is “HAVE FUN!!” He points to his favorite inspirational book about writing, “How To Write A Damn Good Novel” by John Frey. He read it “5 or 6 times” and he learned, “write for fun. Not money. Frey says if you want money – become a dentist.” As a successful dentist, White found that ironic.

A third success tip that works for White is combining things you love. He loves his wife, kids, grandkids, dentistry, adventure, real estate, writing and flying. So he flies with his family to exciting places. Writes adventure books that are inspired by places he’s flown to. And he gives back by flying to his native Mexico and offering his dental services to the less fortunate.

All this discipline, fun and combining is working out. White’s last book reading at Walnut Creek’s Barnes and Noble was a huge success with over 100 attendees – huge for any author, especially a new author. “The Portal” sold out and eager readers signed up on a waiting list. There is interest in turning “Portal” into a move. And “Portal” won USA Book News contest for “Best Books – Fiction.”

And it has won this year’s Grit-Lit award for best book I wish I’d written.

Grit Lit appears the fourth Sunday of the month. Reach Myles Knapp at P. O. Box 197 Oakley, CA 94561 or myles@grit-lit.com.

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