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The Christmas Train
by David Baldacci

At 6:15 p.m. last night, a cold and snowy night up here in Maine, I picked up and started to read author David Baldacci's latest book, The Christmas Train. At 10:00 p.m. last night, with tears in my eyes and a smile on my face, I turned the last page and closed the book.

I must admit, this is the first Baldacci book that I have read, and I'm told that this one is different from his others. I purchased the book because it is a story that takes place on Amtrak, and I wanted to read it and do a review for The Train Traveler. Well, here is that review and I can unequivocally recommend this book to you, the train riders of this country.

This is a Christmas tale, a story of more than one person whose holiday gift is a second chance. But, it is also a story of people just like you and me. As you probably have experienced, sometimes some very strange things happen on a long distance train ride. Travelers develop relationships, even brief ones, that allow them to open up to others in uncharacteristic ways.

Some readers may consider the cast of characters we meet on this Christmas train to be the stuff of a fiction writer's imagination. But we know they are real, because we have met them. The onboard chief who can solve what seem to be insurmountable problems, even those of the elderly traveler who got on the wrong train. The man who is reevaluating the direction, or lack of direction, of his life. The old friend from the distant past. The retired train man, wearing the engineer's cap. The group of young people, some of whom have never been away from home. The guy who talks to himself, and the one who attempts to defy authority. The workers who come from Amtrak families, with parents, siblings and children working for Amtrak. The uppity, demanding passenger. And all of the others who are not what they seem or, more likely, who are more than they seem.

The descriptive narrative of this book places you upon the Capitol Limited, traveling from Washington D.C. to Chicago and the Southwest Chief, traveling from Chicago to Los Angeles. The description of the train and the various aspects of train travel, such as the sleepers, the tiny bathrooms, the dining arrangements and the "bar car" are so realistic that you will feel yourself there, right on the train with these travelers. When I put this book down, I had that same feeling that many of you will recognize, of just having completed a cross country trip, of coming to an end of something and a beginning of something else.

The Christmas Train is far from great literature, but is a good and enjoyable read, a fine Christmas present to give or to get.

Click here to purchase The Christmas Train

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