I Am Impressed

That title basically sums up my feelings about "Words Like Loaded Pistols" after that introduction.
Sam Leith's writing truly encapsulates everything I like about non-fiction authors. He's funny and engaging, but still very informative. He also oozes this sort of assured confidence that usually comes with experience and deep knowledge. A little rule I have for life is that the best way to test if someone knows there stuff in a certain subject is if they are able to make a witty joke or use a clever example, and Leith does both very effectively. He also isn't afraid to poke fun at himself (the footnote on page 22) as well, a trait that I find pretty important as well. People who genuinely poke fun at themselves often do so because they are self-confident enough to know that they aren't perfect and never will be and humble enough to admit it, two powerful traits.
What's kind of scary is that it's entirely possible that he's using rhetoric very effectively on me. Perhaps he isn't really clever or funny or humble. Perhaps he's actually kind of a jerk; all I can see is the persona he's chosen to put on for this book. I mean, to a certain extent who you are very much comes through in your writing, but as we learned from Zeitoun, it's entirely possible for an author to sleight your view of a character pretty significantly in a certain direction.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm not calling Leith a liar. I think of myself as a pretty trusting guy, and so I'm willing to believe that he in real life is at least mostly similar to the persona he puts up in his writing. But all that is required to totally fool us over is the skill he is an expert in: rhetoric.
But, regardless of how genuine he actually is, his writing seems very helpful and I am very much looking forward to learning from Leith.