The Ghost of Scootertrash Past

Memoir Review

Mark Tiger Edmonds is proudly and unapologetically politically incorrect. The Ghost of Scootertrash Past is labeled "memoir, motorcycles, and Americana" and the author cites influences as diverse as Geoffrey Chaucer, Mark Twain, Woody Guthrie, and Johnny Cash. Motorcycles and being "scootertrash" define the author and everything else is peripheral.

Edmonds, who has a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, currently teaches at St. Leo College in Florida. Describing his academic career, he writes, "Doctorate in rhetoric and linguistics; I teach mostly writing classes. And then I worked real hard and got good enough at that teaching thing that they let me come to work on my scooter and in my leather
and a black t-shirt and blue jeans. I don't own a suit or a pair of shoes."

His grandfather, a sorcerer, a shaman, a teamster, and an adjucator, appears throughout the memoir with advice and tidbits of wisdom guiding his grandson. Edmonds recounts his comment, "... in the only successful marriages, the only lasting friendships, one person buries the other" without offering further context.

While The Ghost of Scootertrash Past isn't meant to be linear, it will probably appeal to readers who enjoy quirky travel stories.