Sunday New York Times Acrostic - The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler

The entertainment industry loves Anne Tyler.

Hollywood has made feature-length movies like The Accidental Tourist, and movies for television such as Breathing Lessons and Earthly Possessions from her stories. I don’t know who is speaking in the quote in this acrostic by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon: it could either be uptight travel writer Macon Leary, or non-uptight dog-lover Muriel Pritchett.

I’ve always thought a hotel ought to offer optional small animals. I mean, a cat to sleep on your bed at night, or a dog of some kind to act pleased when you come in. You ever notice how a hotel room feels so lifeless?

The Macon Leary I know wouldn’t notice that, so I’m thinking this is something Muriel said. If I’m wrong, please let me know. No, I haven’t read the book, but I might. The quote isn’t in the movie script. I started watching the movie a number of years ago, and I stopped watching when Macon moved in with Muriel. I was already mourning the breakup of Macon and Sarah’s marriage after the death of their son. I totally didn’t get the point. The point was that Macon was anesthetizing himself with his work, and that Muriel was a good influence on him by helping him be more alive. I thought that Muriel should have minded her own business and stayed out of Macon’s life. It takes every kind of people, to make the world go ’round, don’t it?

I have a bone to pick with Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon for cluing travelog as “Che’s ‘Motorcycle Diaries,’ e.g.” Che Guevara was an international terrorist and mass murderer, and I bitterly resent his presence in an acrostic. There are many other authors one could use for cluing travelog.