From comical misunderstandings and hilarious mishaps to the sheer terror of a near-death experience, these are the true-life global adventures and keen observations of one American traveler. During his forty years of international travel, Edward Gray journeyed through the old Communist regimes of the USSR, Western Europe, the Americas, and the Far East. He lived through coup attempts in Portugal, Peru, and France; skyjacking incidents in the Middle East and the United States; and his family's extended stay at the JFK Airport in the blizzard of 1993. At once a personal memoir, an intriguing international travelogue, and a fascinating blend of history and sociology, Call a Bomb a Rifle includes Gray's most entertaining, lively, and insightful anecdotes about life among strangers. Whether he's witnessing the purchase of a bushel of cherries in Istanbul, skiing in the Italian Alps, or watching the pilot and his fellow passengers perish in a major airplane crash, Gray is forever changed by his worldly excursions. This remarkable memoir chronicles a lifetime of exploration into the various cultures, languages, and idiosyncrasies that divide us as a species-and the underlying humanity that unites us.