5 comments about Lewis Carroll: A Biography (Part 1).

1. Cohen's book was seriously challenged by the publication of Karoline Leach's 'In the Shadow of the Dreamchild'. We Carrollians have been waiting for five years now for Cohen to update his book in response. He needs to do so.

   Is he going to rebut Leach's claims that the whole in-love-with-Alice-story is a myth? What is his response to the amazing discovery of the 'cut pages in diary' document? What does he say to Leach's claims that Dodgson befriended numerous adult women and was probably sexually normal?

   I for one and many like me are very keen to know where this debate is going. Mr Cohen has promised a reply 'soon'. But when is 'soon?'

   We need an updated version of this book. Until then I have to give the book just two stars, though I'd like to give more.




2. The only real negative about this beautiful and compassionate portrait is the fact that there is some newer information that conflicts with some of what is present in this book. Another edition of the book to address these issues would be welcome, but that doesn't mean this book is obsolete! It is still a very interesting and well-written account of the life of C. L. Dodgson, the man who would become better known as Lewis Carroll, and this book shouldn't go overlooked. If you are only mildly interested (or perhaps not very much at all) in the subject, you will likely find that this book is capable of holding your attention until the end. An excellent starting point for budding Carrollians, but less an excellent *ending*.



3. This book seems dated now and we need a new edition as another reviewer has said. The commentary on Alice Liddell needs to be updated following Leach's work. Some of the claims he makes have been shown to be based on dubious data or to be mistaken, and he needs to modify his text to take account of that. But in many other ways this book is indispensible.



4. Lewis Carroll: A biography
   
   Morton Cohen's biography of Charles Dodson ("Lewis Carroll") is an insightful examination of a complex and flawed man. Dodson (1832-1898) was an English clergyman, mathematician, writer and photographer. He is better known to us as the author of "Alice and Wonderland." A prolific correspondent, Dodson wrote thousands of letters and kept extensive diaries, many of which are included in Cohen's book. But there are several gaps in the narrative: his diaries from 1858-1862 are missing, and many pages have been excised with a razor from the remaining ones.
   Dodson apparently was a man whose conscience bothered him; his diaries contain countless references to "impure thoughts" and temptations, which might be traced to his inordinate fondness for pre-pubescent girls.
   Dodson made no secret of his affection for children, spending hours in their company, buying them gifts, and photographing them "au naturel." Cohen writes: "ever in the company of children as he grew, he became accustomed not only to their presence but also to their childish ways. In time, perhaps through a combination of biological, spiritual, and psychological forces, this interest developed into a need, an essential component of his own happiness." But this affection, which in today's world would be ascribed to nascent pedophilia, was apparently chaste and innocent. Whatever its origin, it made for memorable literature. "Alice" stands as a monument to the Victorian idealization of the child and to the imagination of one man.



5. I am not going to review Morton's biography as it has been acclaimed for many years since it's publication.
   What caused me to comment here is the statements by some readers that Cohen's book should be updated due to "new evidence" by Karoline Leach that Carroll was not in love with Alice, but her governess. She further states that the Carroll was not as attracted to children as one is led to believe and the whole "little girl" thing is a myth!
   
   I will not comment in great length about this since I am not reviewing HER book, but I feel I must make a few points.
   
   Nothing in the diary page that Ms. Leach quotes from proves anything, and is greatly taken out of context. She totally ignores more obvious evidence to the contrary.
   
   While many people in Oxford thought Carroll's attentions to be for the governess, this was understandable because to think of a grown Oxford don in love with the Dean's daughter was more far fetched.
   
   However, Mrs. Liddell and Carroll himself didn't think so....
   Not only did Carroll in his later diaries admit to a long talk with Alice's' mother after her marriage, where he admits to his "foolish" ways (toward Alice) in the past, his estrangement from the Deanery. During that talk, Mrs. Liddell forgives him. (note: that with Alice's marriage, she didn't view Carroll as the "threat" he once was)
   
   Ina, Alice's sister in letters to Alice before her death , mentions that she always thought Dodgson was in love with her sister, and when Alice denies this, Ina points out the many times she had been sitting inappropriately on Dodgson's lap and alludes to other incidents.
   
   Then, there is the letter to Carroll's uncle, where he is upset at the news that his brother wants to marry 14 year old Alice Jane Donkin.
   Carroll alludes to the similar problems he himself had gone through with "AL"..now..who could THAT be??
   
   And why DID Alice's mother burn all of Carroll's letter to her daughter?
   
   Because of his love for the governess?
   
   I think not.
   
   While it is certain that Dodgson was not the shy recluse, and had many adult friends including women, and did remain loyal to his girl friends even after they grew up.... a man who spent his time, money, and most of his life devoted to his child-friends is clearly not using it as a smoke screen to meet adult women.
   
   If anyone still has doubts about Carroll's love and devotion to Alice, one just has to re-read the framing poems of the two Alice books again.
   
   In Through the Looking Glass, published a few years after his falling out with the Liddell family, he wrote:
   "Still she haunts me phantom wise, Alice moving under skys..never seen by waking eyes...
   
   Yeah, he was in love with the governess all right!!!!
   
   Read Morton Cohen's book if you seek the truth, as much as we can know, about Lewis Carroll.

No comments about The Six Wives of Henry VIII.

No comments about Julie Harris in Lucifer's Child/Cassettes.

5 comments about The Fifth Queen: Part 2 (Classic Books on Cassette Collection).

1. Ford Madox Ford's "The Fifth Queen" - actually a collection of three separate novels - is a fictionalized account of the fifth wife of England's Henry VIII, Katharine Howard. As A.S. Byatt explains in her Introduction, "This figure bears little relation to what we have about the real Katharine . . ." and thus the reader should be conscious that Ford's Katharine - a young, pretty, pious woman who yearns for a return to Catholicism after Henry's split with Rome - is strictly fictional. That said, the only real failure of this work is that Katharine is the least appealing, least interesting character; we first meet her as a dispossessed ingenue seeking entrance to Henry's court around the time of his disasterous fourth marriage to Anne of Cleves, and it is this description which will follow her throughout the book. Even as she becomes Queen, it is almost by accident, surviving the machinations of Cromwell, Lord Privy Seal and the recklessness of her devoted cousin Culpepper. She is Queen by default. She constantly protests that all she seeks is a Catholic England - the "old ways" - and yet throughout she resigns herself to letting events happen to her, as if she cannot control the consequences of her own life. Indeed, her final speech to Henry where she confesses to an adultery which did not occur, becomes her last fatal act of passivity, for which she pays with her life. She cannot see that there are those who wish to help her and that her naive, narcissistic piety does not have to be her ruin. What holds these novels together is the rich supporting cast: the aforementioned Cromwell, who has his own sovereign Protestant image of England, free from the entanglements of Rome. There is the brooding Princess Mary, Henry's daughter by his first wife, who knows how to carry a grudge for her mother's divorce, the super-spy Throckmorton, the lecherous Magister Udal and more. Ford uses Katharine to show that the blind commitment to an ideal - any ideal - will only result in failure, that this world is more than ideas and faiths, but of people who are imperfect, people who will fail. It is a world five hundred years in the past, but it is also our own.



2. Fans of Tudor history will enjoy this meaty volume which delivers a very different take on the life of Queen Katherine Howard...she is hardly the hysterical and promiscuous girl so often depicted. Especially interesting characterizations of "Bloody" Mary Tudor and Henry VIII, as well. Strictly for fans of the subject, however, or otherwise tedious reading.



3. Intrigue and romance in the court of Henry VIII
   Katherine Howard, armed only with education, wit and honesty, becomes the Fifth Queen, Henry VIII's fifth wife in this amazing historical trilogy. The plot-ridden court comes to vivid life as everyone high and low maneuvers for advantage. Everyone except Katherine Howard, whose unwillingness to scheme will make her queen and defenseless at the same moment. Even knowing the general story this is a fascinating and occasionally shocking novel, with a stunning ending...



4. I saw Ford's THE FIFTH QUEEN recommended on a history discussion board. I must say that I am close to agreeing with the assessment that it is the best historical romance of the twentieth century. It is certainly one of the best. Ford contends that what Katherine's death was really all about is that as a Catholic, she was trying to get Henry VIII to reconcile with the Church of Rome. She was close to succeeding and the reformers did not want that to happen. Her male friends were tortured until they admitted to dilly-dallying with her before marriage and after her marriage. Getting other people to agree with the testimony of the tortured men was no difficult feat. And so Katherine was condemned as a slut and whore.
   
   Ford alludes to the fact that while Katherine may have been violated in some was as a young girl, it is also clear that Henry was aware that she had a Past and he did not care. Ford's Katherine is about 18 years old but Alison Weir says she may actually have been only fifteen. Ford portrays her as witty and bright, which makes sense since Henry was not attracted to stupid women; he enjoyed the repartee with a lively, witty damsel, especially over theological matters. Katherine had the charm of her cousin Anne Boleyn, with a great deal more sweetness; she also had the magnificent red-gold hair of the Plantagenets. Henry was repeatedly drawn to women with such hair, such as all three of his Katherines.
   
   Ford brings Katherine to life as no one else - engaging, impulsive, and valiant. This coincides with what Alison Weir writes about her efforts to help imprisoned Catholics, especially her husband's cousin Bl. Margaret Pole. She is loving to her much older husband, to whom she was genuinely attracted, in Ford's novel. As her tragedy unfolds, she is ready to immolate herself for what she sees as a higher cause. Henry's heartbreak when he sees he must lose her is captured by Ford in a very moving manner. Henry does not believe the charges of adultery (Katherine was never found guilty of breaking her marriage vows) and wants to annull his marriage to her so that she can live as his mistress. Katherine must choose between dishonor in life or dishonor in death.
   
   There seem to be few if any portraits of the fifth queen; what portraits still exist are dubious. Those who destroyed her also tried to destroy all evidence that she had lived, even as the altars of the old religion were being broken and defaced. However, the real Katherine lives in Ford's amazing trilogy, which is as vivid a work of art as any painting.



5. I'm a Henry VIII nut. I have quite a few books on him - from the recent historical fiction ones to old library tomes almost too dry to read. And I love historical fiction about England, particularly when the - what's the word I'm looking for? it's eluding me at the moment - their speech is true to form.
   
   This is not quick reading, and yet it seemed like the book was finished in nothing flat. It does for Katherine Howard's reputation what Sharon Kay Penman did for Richard III's and the twins in the tower (the antithesis of shakespear's play.) Who's to say what the truth is? Because history potrays Richard as a power hungry, murdering rogue (except for a sect of people these days who are out to clear his name), and Katherine (except in this book) has always been said to be a wanton and promiscuous woman.
   
   In The Fifth Queen, however, her character is wise and virtuous; but that Henry would have her as his wife, she'd have gone to a nunnery by choice. She believes strongly in the Catholic God and sees it as her mission to return Henry to Rome and to Catholocism and to persuade his daughter to reconcile with him.
   
   But she's too innocent and good-hearted for those at court, who are always thinking of themselves and what's to their best advantage. As restoration of the Catholic faith would re-instate to the church lands and riches previously taken, those who are Lutheran would be left without what they gained when Henry became head of church and state. So Katherine must be dispensed with by whatever means possible.
   
   Thus Ford's quite rational and lucid explanation for history's version of her background.
   
   It's no secret that Henry was "not such a one who {could} stay the wind," as she puts it, and indeed, throughout my readings, that seems the essence of him: big and powerful on the outside, small and unsure on the inside; a man who has the power to get what he wants when he wants it, but best walk softly because he may change his mind tomorrow. Mercurial at best. I wonder if he'd be on prozac these days?
   
   He's under the impression he's saved her and now they'll be together, but he's missed the irony of what he's put forth and arranged. Her speech in the final pages of the book is moving and borne of a wisdom you'd be hard pressed to find today, especially in one so young.
   
   On an entirely different note, she was apparently beautiful. But have you ever noticed the paintings from that era? Check out the paintings of her - and his other wives by various artists. There doesn't seem much difference in the attractiveness of Anne of Cleves, Catherine of Aragon, Katherine Howard and Anne Boleyn, for instance. And Hans Holbein, who did quite a number of portraits of royal family members, was supposed to be the finest painter - and easy to belive that. His portrait of her is far superior to any of the others (not the miniature that is apparently actually Jane Seymour's sister), and Cromwell and Moore practically jump off the canvas. I dunno. The "beautiful" woman all look rather unattractive, if you ask me.

No comments about Robert E. Lee, A Biography.

5 comments about Hello, He Lied: And Other Truths from the Hollywood Trenches.

1. Lynda Obst uses her experience as an accomplished film producer to explain to new people how to make it in Hollywood. She hits every topic right on the head. I have experienced the same things in getting my films made, particularly The Indie Pendant. All of her info can used by anyone wanting to become a filmmaker. The chapter on figuring out which way the horse is headed was probably the best chapter I have ever read on getting things done in Hollywood. Look for all of this info and more during The Indie Film Hour on World Talk Radio. Hosted by myself. www.vdefilms.com



2. HELLO HE LIED is written by Lynda Obst one of the top female producers in Hollywood. (I only say female because she does talk about the challenges of being a woman in Hollywood). Her films include such classics as THE FISHER KING, SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE and CONTACT. She lives in Los Angeles and Texas -- which should give you a hint already that it's important to get some distance now and then (and maybe more) from TWINKLETOWN -- I MEAN TINSELTOWN. Her advice to NEVER GO TO A MEETING WITHOUT A STRATEGY is one we all should remember. All too often we worry about our powerpoint or our clothes or our car-- and not the strategy and outcome we want. IT's this good common sense business stuff that makes Lynda's book different from so many schmoozerama books -- how to schmooze and meet and network with Moguls in Hollywood. All too often MAGIC is associated with Hollywood movies and dealmakings and Lynda lets you know that it's not magic but good hard work and a thick SKIN. She also mentions Yoga and has a bit of a zen approach to all of this that makes us realize it ain't brain surgery! Her chapter on the TAO of Power and her description of how the film THE HOT ZONE did/didn't get made is fascinating....what a smart lady this is. If you are a woman you'll like the section called CHIX IN FLIX...oh you don't need any more recommenation-- just buy it - used or new-- I don't know why it took me so long to read it....BUT DO IT -- all of life is Hollywood in some way now -- ie American Idol etc.



3. Ms. Obst has written a delightful book filled with many lessons about how to get complicated projects completed, something she's expert at accomplishing. This book has applications for most complex business projects, and also for building a career. Obst knows how to get over hurdles, deal with interference, hang in for the long haul, and keep the project moving along despite all the difficulties that come with big dollar, competitive deals.
   
   It's one of the few excellent business books I've ever read (including the ones I had to read in business school). Even though it's centered on the movie business, the author has shared many nuggets that are relevant to all kinds of endeavors. Very high recommendation! Plus it's quite entertaining from start to finish.
   
   P.S. The negative comments of some reviewers are a mystery to me. Complaints about "Hollywood movies" (whatever that stereotype means), and unsettling business practices are common enough feelings, but these feelings are not sufficient as critiques of Hello He Lied. If you truly want to learn more about how big deals are done, read this book.



4. Sorry guys, but I was unfortunate enough to have bought this book years ago from some hollywood bookclub I can't even remeber anymore, but this is THE MOST SUCK UP book, on how to make it in Hollywood that I ever had the time to waste reading. Do yourself a HUGE FAVOR and take her advice with CAUTION--PLEASE!
   
   
   
   For the most part I simply felt her advice was outright--dishonest in a way...Tip-toe here...Compromise there...For what?
   
   
   
   Talking about sucking up, she mentioned a pitch session she had with David Geffen, who wasn't even listening to her. After she was done he simply said to her, "You know, you'd be more attractive if you had some collogen shots." Obst's response? "What did he mean?" IT WAS OBVIOUS THIS MAN WAS BEING RUDE! Obst wasn't even honest enough to admitt that!
   
   
   
   You want to learn the business and how to break in with at least half a chance on developing enough clout to call a shot? Consult with the INDUSRY HERETICS and PROFESSIONAL MAVERICKS! Obst is doing nothing but rehashing COMMON WISDOM a zillion different ways. The answer is not in COMMON HOLLYWOOD WISDOM.
   
   You learn the RULES then BREAK THEM!



5. "Hello, He Lied" is a Hollywood book that bridges the gap to become a mainstream read. I originally picked it up to learn more about the reality of life in Hollywood, for women and otherwise, but I got an easy-to-read Hollywood book that tackles general business and life issues in an amusing way.
   
   Obst tone is that of a Hollywood outsider with insider information. She has a sense of humor about the nature of her work, her business, and her industry associates. When she tells stories of her experience, she has a sarcastic wit that gives people hope that not everyone in Hollywood has lost touch with reality. In fact, her family life remains one of her utmost priorities.
   
   In sum, her book was what I wanted it to be: A light-hearted, insightful look at producer's role with life and business gems a long the way.

No comments about The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Unabridged, Audio Cassette.

No comments about Edward R. Murrow: Reporting Live [A Selection From The Original History Making Broadcasts]; Audio Cassette (From The CBS News Archives).

No comments about The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: My Life at Rose Red.

5 comments about James Madison: The Founding Father.

1. not like Jefferson & Hamilton or celebrated like Washington & Franklin. My fellow reviewers seemed disappointed in this as a biography. But it was not Mr. Rutland's purpose to write a personal story of Mr. Madison's life although his later years were covered quite well. I am glad, however, I took the easy way out by listening to the audio version (unedited). It was as if I was in Mr. Rutland's class as he was giving a lecture. The years after The Revolutionary War, The Federalist Papers, The Constitution & The Bill of Rights, are the real meat of this book. Madison's behind the scenes leadership in Congress was consummate. If we do not appreciate how important he was 200 years later, it seems that he contemporaries did. To his sorrow he was, with Jefferson, responsible for creating the two party system we now operate under. That he wanted to heed Washington's advice against the party system is evident. But he found this advice quickly outdated. As a result Washington, & to a lesser extent Adams were the only unaffiliated presidents in our history. Happily, none of this two-party stuff is cluttering up our Consititution. As Secretary of State under Jefferson & President on his own he was unremarkable. Any one could have mucked things up as well as he did. Indeed his best years were his early years. What seemed to me remarkable was the love, respect & friendship that existed between Madison & Jefferson all of their adult lives. It was an alliance of two great men that never wavered & recreated the "republican" type government of ancient Greece. Mr Rutland was obviously impressed by this relationship & alludes to it several times. I appreciate biographies that teach me something about history I didn't know. How great is this book? Hard to say. But it fit the bill.



2. Read the title: "James Madison: The Founding Father" focuses on Madison's role in the founding of our country. Here we learn little of Madison's youth and upbringing. Although Dolly plays a role in this book, it is a relatively minor part.
   
   This book explains Madison's role in the development and ratification of the Constitution, including his authorship of some of the Federalist Papers. The narration of Madison's leadership in the early Democratic-Republican Party can change the reader's view of history. Whereas we usually think of Thomas Jefferson as founder of the Democratic-Republican Party, Rutland makes a strong case that it was really Madison who united and organized the party from his seat in the House of Representatives. Much as Alexander Hamilton founded the party which elected John Adams, so it can be said that James Madison founded the party which chose Thomas Jefferson as its first standard bearer.
   
   Rutland progresses through Madison's term as Secretary of State and even puts a favorable spin on his two terms as president. This is no easy task, considering that the British burned the White House and Capitol on his watch.
   
   Rutland follows the wind down of Madison's career with his post-White House collaboration in the establishment of the University of Virginia.
   
   I appreciate books which enable me to see things differently. This book meets that test. I had always thought of Madison as, so to speak, Jefferson's underling and less talented successor. Through Robert Rutland's eyes we see him as one of the most influential and talented men of the early Republic. Madison comes across, as a practical political operative, the equal of Hamilton and, in result at least, perhaps his better. In the title, Rutland tells us that James Madison is The Founding Father. In the book he proves it.



3. I did not really care for this book. Rutland makes the premise that Madison was THE founding father implying that he was the most important. He finishes the book with a quote from JFK that Madison was the most under-rated president yet the book dedicates less than 40 pages to the presidency of James Madison. In those 40 pages, I did not gleam anything that Madison did exceptionally well - it all sounded pretty bad to me. I believe the point that Rutland was trying to make is that Madison was not Jefferson's crony and that it was Madison who actually shaped the early Republican party (early version of today's Democratic Party). This was a point well taken and I might accept that Madison was Jefferson's superior. At that same time, I remain unconvinced that he was THE founding father with such peers as George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. Important yes but...
   
   The failed argument of Madison's superiority aside, I found the book to brief to be interesting. James Madison was a central figure in the formation of our country, the formation of party politics, and the early days of the republic and to try and tell the story of his entire life in a 250 page book is simply impossible. Many important stories that I have previously enjoyed in book volume detail were reduced to a sentence or two in Rutland's book.
   
   I think this book perfect for a high school student who needs a quick read for a research project but has no real interest in the life and career of James Madison. For a history nut like me, it is a bit too much like reading an encyclopedia.



4. The War of 1812 was fought with Great Britain. The British captured Washington, D.C., and burned the White House. Madison fled. He is known as the father of the Constitution and wrote the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights is the first 10 Amendments. The first Amendment guarantees free speech.



5. This is one case where I should have heeded the advice of this site's reviewers.
   
   I wanted to read a Madison biography, but I wasn't looking for a 500-page book, and since my father had this one at his house, I thought, "How bad could it be?" Well, it's pretty shaky.
   
   First of all, Rutland does not make this easy on the readers because he's all over the place. It's not neat and focused like a good biography generally is, perhaps because he tried to cram so much information into less than 300 pages. He just jumped around too much.
   
   For example, the first chapter is a disaster. Rutland barely mentions Madison's upbringing, and even when he does, it's buried amongst other information. You will not get hooked by the first chapter. The last chapter was supposed to be about Madison's post-presidency life, but Rutland continues to mention parts of the presidency. I also really wanted a more focused description of the events leading up to the War of 1812, and what I got were bits of hard-to-follow details here and there. This is just not smooth story telling.
   
   There was some valuable information, such as the detailed outline of the Republican platform during the early stages of the party. And the book was not painfully sympathetic to its subject, but rather a fair account of the great man's life. Perhaps another 100 pages and a more defined overall direction, with chapters addressing a few specific issues rather than bouncing all around, would have made this a decent book.
   
   For those looking to learn about Madison, I don't know what book you should read, but I would not recommend this one.