No comments about Full Throttle: The Life and Fast Times of NASCAR Legend Curtis Turner.

1 comments about Roosevelt and Stalin: The Failed Courtship.

1. Robert Nisbet is not usually classified as a historian, he is usually placed in the pigeon hole labelled 'sociologist'. This assessment is, of course, unfair as anyone who has surveyed his 'sociological' writings will attest. Nisbet usually manages to survey sociological and political thought, linking the philosophy and biography of his subject, whether it is Rousseau, Tocqueville or Kropotkin, in his works. So Nisbet was always a "historical sociologist" if such a classification exists. This book however is straight history and Nisbet shows his strength both as a writer and historical analyst. Nisbet's writing is always crisp, clear and precise. It doesn't stray and, like most good writing, it makes for quick paced reading.
   
   Nisbet's analysis of Roosevelt's "Failed Courtship" with Joseph Stalin relies on secondary source material, notably the "Complete Correspondence" between Roosevelt and Churchill, edited by Prof Warren Kimball of Rutgers University. He also relies on biographical and memoir material from FDR cabinet members and close advisers. So if there is any 'bias' in the selection of sources, the odds are, if anything, stacked in FDR's favour. Unfortunately for the world the picture that emerges of FDR is not the patriotic portrait or hero of liberal hagiography.
   
   FDR had plenty of advice, not just from Churchill, but his own diplomats and foreign policy experts, Keenan for example, warning him of Stalin's ruthless ambition. FDR chose to ignore advice and advisors who contradicted his own deep seated belief that Stalin and the Soviet leadership generally, were deep down merely fellow progressives like himself. Progressives with a nasty predisposition for violence, perhaps that's a fault understandable considering the vile Old Regime and it's old world meddling imperialist friends that they needed to overthrow and outfight. Perhaps this fault might be overcome with example, solid help and understanding from fellow democrats abroad. Well that's how Roosevelt saw things anyhow.
   
   Nisbet documents the sound advice ignored and FDR's unrequited concessions to Stalin in detail. FDR believed 'he could handle' Stalin, all that was required was just more noblesse oblige and postwar harmony would be assured. Stalin got FDR's number early, and played him like a fiddle. Eventually it should be possible, one hopes, for documentary evidence from the Russian side to be unearthed to confirm or deny Nisbet's thesis here.
   
   Many liberals recoil at any and all criticisms of FDR's handling of the great power conferences, perhaps in reaction to McCarthyite claims and oft repeated right wing condemnations of the Yalta Conference. The usual apologia for Yalta is that the allies could not reverse what the Red Army had achieved on the ground so Yalta, rather than a betrayl, was merely the cold recognition of strategic realities. Nisbet "island hops" both these arguments, thus outflanking both the McCarthyites and liberals. He agrees with the liberal view that by the time of the Yalta Conference, Soviet domination of East Europe was a fait accompli. But he counters that it was at the earlier Tehran Conference that prior agreements for Soviet domination was granted. If a stronger stand, some negotiation, had been made there, then we would be in a better position to discern accommodation from appeasement at Yalta. George F Kennan noted the idealistic crusade sketched out by the Atlantic Charter and "Four Freedoms" essentially became obsolete once Stalin became ally. Nisbet paints a picture of FDR as the Neville Chamberlain of the Cold War. If anything this is unfair to Chamberlain. At least Chamberlain in hindsight brought the western allies more time to rearm.
   
   Nisbet leaves his speculation on FDR's motives to the last chapter. His conclusion would disappoint FDR's McCarthyite critics. FDR's advisors included many who were ultimately correct. FDR chose to ignore them. Nor was FDR being manipulated by high placed Reds, he was captain of his own ship. He only followed advice he wanted to hear. He was a man of his times and pursued his own vision, and it was a vision shared. Like most Ivy League graduates of his era, he was a thorough going Wilsonian. FDR had in earlier decades worked on the construction of the Wilson's project only to see it collapse at home and abroad. When WW2 came, FDR was giving Wilsonism one more college try. FDR believed that by making concession after concession to Stalin he would be able to achieve post WW2, the new era Wilson dreamed of post WW1. FDR, like Wilson before him, reserved his primary suspicions, suspicions perhaps confirmed by the scavenger like behaviour of the Versailles victors, that "old world imperialism" was, in the long run, the prime enemy of progress and world peace. "The devil you know". The new devil of 'totalitarianism' did not loom as large to FDR.
   
   Nisbet's analysis here is thus more forgiving and sympathetic than Harry Elmer Barnes's. Barnes was also a sociologist and historian, but unlike the Burkean conservative Nisbet, Barnes was a progressive, social democrat and a liberal. Barnes saw himself as an 'old liberal', among those who initially drawn to Wilson learned from the failure and who were determined not to repeat it. FDR, another old liberal, decided to redouble not revise the effort. Barnes attributes FDR's global activism from 1937 onward to the failure of the 'second New Deal' to cope with a renewed downturn, the swing back to depression conditions, despite the apparent short term successes of the early New Deal. Nisbet touches on this point but lets FDR off lightly. Barnes blames not just FDR but the whole class of 'new liberals' now addicted to the power that comes with office. With the puff disappearing from their reform agenda, war seemed preferable to a spell in opposition and the risk that any revived Republicans may reverse New Deal reforms.
   
   We have all heard the truism that generals' plan to fight the last war. In a sense FDR was making this error in his diplomacy and grand strategy. With the world and US policy today going through another generational change following the Soviet collapse there are lessons here for modern policy makers. The Bush administration's drive (shared with the previous two incumbents) for 'global hegemony', the strategy to prevent the emergence of rival superpowers, seems old fashioned in an era of "fouth generation" warfare, non-state terrorism and globalisation. So maybe FDR's folly is being repeated by a new generation.
   
   Nisbet's book makes the lesson clear and concise. Highly recommended.

No comments about Scott of the Antarctic: A Concise Biography (Isis).

5 comments about The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr..

1. Martin Luther King, Jr., is without a doubt one of the most influential and pivotal figures in twentieth-century history. In addition to his work as a Civil Rights leader, his role as a father and pastor, he also was an extensively published writer. However, he never had the chance to write an autobiography in the traditional sense. We as readers in the present day and the future have lost the private details that might have been fleshed out in a proper autobiography, but this skillfully crafted work by Clayborne Carson has given us a religious and political autobiography, revealed in King's almost countless papers (published and unpublished), interviews, letters, sermons and public statements.
   
   Carson, author and editor of many books relating to the Civil Rights struggle, edited a collection of King's speeches entitled 'A Knock at Midnight', and was selected by the King estate to put together this in conjunction with (according to Carson) dozens of staff and student workers forming part of the King Papers Project. Carson used particular methodology consistently in his reconstruction - that of relying primarily on the words of King himself (utilising early drafts of later writings to discern the difference between authorial and editorial intentions) and developing them as if this overall narrative account was constructed near the end of King's life.
   
   King's autobiography begins at the beginning, with is childhood as a preacher's kid (who was himself a preacher's kid, who was himself a preacher's kid, etc.). King said, 'of course I was religious.... I didn't have much choice.' King explains the different strands in his life, that of being both militant and moderate, idealistic and realistic, as beginning here. Here he developed questions ('how could I love a race of people who hated me?') and some answers (he learned that racial injustice was paralleled by economic injustice, and realised that poor white people were exploited also).
   
   King's call to ministry and call to ethical and prophetic witness in the world developed through his schooling at Morehouse College, Crozer Seminary, and Boston University, where he developed interest in theology and social philosophy that would lead him to eventually to his ideas of civil rights activitsm. This would not take practical shape, however, until he was back in the South and working at churches and participating in actual events. He describes his involvement with Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Movement as a mountaintop experience, which also led to an awakening, both in King and in the community, of the power of nonviolent action a la Mahatma Gandhi.
   
   It is almost incomprehensible to read this autobiography and realise that in a span of barely more than a dozen years (Rosa Parks was arrested for her action in December of 1955; King was assassinated in 1968) so much of what we consider to be the central history of the Civil Rights struggle occurred. Within the pages of text, King talks about the struggles of the common people and the dealings with the powerful, from the police in Alabama jurisdictions to dealing with federal government officials and organisations.
   
   In the midst of all of this work, King managed to remain a family man, devoted to his wife and children, and a tireless worker in the church. Carson admits to not being able to develop too much of an interior autobiography in these kinds of sections (as even in King's private papers and writings, too much remains unrecorded), but his life in this regard still comes through many aspects of his writings, sermons and speeches.
   
   This is an incredible book, and should be read as a required part of the education of an American, as it recounts a remarkable and astonishing part of history that continues to shape the direction of the nation to this day.



2. Martin Luther King, Jr., is without a doubt one of the most influential and pivotal figures in twentieth-century history. In addition to his work as a Civil Rights leader, his role as a father and pastor, he also was an extensively published writer. However, he never had the chance to write an autobiography in the traditional sense. We as readers in the present day and the future have lost the private details that might have been fleshed out in a proper autobiography, but this skillfully crafted work by Clayborne Carson has given us a religious and political autobiography, revealed in King's almost countless papers (published and unpublished), interviews, letters, sermons and public statements.
   
   Carson, author and editor of many books relating to the Civil Rights struggle, edited a collection of King's speeches entitled 'A Knock at Midnight', and was selected by the King estate to put together this in conjunction with (according to Carson) dozens of staff and student workers forming part of the King Papers Project. Carson used particular methodology consistently in his reconstruction - that of relying primarily on the words of King himself (utilising early drafts of later writings to discern the difference between authorial and editorial intentions) and developing them as if this overall narrative account was constructed near the end of King's life.
   
   King's autobiography begins at the beginning, with is childhood as a preacher's kid (who was himself a preacher's kid, who was himself a preacher's kid, etc.). King said, 'of course I was religious.... I didn't have much choice.' King explains the different strands in his life, that of being both militant and moderate, idealistic and realistic, as beginning here. Here he developed questions ('how could I love a race of people who hated me?') and some answers (he learned that racial injustice was paralleled by economic injustice, and realised that poor white people were exploited also).
   
   King's call to ministry and call to ethical and prophetic witness in the world developed through his schooling at Morehouse College, Crozer Seminary, and Boston University, where he developed interest in theology and social philosophy that would lead him to eventually to his ideas of civil rights activitsm. This would not take practical shape, however, until he was back in the South and working at churches and participating in actual events. He describes his involvement with Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Movement as a mountaintop experience, which also led to an awakening, both in King and in the community, of the power of nonviolent action a la Mahatma Gandhi.
   
   It is almost incomprehensible to read this autobiography and realise that in a span of barely more than a dozen years (Rosa Parks was arrested for her action in December of 1955; King was assassinated in 1968) so much of what we consider to be the central history of the Civil Rights struggle occurred. Within the pages of text, King talks about the struggles of the common people and the dealings with the powerful, from the police in Alabama jurisdictions to dealing with federal government officials and organisations.
   
   In the midst of all of this work, King managed to remain a family man, devoted to his wife and children, and a tireless worker in the church. Carson admits to not being able to develop too much of an interior autobiography in these kinds of sections (as even in King's private papers and writings, too much remains unrecorded), but his life in this regard still comes through many aspects of his writings, sermons and speeches.
   
   This is an incredible book, and should be read as a required part of the education of an American, as it recounts a remarkable and astonishing part of history that continues to shape the direction of the nation to this day.



3. It's an inspirational read and clearly establishes King amongst the finest examples of portraying a 'Purpose Driven Life" in recent generations.



4. The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr. is a must read, especially for the the youth of the 21st century. I have always appreciated the sacrfices Dr. King made to create a better America, as well as a better economical and social status for African Americans. But after reading this book I have a new respect for Dr. King. His strength through out the entire civil rights movement is without a doubt remarkable. His nonviolent strategy was truly a genious way to fight the hands of racism and evil during the times in which he lived in. He used the media to shame the racist who tried to keep all power for themselves and white America. Dr. King was a very intelligent man and I believe he had a deeper understanding of social behavior that was sharper than most.
   
   I have read many autobiographies on extraordinary people in the world, and prior to reading this book Malcolm X's autobiograpghy was my favorite of many. But I now have to say I have two favorite books. Although Malcolm X and Dr. King had different approaches for fighting racism in America, I believe they were both effective because if nothing else they both brought media attention to the issue that was never there before. In this way they made it impossible for America to sit idlely by and do nothing.
   
   I believe this book should be read be everyone because it truly leaves the reader with a deeper appreciation for the struggles of great leaders who shaped the core values of this country.



5. There is a disturbing self-published book here: http://www.lulu.com/content/2687797 which sums together several thousand comments in response to Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech as posted on YouTube. The comments range from admiration to downright evil, a telling text on the state of racism and internet censorship.

2 comments about Princess Margaret.

1. This is absolutely the very last book that I will ever read about Princess Margaret as I'm sure that I've read everything that could possibly been written about her and her life. What a poor, wretched,unhappy woman she was..spoilt dreadfully and therefore unable to feel any kind of satisfaction in her life. Idolized by her father as a child, she reacted with spoiled petulance to any form of discipline and managed to charm her way out of trouble with her mischievous sense of humour, but, always walking in her sister's shadow. Her truculent attitude towards what she considered was the correct way to speak to her, may have been accepted and expected, centuries before but even in the second half of the 20th century, total subservience to members of the royal family was a thing of the past and, only in her immediate circle of cronies, did she recieve the grovelling, self effacing behaviour that characterised her needs. Her self indulgent life style caused her to suffer from poor health and she ended her sad life as a lonely, sick woman...what a waste!.



2. This is a thorough book about Princess Margaret's life. A life of struggles with moments of joy, just like most people's lives. This book shows that though she was royalty, life plagued her. She may not had to worry about many things that they average person did, but she still suffered. She found ways to cope and experience joy also. Good book.

4 comments about Worse Than He Says He Is: Or White Girls Don't Bouce : My Walk on the Wild Side With Dennis Rodman.

1. I did feel for Rodman in the starting but as the book progressed it became more and more into that same old rodman who in this book still boggles the mind to think what he doe



2. this is a book that will keep you reading. I read it in a day.. and also read it again and again.. It's like a soap opera in a way, it makes you laugh, angry, sad, etc. It also makes you look at basketball (and sports in general) differently. I am a Dennis Rodman fan; but after reading this book, I'm more of a Anicka Rodman fan!!!!



3. America is truly the land of capitalism and opportunity. This chick has a baby by a known lunatic who abuses her, then writes a tell all story full of smut and filth, and then she has the audacity to expect us to feel sorry for her. Sorry!!!! I had a hard time seeing her as the victim, that cover is pure filth and ought to be burned. If my mother had the audacity to pose like that in a tell all smut fest like that I'd have a serious complex. No wonder Dennis dies his hair and cross dresses, with his dysfunctional upbringing and her as a wife and mother of his child I'd be a wacko too!!!!!



4. Let me start by saying that I am not a Dennis Rodman fan. I can now say that I think he and the author were a perfect match. For about the first 2 chapters I felt some empathy for Ms Rodman, however, as I read further I discovered that she was an immature, self centered, physically abusive woman. She constantly trashes the other women in Dennis's life, while behaving the same way. By the end of the book I had lost all sympathy for her, and gained a true sense of pity for the child that she and Dennis have. It is a shame that trees were cut down to print this book.

No comments about Kenny Dalglish.

No comments about I Think There's Another Terrorist in My Soup.

5 comments about Lion in the White House: A Life of Theodore Roosevelt.

1. For the many people who admire Theodore Rossevelt for his belief that corporations have a civic responsiblity to American citizens, new books on this icon of progressivism are always welcome. It is important, however, to temper one's affection for TR with expectations of scholarship, and when one does so, Donald's book fails to satisfy. Compared to the Morris two-volume biography, Donald's book lacks sufficient detail to be classified as a legitimate biography; instead, it seems to be a simple encomium. Serious readers will not learn anything that they did not already know about TR, and they may be offended by the book's shallow treatment. This book might be suitable for a junior high student as an introduction to TR, but it has little merit for a more adult audience.



2. When one writes a book or an article, one must first decide the audience for that work. The serious student of Theodore Roosevelt will be disappointed with this book as it contains nothing new. It is merely a precis of TR's life, from beginning to end. While reading this book the question "Why?" entered my mind many times. Why was it written? Why were certain parts highlighted and others ignored?
   
   For example, when Roosevelt returned from Cuba after the Spanish-American War, he flirted with the idea of running for governor of New York. His wife did not relish the idea. She eventually changed her mind, but the reader is not told why: "Besides his trial with [Thomas C.]Platt as an obstacle to his progress [in gaining the nomination], there was Edith's reluctance to reenter public life. She soon became enthusiastic and even went to the state convention..." (107). Were bargains made with Edith? Why did she change her mind? If that fact is important enough to mention, a better explanation as to her turnaround should have been forthcoming. There was also a lack of credit for some quotes in the book. Mark Hanna, the Ohio senator who was against TR becoming vice-president, was mentioned in several places. Yet, his most famous quote, "Now that damned cowboy is in the White House!" (after McKinley's assassination) is merely credited to "...an anti-Roosevelt Republican" (130).
   
   In a book filled with excerpts from Roosevelt letters and speeches, some of his best speeches and quotes are left out. His 1915 speech to the NYC Knights of Columbus where he dismisses "hyphenated Americans," is not mentioned. For a book published in 2007, one could argue for inclusion of the entire text of that speech. Also, while discussing the assassination attempt on TR during the 1912 presidential campaign, his famous line, "It takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose," is omitted.
   
   Clearly this is an abbreviated history of a long, event-filled life. This work does not do that life justice. Considering the lifetime of work by the author, one has to wonder if she penned the book only to add to the list of her accomplishments. Moreover, the lack of a serious bibliography and the absence of notes calls into question the academic validity of this work. It would have been better had it not been written in the first place.
   
   It was awarded three stars because it would be fitting as an introduction to the twenty-sixth president. Its prose flows well and is easy to read. Since the curious reader will want to find out more about Roosevelt, it would be recommended to a middle school student as a way to become familiar with one of America's great icons. Those who are beyond that stage should look to other sources for an in-depth education about Theodore Roosevelt.



3. This is not my period so I cannot attest to any of the specific details. I was simply looking at background on Roosevelt as a writer of American History. Besides Winston Churchill I can think of no easier subject for a short biography and the book does capture many of Roosevelt's accomplishments. However, this book is stunningly badly written and edited. And this is not simply the gratuitous digs at today's Republicans as noted by other reviewers. I cannot figure out how it received so many endorsements from renowned History professors. I understand that a short book on such a rich subject may lead to gaps - but there are so many gaps, jumps, incomplete thoughts and non sequiturs that it makes reading the book a jarring experience. In addition, Donald has a quirky and idiosyncratic way with the language.
   Such criticisms clearly require supportive examples.
   In terms of key issues being broached but never explored, Donald describes Roosevelt's run for Governor as follows: "Besides the trial with Platt as an obstacle to his progress, there was Edith's reluctance to re-enter public life. She soon became enthusiastic and even went to the State convention, held in Saratoga, New York, on September 27." P107 The phrasing of the first sentence is decidedly odd. Then we find that Edith's reluctance miraculously disappears though previously it was an obstacle on a level with the opposition of apparently the most powerful political boss in the New York Republican Party.
   Other examples of Donald's odd phrasing include: "The new president did not throw caution to the winds, but boldly tacked in domestic and foreign afairs." P134
   Then there is repetition: On pages 131 and 155, where Dr. Donald uses exactly the same quotes about lynching.
   Then there is the sheer lack of clarity when Donald describes the complexities of New York politics and Roosevelt's need for support for his re-election as President:
   "He(Roosevelt) also watched as two rival Republicans, Boss Platt and Benjamin Barker Odell, a rising politician, fought for control of the Republican Party. Odell found that Platt had lied to him and would not be his ally.
   "During the struggle, Platt told Roosevelt that he would favor him continuing on as president, but Roosevelt did not put much stock in this because he thought Platt, who was not well, would be more likely to follow him than would Roosevelt." Page 141
   Clearly there is something wrong here. An editor would have helped clear it up!!
   Another disappointment was cursory examination of how and why Roosevelt ran again for President. But perhaps by then I was too jarred to follow Dr. Donald's line of reasoning.
   Fortunately for Dr. Donald, her book is saved by the brilliance of Roosevelt.



4. It would be pointless for me to criticize this book for being too short, because it was obviously intended to be a quick read that provided an overview of Teddy Roosevelt's life. And it did that. Yes I would have liked to hear more about Roosevelt's insatiable oldest daughter, among other topics, but for the most part, I got what I wanted out of the book.
   
   I had never read a TR book before, and I want to read McCullough's "Mornings on Horseback" at some point soon. I felt that to prepare for that book, which does not cover TR's entire life, I needed some background on the man. And "Lion in The White House" provided that.
   
   This is the kind of book that you can read in a week and get an understanding of what Roosevelt's goals were as a politician, and what drove him to be as progressive as he was. It did whet my appetite for a more detailed study of the man. But this time, I wasn't looking for a 700-page or multi-volume monstrosity, so I'm glad Donald's book was on the shelf. As long as your expectations are for a short overview of TR, you will be pleased with this book. If you're looking for great depth and detail, you should look elsewhere.



5. I recently finished "Lion in the White House", referring to President Theodore Roosevelt.
   While I have read many other books about this fascinating man, "Lion in the White House" is a compilation of other books and extensive research. It is an excellent and concise documentary of events and personalities of the time. A very easy read.

3 comments about Trnasformed Cell.

1. For those interested in understanding more about cancer and the vagaries of scientific research and FDA approval, this book provides non-fiction as interesting as fiction. The book chronicles the journey and work of the author, a brilliant, driven scientist as he explores a radical new treament methodology for cancer, immunotherapy. His incision of the topic into understandable questions to be answered, and the research process to answer them makes the book a fascinating mystery. The reader learns to root for the scientist, his hard-working team, and the immune cells that fight cancer. Along the way, you learn about cancer, its causes, and alot of the associated terminology. Educational and entertaining.



2. An account of the dedicated, honest and intelligent efforts to solve one of the most complicated of problems of medical science today, as described in "The Transformed Cell", makes one feel confidant that with scientists like Prof. Rosenberg around us, the solution to such problems is not very far. I'm only looking for the sequel to this masterpiece with a title "...And the Solution to it!". sanjay upreti, NY



3. I read this book for an odd reason: I was looking for anything written by John Barry, whose absolutely brilliant book, Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America, completely captivated me. He's only the ghost-writer this time, and this book may not be quite as good as his own, but it's still an amazing story of guts and determination. The reader comes away from this book with new respect for the guts and determination to the point of obsessiveness of both medical researchers and patients who participate in test programs. Along the way of a story as suspenseful as any murder mystery, one gets and understanding of immunology, molecular biology, and cancer. Barry's other book may change the way you think. This one won't exactly do thast, but it will open an entire world to you.