5 comments about A Man Named Dave.

1. As I read this book, I was so captivated and distraught at times. It touched me to the core and made me cherish and value life more. This is the last book of the trilogy by David Pelzer and the ending couldn't have been more befitting. How a beautiful family is destroyed due to the alcoholism of the parents stands at the core of this really brutal tale. If it was a work of fiction, one might just dismiss it, but the fact that a mother could be so brutal to her son, is just so very incomprehensible! The fact that the tragic life of Dave ends in triumph gives immense satisfaction to me as a reader. It's simply amazing how he survives through sheer determination and immense will power and eventually triumphs.
   The most poignant lesson here is the human ability to forgive. And Dave does forgive his mom in the end, thereby making him a `real' man. His challenges in life did not leave him bitter and resentful, in fact they compelled him on a greater course in life whereby he helped millions of kids who have suffered like him.



2. This book is the conclusion to a trilogy written by Dave Pelzer. The other two were A Child Called "It" and The Lost Boy. All three are touching stories that arouse a range of emotions and are filled with the unbelievable horrors of child abuse and its aftermath.
   
   This book provides flash backs to Dave's physical and mental abuse at the hands of his mentally ill mother, his rescue by school teachers, his life in and out of foster and juvenile homes, his escape and success to and with the air force, getting to know his biological family, his struggle learning social skills, coping with the death of his father, living with and marrying a woman he did not love, becoming a father, learning to trust, helping others, forgiving his mother, finding love, and succeeding as an author and "speaker."
   
   David Pelzer's story as a survivor of one of the most horrific cases of child abuses ever documented is a must read for people of all ages and backgrounds who come into contact with children to recognize and help prevent this kind of crime to humanity.
   
   Dave's ability to describe and articulate his fears and feelings have touched the heartstrings of teachers, medical providers, police, social workers, legislators, parents, and numerous other people in our communities and have undoubtedly saved the lives of thousands of children.
   
   Thanks for bearing your soul Dave, you touched our heart and saved precious lives!



3. The book is just as good as expected after the first 2, if not better.



4. It was very exciting to find out how his adulthood went for him. I give Dave a lot of credit for forgiving his mother after all she put him through. God bless this man for sharing his life story. Hopefully, this will help other abuse victims out.



5. I have to admit that his books are compelling but I didn't think they were convincing. There were a lot of unanswered questions and non enough substantial information to make it real to me.

No comments about Heretic Blood: An Audiobiography of Thomas Merton.

5 comments about A Cook's Tour: In Search of the Perfect Meal.

1. The book arrived in a timely fashion and was in pristine condition. Great price, too. Thanks.



2. This was a great, relaxing read. All the joys of a food trip (without the physical flavours and the life-and-death risks) without all the costs of an around-the-world trek. The great adventures of this chef can only inspire you to go find your own perfect meal.



3. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and Anthony Bourdain's irresistible writing style. Friendly--not flowery or snobby. I guess I'm one of very few who found it much more entertaining than Kitchen Confidential. I liked reading about what went on on the other side of the camera and that some of the feasts and locations were not his choices. I was surprised that a star of a television show was flying coach class to Asia. Could that be true? I do know that the average tourist or even a very wealthy one would never be able to duplicate some of the special attention and exquisite meals he was served--especially in Japan.



4. ... and that's because in print, versus video, the ever-fascinating "bad boy" we've grown to know and love (well, tolerate; nah, love) doesn't interrupt an otherwise well-crafted exposition on the country he's visiting to "pull a Fellini" (but much less artfully) and digress into all sorts of asides, semi-charming castigations and "they made me do it!" aspersions that many times weaken the overall flow of his television series. Here, Bourdain has the sense to focus almost exclusively on the landscape, the flavors, his hosts and his (extraordinarily wide ranging) reactions and leave the "inside" commentary to extended postscripts at the end of certain stories. And when Bourdain does mention his "shooter" or producer in the body of a given chapter, it's woven more appropriately into the narrative than on cable.
   
   Bourdain is one interesting fellow, a real scamp; and he can write, too. His love affair with the Vietnamese people and their cuisine jumps off the page at you, his reverence for the French Laundry almost requires you to light votive candles, and his graphic explanation of preparing a farmhouse meal in Portugal may make you turn vegan. He can also elicit a solid series of belly laughs when the situation demands; his description of writhing intestinal misery as he grapples for the remote to nix a televised homage to Jerry Lewis during a return to France had me howling.
   
   The best way to savor this one-of-a-kind culinary globetrotter is to watch the show, pick up the rascal's collection of grimaces, smirks, cigarette drags, loping marches down alleyways and "I'm almost high" style of voiceover, then turn off the set and start reading. Because his books - if "A Cook's Tour" is any indication - are better than his broadcasts.



5. I am a big Anthony Bourdain fan. I couldn't wait to get this book. I thoroughly enjoyed the first half of it, although some of the slaughter descriptions were a bit disturbing (I love animals). There were some truly moving chapters in there and some very interesting stuff. However, it really started to slow down after a while. Each chapter seemed pretty much like the chapter before. I guess that is to be expected, but it really got less interesting. And the descriptions of animals being slaughtered started to get to me after a while. I have maybe 1/4 of the book left and I'm not inclinded to pick it up anymore. Felt like he was just trying to fill pages for some of the chapters.

1 comments about Leading Lady: Dinah's Story.

1. A wonderful tale of a wonderful dog. However, the alternating chapters between White and Sullivan are annoyingly disruptive. A different format would have focused more on the dog that readers grow to love.

5 comments about Brothers in Arms.

1. I really did like this book and found it to be very well done; I couldn't put it down. Kareem abdul-jabbar did a great job of tying the history of the unit into is his life (one of the main characters was friends with his father). It wasn't only intresting because of the whole Black Soldiers in WW II subject area, but was also a great read concerning WW II tankers in general (not just black tankers). Mr. Abdul did an outstanding job and I would recommend this book to anyone.



2. There are all types of history books. Some are textbooks other historical fiction some autobiographies. This book is not of these and something else altogether. Not since I read "Manchild in the Promised Land" by Claude Brown at the age of 13 years, have I been moved as I have by Mr. Jabbar's effort. Brothers In Arms now ranks with my very favorite books. It is engaging and informative. It makes me want to buy a ticket and go to France and Belgium and retrace the footsteps of these heroic men. What more could you ask from a book. Yes there are inaccuracies, inconsistancies and errors in the book. But not where it counts. Obviously, Kareem sat down with some of these men and got their stories. First hand experiences. Those are the things that draw you in and make you want to know more. Those are the things that make you cry when one of them dies, even though it happened over 60 years ago. Yet you weep for them still. And in the end, when the book is done, there is a heaviness in your heart but an overwhelming pride fills your chest.
   
   This book should be required reading for all High school students along with Killer Angels, Catcher in the Rye and 1984. I could go on but you should simply read the book instead.



3. In "Brothers in Arms", Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anthony Walton try to bring to life the personal accounts of the soldiers of the 761st Tank Battalion.
   
   The book begins by documenting the memories of the soldiers who faced their own battles with racism here in the United States. The flow of the book follows the natural progression of the soldiers from their days as recruits, armored school, and then through their combat exploits in France and Germany.
   
   Having previously read "Death Traps: The Survival of an American Armored Division in World War II", this book didn't contribute any new information about armored warfare. Despite numerous factual errors, the book does highlight the ugliness of racism that was prevalent in the nation at the time. All in all, this is a collection of stories that needed to be told.



4. Terrible Narration with pronunciation errors (see below)
   A Number of factual errors
   Almost NOTHING about the major battle of Bastogne
   
   While I like the subject and generally liked the book, I found several items that should have been caught by a good editor: Factual errors (see other reviews), Should have had much more about the design, development and manufacture of the Sherman tank (a co-star of the book), Bastogne is barely covered, and the narration.
   
   I would never have purchased this book if I had known the narrator was so clueless. The reader's errors were distracting and painful to hear so many mispronounced words and not just obscure city names, but common words and names common to World War II: Pate-on for Patton (only one time), straff (rhymed with raft) for straf, personal mines for personnel mines, Ver-DUNE (rhymed with maroon) for Ver-done (Verdun), ambu-LANCE for ambulance, Ar-DEAN (rhymed with Marine) for Ar-den (Ardennes), Ba-vah-ria instead Ba-VARE-ia, GORE-ing (rhymed with snoring) instead Goering, Elbee (rhymed with sleepy) for Elbe, and for anyone with with the slightest experience with the History Channel the following is absolutely ludicrous looftwaff (no idea what this would rhyme with) for Luftwaffe.
   
   As for the people who say that we are nitpickers when we point out errors, just imagine if there was a book about Rev. King and they said that he was killed when shot at close range at a gas station in Chicago. HUH?? you would say. That's just crazy!! that would make me wonder about the rest of the book.
   
   I finally requested a refund and got it from Audible.



5. Much respect is due to Kareem Abdul-Jabaar for going after these stories and getting them in print for posterity. I admired you as a sports figure, but now I honor you as a man of principle. Much respect.

5 comments about Locked in the Cabinet.

1. So far, I've read three other memoirs from the Clinton Administration; those of Mr. & Mrs. Clinton and Bob Rubin.
   "Locked in the Cabinet" exhibits a sharp contrast to all other three in that it is the more casual and down to earth recollection of what was happening behind the Democrat-"Putting People First" - disguise of the Clinton Administration, where, in the face of Bill Clinton's indecisiveness, some of the key cabinet members and the Federal Reserve's chief continued to put big businesses and Wall Street first, at the expense of working class America which the Labor Secretary represented. Reich describes some of his cabinet colleagues, plus the President, the First Lady and Greenspan, in an unprecedented light.
   He also well explains his ideal fresh from den being constantly challenged and often destroyed by political balance of power and reality. He does so with passion, wit, colloquialism, and the sense of forgiveness.
   As a reader in Japan where (from wive's point of view) what traditionally makes a good husband is a big bread winner who is hardly home, the detailed descriptions of the author's struggles against his family missing him badly is too alien to me. The author who held a highly respected cabinet position away from family would have made a most desirable husband in Japan.
   I would like to read how his family life developed after he was reunited. Hope he is happy in Berkeley now.



2. I continue to use this book in my "Intro. to Public Policy" course. I ask my mostly first- and second-year students at the end of the semester if they like the book and if they think it is useful even though it's now almost 9 years old. They thoroughly enjoy it and appreciate gaining a better understanding of the Clinton administration and events in the 1990s that happened when they were only 6-12 years old. Highly recommend.



3. When I devised my policy grid of 12 areas where any President must have integrated forward-thinking sustainable policies, the Economy was one of them, and this book was helpful to me.
   
   Unfortunately, Cabinets represent organized stake-holders, not We the People, and they not only do not know who to "do" open source intelligence and decision-support, they spend more of their time defending budget share.
   
   The next President needs to demand that every American be a member of a labor union or professional association, and that the economy be managed of, by, and for We the People.
   
   See also, with reviews:
   The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism: How the Financial System Underminded Social Ideals, Damaged Trust in the Markets, Robbed Investors of Trillions - and What to Do About It
   The Price of Loyalty: George W. Bush, the White House, and the Education of Paul O'Neill
   Rogue Nation: American Unilateralism and the Failure of Good Intentions
   The Global Class War: How America's Bipartisan Elite Lost Our Future - and What It Will Take to Win It Back
   War on the Middle Class: How the Government, Big Business, and Special Interest Groups Are Waging War onthe American Dream and How to Fight Back
   The Working Poor: Invisible in America
   Off the Books: The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor
   Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America



4. Robert Reich was the Secretary of Labor in the first Clinton administration. This book is written in the "Dear Diary" type of format. "Locked in the Cabinet" is real, personal, family, exciting, funny, lovable and though I hate to use the term ... cute. Whether you are Right or Left I think if you read this book, you would agree that Mr. Reich is a man who has his heart and his priorities in the appropriate positions.
   Mr. Reich has a beautiful simplicity about what he has to say and what he suggests. You don't have to be Albert Einstein to understand what he is suggesting or where he is coming from. He is an excellent spokesman for his side of the story. And he breaks the issues down so that the reader can clearly distinguish one choice from the other. He makes the issues clear.
   If you are a Political buff you will find all types of insider personality profiles. He is very outspoken and blunt. He doesn't seem to be the least bit afraid of making enemies - he might be naive but he has been around long enough that we all know that he should know better. But then he says it anyway.
   What I really liked about this book is that it is not just politics - it is a literary effort also. It is a story; it's a novel; it has a beginning, a middle and an end. It's good. It's easy reading. It is insightful, thoughtful and emotional.



5. Robert Reich gives a human touch to the deliberations with high levels of government and how the president is sometimes trapped by congress and his advisors and not able to follow his compaign promises. It also presents the frustations of a cabinet secretary working to improve the staus of those working for minimal wages and all the time loosing to the desires of big business. He describes what one gives-up of himself to serve in a president's cabinet. It is very readable, much like a diary and follows the cronology of Clinton's first 4 years. Mr. Reich is also humorus and not afraid to relate his foibles as secretary of commerce. An enjoyable and informative read

5 comments about I'll Always Have Paris!: A Memoir.

1. I first read this book last year after a trip to Europe which included a brief and wonderful trip to Paris. Buckwald has captured the essense of life in Paris. For those not in love with the city, this might lead to the thought that this would be a dull book. However, this book is a witty scream which left me at times reading with my mouth hanging open in amazement and at other times laughing out loud as I read turned the page. I wish I could have met him - or better yet, been able to attend one of the parties mentioned in the book. I would recommend this book to anyone. It is fascinating, irreverent and jovial. A great read.



2. Heard the taped version of I'LL ALWAYS HAVE PARIS: A
   MEMOIR, written and read by Art Buchwald . . . Buchwald has
   always been one of my favorite humorists/columnist, though I
   regret that he doesn't appear in my local paper.

   This book is a follow-up to his earlier LEAVING HOME . . . it is a witty tribute to 1948 Paris, a city he fell in love with as he began his quest to become a great writer . . . there are a lot of cute stories, plus much name-dropping (Hemingway, Bacall, etc.).

   I also liked hearing about how he met and fell in love with
   his wife . . . his trials and tribulations as a father also had me laughing . . . as he notes, "..."

   Overall, I enjoyed it . . . though this is one time where
   a professional reader would have helped . . . Buchwald's voice
   is not the easiest to understand--or at least not on these tapes.




3. I picked up this book at the used bookstore not knowing anything about Art Buchwald; I was more interested in reading about a person living in Paris than I was about Mr. Buchwald himself.

   I thought the book was delightful and I came away liking Art. His stories are funny, touching and sad, but always mixed up enough to keep the book lively and fun. I consider it light reading; a great escape from the office at lunchtime.




4. Art Buchwald deserves a place alongside Mark Twain, Will Rogers, Robert Benchley and Erma Bombeck as the creme de la creme of American humorists.
   
   Speaking of creme de la creme and other things French, Buchwald's career began in the City of Light, where he went in 1948 on the G.I. Bill, hoping to become a great writer in the style of his hero, Ernest Hemingway. Instead, he became a great writer in his own style and has long been a hero to other humorists (including yours truly) who wish they had even a fraction of Buchwald's talent.
   
   "I'll Always Have Paris!" is not a collection of newspaper columns, as most of The Master's 33 books have been. It is the second part of his classic memoirs, the first being the wonderful "Leaving Home."
   
   In "I'll Always Have Paris!," Buchwald wittily recounts talking his way into a dream job as a columnist for the European edition of the New York Herald Tribune, despite having had almost no professional experience.
   
   He then recalls his exploits as a bon vivant and a humorist nonpareil. Best of all, he tells a magical love story -- his wooing of and marriage to Ann McGarry, a redhead from Pennsylvania who made the most romantic city on earth even more heavenly for the kid from Queens.
   
   Whether the tears are from laughing or crying, you'll shed them. I've never been to Paris, but I hope to get there one day. Until then, thanks to Art Buchwald, I'll always have "I'll Always Have Paris!"



5. This is the third book by Buchwald that I have recently read.
   The books were the ones identified in his last column in the Washington Post a month or so ago.
   Leaving Home reminded me of my "up bringing" though I had it much better that Buckwald in most respects and I was too scared to join the Marines in June 1950 though I now regret that decision!
   Buckwald's books are humorous, heartwarming and most enjoyable, even "Too Soon to Say Goodbye" which I sent to my 86 year old sister who has lived alone since her husband died 25 years ago. Recommended reading for those who need a break from novels and non-fiction "stuff".
   George

5 comments about A Reporter's Life.

1. This book contains the memoirs of Walter Cronkite, pioneering television journalist. Cronkite begins by describing his childhood briefly, noting that even as a youngster, he was pulled to journalism. He credits a volunteer journalism teacher in his high school for introducing him to the rigors of print journalism, but once started, he was hooked. It was this teacher who taught him the prime importance of getting the facts correct, a value that he would hold primary throughout his career. As a high school student, Cronkite competed in statewide journalistic writing tournaments, and won. After high school, he enrolled in college for a while, but decided that pulling in an income was more important than getting a degree (this was during the Great Depression), a decision which he later came to regret. On a lark, he landed a radio news announcer job in Oklahoma City. Later, he worked for UPI, where he honed his collating and rewriting skills under pressure of constant deadlines. The experience from all of these jobs was to prove invaluable later when he landed a job announcing the news on CBS television. Cronkite was not only one of the first early TV news broadcasters, but the word `news anchorman' was even invented just to describe what he did (or so he claims).
   
   In this book, Cronkite reminisces not only about his career, but also about the big news stories of day. He discusses how television came to play a strong role in politics, starting with the 1952 party conventions, which were the first to be televised. He enumerates the presidents he has known, from Hoover through George Bush, senior, and he compares the effectiveness of each, as well as their relations with the media. He analyzes the forces behind the fateful American build-up in Vietnam, and the eventual pull-out. He also relates how he inadvertedly became involved in negotiating peace between Egypt and Israel. All in all, his tales are fascinating. I usually find political discussion hideously tiresome, but Cronkite manages to make even politics interesting.



2. For me who watched Walter Cronkite almost every night from the 1960's to the 1980's when Dan Rather took over, this is most enlightening book. Behind the scene stories were given for a lot of news stories. Unlike Eric Sevaried, Cronkite never stated any of his personal feelings and comments on the air. Quite a lot of them were found in this book.
   
   Two things bother me. None of the chapters in this book had a topic so the reader is completely unaware of what is in there when he/she starts reading a chapter. In addition, no index is avalable and locating a topic or name is very difficult and time-consuming



3. In a fascinating and thought-provoking autobiography (1996), Walter Cronkite reflects on his career in journalism, from the earliest days in which he listened to radio on a crystal set, through his own participation in world events as a television journalist. Without the ego one usually associates with newscaster-celebrities, Cronkite gives the history of journalism--radio, newspapers, news syndicates, and television--by giving anecdotes from his own long career, always showing what he learned from his mistakes (which he is remarkably candid and often humorous in describing), and giving ample credit to the people who helped him. His thoughtful observations about the impact of television and its negative effects on voting participation, along with his predictions for the future of this country, offer a broader perspective and warning about our national vision.
   
   Cronkite's sense of excitement about journalism is obvious from the earliest days of his career, when he used brief, coded teletype messages to invent play-by-play accounts of football games for his radio audience. By career's end, he was participating in world events, his interview with Anwar Sadat and its follow-up bringing Sadat to Israel in a precedent-setting meeting with Menachim Begin and an eventual peace treaty. As he takes the reader step-by-step through this career, he describes his goals as a young man, his earliest jobs at local newspapers and radio stations, his work with United Press, his press responsibilities overseas during World War II, his work in Russia, and his early foray into television, when other serious journalists were avoiding this medium.
   
   The landmark TV coverage of the 1952 political conventions opened the eyes of the country to how the political system worked in reality. The Nixon and Kennedy interviews in 1960 (and Theodore White's book, The Making of the President), show the power of television to affect outcomes. He gives candid, personal insights into various Presidents, from Franklin Delano Roosevelt through George Bush Senior, including fascinating insights into Eisenhower (far more aware of issues than often thought), JFK (with whom he had mixed experiences), and Jimmy Carter (in his view, the most intelligent President).
   
   It is Cronkite's candor and his ability to see himself as a facilitator of communication, rather than as an ego-driven reporter looking for the landmark "scoop," that makes this autobiography so compelling. When, in his conclusion, he modestly offers his own observations about the end of the twentieth century, based on his experience, the reader pays attention. Mincing no words, Cronkite describes the social, political, and economic evolutions taking place around the world and their potential as revolutions, warning, "They have man's dreams on their side. We don't want to be on the other side." Elegantly written, this is a landmark book in the history of journalism. n Mary Whipple



4. To live the life of Walter Cronkite is to live a thousand years. For nearly half a decade Walter Cronkite served as the voice of reason to millions of Americans who looked to his print, radio, and television reports for information and reassurance. This autobiography covers the life of Walter Cronkite from his early life as a lowly radio announcer to his ultimate stand at the pinnacle of journalism.
   
   As usual, Cronkite's wit is second-to-none and comes through clearly in his prose. Still, he never pulls punches and minces no words regarding the multitude of famous and powerful men and women he met along the way. His engrained honesty and objectivity is a refreshing look to when journalism was an honest art, plagued not by corporate sponsorship.
   
   Cronkite's work not only serves as an interesting look at "Cronkite, the man," but is a work of modern American history, written by the man who lived and reported it all. For a readable, enjoyable look at Cronkite's America, "A Reporter's Life" is one of the best.



5. Walter Cronkite who at one time was among the most famous and celebrated Americans tells his life- story . He does this with the dry and clean prose of the good reporter. He tells of his childhood and early years in Kansas City and in Houston, of his work with UP and later on with CBS, his adventures as a war- correspondent. He traces his career in television including the dramatic coverage of what would be the most politically well- covered in his judgment convention of all, that of 1952. He also writes about his wife Betsy their three - children and his family. He in the end provides an analysis of TV journalism and where it has gone wrong, been replaced by considerations of entertainment. This is a decent book by a very decent and modest man.
   In his final chapter he says that he asked himself whether he could say he had really made a difference. Surprisingly and modestly his answer was 'no'. But for many Americans for many years he was the embodiment of the honest and reliable journalist.

5 comments about Leading with My Chin.

1. I have read this book at least THREE times. I've given it to almost everyone I know. I gave it to my nephew when he was 14. One day, we saw him shaking and crying on his bed. When I asked what was wrong, he rolled over and handed me this book!!!! He couldn't even speak, he just pointed to the part he wanted me to read. It is soooo funny. Whenever my mother feels down, she just opens it up to any page and it cheers her up. If I ever met Jay, I'd tell him this is my favorite book. I made the mistake of taking it when I was waiting to see if I would be picked for jury duty. I kept laughing out loud and everyone kept looking at me. It really is funny. I don't know if his life was this funny, or if he left out most of the bad stuff, but if you have ANY sense of humor at all, GET THIS BOOK!



2. As a comedian starting the biz in 1990 myself, I enjoy reading these comedian autobiographies. It is very interesting to see how different the industry was back when some of these guys, who paved the path for the rest of us, started. I've always heard great things about Leno, that he is the hardest working guy in show business and one of the friendliest guys in the industry. He is supposedly very supportive and I know he did a free show every year at Zanies in Chicago for all unemployed people, who showed their unemployment checks to get in.
   
   The book tells some of the best stories I've heard of coming up in the business. Leno started back when there weren't comedy clubs, more playboy rooms and strip clubs. He was one of the first club regulars and no doubt his skill, along with the others at that time, helped make the comedy club scene big. (Although I've heard criticisms about his Tonight Show monologues, Jay is known in the industry to have been one of the most talented comedians ever back when he was touring regularly.)
   
   Jay recalls episodes of his life in an easy-to-read style and isn't afraid to tell stories revealing his strong respect and love for his parents. My favorite story wasn't a funny one at all; it was the one where Jay got his first car, even a passion back then, spent lots of time and money to get it all fixed up and was sitting in his high school classroom, staring out the window at impending sudden doom of rain, looking at his convertabile with the top down. He couldn't get to it. Suddenly, his parents drove up and... you'll have to read the book for the rest of the story.
   
   It's also really cool to read about the other up and comers Jay came in contact with in his early years, as well as those who didn't make it or passed before their time. Among them are Jerry Seinfeld and Robin Williams. A fun, quick read for anyone who enjoys standup comedy or wants to read about a grateful star, of which there is a great shortage of today.



3. Sorry I don't usually swear...but the message I took away from this book was a standup comedian's life is hell! And Jay Leno deserves to make millions a year for being stick-to-itive. While hitchhiking, he was picked up by mean men. He slept in a garage near a car because a manager of a comedy club claimed he provided comedians with a "condo". He worked in tacky, dark places. It was awful. I'm glad he made it big! He didn't have a super affectionate family. But Leno describes them with loving acceptance.



4. Comedy is difficult to rate because personal taste accounts for a large degree of one's perception of the material. I have always been a fan of Jay Leno and appreciate his sense of humor, hence Leading With my Chin was very enjoyable. It falls right in line with the sense of humor you anticipate from watching the Tonight Show or any of his stand-up routines; however it is not merely a series of jokes as Leno presents an account of his life growing up in Massachusetts. If you appreciate Leno's wit and have interest in discovering the life that helped developed his sense of humor, you will enjoy this book.



5. I thought this book would be interesting but didn't realize it would be this funny. There are several stories in this book that made me laugh out loud, to the point where I had to be careful reading it at night and waking up hubby. Jay Leno's memoirs of growing up in Massachusetts and breaking into show business are both poignant and hilarious. You get an appreciation of what he had to go through to get to where he is, and he tells all these stories for the funny absurd situations that they were.
   
   Having also grown up with Italian family in the Massachusetts North Shore area, I could relate to many of the scenes in the book, for example his dad loudly demanding "WHAT KIND OF POTADAHS ARE THESE?!" in the audience of a club where Jay was performing. But there are also plenty of stories from his days in New York and later in Hollywood that you don't have to be from Massachusetts to relate to.

5 comments about The Making of a Country Lawyer.

1. Next to "The Paper Chase",I found Gerry Spence's autobiography to be extremely inspirational, and yet, this time he offered wisdom for the rest of us who do not take up the law. One reviewer missed the point about "country lawyer"(the common man), trying to weaken Spence's building diatribe against corporate America. His vivid, meticulous storytelling ranges as wide as the landscape of his upbringing, where Horatio Alger meets Franklin and finishes with Thomas Paine. In other words, he offers hope for the little guy, the citizen, if men of his cloth would abandon their ways and the rest of us would stop acting like lemmings. This captivating, truth-telling journey to adulthood, runs from the depression to the consumptive new millenium. His many Lincolnian lessons throughout make it a deservedly classic manual for the under-taught. Spence proves Darwin wrong. It's not the fittest, the prepared truth-seekers.



2. This book relates the details of the life of Gerry Spence, a well-known trial lawyer. From his earliest days of life through the beginnings of his second marriage, Spence reveals to us what his life was like, who his influences were, and how he reacted. The driving focus of the book is Spence's mother, who took her own life when he was a young man. At the time of her death, she and Spence had had a falling out, and Spence sees much of the rest of his life as trying to make peace with her. At the end of this book, some of Spence's famous cases and clients are mentioned in an epilogue; however, these topics are not discussed in the memoir section at all.
   
   As an outsider to Spence's family, this book was extremely hard to get through. Some of the details of his early life in rural Wyoming were quite interesting, and he certainly reveals some of his character as he variously compares arguing in the courtroom to wild game hunting or playing poker. The stories of his first marriage and its breakup, and how he took up with another woman are not exactly things to be proud of, and I'm not sure his family would really want to see these details published. When his marriage was on the rocks, he decided to sell his family's home in Wyoming together with all their possessions and start life anew in Mill Valley, California. Within a month, though, he abandoned his family in Mill Valley, where they were far from relatives, friends or any other people who might provide emotional support, to go back to his mistress in Wyoming. I couldn't help thinking about Judith Wallerstein's book about children of divorce ("Second Chances") when I read this section. For her studies, she chose families facing divorce in the early 1970s living in a town in California. Was it Mill Valley where she did her studies? Did she include the four Spence children in her work? Was it the Spence children whose standard of living took a drastic nosedive when their father moved in with someone else? But it was the woe begotten prose addressed to Spence's mother that was the most difficult part of this book to get through. I had hoped to develop some sympathy for lawyers, or at least for this one, or maybe even learn something about growing up in the West during the Depression by reading this book. Instead, after reading this book, I find myself repelled even by the thought of reading any more memoirs by lawyers.



3. In the Making of a Country Lawyer, Spence delivers what most of those who write autobiographies avoid -- a critical, honest and, at times, humorous account of his growth from an awkward youth, to married man, and ultimately to a truly mature man. He is so honest and witty and provides such rich descriptions of his teenage years, his law school "education," and his first few trials that I would be cringing one moment and laughing out loud the next. So emotionally lost was Spence at different times that it appeared he could never find his way out of the abyss, nevermind reclaim the mountain top. It is more than an autobiography, it is the story of man so tormented with guilt and feelings of inadequacy that he's desperate to escape his own skin . . . until he meets his soulmate. It's the best autobiography I've ever read and perhaps Spence's best book.



4. It has been said that it takes a great deal of courage for a person to take both their private thoughts and sacred moments and put them down on paper for another person to read. This is what Gerry Spence has done with his autobiography, and he should be congratulated for doing so. Spence is renowned for his landmark victories in court, including the Karen Silkwood estate, The defense of Randy Weaver, and the acquittal of Imelda Marcos. This story is not about that chapter in Spence's life, it is about the life of the young man who became this lawyer. Spence spends a fair amount of time talking about personal intimate details of his youth that most people would prefer to forget about, let alone share with perfect strangers. For me, this is where Spence's courage deserves to be applauded. Spence now presents himself as a kind understanding gentleman who is capable of dealing respectfully will those from all walks of life -- one of the many reasons he is so successful at handling jury trails. To read his own story, this was not always the case. I have read other reviews of this book from people who were shocked to learn the details of this man's teenage, young adult, and middle adult years and seemed to hold it against him. To me, Spence is not ashamed, as he should not be, about the path his life has taken. He offers no apology, and does not owe us one. He simply describes in detail the story of the first half (approximately) of his life with insight as to how it created the Gerry Spence that we all now know and love.
   
   Some parts of the book to tend to get a little long and drawn out. This is simply Spence being Spence. He is never in a hurry to tell his stories and likes to let them meander. They are his stories and this one is about his life, so he should tell it his way.
   
   My final thoughts of this book are not so much about he book itself, but something that happen right after I finished it. I had read several of Spence's works in succession. This book was the last. Not long afterward I sat down one Saturday afternoon and send him an e-mail telling him what I had read and that I appreciated his writing and his work. I sent the mail not really expecting anything and took off for the gym. I came home a few hours later and found a reply in my Inbox from Gerry thanking me and telling me that I had made his day. It was nice to know that I was able to talk briefly with a renowned figure.



5. As Spence promises on the cover, this book is about himself.
   
   You'll learn how Spence's mother's selfish suicide and religious overbearing nature have plagued him. Her death was a life-long sentence without a trial. It drove him to obsess over the innocence and justifiable mistakes of others.