5 comments about The Heavenly Man: The Remarkable True Story of Chinese Christian Brother Yun.

1. This book isnt for you if violence makes you queasy. I thought it was unbelievable what Yun went through, and it was an interesting book. I learned much about the history of Christianity, which I new nothing about before. However, I felt the book was very repetitive, as I cannot count how many times Yun went to prison, was electrocuted with a baton, beaten senselessly, etc. I definitely believe in miracles, but everytime I turned the page there was another one.......so many that it almost seemed unbelievable and I wondered if this story was actually true.



2. 
   This book is amazing, and we bought three copies of it. We never have a copy because we keep lending it out to people. I look foward to the next book.



3. The Heavenly Man is one of the best books I have read. It really made me think about how weak my faith is and what God really expects out of us. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a closer walk with God.



4. After reading this book you'll understand why some believe that Asia may become the next center of Christianity. With the West becoming more secular and morally bankrupt, God is moving in China to spread the Gospel. Who would have thought that Korea, formerly a primarily Buddhist country, would become a Christian nation that sends out multitudes of missionaries? In the same way, God is using the Chinese house churches to spread the Gospel not only throughout China but also throughout the rest of Asia and beyond. The story of Brother Yun shows how the Gospel began to grow in China under persecution. This is inspiring and motivating. However, it was hard to relate the sold-out Christianity of the Chinese house churches to the soft, laissez-faire Christianity we know in the West. May God bring revival not only throughout Asia but also to the West.



5. A little over a year ago, I read Randy Alcorn's novel, "Safely Home." And it was based on Chinese Christians and the persecution they might go through in China. And my first thought was how rough that has to really be. Being a master storyteller, Randy Alcorn barely scratched the surface, and he could've really gone deep. After my dad read "Safely Home," he found this book, "The Heavenly Man," and basically told me, "You've got to read this! This is amazing!" If you think you're some kind of victim just because you've been made fun of for your Christian faith, wake up! Christians like Brother Yun know something about suffering, and how to rejoice in the process. HUH? Read on!
   
   And this really is nothing short of amazing. Brother Yun started preaching at the age of 16. Like in Alcorn's book, there are church house meetings. And the Chinese government hates Christians, and has ways of dealing with them. So for those of us who have these ideas of being a simple POW with just a few beatings, it goes a lot further than that. The torture that Brother Yun suffered is nuts! And this guy can rejoice and witness to his cell mates about the glory of God. Seeing miracles, and experiencing them, and you'd have to be crazy not to believe in God.
   
   Yun makes it clear that when we are in God's will, God has us exactly where He wants us. It is a reminder to stay in the will of God and to keep focused on the reward God has for us. And being in God's will means to be ready for everything God has for us here on Earth. That means that we'll probably do some suffering, and that we will bear our own cross.
   
   Would anybody line up for the testimony of Brother Yun? All I can say is WOW! This is an amazing life. A true eye opener!

5 comments about Alexander Hamilton.

1. Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton was a great read that included a remarkable amount of information on the man, as well as all the important characters who shared the stage with Hamilton during his 49 years. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, which felt nothing like its length.
   
   It was an enlightening experience to read the book because much of my knowledge of Hamilton came from biographies on his many rivals or books on the period. Hamilton was an opinionated, controversial and insecure man, but he was quite ethical in his professional life. I was worried that a Hamilton book would be bogged down with too much economics, but Chernow did a great job of presenting that important information is an understandable manner.
   
   The reason I can't quite give this book a 5-star rating was its overly sympathetic nature. Yes, most bios are partial to the subject, but this one took that to the extreme. Chernow gave ample coverage to the controversial events in Hamilton's life, though he tended to make excuses for them. Every sentence written about Jefferson, Adams and post-1789 Madison were very negative, as Chernow selected the unflattering quotes from those men in a way that would elevate Hamilton. If you were to read the second and third volumes of Dumas Malone's series on Jefferson, and follow it up by reading Chernow's book, you'd think they were writing about completely different eras, or that they were family members of their respective subjects.
   
   But since this book is eye-opening and filled with so much information, in a beautifully written account, I highly recommend it. It made me see Hamilton in a different light and understand more fully why he was such a powerful figure in the early American republic.



2. Ron Chernow has written an informative, detailed, wholly engaging biography of one of the most interesting and controversial founding fathers. This book is a delightful read through the history of the forging of the United States of America.



3. The other reviewers of this book are right on -- Hamilton's influence in American political history is truly significant -- he is probably the most influential Founding Father never to have served as president. His vision for a unified country recorded in the Federalist Papers are truly remarkable and his influence on the economy of this country with his position as the first Treasury Secretary and his vision for a federal bank last to this day.
   
   I actually listened to the 10 set CD series of this book and the time just flew by -- the book is fascinating and Chernow does a great job of giving significant historical details on everyone who comes into contact with Hamilton -- from Washington to Jefferson to Jay and Burr. The portion of Hamilton's life which resulted in his affair are a great life lesson for every man, especially those in positions of leadership!
   
   Every student of history should buy this book (or listen to the CDs) -- Hamilton was a man history can not ignore.



4. It was my ambition in college to someday write a biography of the most neglected of the Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton. I talked about it, read a few of the biographies out there. Forrest McDonald's was the best, I thought.
   
   Then last spring I borrowed from the Meredith, NH, public library this book by the incomparable Ron Chernow. I read it on the our family trip to Virginia. Visiting Redoubt 10 at Yorktown, horribly neglected by Americans, was an intense emotional experience for me.
   
   I've learned from Dennis Prager that the best way to learn history is through biographies. None are better, I've found, than this. In fact, after reading it, I had to purchase my own copy.
   
   That's how much I value Ron Chernow's absolutely magnificent biography. Embracing Christianity at the end of Hamilton's life shows me what side he'd take in the cultural war. How we could use his exemplary industry and brilliance now! Only he could overshadow Mr. Jefferson, whom I've always adored.
   
   But Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Chernow, you are the best.



5. From what I learned of American history as a schoolboy, Hamilton was certainly considered as one of the founding fathers, but he was relegated to the periphery among the founders; and he and the Federalists, according to this teaching, needed to be constantly restrained by the wisdom of Thomas Jefferson or else they would have reverted the country back to a monarchy. After reading this book, I still think there is truth to the need for Jefferson's restraint, but overall, I think that my education was prejudiced and myopic. As the author notes, because Jefferson, Madison and Adams all became President (along with another Virginian James Monroe) and they had many more years to write about events, their legacy gained the upper hand and history has probably skewed their importance relative to Hamilton.
   
   This really outstanding book tips the balance of viewpoint in the other direction. Some have criticized the book because they maintain that it habitually depicts Jefferson, Madison, and Adams in the worst of ways, such as only showing the worst of what they wrote. They may have a point, but the author is showing what Hamilton was up against - sometimes unreasoning opposition; and he makes a very strong case that Hamilton more than any of the founders was responsible for setting up the American government as we know it today. Hamilton recognized, with a force that no one else could exert, that a strong union was the best hope to avoid all the evils and conflicts of Balkanization. No doubt that Jefferson and Madison provided a much needed counterbalance, especially since Hamilton did not recognize the importance of the Bill of Rights; and Washington also provided a needed check to his military proclivities. But Jefferson and Madison in their Virginian politics that favored a sectionalized state-empowered confederacy molded from a slave-based agrarian economy held views that have fallen by the wayside, whereas Hamilton set in motion the means whereby the United States could get a grip on itself and move into the modern age.
   
   It is a fascinating story of a life that leads to a well-known tragic conclusion. It starts in one of most beautiful of places but also one of the worst scenes of human degradation - the sugar trade in the West Indies. The fact that Hamilton's relatives could never succeed in such a place was probably a credit to them, for it must have taken an extraordinary brutality to keep a majority population of slave labor at bay. Hamilton left the place at the first available opportunity, and took advantage of the time and his abilities to make a continuing success of himself during the Revolution and its aftermath. Beside being blessed with a brilliant mind (John Marshall said that beside him he felt like a candle to the midday sun) and being a relentless worker, he showed that he was a man of principle, and all through his life he hardly deviated from that sense of principle. His enemies did not want to separate his personal life from his private life, but there is every indication that he hardly ever wavered in that regard, despite the folly of the Maria Reynolds scandal. Despite all the investigations, no one was able to find a shred of evidence that showed that while he was Secretary of Treasury and setting up the banking system - or any other time for that matter - that he did anything untoward or for his own benefit. In fact, he had to quit his post because he became too deeply in debt to support his family. Yet, the slander followed him everywhere, and a lack of restraint on his part encouraged the attacks. In the end, the need to clear his name and a strong sense of honor - so important to his politics - had set him on an irrevocable course.

5 comments about Angela's Ashes: A Memoir.

1. I though Angela's Ashes was a good memoir of a family during World War II. My favorite character was Frank because it was fun to see him grow up, and see how he changed over the course of this book. I thought that Angela did as much as she could to try and get her family through World War II, and I thought she did a good job, considering the help she was receiving. My least favorite character was Malachy. Malachy was always drunk, and he would always waste away the family's money. I felt that he only thought about himself. Unfortunately, most people who are addicted to drugs only think out for themselves, because all they are thinking of is getting drugs for them. I would definitely recommend this book, and give it four stars. I would recommend Angela's Ashes to high school students because it does cover a serious issue and the humor might not be appropriate for younger students. Overall I think the book is a winner!



2. Was a gift for my daughter who rarely reads and she loves it. Read it through in a couple of days.



3. Frank McCourt chronicles the story of his life in the streets of Ireland, his family living a life of poverty and hard luck. Somehow, he is able to make what should be a bleak story uplifting with his wit, humor and straight-forward approach to telling a story. Sometimes he gives you TOO much of the story, things you would rather not have heard--but I guess this is because it is a memoir. There is a certain amount of haphazardness to his writings...there are many times where you have no clue where this is going. But, at other times, there is an effort to be sentimental about the few things he has in life, or the hope of better days ahead.
   
   An interesting style McCourt uses to write the book, where he virtually uses no punctuation during the many dialogue scenes. He also has many, many run-on, wordy, and obtuse sentences that would probably have one of his master's in school up in arms. It took me awhile to get used to this "rambling" kind of style, and, as an English major, it almost had ME up in arms, but actually, after reading the book, the pace of book quickens because of this style. There was enough of a compelling and engaging story to care too much about punctuation, or lack thereof.
   
   As far as content itself, McCourt's story was highly entertaining and somewhat touching. While the young Frank is at school, he meets one strict school master after another, and he deals with the peer pressure from some of his classmates. The young Frank tries to keep all of the disappointments and failures and embarrassments behind him by reminding himself that one day things will change for him in America. There are times when Frank goes to the library to escape the world, knowing that he can escape into a story: "It's lovely to know that the world can't interfere with the inside of your head." Frank also experiences some time in the hospital with fever and eye problems, and in his first visit he meets Patricia, a girl who teaches him poetry. When he gets separated from her for talking to her, it is one of Frank's saddest moments: "Nurses and nuns never think you know what they're talking about...You can't ask questions. You can't show you understand what the nurse said about Patricia Madigan, that she's going to die, and you can't show you want to cry over this girl who taught you a lovely poem which the nun says is bad." Frank also deals with the trials of being in a family with an alcoholic father who rarely comes up, spends up the family's earnings, and some other dysfunctional relatives. He keeps hope that one day things will change for the better.
   
   While the story is highly engaging, one thing that irked me was the abruptness of the ending. Without giving too much away, the memoir just seemingly ends without any deep moment or thought. The incident with Frank and the woman--- is that suppose to be some momentous or life-changing event? It seemed kind of stupid to end the book right there. It also made the book seem a little uneven; after all, here is Frank preaching about how he wants to help his family in the future, and then what does he go and do in the book's conclusion?
   
   Criticism aside, this is an enjoyable read, which I honestly didn't think would be possible based on what I had heard about the story. McCourt is able to intertwine humor and heart-break in a way I've never seen done before.



4. Frank McCourt has a way with words! His memoir of growing up poor in Ireland, with a drunk for a father and lazy, shiftless mother is written without malice. He and his brothers are left to their own devices to keep themselves fed, warm and clothed when Frank, the oldest is not even four years old. They live in a house where the main floor floods every year and they have to wade through the sewage to live in the remaining room upstairs until the water recedes. They grow so cold that they resort to tearing the walls apart for firewood. And yet his mother needs her cigarettes and his father needs his drink.
   
   Frank's tenacity and humor in the midst of such misery is his salvation. And it is what makes this memoir so poignant. His own parents and grandparents, neighbors and the Catholic church leave Frank and his brothers to their own devices for survival. And they survive! And go to America. And it's a true story.



5. "When I look back on my childhood I wonder how I managed to survive at all. It was, of course, a miserable childhood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while. Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood."
   
   So begins ANGELA'S ASHES, Frank McCourt's amazing memoir of growing up in the direst poverty in Limerick, Ireland. The book opens in Brooklyn in 1935 when Frank, the eldest child, is only four. Frank's father, Malachy, has decided life in his native Ireland, hard as it may be, would be easier than life in Brooklyn. So, with his wife, Angela and their four surviving children - Frank, Malachy, and twins, Oliver and Eugene, (baby sister, Margaret has already died) - in tow, the McCourt family returns to Malachy's native Belfast.
   
   One might think the return of a family member who's been gone for years would be an occasion for rejoicing. But this is Belfast and war is brewing, and as the reader soon realizes, Malachy's family is far worse off than the citizens of Brooklyn. After spending only one night in his family's small home, Malachy, Angela, and their children are sent packing - to Limerick, the town where Angela grew up.
   
   Angela's family proves to be almost as unwelcoming as Malachy's, but the family does manage to find lodgings in "the lanes," a euphemism for the town's slums. And slums they are, make no mistake about that. There's no sanitary system to speak of, so the McCourt family finds summers and the almost unbearable stench almost as bad as winters when there's no coal to light the fire. The seemingly ever-present rain floods the McCourt's downstairs, forcing them to flee to the upstairs rooms, and the dampness of the River Shannon kills two more McCourt children and sends Frank to the hospital for months. Although heartbroken, the McCourt's accept their losses as simply their lot in a very, very difficult life.
   
   The Protestant Malachy is shunned in Catholic Ireland and his northern accent makes it almost impossible for him to find work. When he does, he "drinks" his wages in the form of pints at the local pub before even going home, leaving his younger children with nothing but sugar water and the older ones lucky to get a potato for their dinner. Christmases consisted of a sheep's head, which Angela obtained from local charities.
   
   ANGELA'S ASHES is a horrific, but beautifully written book, an episodic memoir rather than a traditionally plotted novel. This episodic quality however, takes nothing away from its ability to mesmerize and pull us into the world of pre-war Limerick. We sympathize with Frank as he endures a series of abusive teachers - until he finally encounters one who recognizes his intelligence. We empathize with him as he finds - then tragically loses - his first love. We chuckle (yes, chuckle, for ANGELA'S ASHES, grim as it is, contains humor aplenty) at his misplaced attempts to spread Catholicism, one of which provides quite possibly the book's funniest set piece.
   
   Young Frank, during one of his first jobs must deliver a telegram to a Mr. Harrington, an Englishman who's understandably distraught over the death of his wife, Ann. When Frank knocks on the Harrington's door, Harrington is already drunk and asks Frank to watch over Ann's body while he makes a quick trip to the local pub for reinforcements.
   
   Frank has obviously listened to his strict Catholic schoolmasters and he obviously cares about his fellow man. In a hilarious scene, Frank, not wanting Ann to suffer in hell because of her Protestantism, baptizes her a Catholic with sherry in place of holy water. Naturally, just as he's doing so, Harrington returns.
   
   While ANGELA'S ASHES is filled with tragedy, harrowing events, and the direst of poverty, it's also filled with dignity, compassion, and genuine wit. This wit is, I think, what raises the book from a superbly written memoir to a genuine masterpiece and classic. But even though the book sometimes elicits a chuckle, more often than not, it brings a tear. One of the most harrowing images, for me, at least, was that of an always-hungry Frank voraciously licking the newspaper that had held his Uncle Pat's fish and chips.
   
   Just as McCourt does a fine balancing act regarding humor and despair, he also balances his characterizations so our view of the persons who inhabit ANGELA'S ASHES is never one-sided. This is particularly true regarding Frank's father, Malachy. In the hands of a lesser author, Malachy could have become nothing more than exasperating and ineffectual, which, of course, he is. But McCourt also shows us his father's charming side as well. As irresponsible as Malachy is, he obviously loves his children, and it was their father, more often than not, who comforted his sons. It was Malachy who nurtured Frank's appetite for stories, giving him the tale of Cuchulain, Ireland's great savior, and the Angel on the Seventh Step, the being who brought two new babies, Michael and Alphonsus, to Angela. Perhaps, because of Malachy, Frank somehow finds the strength to endure and nurture his own dreams. ANGELA'S ASHES is, in many ways, a Cinderella story, a story of triumph, although at first glance, it would seem to be anything but. More than anything, though, ANGELA'S ASHES is a perfectly written, deeply moving book. Although filled with tragedy and despair, in the end, it's a glorious book, one that becomes a part of the reader and continues to grow within him years after the last page is turned.

5 comments about The Prince of Frogtown.

1. I've read and loved every word Rick Bragg has published so far. His descriptions of places, things, and people always make me wish I could have been there, seen and known those things and people. 'Decriptive writing' doesn't get much better than this author's! How wonderful to realize that R.Bragg now has a family of his own and I wish him much happiness. How lucky for 'The boy' to have such a wonderful man for a step-father and like-wise 'The woman' couldn't have found a better man to share the rest of her life with. Once I start reading book by Rick Bragg I don't accomplish much else that day. I'll certainly be watching and waiting for his next publication !



2. Thanks to Luke, we're familiar with the prodigal son. Thanks to Rick Bragg in his new third Bragg family memoir, The Prince of Frogtown, we meet the prodigal father: Bragg's violent alcoholic father, Charlie, who caused Bragg so much trauma and anguish in his early years that he and his brother had written their father off as unredeemed and unredeemable. Bragg's deep deep pain, savored and nourished over a lifetime, finally, at age 45, had to be dealt with. It helped that Bragg, best selling author of All Over But The Shoutin' and Ava's Man, controversial former New York Times feature writer, Pulitzer Prize winner, teacher of writing at The University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa, had the good fortune to marry for the second time, after being single for 20 years. Diane, "the woman," as she is known in Frogtown, has three sons. The youngest one, Jake, (a little child shall lead them) opens Bragg's eyes again to what it means to be a little boy: for Jake, for Bragg, but most importantly, for Bragg's written off father, Charlie. Bragg is forced to search for his real father, looking at all the forces that sculpted and shaped him from boyhood, knowing that just writing him off will write much of himself off and will take Bragg himself unredeemed to his own grave, with no peace in the meantime. So Bragg searches for his father by talking to all the cotton mill town folk and relatives and Korean War buddies in Jacksonville, Alabama who knew him in that part of town where the fighting, hard drinking, hell-raising Braggs lived, Frogtown. What Bragg finds and how he goes about telling us about it and what it does to him and Jake and their relationship is on a par with anything William Faulkner or Thornton Wilder or Ernest Hemingway or Harper Lee ever wrote. Read this book, real soon. Real soon. If you delay, delay only to read All Over But The Shoutin' and Ava's Man first.



3. I'd read this, and then got Large Print book for my father for Father's Day. He loved it! Ricky Bragg has now again created a wonderful heartwarming story, full of laughs, great stories, and great truths about his perception of his father and his turn at parenting his step-son. We highly recommend this.



4. My husband read Rick Bragg's first book and loved it so much that he ordered everything Bragg has ever written. Great Southern author.



5. This is a continuation of All Over But the Shoutin' and Ava's Man. If you liked these, you will like this book about his father. He doesn't say much about his father in the first two books because his father was not in his life much while growing up but now you get to see the good and mostly bad about him. Rick Bragg is a terrific writer and I will read anything he writes.

5 comments about Farewell to Manzanar: A True Story of Japanese American Experience During and After the World War II Internment.

1. i read this book when i was about 11 and purchased it for my 12 yr old son last month. he loved it as much as i did. loves to read, loves world war ii history and had no idea that the u s had holding camps for u s citizens of japanese descent. started a diolog with his g'pa, s f born and bred, about japanese americans he'd known as a child who were imprisoned. should be required reading for all



2. and my children like it. It is a great book to read with your children on one of the internment camps during wwII in America. The first person account is wonderful. I don't know why so many kids thought it was boring. No, there are no bombs going off, a lot of gun shooting, or killing with blood and guts but it is still a great book.



3. This book is required reading for my daughters freshman high school English course. Amazon didnt carry the 'cliffnotes' yet I found another seller through Amazon; of course, then the books were shipped separately.
   
   Excellent topic considering our local Japanese-American history during WWII.



4. Wow! This is everything I thought it would be and much more! Everything I could think of for my students is in this, plus things I didn't even think would be in it! Thank you!



5. Farewell to Manzanar is not a book I will ever forget. Although many years have passed since I first read this book, the story of the Japanese-American families sent to an internment camp still resonates. It's a beautifully written memoir of an egregious wrong.

5 comments about His Favorite Wife: Trapped in Polygamy.

1. This was a very good, well written book, although, after you have read "Shattered Lives", it doesn't compare to the details given. It does show the true life of someone who simply doesn't know any better. Doesn't know that she has rights, doesn't know she has a choice. I think I would have killed myself had I had to live out some of these lives. I thank God every time I read a Polygamist book that I wasn't born into it. It is total mind control - totally!



2. I am totally fascinated by the FLDS society and being a librarian have found lots to read on the subject. This was a favorite. Living in Utah makes the subject all the more interesting because it is going on here. I would recommend this book to anyone. It is traveling on to my daughtger next and then will find its way to Indiana to a good friend. Had lots of startling information......both funny and sad. My heart goes out to all the people, young and old in this society.



3. This book is very compelling (hard to put down) and insightful. Its story is similar to many others about the cult of Fundamentalist Mormanism. It is sad to think that many women and children are stil trapped in polygamist situations. There are many implications pointing to the cult of Mormonism itself and why and how it has grown so large. Think broader than just this one situation when you read this true story!



4. This is a fabulous book. She was a strong women and managed to get out of this life, but so many do not get out. These women and children are truly trapped by a warped way of thinking about God. I became interested in this subject from a religious perspective. And wow, I really began to feel for these people.



5. this was a real story, moving and touching and definitely gave insight into why these woman accept this way of life in the first place. it sure makes you wonder where the stories come from where you see the sister wives trying to make us beleive its an easy way of life...

5 comments about Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life.

1. this book was a delight, a fascinating look at the way Martin developed his craft. For anyone who loves comedy or anyone who does public speaking it is a great primer.
   
   Martin is a gifted writer and observer of life, and this book reflects both of those gifts



2. Steve Martin has written a surprisingly sad look back at his life that glosses over most of the major things he is known for while focusing on his dysfuncational family, his inabilities with women and his bad relationship with his father. The book is not very funny, a bit depressing and not as revealing as you would hope an autobiography would be.
   
   The book is very short--at 200 double-spaced pages it takes only a couple hours to read--and the first half of the book is devoted to his life to age 22. He then quickly goes through his early TV years without really telling any stories about the famous people he worked with, then doesn't get to his movie career until 20 pages before the end. He doesn't mention his marriage--but doesn't once alude to his divorce. And doesn't mention anything about family except his distant parents and sister.
   
   It sounds like he just look through some old scrapbooks and started writing his minimal recollections of what happened 40 to 50 years ago. There aren't a lot of details and little insight into how he developed his comedy. Jerry Seinfeld writes on the back cover that it's "One of the best books about comedy and being a comedian ever written," but that is so far from the truth that it's doubtful that Seinfeld even read the book.
   
   There are a few interesting tidbits--like his continued crush on his first girlfriend, who turns out to be Christian prayer book author Stormie Omartian. And some of the photos in the book are great inclusions. Plus Martin opens up about his serious anxiety disorder, which leads him to come across as aloof when he is being interviewed on talk shows.
   
   But this is not a book about his entire career--it's a book about his recollections of being a stand-up comedian decades ago, so there is almost nothing in it from the past 30 years. If you are looking for inside stories about Saturday Night Live or Sonny & Cher or his movie successes you won't find them here--just a rather sad story of a man who never really got his dad's approval, who concludes that true comedy is really very serious.



3. Finding someone in this country who doesn't know of Steve Martin would be a chore that I'd prefer not to attempt to undertake. What's the point of finding someone who has been living under a rock for the last thirty years?
   
   Being the age that I am, my introduction to Steve Martin was most likely through an appearance on The Muppet Show. Not long after, I found that my father had a Steve Martin album, A Wild and Crazy Guy, which concluded with the memorable "King Tut." Thus, before I really understood that there was such a thing as "stand-up comedy," I was vaguely aware that the Steve Martin I would soon begin to see in movies was a performer of some sort.
   
   Born Standing Up is Steve Martin's memoir of his years as a stand-up comedian: "not an autobiography but a biography, because I am writing about someone I used to know." The narrative begins in the summer of 1965, when Steve Martin was just about to begin his life as a performer.
   
   We're then taken back to 1950, when the Martin family moved with five-year-old Steve from Waco, Texas to Hollywood. We're then given a view into life at home and especially the cool and complex relationship between Glenn Martin and his son.
   
   At age ten, Steve Martin secured a job selling guidebooks at Disneyland, where he could study performers plying their craft daily. Securing a position in a magic shop at Disneyland proved crucial. The hours spent demonstrating magic tricks to tourists stopping in the shop led to the development of some skill that led to performances. Changes in the magic shop proved fortunate, helping to move Steve Martin in the direction of comedy.
   
   It has long been said that fortune favors the bold. Fortune has indeed smiled upon Steve Martin. He was bold, developing an act that was hardly conventional even for a time when unconventional was the standard convention for performers. To this, we see more added, the sort of effort and attention to detail that I would sum up succinctly in the word professional. He recorded himself for later listening. He paid attention to himself, how his props, body, and words went together. He watched how different material would work for various audiences. And he practiced, taking on a grueling schedule, show after show, day in an day out.
   
   Finally, Steve Martin made the bigtime. It was then that he decided that he was going to get out of stand-up comedy. The thought is perhaps incomprehensible to some: why leave what you love doing when you're able at the top of the game? Another question is raised: does it follow that you wind up doing what you love simply by virtue of finding success in doing what you love? Put another way, if you love to be bold and original, can you be bold and original when most of the country is repeating catchphrases that come from your act?
   
   Steve Martin is a man of many talents. That writing is among his talents helps to make Born Standing Up a pleasurable read, one that like much of his work also leaves room for reflection after the initial response has subsided.



4. I've read complaints about the length (of lack thereof). I found the book to be compelling & very well-edited. It's an insightful look behind the scenes of a comic's life & shatters the myth of the overnight success story. It's well worth your time.



5. Having just finished Steve Martin's "Born Standing Up" I can't for the life of me understand the 5 star rating that so many people have given it. His breathless staccato writing style is a far cry from great literature and reads more like a fleshed out resume than an actual autobiography. I found it mildly interesting but kept waiting for it to get better. I'm still waiting. Mercifully, at least it's a slim volume and I bought it used so not much time or money spent. I can neither recommend it nor caution one to stay away. Just don't pay retail.

5 comments about Undaunted Courage : Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West.

1. The history of the Voyage of Discovery is one of the outstanding feats in American history. No one has told it better than Stephen Ambrose. This is a must read even if you don't enjoy history.



2. I will keep it simple. Next to the Holy Bible ~ best book I ever read. I have since then read several of Stephen Ambrose's books and highly recommend them. He and his family put many years of research in before writing any book. I have travelled across the country all the way to Cape Disapportment as a result of reading the book and following the trail. Everything Mr. Ambrose claimed in the book is accurate, very interesting, and provides us a heritage for our country that everyone should be proud of.



3. What I liked best about this book is that it reads like a neighbor telling you all about his favorite nephew. Ambrose's descriptions and judgments and asides have almost an avuncular feel. If this is not your thing, the book will probably bug you.
   
   What I liked least about this book is Ambrose's unquestioning high regard for Jefferson, but since Ambrose's attitude reflects that of Lewis's, I can go with it.
   
   The outtakes of the journals, the excellent maps, and the good-natured commentary combine to make me LIKE the characters. I feel familiar with them after reading this book. I am impressed by their accomplishments, and feel I know them as people much better.
   
   It is also clear that Ambrose knows the areas where Lewis and Clark explored. Many of his notations tell how the area described look to present-day canoers or hikers, and he gives highway exits and directions to some of the less-remote campsites and overlooks. Ambrose's love for the beauties of western America comes through, and they add to the fond tone of the book.



4. Historical novels are one of my favorite types of text, and I have been an avid reader of Stephen E. Ambrose through his World War II works. Every American child knew about Lewis & Clark and the Louisiana Purchase (Thank you Schoolhouse Rock), but this book brings to life the true and amazing task these men went through to help open America into the vast and great nation she is now.
   
   After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase from France, President Thomas Jefferson, a man of knowledge and curiosity himself, issued a continental exploration Corps of Discovery to travel to the Pacific Ocean. If you could imagine walking across your own state, now imagine walking (horse/canoe allowed) across the country, no roads, no cellphone, no Walmart, no bathrooms, no electric lights, wild animals...the grizzlies read like monsters, potential attacks from hostile natives, the weather...it is unimagenable that any human could have survived or endured such hardships!
   
   It is important to realize that Lewis and Clark were the leaders, but also traveled with a large group of brave men, unique and talented in their own respects, including the female Native American Sacagawea and her baby, plus the sad tale of York, Clark's slave who shared the pain, dangers, and loyalty, but received none of the rewards, promises, or respects afterwards...this subject raises my ire, so I will not continue on York's betrayal by Clark.
   
   Regardless of whether you read this as pure history, this book reads like an adventure tale like Krakauer's Into Thin Air, a testament of man versus nature, the book is also a cultural exploration as the "White man meets the Red man" no disrespect meant. On so many levels this book will offer insight, information, and entertainment that few books balance so well. So you might as well read a good tale and actually improve your own academic knowledge.
   
   Thank you and keep reading.
   John Dae Min



5. Read this as a first edition hardback---my Amazon reviewing is a little behind, to say the least---outstanding book. The best book on L&C in print. Ambrose collaborated on a book with Nat'l Geo that is spectacular as well. OUTSTANDING from cover to cover.
   If you read only one book on the topic, read this one---and prepare to be hooked.

5 comments about Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science.

1. I find this book which has gotten such rave reviews disappointing. Dr. Gawande addresses a number of issues which are pertinent to surgical practice. However,I found the book to be superficial and lacking of "heart".
   
   I will elicudate. Dr. Gawande states frequently that surgeons slash their way into a patient.I suspect that this is for dramatic effect.There are other examples of this such as the description of an autopsy.He tones it down later.He treds lightly on the fact that doctors don't want to own their mistakes which is why there is no improvement in medical care over 20 years ago despite huge advances in both technology and costs.
   
   The only Surgeon I have ever known who "slashed" his way into a patient ended up losing his privileges...thank God but it took many years and a yeoman's effort and those who spoke up were alienated and shunned. It was not as simple as is portrayed in this book.I do laud him for bringing up the "good doctors going bad" issue. It is a huge problem and bad doctors are often covered for years and years while patients are repetitively injured. It is also very harmful to the doctor who is creating the problem. The cost of this problem to patients, hospitals and society is staggering.
   
   I looked up the reference that computers were better than doctors at diagnosis. It is not about medical diagnosis, it was about psychologists' diagnosis. The second article was from 1954...A bit dated. before the computer era.
   
   I laud him for the courage in mentioning his screwed up tracheostomy attempt. There are numerous methods for both intubation and percutanous guided tracheostomy techniques that have been available for 20 years. I have to wonder why he was unaware of these. The technique that he describes for subclavian vein cathethers is also not as safe as other methods which use a small guage finding needle. I have to wonder why 20-30 years after these problems were identified that this young doctor was not being instructed in these techniques.
   
   His chapter on bariatric surgery is notable for his mentioning of the commercialization of medicine an increasingly dangerous trend is appropriate. At this point bariatric surgery has been shown to be helpful for a large number of patients, but without question medicine has been commercialized.
   
   His section on uncertainty is the best part of this book. He saved the best for last.
   
   Nonetheless, I find his "laissez-faire" attitude to these problems even more worrisome.I find little actual feeling that he cared about his patients in this book. This is not surprising as it pervades medicine today.
   
   I haven't found this book to be a thriller.It lacks depth of character. If he had connected with us and his patients emotionally I believe that it would have been a much more powerful work.



2. An amazing thriller...
   
   Dr.Atul's superb portrayal of finest qualities of a doctor, yet the limitations of an individual, their weekness,strengths, system flaws etc with vivid examples of real life cases makes "Complications" the best medical book I'v ever read.It's not the content of the book alone that deserves appreciation, it's also the flow of words that blend with the topic.
   
   Certainly the pinnacle of the book is the story of Joseph Lazaroff, Atul's Anguish depicting the finest of human character and also the professionalism of a doctor, also his questions behind the ethics of "absolute insane rights of patient's expression". I felt a pain in the heart for that "unknown soul" ( a gist of that chapter is below)
   
   Chapter : Whose body is it Anyway :
   ...I turned the ventilator off, and the suddenly the room was quiet .His breathing slowed ...Joseph Lazaroff had died.But Knowing how much Lazaroff had dreaded dying the way he died....
   
   Chapter : Education of a Knife:
   I said to the patient that there were "slight risks" involved.And the disasters weighed on my mind: the woman who had died from massive bleeding, the man who had to have a chest opened, the man who had a cardiac arrests.I said nothing of such things when I asked my patient's permission to do this
   
   Chapter : When Doctors Make Mistakes:
   At 2 A.M on a crisp friday in winter a few years agao, I was in sterile gown , pulling a teenage knifing victim's abdomen open, when my pager sounded "code trauma, three minutes"
   
   Chapter : When Good doctor's Go bad:
   Before the license of Dr.Goodman was taken away, he was a highly respected and sought after surgeon...he could do some of the best, most brilliant work around....In one case , he put the wrong-size screw into a patient's ankle,another case when he refused to do hip replacement. For the last several years, he was the defendent of a stream of malpractice suits.
   
   Chapter : The Man Who Cannot stop Eating :
   ...He had to let his legs apart to let his abdomen sag between them. He cannot lie down and breath properly because of excess fat in the tongue and upper airway. He had to sleep in the recliner and every thirty minutes or so , he would wake up asphyxating, He could no longer stand up to urinate, he had to shower after moving his bowels to get clean
   
   A Must Read book...Afterall, someday you might be an example in his future books!



3. I just couldn't finish this book! I thought it would be better--but as I am reading the words they are more and more unfamiliar. I don't want to read a book where you spend more than 3/4 of the time looking up the words!



4. The first part of the book is the typical medical error conversation - the system needs changes, but, instead, the last doctor to touch a patient is always ultimately responsible. The last two sections of the book are full of interesting patient stories and antecdotes, leaving the reader with a sense of "why do I pay so much for services that are not consistent and not scientifically proven?" Gawande does an excellent job pointing out some of the uncertaintaties of medicine and some of the major health disparities and inequalities - the poor are usually the ones that are used as training tools for interns and residents, and receive subpar-care compared to the well-insured.
   
   A very easy and quick read.



5. Atul Gawande gratefully takes the reader to the back of the OR, a place open for a few, yet intriguing for many. Dr. Gawande is extremely frank and poignant, as he describes actual cases from his own surgical practice. He admits that cutting someone open for the first time is hell, praises surgery which gives chance to obese people, wonders about doctor's intuition, and remains human in every case.
   
   As always, Atul Gawande is not just writing about medicine; this book reaches far beyond the realm of the operating room. He touches on the most complicated ethical questions of medicine and society as a whole. Gawande speaks of mistakes and our imperfect judgment; tackling the questions of good doctors gone bad along with malpractice claims and punishments. He makes the case for autopsy as a means of learning. He admits that medical students must practice on cadavers or animals in order to cut people open; all ethical questions are answered by means of vivid examples.
   
   For instance, in the 1980s the death rate from a particular surgery would be about 10%. When the new surgical treatment of heart pathology arose, surgeons started trying the novice. At that training period, the rate of children death from this particular intervention increased to 25% of cases. Sounds horrible? Yes, but after surgeons learned, the rate fell down to just a couple percent. Was it worth it? Sure, granted the number of lives saved in the long run. Never, granted now many kids died just due to surgeons' learning. Would any doctor let anyone practice on his own kid? Never. At the same time, learning is a necessary part of medical progress.
   
   Those questions dominate the book; Gawande ponders at the patient's right to choose, reminds us that doctors are human and prone to mistakes, reveals mysteries of complications, which are usually open only during the M&M - Mortality and Morbidity Conference behind the closed door. Gawande is not afraid to open the doors. Moreover, he is confident that openness is the only way to reduce the complications.
   
   I almost wanted to say the book is too idealistic, except it's written by a person whose profession is to think realistically. Great book!

5 comments about Half-Assed: A Weight-Loss Memoir.

1. Jennette Fulda tells a remarkable story of determination. It's an incredible journey of dispair, joy and redemption. Fulda tells it like it is with honesty and large doses of humor. Anyone who is seriously overweight can relate to her stories. Only an obese person can truly understand life in a fat-unfriendly society. Her weight-loss journey is not an easy one but Fulda seems to have the inner-strength needed to succeed. She tells her own story without offering specific weight-loss advice. This is NOT a diet book. In fact, she refuses to discuss her exact method of losing weight. The diet she followed remains unnamed. She follows a healthier way of eating and tries to banish bad foods from her life, but there are a few mishaps and setbacks along the way. She knows it has to be a permanent lifestyle change. It's a journey of self-discovery on all levels. Her weight immobilizes her with so many aches and pains until exercise becomes her salvation. She is ashamed and self-conscious of her weight but her will is strong. It is her story and no one else's. She doesn't want to be come a weight-loss guru and doesn't preach for or against any way of thinking. She has her own views on fat acceptance and weight loss. It's up to the reader to find what is the right path and how to begin. Here story of dispair is one that so many seriously overweight people can understand. In Fulda's case, dispair becomes hope and hope becomes cautious joy as she nears her ideal weight. She tells her story with a humor that is often self-depracating. It's no secret that she succeeds in her quest before you start the book. She no longers suffers the stigma and pain of severe obesity. Readers just beginning their journey to weight loss might be put off with some of the humor. Fulda often uses humor to hide her pain, embarrassment and humiliation. Her humor can be a bit disparaging for a person who is still obese and the pain, embarrassment and humiliation is still a daily routine. She describes how she sat in an arm chair her weight spilled over the sides and looked like a muffin top. It's a funny visual unless being a muffin top is your reality. There is great joy in knowing that someone did succeed and ended the misery and pain of obesity. Her experiences show that the obese person is not alone in their suffering. Although obesity is a national epidemic, there are few books that address this issue in such a frank way. This is a gem of a book for anyone who suffers with obesity and seeks hope.



2. This is a fabulous book! It was like reading an autobiography. Only I haven't lost half of me. Jennette is very entertaining and very motivating. I wanted to get out and start running every time I read this book. I've already passed it on to my mom and a co-worker as well. Love it!



3. Being one of the millions of obese people out there, I saw this book at the library and picked it up... Half-Assed: A Weight-Loss Memoir By Jennette Fulda. I can't say that I knew about her beforehand from her writing [..] But after reading Half-Assed, I'll be adding her to my blogroll and re-examining my own weight issues.
   
   Contents: A History of Fatness; Living Large; The Snooze Button; No Epiphanies; Diet and Exercise; Stumbling Blocks; The Incredible Shrinking Woman; The Girl in the Mirror; Too Small for My Britches; Two Weddings and a Funeral; Trail Mix; I Should Know Better By Now; My Online Waistline; Acquired Tastes; Decloaking; Half-Assed; The Secret; Killing the Fat Girl; Notes; Acknowledgments; About the Author "Before" and "After"
   
   Fulda doesn't set out to write a book about her weight-loss program or some secret formula she discovered. This is nothing but a raw look at the pain and realities of being fat, and the struggles she had in losing over half her body weight. And in my opinion, that's why this book works so well. The celebrity weight-loss winners all seem to want to "sell" you on their methodology and program. Fulda doesn't go into any great detail about what to eat, how much to eat, exercise programs, and the like. You learn her fears and self-loathing as she climbs to over 360 pounds. You're listening to her live through the fits and starts of finally getting traction on her weight loss goals. And more importantly, you also experience her ups and downs over the many months that it took to get to her current half-Fulda state. I enjoyed watching her mindset change as she went from someone who she felt didn't deserve any attention to someone who knows what it's like to be "normal". She's brutally raw in her writing style, and she doesn't pull any punches about the difficulties involved in making such a radical change to your body. It's also refreshing to see her current attitude towards her body. She's still at a point where the charts would say she's "chubby", but she also is comfortable with that knowing from where she started her journey. It's nice to see a weight loss story that doesn't end with the person becoming supermodel-thin and a fitness magazine covergirl. Fulda is no different than you and me... Flawed, imperfect, but working away on life.
   
   If you're looking for a "do this, this, and this" book, head elsewhere (or go over to her blog). But if you want to understand and experience life through the eyes of someone who's been there and is still working at doing that, read away.



4. I don't do a lot of reviewing, although I READ others' reviews. Guess I'm too lazy. I did want to post a comment about this book, because the unflinching portrayal of the ongoing process of getting thin was very familiar, and at times almost painful, but I also laughed out loud ALOT!(which I don't even do with Road Runner cartoons).
   Looking forward to ANYTHING else this author writes, whether it relates to weight or not.



5. This is not just another diet book but a book about what really happened during those years of losing weight. I get frustrated with success stories that don't delve into the mind and emotions of the struggle to succeed. Or often times when they try to explain the journey after-the-fact it just comes out sounding so cliche' and empty. Fulda breaks the mold with this book and brilliantly communicates raw and real emotions of the struggles, victories and failures of her phenomenal weight loss achievement. Her commitment is the key to her attitude progression from 'fat girl syndrome' to 'weight loss mentality' to 'athletic decision making'.
   
   There are no secret recipes, instructions or food rules, no exercise plans, etc, etc and thankfully so. If you don't know what to eat or how to exercise by now then you may not be ready for this book because this is where the rubber meets the road. This isn't about how to eat but about how one person got it done and is keeping it done! Not everyone is ready to hear about the struggle when they are still making 'plans' to lose weight but for those of us who are in the trenches this is a MUST READ! This is about a girl who didn't quit - a REAL American hero.
   
   Though thoroughly entertaining this book is not meant for sensitive people. There are times when the language is quite rough and her merciless thoughts about others are a little tough but that's what this book is - her inner thought life. You may even get offended (like you would if you could read the minds of people around you) but I'd encourage you to get over it quickly and read on. I finished this book in 2 days, I don't even know how I found it because I wasn't looking for anything like this on Amazon but it showed up...to use Jeanette's words, my computer must know I'm fat!