5 comments about Lord Cochrane, Seaman, Radical, Liberator: A Life of Thomas, Lord Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald (Heart of Oak Sea Classics Series).

1. Lord Cochrane was, by all accounts, a superior naval officer. He was inventive, bold, imaginative, extremely meticulous in his preparations for action, and capable of great theatrics in the service of victory in battle, in capturing prizes, and in befuddling the enemy. He treated his men honorably at a time when abusing them was the norm and he rewarded them handsomely from the prize revenues he engendered. As a result he was adored by his subordinates and never had trouble recruiting personnel to serve under him.

   He was a model which inspired aspects of Jack Aubrey and Hornblower and other fictional characters of the Anglo-French wars. His true life was even more tumultuous than the fiction it spawned, for he became a naval hero in Chile and in Peru, in Brazil, and in Greece as he participated in each of those countries' wars of independence.

   When on land, Lord Cochrane was an inept, impetuous, cantankerous politician (he was a member of parliament for 10 years), who had no notion of the art of politics, and therefore was repeatedly demolished by his enemies, which were many. It is amazing that the brilliant and disciplined naval officer and tactician would become a bumbling, disorganized politician, but that is precisely what happened. He was involved in financial scandals, his honors and medals were removed, and his purse squandered and lost. It is likely that this honorable man was never guilty of the charges for which he was convicted (stock fraud), but the truth shall never be known for sure.

   He lived a long life (1775 - 1860) and by the time he died at 85 he had managed to (mostly) repair his honor, his finances, and his reputation, more as a result of the political changes around him than as a result of having learned political lessons.

   This book by Christopher Lloyd, a professional naval historian, has the scholar's convincing tone and language throughout. It has a fair index and bibliography. The book is highly recommended to the Aubrey-Maturin fans who are forever expanding their collections with ancillary historical volumes that allow for additional enjoyment of the series.




2. A thoroughly researched and beautifully written treatment of the life of one of Great Britain's most important heroes from the Age of Fighting Sail. I've devoured everything I can find on the Royal Navy for years -- this is among the most memorable volumes available! Lord Cochrane was a naval commander in war (and peace) whose talents almost rivalled the great Nelson's, and unlike Nelson he lived to a ripe old age. In a surprisingly "modern" twist to Cochrane's biography, he was duped into a financial scandal that led to bad headlines, ugly partisan politics, and a nasty court case. His subsequent efforts on the part of Latin American nations to help them win independence from Spain make him a veritable nautical Simon Bolivar. Author Lloyd brings this amazing man to life with compelling prose.



3. Lord Cochrane won an astonishingly brilliant series of victories in three different British ships against the French and Spanish during the Revolution and Napoleonic Wars. The first 80 pages of this biography cover his astounding career in single-ship actions, and the inability of the Admiralty to understand his innovations. The next 55 pages deal with his ignominious Radical parliamentary career and financial fiascos. Another 46 pages cover his attempts to free a series of colonies from their Iberian or Ottoman masters, and how the rebels repeatedly frustrated victory and, of course, didn't pay up. The final 21 pages cover his attempts to restore his honor and his contributions to the deveopment of a recognizably modern navy. The editors say this 1947 book was selected for its congenial style and vignettes of Cochrane, not because it is the last word on the irascible man. This biography is superseded in accuracy by those employing additional family and governmental papers made public since the 1960's and listed in the brief bibliography.

   Fans of naval fiction should note that Forester's Hornblower frequently adopts Lord Cochrane's audacious naval exploits, as do many other series' heroes. Forester having appropriated Lord Cochrane's real adventures, Dudley Pope's Lord Ramage series seems to depend more on invented exploits to fill out the same general historical progression. O'Brian's Jack Aubrey also partakes of Cochrane's political ineptness and suffers his finanacial scandal (see especially the early Aubrey novels). While occasionally you see inspiration from Cochrane's later attempts to aid South Americans win their freedom from Spain (Forester, O'Brian, Cornwell), no novelist has taken up Cochrane's inventions (like ship lanterns, tar derivatives, chemical warfare!, and steam warships). This book might slightly disappoint some fiction fans because it lacks details or even a brief description of ALL of Cochrane's remarkable exploits in his Biscay or Mediterranean theaters of operation. But for any fans of Fighting Sail, Lord Cochrane is the inspiring source, and Lloyd's book a well-written introduction.




4. Thomas Cochrane, Tenth Earl of Dundonald, was a larger than life Scottish nobleman, adventurer, and ardent libertarian. Christopher Lloyd wrote this biography of Lord Cochrane in 1947, and it is one of six "Heart of Oak Sea Classics." Lloyd depicts Cochrane as a masterful naval tactician whose uncompromising political idealism provides the hubris for classic tragedy. The stark irony of Cochrane's two careers is that his genius in battle derived from his innovation, reconnaissance, and preparation, whereas his consistent failures in politics derived from his headstrong impetuousness. Cockrane's naval victories during the Napoleonic Wars were remarkably heroic, and won him fame and fortune while he was still quite young. His abrasiveness, however, undid all the good, and much, much more. His depth of despair at the hands of his political adversaries is absolutely unimaginable. His arduous rehabilitation involved his enlistment in the revolutionary struggles of Chile, Peru, Brazil, and Greece. He returned to Britain hesitantly, unsure if he would be arrested and executed. The outcome warms the heart, and vindicates his life struggle. Lloyd's representation of Cochrane is remarkably objective, and nothing is more fascinating than genius and imbecility combined in the same person. It's history; it's a psychological thriller, and a biography you couldn't conceivably make up.



5. 
   Lord Cochrane started his legendary naval career in the British navy as a fourteen-year-old midshipman. He possessed a natural talent for seamanship and rose to the rank of Captain. In war he was particularly successful displaying daring tactics and brazen courage. His career progressed in spite of his brashness that offended the higher ranks of
   the British navy. He took on a life long crusade against the old boy cronyism that harmed that country's naval effectiveness. Lord Cochran carried the idea of reforming the Navy in middle age when he became a Member of Parliament. In later life Britain finally recognized this man of naval genius who at an advanced age was openly encouraging a steam-powered navy. A man that was vastly more at home with sea battler than as a Member of Parliament, Lord Cochran became a Captain for hire to the newly emerging nations Peru, Chile, Brazil, and Greece where he did quite well in all his battles almost always against the odds.
   He had a storybook action packed life, a very rewarding book that has been brought back into print.

2 comments about The Code of Love: An Astonishing True Tale of Secrets, Love, and War.

1. Pamela Kirrage and Donald Hill were very much in love and living in England right before the outbreak of World War II. Donald was sent overseas and spent three and a half years in a Japanese prison camp. He was never the same after the war, but tried to live a normal life with Pamela and their children.

   David kept a diary during his imprisonment, but no one could crack the code until years after Donald's death, when Pamela found a mathematician who solved the mystery.

   This book tells Donald and Pamela's sad, but moving story of true love, the horrors of war and the ultimate triumph of the human spirit.




2. This is simply the best book I have read in a long time.

   Andro Linklater writes clearly and eloquently about the love affair between Pamela Kirrage and Donald Hill at the eve of World War II. He brings to life the great excitement of their budding romance and the long, difficult years they spent apart, Pamela doing her part to support England's war efforts at home and Donald languishing in a Japanese concentration camp.

   The atrocities that Donald experienced are described in a matter of fact manner that does not take away from the sheer horror of what he must have endured. He was determined to document what happened in the camp at the risk of his own life and eventually coded his diary to ensure that it would not be discovered. Through it all, his promise to return to Pamela gave him the will to survive.

   Years later after Donald's death, Pamela resolved to know the contents of his diary so she could understand what had happened to him, what had happened to them. I found the efforts to decode his diary just as fascinating as the turbulent relationship between Pamela and Donald.

   This is an intelligent and articulate account of two passionate people caught up in the throes of war and their struggle to regain their lives and relationship once reunited. It is a romance, a war history, and a mystery all rolled into one.

   I am recommending it to everyone I know. Read it!

2 comments about Admiral Lord Howe (Library of Naval Biography).

1. Entering the Royal Navy in 1739 at the age of 13, Admiral Lord Howe remained in the Navy until his death in 1799 -- sixty years of service. His career spanned four wars, including the American Revolution where he attempted to negeotiate an end to the revolution and when that proved impossible he commanded the British navy during much of the war. ==His was a lifetime of service and triumph. He was quite possibly the most famous Admiral of his time. Unfortunately in 1805 came the Battle of Trafalgar and Nelson, and Howe's fame faded into history.
   
   This is the first detailed biography of the Admiral. Dr. Syrett has used as many primary documents for his sources as it was possible to find. His analysis of Howe's career places it in perspective to the organization and structure of the Royal Navy through some of its most important years. It also provides an interesting perspective from the other side on the American Revolution. His report of his meeting with John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and John Rutledge has a somewhat different viewpoint than other versions.
   
   This is abook long awaited that fills a hole in any Revolutionary War library.



2. Admiral Lord Howe proves to be a mildly interesting but brief biography on England's greatest admiral of the 18th Century (and one of the greatest in British naval history). There isn't a single biography on Howe that I know of while there are hundreds on Lord Nelson who totally overshadowed him. This book is an effort to correct that absence of material on Admiral Lord Howe. Unfortunately, this book really don't add much to the literature that well. Much of what you read about Howe in this book can be found almost any book related to the admiral. Whether it due to lack of primary material or lack of research but this book lacks the depth and the detail of a real biography. Almost nothing is written about Howe's childhood and his career until he gained command. Much of Howe's career until he became admiral proves to be short and sweet for the readers. Much of what is written about Howe's latter career as commanding fleet admiral can be found in books related to that subject. This biography however, provides nothing new or insightful to these subject matters.
   
   Overall, this proves to be a biographical summary book. Lack of details, insights and in-depth analysis of the subject at hand make this a hard book to recommend for the price they are asking. Most people who are well read on the Age of Wooden Ships and Iron Men have read superior material on Howe and his battles from other books even if such books may not be centered on Howe himself.

1 comments about Jennie: The Life of the American Beauty Who Became the Toast--and Scandal--of Two Continents, Ruled an Age and Raised a Son--Winston Churchill--Who Shaped History.

1. This book is just a rehashing of what is pretty common knowledge of Jennie. No new information, and this book, unlike similar books about Jennie, does not have any photographs at all, so if you were expecting some rare photos or even a photo (other than the cover), you will be disappointed. This book may seem nice and thick, but it's somewhat illusional. Page 622 to 757 is all Notes, and this is 135 pages that isn't really "all book". The font and spacing also seems somewhat big, adding girth to this book due to 'largeness'. Also, a good portion of this book is letters, or excerpts from letters. I was not impressed with how the material was presented - it was textbook dry and actually left me more disenchanted with Lady Churchill than when before I started. I haven't read too many books about her, but I would not recommend this one for any sort of entertainment factor, it's terribly dry and boring, and due to its immense weight and girth makes a better doorstop.

No comments about Kings and Queens of Britain's Golden Age: The glorious monarchs of the golden age of Britain, from Henry VII, Henry VIII and the magnificent reign of Elizabeth ... of the Stuarts and the rule of Queen Anne.

1 comments about Man Behind the Smile: Tony Blair and the Politics of Perversion.

1. These are the author's own phrases characterising Blair's premiership, so first a word about who he is. Leo Abse, now in his late 80's, is a retired Labour member of parliament from the mining community of South Wales. He is the author of a similar study of Margaret Thatcher, but what I had mainly remembered about him was the story of a meeting he addressed in his own locality at which the chairman referred to him as `Mr Abs'. His surname has two syllables, so he murmured in the man's ear `Call me Abs-ey', to which the chairman replied `That's very nice of you, call me Jonesy'.

   He has a fine sense of humour himself, and some of the cattier sideswipes at various figures in this book are very entertaining. This is a study from a psychoanalytic viewpoint, and it takes in not just The People's Tony himself but his wife, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown, the fearsome former Downing Street media supremo Alistair Campbell, Blair's political Svengali Peter Mandelson and certain others. The book originally appeared in 1996 before Blair came to power under the title Tony Blair: the Man Behind the Smile, with updated editions in 2001 and 2003. The problem for me with a psychoanalytic account is that I do not have enough knowledge of the technique to form an independent judgment of my own. Abse's approach is distinctly partisan and hostile, as his phrases that I have used in my caption to this review make very clear. It is all easy enough to understand, it is coherent, systematic and seemingly well-researched (sources are listed at the back) but there is no question that this is a full-scale frontal attack on Blair as a politician. An analysis using this technique belittles its subject, as this book is manifestly intended to do, and ordinary detachment and fairness suggests that there must be at least some temptation, for someone fluent in the terminology, to use it to promote a point of view rather than carry out a genuinely objective enquiry.

   Abse is `old Labour' as he says himself, and he draws his inspiration from the post-war Labour government whose socialising approach he believed Blair could have emulated. Among more recent Labour figures he singles out the late leader John Smith. I had the honour of knowing John personally long before Abse did, and all I can say is that if he really was the conflict-unaverse full-blooded socialist that Abse depicts he must have changed a good deal since I used to know him. Whether Abse is precisely `left-wing' is questionable, and he is manifestly unimpressed by certain recidivist trade union leaders of the kind who made the trade union movement as deeply disliked as it became in the 1960's and 1970's. He is basically a fair-minded and decent-minded socialist who believes that Blair and his motley outfit of modernisers have, in his own words, stolen the soul of his party. He recognises explicitly that the kind of social legislation he aspires to is not going to be achieved without conflict. However as he sees fit to characterise Gordon Brown as being willing to face up to anyone except himself (Brown, that is), I suppose I can legitimately question whether Abse in his turn is really facing up to the sort of obstacles his own preferred policies confront in this day and age. This is a book review, not any kind of political statement of my own. What I would have wanted from Abse is his own honest answer to the question `Given that Britain is a member of the European Union, and given even more the extent to which governments are in the hands of international capital, do you think you will achieve anything except disaster by taking on hopeless odds?' If the political will is there, anything might indeed be possible. Can he honestly claim to detect it at this stage of the world's history?

   There are real touches of brilliance in this book and it is in the main well-written, so much so that I shall ask - can there really be such a word as `aggressivity'? There wouldn't be if I had anything to do with it. There is categorically no such word as `wreaked', the word is `wrought'; it is a solecism to use `proportions' to mean dimensions; and does he mean `atactic' or `ataxic'? I enjoyed the book thoroughly. The sincere sense of disappointment that comes through it is shared from various political standpoints, not least from the prevalent view that we have no visible alternative government.

4 comments about Luck of the Irish-C.

1. I have thoroughly enjoyed this fourth installment in the saga of Niall & Christine, and Deirdre and Joseph (the first chapter tells of their adoption of Joseph.) This book is very contemplative in nature, and focuses on what it is to belong to a community, a society, a nation. What does it mean to be Irish? to be American? And how are these things changing? Change is the other theme that is present throughout the book. There have been many changes in the West since Niall & Christine first moved there: some good, some bad, but most not so easily classified as "good" or "bad". This book is very thought provoking, and a very enjoyable read. Thank you Niall and Christine for continuing to share your lives with us.



2. Over the last few weeks, I've become quite the fan of Niall and Chris. Reading or acquiring all of their books -- fiction and nonfiction. This book left me feeling a bit disappointed but at the same time wanting an update.

   I had to smile at all the visitors from abroad showing up at their doorstep --- I envisioned myself doing the same thing. Now I doubt I would show up unannounced -- but I still will make an effort to see the town of Kilmihil.

   This book definitely should be read after reading at least the first book -- O' Come Ye Back to Ireland. I doubt that those who haven't read the first book will be able to keep interested. And whereas the first book made settling in the west of Ireland sound romantic, Niall Williams seems to be discouraging people from doing what he and Chris.

   That said, I am glad I read it and loved hearing about young Joseph and his sister Deirdre.




3. I just reread all 4 Kiltumber books by Niall and Chris and I must say I enjoyed them more now in 2005 than I did 9 years ago. To experience the trials and tribulations of this family in Kilmihil makes me wonder how many people followed their path and relocated to Ireland.Now, 20 years after the 1st book the children are grown,Niall is a world class and best selling novelist and Chris about to publish again soon in 2005.
   Read all 4 books in order and I promise you'll be tempted to move to County Clare.



4. Weak. The writing is simple and insights into life in Ireland are superficial. No great insights here and everything is centered around a very personal perspective with no real feel for the heart of the community or the nation. A mildly pleasant read that can be accomplished in a night or so. Not nearly the "Under the Tuscan Sun" Irish equivalent as a friend had suggested to me. I just felt like I'd learned less than if I'd watched a PBS special on Ireland. The writing was really weak and I can't believe the author is actually a playwright. Very superficial. Frank McCourts books are better if you want a feel of Ireland, albeit from an earlier time.

No comments about The Wallace: Selections.

No comments about The Chronica Maiora of Thomas Walsingham (1376-1422).

No comments about The Sociology of Oliver C. Cox: New Perspectives (Research in Race and Ethnic Relations) (Research in Race and Ethnic Relations) (Research in Race and Ethnic Relations).