4 comments about The Genius of Robert E. Lee.

1. Al Kaltman has done us a great favor by writing, "The Genius of Robert E. Lee." His subtitle grabbed my attention immediately, "Leadership Lessons for the Outgunned, Outnumbered, and Underfinanced." Kaltman divides his work on leadership based on the chronology of Lee's life giving the reader 260 brief vignettes delving into the personal and professional life of this great American. The 260 entries gives the busy reader a kind-of "daily devotional" Monday through Friday for all 52 weeks of a single year. Also helpful is Kaltman's use of putting Lee's actual words in italics in each entry. The index at the conclusion of the work is also a helpful feature for quick and easy subject referencing. Kaltman brings a wealth of information together smoothly, from the idiosyncrasies of the man, and the historial events of the time, to the present day realities of leadership and management in the workplace. Students of Lee, Civil War enthusiasts, and the corporate leaders of today's business environment can all benefit from delving into Kaltman's treasure chest of thoughts, ideas, and principles gleaned from the fasinating life of this great man in history. For anyone who's ever felt like they were outgunned in life, or outnumbered in the cut-throat competition of the 21st century business world, Kaltman's work will introduce you to the genius of a man who was overwhelmed militarily, but who was never conquered in life or in the lasting legacy of leadership that he left to us all.



2. I never read a book in this style before. It is not a history of Lee, but a list of lessons illustrated by events in his career.

   The lessons are laid out chronologically in Lee's career. They highlight as much about his strengths as his weaknesses. More importantly for me, they give an insight into the Civil War that is uniquely from the perspective of General Lee.

   This is a book that can appeal to Civil War readers, or it can appeal to those interested in Management.

   It is an easy read, I like the style, and it is a book that you can stop and start as you like. No need to plough through it all in one go.




3. Obviously, Kaltman found in Lee's management strategies and tactics relevance to the contemporary business world. The book's subtitle reveals Kaltman's primary theme: "Leadership lessons for the outgunned, outnumbered, and underfinanced." That is probably true of almost all of the companies now struggling to survive. The material is carefully organized within 11 chapters which correspond in chronological sequence with the various stages of Lee's career. Kaltman has identified 260 specific "Lessons" each of which he summarizes within an appropriate context and is accompanied by a Lee quotation, followed by a brief "Advice" mini-commentary. Unlike so many other books which purport to draw such correlations between the battlefield and the marketplace (e.g. The Military Genius of Daffy Duck), this one is sensible. Granted, many of the "Lessons" are rather obvious and much of the "Advice" is somewhat simplistic. However, the content is quite substantial. I think this would be an excellent gift for someone about to begin or who has only recently begun a business career. Here are Kaltman's concluding comments: "Robert E. Lee led armies in battle, helped reconcile a people to their defeat, and built a great educational institution. Lee never worried about his legacy; he focused on the job at hand. He believed that our legacy is the work we do to improve the human condition and bring about better times: "We may not see them but our children will, and we will live over again in them." You may also wish to check out Kaltman's Cigars, Whiskey & Winning: Leadership Lessons from Ulysses S. Grant, Crocker's Robert E. Lee on Leadership, and Hilton's Leadership Lessons from Robert E. Lee: Tips, Tactics, and Strategies for Leaders and Managers.



4. Al Kaltman has assembled an interesting and refreshing book about issues General Lee faced during his entire life. More of the documented letters featuring opinions and Lee offered others during his military adventures through Mexico and the Civil War are intriguing. Kaltman takes Lee's approach to subjects on managing people or conflicts and offers advice on how to handle similar circumstances in business and personal life situations. This book is rather a quick read as topics such as preparing one's self, taking command, continuous improvement and the winning image are just a few of many that are featured.

   This book is one you can jump from chapter to chapter on and not read from start to finish if you wanted as it deals with leadership approaches for various subjects. This book I recommend to anyone involved in business be it a salesperson or manager looking to better themselves with great thought. Also it can be a book one could keep with them at work as a helpful guide to reflect back on for insight on how to deal with situations that arise. Lee's style of handling issues is usually the correct and friendly non-confrontational approach which many could benefit from reading. On another side of this great book, Lee's failures or mistakes are also covered and Lee offers his thoughts on how he should have handled things differently.

No comments about Imperfect Equality: African Americans and the Confines of White Ideology in Post–Emancipation Maryland. (Reconstructing America (Series), No. 2.).

No comments about Lincoln and the Speeds.

1 comments about Tad Lincoln's Father (Abraham Lincoln).

1. If you want to know what Lincoln and his family were really like, read this amazing book. Ms. Taft wrote this book in 1931. She played with the Lincoln boys in the White House as a 16 year-old. Her descriptions of the everyday life of the Lincoln's, the White House and the times they lived make you feel as if you ARE there. It's an amazing step back into a time that has been written about by many others, but not from such a perspective. Truly wonderful, simple and illuminating.

5 comments about The Lincoln Enigma: The Changing Faces of an American Icon.

1. Attractively produced compilation with highest scholarship.... Boritt directs Lincoln studies at Center,(civil War) Gettysburg site. Has more than 60 pages illustrating portraiture of Lincoln, diverse forms. Mt.Rushmore,& tourist type statues- in NY, Abe greets girl who suggested he grow a beard. An 'abandoned' forlorn 62' statue stands at a closed campground,Charleston,IL. Best source for,trivia/folklore. More of same,short paperback,Gordon Leidner's collection,2001.



2. "Look at me and I'll tell you without blinkin' this southerner prefers Abraham Lincoln"

   goes a rap at the start of this book, and it is aimed at those of like mind, southerner or not.

   A warning - half the book consists of illustrations of Lincolniana so that this is one for the specialist. The Lincoln- seeker should read David Donald's excellent biography before opening this book.

   That said, does this book tell us anything new about Lincoln? The answer is yes, without being final or definitive. I liked particularly the article on Lincoln and the Constitution, showing that he was not the 'dictator' of Copperhead legend, nor the conscious revolutionary of Garry Wills' 'Lincoln at Gettysburg'. However, did his actions not have revolutionary results?

   The article on the Lincoln marriage I felt a bit limited, but also a good corrective to the image of Lincoln the hen-pecked husband trapped in a loveless union. 'Mary, Mary, we are elected!" he cried to his wife on arriving home that great day, showing the essential nature of the partnership between them. However, this essay does not use Mariah Vance's remininscences, though written very much later that the 1850s, which show Mary Todd Lincoln as addicted to paregoric (which contained opium) and subject to alternating fits of drugged lassitiude, and withdrawal-induced sickness. However, even the Vance memoirs (she was the Lincoln's servant) are not entirely negative on Mary Lincoln.

   Other essays cover the Lincoln youth, his fascination with death, his status as war leader and finally his image in American art. The enigma is somewhat clarified but somehow the enigma, and the continuing fascination, remains.




3. The US is so protective of Formosa. Why should China not use the Lincoln example. The solution to an area wanting to secede is to reduce it to rubble cause the death of one million people, civilian and military, declare total war on both the military and civilian population. Once conquered, the cause of the war is to say that Formosa cannot be independent, is that Formosa is no longer a part of China. Install military dictators, take away the vote of most of the citizens and dictate that they must approve certain amendments to the constitution, even though they are not a part of China, before they can re-enter the union. During the conflict shred the constitution, lock up millions without benefit of trial, and close any news outlet that does not agree with the destruction of Formosa. Once the destruction of Formosa is over most certainly the victors write the history and within 100 years or less the current president of China will be considered one of the greatest presidents of China. So it takes Formosa 80 years to recover we will always know how evil they were for wanting to attain self determination.

   Most certainly the Founders of this Republic seceeded from the British Empire. What was the diference?




4. Reread your history, hun. Or at least try thinking about it from a different angle.

   Great book, by the way.




5. What were Lincoln's views on death, afterlife and religion? Did he really have a loveless marriage? Would things have been different if he and Jeff Davis had swapped places?
   
   Speculative thought, and some answers, are to be found in this new volume, along with a wealth of perspective of Lincoln in artwork.
   
   The reason I only four-starred this book is that the body copy of text, before the artwork appendices, is only about 160 pages. This book could have used at least 50, if not 100, pages of additional meat on his bones.
   
   AND, this is LINCOLN! It's not like that would have been that hard to do.

2 comments about Papa Was a Boy in Gray.

1. This book was such easy reading of historical facts. The information was written in such a way that you could feel you were a part of the speakers memories. I would highly recommend this book.



2. Take a step back into time with the daughters of Confederate veterans. The war will not seem like such a long time ago when these recent narratives bring you into the lives of these men.

5 comments about Ulysses S. Grant: Soldier & President (Modern Library Paperbacks).

1. Geoffrey Perret's previous work, "A Country Made By War," which is a general military history of the United States, gives him the background to put the military career of Grant in perspective. He worked closely with the editor of Grant's papers to acquire the background to write this biography. His short chapters don't go into great details on individual battles, but capture well the development of Grant's personality, generalship, and presidency. J.F.C. Fuller's "Grant and Lee" and "The Generalship of Ulysses S. Grant" go into greater detail in analyzing the military strategy, strengths and weaknesses, of Grant's command both in the Western and Eastern theaters. But Perret's book is well worth reading. He captures the spirit of Grant well.



2. There are already several reviews of this book printed here, with which I agree heartily, so I'll keep my comments brief. Perret's "Ulysses S. Grant, Soldier and President," is the twelfth book on Grant that I've read (I can't seem to get enough of this topic). Perret's writing is crisp and intelligent. He doesn't drag out his thesis in long jumbled sentences, rather, he keeps his reader focused on the point he is trying to make on each phase of Grant's personal and professional life. He exposes flaws in previous Grant biographies by proving their lack of documented evidence and holding the authors to task for their shoddy scholarship. At the same time, he does not give the impression that he intends to "show up" other Grant biographers, he just sets the record straight.

   I recommend this biography to anyone who wants to understand America in the Nineteenth century. Ulysses S. Grant is the key: he saved the Union, he fought for the rights of the freedmen during Reconstruction, he was always honest-though he did make his share of mistakes - and when he erred, he accepted the responsibility for his mistakes. Grant was a devoted family man, was loyal to his friends and forgiving of his enemies. He was humble and appeared ordinary, yet he achieved amazing things. Perret's most insightful point in this work is his statement that Grant's religion was patiotism. I agree. No one ever loved this country more.




3. This book is truly an astonishing piece of work. Considering its grotesque factual errors and bizarre misreadings of source material (more than I have ever seen in a single work of non-fiction,) the pompous writing style, the author's grating tendency to make childishly snide (and irrelevant) side comments, and--most bafflingly--the remarkable hatchet-job he does on Grant's wife Julia, I think I can state unhesitatingly that this is the most thoroughly unprofessional biography of anyone I have ever read. I find myself genuinely baffled that Perret evidently still has a career as a historian.

   As appalled as I am by the thought that readers who had no prior knowledge about Grant will be led to take some of this tripe seriously, I am even more stunned by reviewers who state unblushingly that Perret's allergy to accuracy does not matter, as long as he is pro-Grant and writes in what is, to them, an appealing writing style! There are few people who defend Grant more wholeheartedly than I do (hey, I even maintain he was a pretty good President,) but I believe that a bad defense of USG can, in the long run, be as damaging to his reputation as no defense at all. My advice to Grant neophytes? Read the man's own words, in his acclaimed memoirs and fascinating private letters, as well as first person accounts like "Campaigning With Grant," and give this silliness a wide berth.

   And those cracks of his about Julia REALLY set my teeth on edge.




4. He was born Hiram Ulysses Grant in 1822 (how he became Ulysses S. Grant is a story in itself). This book, by Geoffrey Perret, is a good workmanlike biography of Grant.
   
   It depicts his childhood and his journey to West Point. It discusses his marriage to Julia (with James Longstreet and Cadmus Wilcox, ironically, as two of his three groomsmen; they would be on opposing sides in the Civil War). It describes his service in the military--including some genuinely courageous behavior in the Mexican War. It also lays out his failures in the Army and his departure. His struggles in Missouri and then working in a family business in Galena, Illinois.
   
   Then, with the outbreak of the Civil War, his opportunity to rejoin the Army and become an officer. The book traces his unassuming rise in the Union Army, from early efforts at Belmont through Forts Henry and Donelson to Shiloh to Vicksburg and so on. Ultimately, of course, he came to command all Union forces and attained the exalted rank of Lieutenant General.
   
   After his work in the Civil War, his presidency is discussed, warts and all. Perret's view is somewhat more nuanced than those of others who have evaluated Grant's terms as President. Nonetheless, his failings are described.
   
   Finally, his desperate dash in the race against death to complete his memoirs and secure some degree of financial security for his family.
   
   This is not a great biography, but it is serviceable and is a nice addition to the literature on Grant.



5. By far the finest field commander produced by the North or South during the US Civil War, US Grant saved the Union and delivered our country as we know it today. Reviled in the South as a butcher and thought of as a drunk in the North, Hiram Ulysses Grant is possibly the finest general ever produced by the United States of America, and one of its worst Presidents.
   
   Geoffrey Perret pulls no punches in this biography. Grant failed in private life before re-entering the Army, and he says so; Grant failed in several of his early campaigns, Belmont for one, and was stunningly surprised at Shiloh, and he says so; and his Presidency was riddled with corruption, and again, Perret says so. But despite his many failures this tenacious, never-say-die individual had the backbone and determination to defeat every Confederate General he was to face and captured 3 complete Confederate Armies intact, in the field: Fort Donnelson, Vicksburg, and the vaunted Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox. And he damn near bagged Bragg in middle Tennessee. To put these accomplishments in perspective, no other General Officer, North or South, captured even one.
   
   This is a good, workman-like biography of the first modern general the US ever produced. Perret does an excellent job of focusing on his subject, Grant, and does not spend too much time analyzing his campaigns. As a result, the author moves the reader topically through Grant's life experiences and we get to know him as an individual. Intensely interesting, this work's 476 pages simply fly by. Despite the 8 miserable years of his failed Presidency and his subsequent Wall Street bankruptcy, in true Grant fashion, he works diligently to complete his memoirs, does so and restores his family's fortune 8 days before he dies. His was a most remarkable life.

No comments about Rally, Once Again!: Selected Civil War Writings.

2 comments about Civil Wars.

1. June Jordan's collection of essays spans almost twenty years of her life, from her days as a young mother "learning to see" the world around her and beginning to make her own actions seen and voice heard, through her growing involvement in Civil Rights demonstrations, the beginnings of her teaching career, and later on in her life as a Black woman still fighting for justice using her weapon of choice: words.

   This book explores Jordan's perspective on and experience with a variety of topics, including race riots, urban housing, educational language policy, children's rights, university Black Studies programs, African liberation, land reform, and the politics of publishing. Her combination of social political commentary and personal reflection is thought-provoking and accessible to a diverse audience of readers. Her writing is clear and passionate, and most pieces, previously published, are prefaced by background information that places them historically.

   This is a book to be savored both for what it says and how it says it.




2. In Civil Wars, poet and activist June Jordan explores political issues through a very personal lens. This collection of essays, speeches, and letters, previously published but presented in this text with contextualizing annotations, masterfully blends public and private spheres. Jordan looks at critical issues such as race, homosexuality, linguistic differences, and violence by drawing on events in her own life and telling her intersecting story through vibrant prose. For instance, Jordan examines the power differential between "White" and "Black" English by discussing her novel His Own Where in relation to Shakespeare and questioning the linguistic hierarchy that values particular codes over other alternatives. Civil Wars is an engaging, moving text that will make you think deeply about social justice through a personal perspective. A must read!

5 comments about Ambrose Bierce: Alone in Bad Company.

1. This book gives insight into one of the American literary greats. There are times that the book drags, but I think this is due as much to the author as to the fact that some moments in Bierce's life are so interesting that when you read about the "average" moments in his life, you are left, well , bored. This is a good book for a Bierce fan or someone that would like to learn about an American writer who, deservedly, lived in the shadow of Twain.



2. "Bitter Bierce" they called him because of his scathing sarcasm. After the Civil War, in which he fought valiantly for four years, he went to San Francisco and began writing for the Hearst newspapers. Satire was his game. He wrote a couple of decent short stories ("Chickamauga" and "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"), THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY, and that's about it (other books, mainly short story and poetry collections, have been forgotten, in some cases unfairly so). His wit, as revealed in the DICTIONARY is clever, but at times sophomoric. Influenced by Poe, many of his stories deal with the supernatural and are laced with horror. He disappeared in Mexico in 1913 and was never seen again. Speculation, from suicide to fighting for Pancho Villa, has been rampant ever since. Morris does a good job relating the events of Bierce's strange life, who must have been a very difficult man to know.



3. I am perfectly aware that to say that Ambrose Bierce was the most original, provocative and fascinating of all American writers (not to say the most brilliant of all) is like preaching in the desert. It is probably going to cost me a lot of negative feedback to say what I'm going to say, so I won't extend myself more than what it is absolutely necessary in order to speak my mind.
   
   The main reason for me to write this review is that this laughable biography by Roy Morris is so flagrantly detrimental on Bierce's accomplishments that I personally didn't want to lose the opportunity to advise you against reading such a lot of blather. The author even puts an awful novel like "The Red Badge of Courage" above Bierce's war stories (hilarious, isn't it?). After that, what else can be said about this biographer's ineptitude? Let's draw a veil over it and forget it.
   
   Anyone wishing to know something about the skilled artistry and posterior influence of the Ohio writer would be better looking for another book written by someone who had actually grasped Bierce's significance. But the best thing to do is reading Bierce's stories on your own and make up your mind about them instead of losing your time with the prejudices and lack of perspective of others.
   
   After reading some passages of this book, I reassure myself in my opinion that literary critics are, well, funny...
   
   In a world where mediocrity runs rampant and where authors like Mark Twain and the hideous Henry James have always been praised, it is difficult that really worthy authors like Bierce can find the recognition they deserve. But, perhaps, it is better that way, I don't know.
   
   What I know for sure (because I've seen it) is that, when a genius is born, all nefarious souls tend to ally themselves against it. Anyway, how could a writer like Bierce be enjoyed by a majority? It's impossible.
   
   Well, I don't think this review is gonna get anywhere, so I'd better stop here. Thank you for your reading.
   
   Note- sorry for any bad grammar on my part. I don't usually write in the language of the "Empire".



4. Conventional wisdom and history books have it that Ambrose Bierce died in Mexico during the Revolution. But Morris, in this in-depth biography, offers a fairly plausible alternative. (Sorry, not giving the store away as part of the review; you're going to have to get your hands on this book.)
   
   Much of the rest of the speculation in which Morris engages is psychological. He first analyses Bierce's childhood and parents, then takes note of his Civil War head wound, and wonders just how much the two of these things combined to contribute to the Ambrose Bierce we know today.
   
   That said, while not denying either childhood or adult causes of personality development -- or personality change -- I give more credence to genetic causes, i.e., the ideas of evolutionary psychology, properly applied.
   
   I find it likely that Bierce was pretty much born with tendencies toward the character he later exhibited. His upbringing and his war wound may have intensified it, but I think he came by much of his cynicism naturally. Life events probably added the dollop of churlishness to it.
   
   I teeter on a rating and end up at 4 stars. If I were to fine tune, it would probably be about 3 2/3 stars. The psycho-speculation is interesting, but in addition to being incomplete, if not somewhat wrong, too much of a focus on it means less focus on historical biography or on literary analysis.



5. Morris' biography of Bierce is thorough and has a lot of insight, but one thing that irritates is the implication that Bierce is not a "major" writer. There's even a a blurb on the book jacket from some critic at the Washington Post referring to him as a "lesser" writer.
   
   Are you kidding? Bierce wrote at least four or five of the greatest short stories in American literature. He pioneered the idea of showing readers that they weren't paying attention; he explored near-death experience masterfully in "Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"--as well as delivering a scathing criticism of war; he wrote the most riveting Civil War story of all time, "Chickamauga," and he inspired dozens of modern and postmodern writers--Hemingway through Joseph Heller.
   
   Yes, Bierce's work was inconsistent. But so was Twain's, Crane's, and the work of dozens of other "major" writers.
   
   The best Bierce criticism is Richard O'Connor's _Ambrose Bierce: A Biography_, published in 1967. If you're interested in Bierce, read that one first.