5 comments about A Place to Stand: The Making of a Poet.

1. I'm giving this book five stars, not because it is a literary masterpiece, but because it is a compelling memoir that I can't forget. I felt a gamut of emotions while reading this book, but for the most part I ached for Mr. Baca and the pain and anguish he suffered. I thank him for writing about his life so eloquently.



2. A Place To Stand, magnificent novel about the author, Jimmy Santiago Baca, and his career selling drugs, and prison. He talks about how he had to fight for his privileges to read. Then to write, all with the help of a nice old man named Harry. He also writes poems for other inmates for books. He tries to keep his rights and keep his life on track in prison.
   
   He talks about his mother dieing, which just thinking about telling strangers about that happening to my mother would kill me. He also has to deal with a lot of racism through the whole thing, from his mom, to the present day. This book will show you that no matter who you come from, or what, you can always know the best for your life, and do the best for your life.



3. I discovered JSBs work on the Modern American Poetry website. I loved the imagery and passion and redemption in his poem 'El Gato.' I cried. I have read a few of his collections and they are to poetry what Cormac McCarthy's works are to literature. I can't wait to get this book.



4. Excellent service. This is avery haunting book. I attended one of his workshops in San Antonio. He is an outstanding poet. I am glad to have the opportunity to read this book.



5. This book is Great. A must read true story--Great writing. You must buy this book, if you don't--your missing out on something Great!

5 comments about Superthief: A Master Burglar, the Mafia, and the Biggest Bank Heist in U.S. History.

1. I could not put this book down. I loved reading what goes thru a thiefs mind, and then reading some background and filling in some of the questions that would come to my mind that the author seemed to anticipate. Just a great read. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading the other books authored by Rick Porrello..



2. Christopher is an older guy from my neighborhood.....I grew up in Collinwood near the end of its salad days........we used to go on vacation without locking our doors. The place is all but gone now to the blacks.........mostly thanks to white flight and the old desegregation order of the 70's



3. This is the highly engaging and very readable life story of master burglar/drug trafficker Phillip Christopher. Through the frequent use of the first-person, author Rick Porello provides a look inside the mind of a professional criminal. We are treated to the details of Christopher's life -- from his Catholic, blue-collar upbringing in the Collinwood district of Cleveland, Ohio, through his spectacular criminal successes and equally spectacular blunders, to his declining years as an easy target of state and federal law enforcement -- in what is purported to be Christopher's own words.
   We share Christopher's real-life experiences in family, business, underworld and prison situations. His lengthy and continuing rollercoaster ride through the criminal justice system is particularly educational. Christopher seems to have encountered every unfair advantage and unfair disadvantage built into that system.
   Due to its frank handling of its subject matter, I suspect this book will cause those who have invested in electronic security systems to lose quite a bit of sleep. The thwarting of alarms, the acquisition of secret allies among security company employees and within local police departments and the prying open of safes and vaults are all discussed in detail. Porello-Christopher stop just short of providing a primer for aspiring safe-crackers. The various elements of the 1972 burglary at the United California Bank in Laguna Niguel, the biggest bank heist in U.S. history, are expertly rendered.
   Those are the book's positives, but unfortunately they are not the whole story. While I enjoyed Superthief and remain a Rick Porello fan, there are some noticeable flaws in the book.
   For one, it is difficult to accept many of Christopher's statements as fact. Examples: his Robin Hood-like escapades as a child thief, botched jobs that were always someone else's fault and the high esteem in which mob bosses, union leaders and even prison personnel universally held him. Porello provides little obvious help as we strive to separate the wheat from the chaff. There is rare corroboration in the form of a quote from a girlfriend or a law enforcement officer, but Christopher's story appears to have been left pretty much just as he told it.
   Another problem stems from Porello's inclusion of the word "Mafia" in the title. Phillip Christopher was never a "made" guy, and the Mafia has a very small, supporting role in the book. Some of the more interesting Mafia episodes of the time/place are tossed in as asides, though Christopher had nothing to do with them. The Mafia remains off in the distance and out of focus.
   Though Christopher spent a lifetime living this story and Porello spent five years writing it, what lies between the front and back covers seems thin and could have been better crafted. A bit of narration in the middle chapters could have helped drive home the importance of the Laguna Niguel heist. The reader is liable to plow right through it, judging it to be a disappointment. Insight also is lacking. While we are thrust inside Christopher's mind, we find little in the way of illumination there. He committed burglaries, he repeatedly tells us, because he wanted a lot of money. (Willie Sutton reborn.) We're dragged along into deceit, infidelity and murder without knowing why. We readers are left in the uncomfortable position of being within the mind of a person we cannot understand and do not like.
   At the bottom line, this is a good story, entertaining and informative, requiring minimal effort and investment from the reader. It should someday become an exciting movie. However, it falls far short of its considerable potential as a window into the mind of a career criminal.



4. Originally drawn to the Las Vegas-style book cover, I discovered that the story itself lived up to the bling of the high rolling art work of the cover design. This book is what I used to call a "good subway book." In other words, one that makes the train ride go quickly. It is a snappy, fast story of one man's first-person account of his criminal activities. It can be argued that remorse is not high on mob associate Phil Christopher's list of moral imperatives. But a criminal who shows no remorse is much more typical, and realistic, than one who sheds crocodile tears in a bid for sympathy made after-the-fact. The author seems to know his subject and brings to the story, much personal experience with life in an Italian-American neighborhood. This book has so much flavor, you can almost smell the meatballs frying and the Sunday gravy sizzling.



5. Superthief reads more like a self written biography than it does a crime/suspense story. Porello explains that Phil's 1200 page manuscript was the basis for this story and In my opinion, it really shows. The book recounts phils' life story in a "and then, and then , and then" fashion. We don't get much build up to the bigger moments, little to no foreshadowing, and details that seem very important are completely glossed over. A decent story which really suffers from poor writing and editing, you would be better off catching similarly themed books "Killing Pablo" or "The Ballad of the Whisky Robber"

5 comments about Confessions of a spy: the real story of aldrich ames.

1. Ames was unduly lucky to have not been "netted" much sooner. Mr. Earley gives us a very well written piece of work.Ames was certainly not Kim Philby or 007;but He did get away with His betrayal for some years,and that alone makes it worthy for any 20th Century Historian. The little tidbit of a quite 'hot potato'betrayal story on Henry Kissenger is worth the cost of the book alone.Earley is also fair to Ames'American employers at CIA who finally pinch "the mole".



2. Step by step we are moving to the truth.
   The fiction is banal. Hence - one star for the book. The reality is amazing. Hence - 5 stars for the next book on the Ames-Colby case. The next book will be based on Dekov's memoirs.



3. I was reading "See No Evil" by Robert Baer and he briefly mentioned Aldrich Ames and decided to read a book on him. While looking for books, I was pleasantly surprised to find one written by Pete Earley. I had read "The Hot House" a couple of years ago and found Earley to be a very clear and detailed writer. I really could not wait to receive the book. My expectations were high and they were met and exceeded. The book details Ames' life from birth, it details his parents, his entry into the CIA, and ultimately his betrayal of the country. The thing I love about Earley is that he leaves no loose ends. You're never left saying, "but what ever happened to..." or "I wonder who that is...". He's a very clear writer who introduces every subject in the book. He explains the facts sharply and thoroughly, and the pacing is perfect. Earley not only gives you the details, but draws you in with a story line that adds suspense. Earley is similar to other great non-fiction writers such as Stephen Ambrose, Jon Krakauer, Simon Winchester, Mark Bowden, or Kurt Eichenwald in that he takes a real event and tells it gripping way.
   
   On the negatives, there was not an index in my book which made it difficult at times. Also, Earley was not able to get interviews with everyone involved, in particular Ames' first wife, but at the time I'm sure not everyone wanted to participate with the media.
   
   The most important aspect of the book is that Aldrich Ames cooperated with Earley with face to face interviews while awaiting trial and later through letters. But Earley did not take everything Ames told him at face value, he is not lazy or sloppy, he fact checked and questioned everything. He even fact checked with Russian KGB which demonstrates how dedicated he was to the subject. Is it definitive? Definitely not because it came out so quickly after Ames arrest (before revelations of Robert Hanssen) but it is an excellent book.



4. This is the only text I have read that provides a compelling and nuanced explanation of why Ames betrayed his country. The short answer is that he needed the money because he was living beyond his means. As a result of his work recruiting and handling spies he no longer believed it was wrong for a person to betray their country. Earley's well-written book explains how he arrived at that point. It also provides the reader with a credible look at what it is like to work for the CIA, and what it is like to work as a spy.



5. This gives the best account of Ames' CIA career, particularly prior to the time he began to work for the Soviet Union, and corrects errors in several earlier books such as Wise's.

5 comments about Purgatory: A Prison Diary Volume 2 (A Prison Diary).

1. While passing through the airport in London two years ago I had a six hour layover and decided to look around the bookstore where I found a book called "Prisoner FF8282" by some author named Jeffrey Archer.
   
   Since I speak english (American) and am not English I did not know who this Sir Archer is or was. I, however, purchased the book, and, proceeded up to the BA business lounge where I proceeded to begin, reading this book. I, did, finish, the first book "Prisoner FF8282" before I arrived on my nonstop, flight to New York. Sir Archer is a great, author, who, knows, how, to write, a, diary, of, the, workings, and, goings, on, inside, prison. I took pause, upon, arriving home to, re-read, the book and enjoyed it, even, more, the, second, time.
   
   Now, out comes the second Prison Diary from Archer. Again,,, I loved the second installment. In it he details his stay at the second prison called Wayland that sounds pleasant but is far from it. Several House of Lords Sirs visited Sir Archer and were shocked to find that the food was bad, the bedding dirty, and two inmates have to share each cell.
   
   Mr. Archer ended up involved in several fights where he had to defend himself from advances from other inmates. In one horrible incident Mr. Archer had to use a snooker ball (pool ball for we American's)) in a white sock to keep a mentally retarded (his wording, not mine) inmate from entering his cell and having his way. Keep in mind that Mr. Archer is 73 years old and had every right to protect his and what is his.
   
   Jeffrey Archer is to be applauded for his writing skills and dedication to sit each day and document the cummings and goings inside the three prisons.
   
   Each book in the series has received five plus stars from the New York Prison Diary Book Reading Club that I volunteer for.
   
   Should you ever find yourself convicted and on the way to prison the ten books in this series are must read to know the in's and out's of prison routine and unroutine and how to get through your sentance without being violated or made to do things that you generally wouldn't do, even if paid.
   
   I highly recommend this book to all Amazon customers that read books. This book and the other nine in the series are gripping.
   
   I would recommend that you purchase each of the ten in the series... all are well worth reading.



2. Prison is boring, unpleasant. This book is boring, but not unpleasant. That is the lesson learned from reading this book. Archer spends so much of his time objecting to and fighting his conviction to really analyze prison life other than to make a few facile observations on the unintended consequences of some laws and prison practices.
   
   Archer has a few admiring reviews. From the Independent on Sunday: "The finest thing that he's ever written." From The Washington Post: "A tale that is not only important but true." These read more like sarcasm than praise. Just read them again, and scratch your head.
   
   Archer has written some readable fiction. I've read and enjoyed many of his novels and short stories. He can write well enough. Regardless of your perspective on whether or not he should be in jail, or deserved to be convicted, my conclusion is that Archer should stick to fiction.



3. archer has written a book that gives us a clear insite into the workings of a c-cat prison its easy reading with interesting characters full of dark humour a bit showy when he states that he can do 2000 miles or kms on a rowing machine(they are really hard and tiring) in 10 minutes though read them from the start as you won't have experiences hell and you know that would be cheating



4. I have to disagree with some of the other reviews. I find this book very easy to read, not boring at all. I could not put it down.
   
   I'm no big fan of Jeffrey Archer, but this Second Book does go into more of the dark side of British Jails and Prisons. The drugs, the violence.... the way the inmates stick together, swapping Mar's bars for Phone Cards.. Very good.



5. I read this trilogy out of order and Purgatory was the last one I read. The first I read was the finale Heaven which is where this edition leads up to. I must admit I have formed a totally different opinion of Archer than I had after reading Heaven. I actually felt sorry for him after Heaven but after reading the initial and more to the point this Volume II edition my opinion has drastically changed That empathy disappeared after the first diary series Hell, and has transformed into disgust with Purgatory as this edition highlights what a selfish and uncaring about his fellow man type of individual Lord Archer really is.
   
   His pathetic refusal to drink tap water (where does he think bottled water comes from anyway) and eat the every day food that every other prisoner does continues on from the first novel. He disgustingly avoids doing this in his new prison by purchasing with his money from the outside world additional water, chocolate and other food as well as phone cards, additional pillows, blankets, towels and other luxuries from the prison black market. He never once mentions remorse for these actions even though obviously his supplier Dale isn't going to the local Tesco Supermarket and purchasing these items. Obviously other prisoners are either swapping these items for drugs or being severely beaten and threatened for them and having to do without just so Archer can be more comfortable and not have to lower himself to do things like drink tap water. Even though he always has visitors he has no problem with purchasing phone cards the same way even though the victims' phone cards he is using may have no other way to communicate with their loved ones. When he is caught by the prison officials he tries to evoke the feeling of pity for him from his readers for these repulsive actions, it is just disgraceful!
   
   If he'd at least acknowledged the detrimental outcomes for others as a result of his selfish behaviour I would have at least given him some credence but he never mentions this once in his diaries. He is however quick to criticise any prison official who doesn't provide him with special treatment such as the guard who told him he could be put on report for going into the enhanced wing that every other prisoner has to wait three months or so on good behaviour to visit, let alone live there which he shortly there after is granted. I find it hard to fathom how he constantly complains about the papers saying he is given special treatment when that is exactly what happens and he uses the media as an excuse for everything such as demanding his own cell, as his cell mates will talk to the papers if he has to share. He never once criticises himself or his actions for being in prison, always maintaining he is a victim and his sentence will be overruled in the near future which history has proven never happened.
   
   Other unique aspects of this edition to the others are that Archer befriends a Columbian prisoner to get the prisoner's brother smuggle out an emerald from his homeland and sell it to Archer so he can save ten to twenty thousand pounds. He also wanted a painting from a Columbian artist at a much cheaper price as his prison buddy's relatives knew the Columbian family selling it and could convince them (which obviously would have involved threatening them) but thankfully this turned out to be all talk. Either Archer is extremely naive and stupid from living such a privileged and sheltered life, or an extremely selfish individual prepared to live of the misery of others to further himself and live more comfortably. Obviously Britain doesn't have the law that criminals can't profit from their crimes that Australia and other countries do. Although this does result in an interesting look for readers into prison life for the wealthy. It is just a shame Archer is allowed to make money from these books. Surely he could donate proceeds to a childrens' hospital or victims of crime groups or something but I guess as he proved by actions in this book, he has no conscience.

2 comments about The Gambino Crime Family - A Mafia Family Revealed (Biography).

1. This would have been overpriced at $.99!! I love mob books - I have more than 200. This is ridi
   culous - it is 48 pages only because it uses huge font - I could have written this in about 2 hours.



2. Total rip-off. 46 pages, half of which was licensing documentation. Large print. Took less than 10 minutes to read. I guess I will be a little more selective when ordering. I can't believe Amazon.com would allow such an obvious rip-off of a product to be sold on their site. I can honestly say that I would not have taken that book if it was offered to me free of charge had I had a chance to browse through it. I bought two books from a company called Filiquarian Publishing/Biographiq and both were the same rip-off material. I'm sorry to use the word rip-off so much, but that is exactly what it is, a rip-off. I would have given it 0 stars, but that is not an option in the review process. Do not buy from this company.

4 comments about The Lena Baker Story.

1. The story of Lena Baker, the first and only woman to be executed legally in the state of Georgia, needed to be told.
   Lena was an impoverished Black woman who lived in Cuthbert, the seat of Randolph County, in southwest Georgia. She lost control of her life because, in addition to her station, of two facts. A prominent white man insisted she be his mistress, and she was dependent on alcohol.
   When she killed her oppressor in self-defense, she was tried for murder. Did she receive a fair trial? Was her case given an adequate investigation? Was she assigned a competent defense attorney?
   The exploration of these questions makes Phillips's The Lena Baker Story an absorbing one, but even more engaging are the minute details the reader learns of small-town, Southern life in the 1940s. We are told what is playing at the movies. We know that one Cuthbert resident drove all the way to Eufala, Alabama, to buy her pet bird cherry cokes. We know what most folks had for dinner.
   This book is highly recommended for its general appeal and to any student of the history of jurisprudence, of the civil rights of Blacks and women, of Americana, or of Georgia history.



2. The story of Lena Baker, the first and only woman to be executed legally in the state of Georgia, needed to be told.
   Lena was an impoverished Black woman who lived in Cuthbert, the seat of Randolph County, in southwest Georgia. She lost control of her life because, in addition to her station, of two facts. A prominent white man insisted she be his mistress, and she was dependent on alcohol.
   When she killed her oppressor in self-defense, she was tried for murder. Did she receive a fair trial? Was her case given an adequate investigation? Was she assigned a competent defense attorney?
   The exploration of these questions makes Phillips's The Lena Baker Story an absorbing one, but even more engaging are the minute details the reader learns of small-town, Southern life in the 1940s. We are told what is playing at the movies. We know that one Cuthbert resident drove all the way to Eufala, Alabama, to buy her pet bird cherry cokes. We know what most folks had for dinner.
   This book is highly recommended for its general appeal and to any student of the history of jurisprudence, of the civil rights of Blacks and women, of Americana, or of Georgia history.



3. (The following review is taken from The Eufaula Tribune, Joel P. Smith, Triibune publisher) The Lena Baker Story, the story of the first and only woman to be executed in Georgia, is almost as fascinating as Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. The plot centers on Lena Baker, 44, who had never known anything but the pangs of poverty, and gristmill owner Ernest B. Knight, a white man 23 years the African-American Baker's senior. They had carried on a love-hate relationship for some three years --"The kind that usually ends in one of the parties being harmed." It began when Lena was hired to care for the mill owner while he recovered from a broken leg.The trashy affair isn't exploited, but it dramatically raises the question, was justice served even though the slave woman-locked in his gristmill and not allowed to go home -- confessed to killing him?....I found the well-researched true story to be a page-turner....The book is divided into three parts: Lena's life, the trial and the execution. If the story line doesn't have appeal, the life and times of the shooter and the gristmill owner do. It's a delightful, graphic depiction of this bygone era, encompassing politics in Georgia, including neighboring Quitman County. Georgia's own gubernatorial debacle is included, when Ellis Arnall and Herman Talmadge both claimed to be governor, sitting 20 feet from each other in the executive suite, carrying on the business of Georgia....Much history and life of the times are skillfully incoorporated into the book, such as the founding of Andrew College in 1854 to bring prospective wives to Cuthbert for the young men attending a local Baptist academy. There's the tale about the old woman who took her cats in a croaker sack with her when she went downtown to shop foor groceries. then Mrs. Luci Moye made a daily trip in the late afternoon to Eufaula to buy her pet parrot, Polly, a cherry Coke, following her "racous litany of 'Polly want a cherry Coke.'" The story doesn't have a happy ending, though. The Cuthbert Times, a local newspaper I bought years later and edited, crassly reported on her death on page one: "Baker Burns."



4. Lela Bond Phillips's recounting of this once forgotten miscarriage of justice is a gripping story well told in its sparse yet lively style covering barely 120 pages. While others would have padded the book with trial transcripts and other ephemera Phillips sticks to the facts of the case painting a warts and all portrait of Lena Baker, the accused murderer and her relationship with Ernest White, the victim. Phillips is unsparing in the depiction of the events leading to the murder as well as well as providing background information on all the major characters as events unfold. Phillips does an outstanding job of explaining how the standards of crime scene investigation and forensic evidence of the era were not as rigorous as they are now and points out the inherent contradictions in the testimony and evidence presented at trial. Phillips studiously avoids making judgments and is careful to point out that readers should not use contemporary standards to judge the characters and their actions. The unflattering and unemotional depiction of an interracial relationship gone wrong in the Jim Crow South has the potential for overwrought prose, but Phillips keeps that in check, largely due to her writing ability (she has an MA in English). In fact her style of writing is well suited for historical writing even though here she is writing out-of-field.
   
   When printed in 1998 this book generated renewed interest in the case and efforts to mark Ms. Baker's grave and obtain a pardon from the Board of Parole and Pardons was undertaken. Those efforts bore fruit on August 15, 2005 when the Board posthumously pardoned Ms. Baker. The pardon is a small consolation as she was electrocuted 60 years ago in Georgia's electric chair; the only woman to be put to death. This book is highly recommended for those interested in exploring the Jim Crow era of the South, Georgia History, and real life crime stories. Phillips's style of writing is very enjoyable and this book is a lively page turner that will give you a better understanding of the times.

1 comments about A Road Without End: The JUS BROTHERS Motorcycle Club, 1990–2007.

1. This book is very large print, full of terrible pictures of an ugly woman, and only 100 pages. I may have bought this book for 5$ if i knew how small it was but not for the 20$ i paid. i feel ripped off.
   
   The story is nothing more than any riding stories that you would get hanging out at a biker bar. there is nothing special about this story and nothing worth rememebring. their club is weak, a small nobody club that gets told what to do by the bigger clubs. A bunch of middle age guys trying to play tough guy but too scared to join a real club.
   
   waste of time. waste of money.

5 comments about The Most Dangerous Man In the World.

1. Yes it is true. This book is nothing but a collection of various stories which I read on the net, magazines and heard on the news. The only new part is the Osama & Ibrahim connection.

   Being a journalist myself, I find this book a shocker.
   Spelling mistakes are galore (Confidante is spelt confident, Hit is spelt Him etc.) which even a Grade 5 student will pick up. Facts have not been researched into at all and they just pile up according to King's whims and fancy.

   As a journalist, I have done a lot of research in this field, not for publishing but just as part of my curiousity, and Gilbert King is lacking in every aspect.

   Factual mistakes:
   1. Babri masjid is claimed to be in Bombay (It is in Ayodhya)
   2. Sharad Shetty clamied to be shot in his office (He was shot in India Club, Dubai, UAE)
   3. Rohit Verma claimed to be informer and a.k.a Michael. (In fact Michael D'Souza was a different person all together). Jagdish Shetty(India) was the informer not Verma. Why would Verma call the assassins and have himself killed ???? Hello Gilbert King ???Verma was Rajan's closest friends who did his dirty job. Sarita was not Verma's wife but his mistress.

   There is absolutey nothing about Dawood's early Bombay days. Just a para about the Pathan gang. In fact his early days are more interesting than everything else. His split from the Pathan Gang was the major move in his life. And how from 1983-1987 he eliminated each and every rival by sitting in Dubai.

   This book needs a lot to be desired. I give it One star for the nice cover and the other star because it did induce me to buy it !!!!!

   Spare yourself the change, more accurate info with photos can be had on the net for free. There are no photos as well in this book!




2. Fascinating read. Initially, I thought some of the author's claims about Dawood Ibrahim were purely speculative--especially the nuclear black market chapter. But the Times of India recently did a story about this book and intelligence sources confirmed Dawood's involvement. This is frightening.
   
   Some of the book is hard to follow since the major figures all have aliases, and the Indian press is notorious for getting stories wrong. (I especially love the chapter where Rajan is reported dead for days, then gives an interview from his yacht in Europe!) Indian journalism is as entertaining as Bollywood itself!
   
   The connections between Ibrahim and Osama Bin Ladin/al Queda are very interesting too, and it's a good thing the US is finally taking Ibrahim seriously as a terrorist. I would have liked to know more about how Ibrahim's D Company really gained its power in Bombay, but it is understandable how no journalists have had success penetrating Dawood's world. After reading this not very long book, it's clear that Dawood Ibrahim really is very bad man!



3. The book's name is a misnomer. Initially, it talks about how Dawood made his way upto the top in the shady underworld, but then the focus shifts from Dawood to Afganistan, Pakistan, CIA, ISI etc, and ends up in establishing the relationships between these entities. What role Dawood plays or is playing in these tie ups is not mentioned. Only few pages do justice to the book title.



4. In this hastily prepared book it doesn't take long to discover that you are reading a manuscript written for those unfamiliar with Dawood Ibrahim and his operation. What I hoped to find was a detailed explanation of the inner-workings of the D-Company and the powerful hand which guides it from behind the intelligence cloak. Without a detailed knowledge of India and its history of strife between the Muslim and Hindu communities, it is difficult to understand where Ibrahim fits into the picuture. You're not going to get a clear understanding of the dealings of where Ibrahim's D-Company activities end and Intelligence groups like Pakistan's ISI begin. No elumination on the shadowy connections between the D-Company, ISI, Al-Qaeda and the CIA. These confusing alliances remain unresolved. In painting a picture of Ibrahim as a ruthless drug smuggling foreign mob boss with ties to terror organizations and foreign intelligence operatives, the average American citizens worst fears post 9-11 are realized.
   
   Most irritating about this title is the lack of new information. The book is filled with information you can find in the archives of the Mumbai newspapers. The information on Al-Qaeda and Ibrahim is purely speculative and no information has been produced since this book hit the shelves to explain the alledged ties between the two groups. Most disturbing is the failure of the author to examine the true nature of the D-Company. Is it indeed a criminal organization or is it a wing of the Pakistani ISI operating within India? Are the battles between Dawood Ibrahim's followers and Chhota Rajan's hindu mob truely based along religous lines or are there factors pushing both groups which remain hidden from the public?



5. I bought this book only because Amazon had it listed at a bargain price. This is a classic example of the old saying that "you get what you pay for". I'd be shocked if it took more than a week to write the book, and if the author had to use more than his web browser to find sources. Almost every source citation listed can be found on the Internet. I say "almost" because I think there's at least one book cited, so you might have to make a trip to the library too. But everything else is out of Time, the Economist, Vanity Fair, the New York Times, NGO whitepapers, etc.
   
   I found the book difficult to read, due to the breathless hype over the subject (I mean, he's the MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN THE WORLD after all) and the fair-to-poor writing. There's no new information here, just a recap of what other people have written. And that's my main problem with the book- half an hour or less with Google and Wikipedia will tell you as much if not more about Dawood Ibrahim than this book will.

1 comments about The Trunk Murderess: Winnie Ruth Judd.

1. I was completely unfamiliar with this case when I read this book. The first section is quite dry with extraneous detail (a common foible of true crime books, I admit) about Phoenix of the 1930's and I almost decided to put it down. I'm glad I didn't. Although the details of the crime itself were interesting, I found the real enjoyment of this book came from following the bizarre course of Ruth Judd's life. I kept turning pages to find out what would happen to her next. About the time she opened up her own beauty salon in the insane asylum, I was totally hooked. What a fascinating life she led, albeit a sad one.

5 comments about The JFK Assassination Debates: Lone Gunman Versus Conspiracy.

1. The assassination of President Kennedy in 1963 was a monumentally important event in American history. The question of who did it...and why...still reverberates today. This book attempts to present a balanced view of the lone gunman theory vs the conspiracy theory by stating the basics of the case for each point of view. It then states the 'consensus...Facts' and issues a weak tilt towards 'conspiracy' by pointing to a lack of evidence implicating Oswald and the problems with the single bullet theory. This would have been a fine scholarly effort 20 years ago but in 2006 there is a lot of new factual information that the book does not mention.
   
   The evidence in the Kennedy killing primarily consists of eyewitness accounts, photographic evidence, medical evidence from the autopsy, and a small amount of physical evidence gathered at the crime scene. Michael Kurtz accepts all of the photographic evidence as genuine, most particularly the Zapruder film, even though much credible work by David Lifton, James Fetzer, David Mantik, and others have amassed convincing proof that the film was carefully altered. Even if Kurtz ignores the compelling line-of-sight geometric analyses that have established the film's alteration, he does not address the fact that the Zapruder film does not show the appearance of the gaping wound on the rear of Kennedy's skull, the movements by Moorman and Hill, nor the huge blood spatter that covered motorcycle officers riding behind and to the LEFT of the limousine. He also does not consider that the Zapruder film shows a gruesome wound to the right side of the president's head that was not observed by any of the doctors at Parkland Hospital only minutes later. He does acknowledge, however, that some of the autopsy photos showing such a head wound were obviously fraudulent which leaves an unresolved conflict in his position.
   
   In 2006, the 'autopsy' has been so thoroughly discredited that no serious effort would give it any weight. No one can even agree any longer as to who took the pictures at the autopsy, what was photographed, and what is shown in the photographs. The wounds in Kennedy's back and neck were never dissected to establish the path of the bullets. For all intents and purposes, a real autopsy, such as would be performed on any derelict body found on a city street today, never took place. The only thing that the autopsy establishes today is that Kennedy had a lot of brain damage and that was probably what killed him. Kurtz misses all of this and instead confines himself to a brief discussion about problems with the autopsy photos, which is where researchers of the autopsy began 20 years ago but have since traveled a great distance, a journey that Kurtz has missed.
   
   Finally, Kurtz gets through the evidence, determines that a conspiracy occurred, attempts to analyze who the conpirators might have been, and runs through the usual vague list of suspects: cubans, organized crime, and the CIA. Kurtz completely ignores, however, the one person who had the power to implement a subsequent federal cover-up, who had an overwhelming motive, and who had the opportunity presented by the visit of the President to his native Texas: Vice-president Lyndon B. Johnson. This is the single most glaring omission in a book with many omissions. A lot of information has been published on Johnson in the last few years that points the finger of suspicion directly at him but Kurtz never mentions it. Finally, Kurtz never mentions the potential complicity of some members of the Secret Service in the killing. The facts are that the Secret Service detail removed the body from the hospital at gunpoint, began washing the blood off of the presidential limousine while it was still parked at the hospital ER (there's a photo of this being done), and flew the limousine (which was the crime scene) back to the White House Garage in Washington DC within a few hours of the assassination and then had Ford Motor Company personnel clean the upholstery, replace the windshield, and replace the carpet a few days later. It is also a fact that many eye witnesses reported that the limousine drastically slowed or stopped at the time of the shooting, which was contrary to their training. Kurtz never mentions any of this other than to claim that it was Jacqueline Kennedy who insisted that the Secret Service abscond with the body back to Washington DC before an autopsy could be performed in Dallas, although he offers no evidence for this assertion. Kurtz also makes an odd claim on p116 that Oswald had time to fire more than three shots. This is something that no one else has claimed and, again, Kurtz offers no evidence for this.
   
   In the end, this book presents an old, incomplete view of the Kennedy asassination that tends to obsure the real progress that has been made by dozens of independent researchers in the last few years towards a resolution of the case.



2. Michael Kurtz is to be commended for delivering a fantastic overview of the JFK assassination case at this late juncture (2006). Of most value are Kurtz's personal interviews with sundry medical personnel and even three former Secret Service agents: Roy Kellerman (deceased 1984; I spoke/ corresponded with his widow June), William Greer (deceased 1985; I spoke to his son Richard), and Robert Bouck (deceased 2004; I spoke to Bouck 9/27/92). I am on 3 pages of this book. Get it!!!



3. The chapter on the intelligence community does not go into the CIA but Castro. This is a trick lawyers use. Everyone did it but my client. The CIA is out there looking for the real killers along with O.J.



4. Professor Kurtz complied a book of essays in which he compared and contrasted conspiracy theories and the official mythology. What was missing was the scholarship that one would expect from a professor of his standing.
   
   I was expecting an analytical critique of conspiracy theories' and the offical mythology's critical themes. It was not there. The assassination debate was the equivalent dialogue between bar patrons. Both sides remained basically unchallenged because neither could cite the documntary basis for their positions, the documentary basis being the foundation for academic scholarship. What a pity that I was duped into buying a book based on the author's credentials that were not in evidence.



5. A unbiased book that offers both sides of the JFK debate and the supporting evidence for each, sounds great right? And things are rolling along pretty smoothly until Kurtz can't resist wedging in his nonsensical viewpoint in a chapter hilariously "consensus", which is filled with misleading statements("There's no proof whatsoever the rifle was fired that day". No such test exists), ridiculous standards of proof("Nobody photographed the bullet on the governor's stretcher"), supposed scientific findings with no no citations, and outright omissions of fact(Kennedy's head snapping forward). Kurtz'z allegations are seemingly devoid of the recognition that basic extension of logic entailing them leads invariably to oblivion. Hilariously, although Kurtz is disturbed by the lack of proof of CE 399 actually being found on Governor Connally's stretcher, he seems untroubled by his own assertion that it is "unknown" what happened to the bullets that were "undoubtedly" fired at President Kennedy from the front.
   
   Do not swallow the disingenuous "detached and unbiased" hook. This book is simply another in a large stack of conspiracy nonsense.