No comments about The World of Simon Raven (Prion Humour Classics).

1 comments about An Orphan in History: Retrieving a Jewish Legacy.

1. Cowan was raised as the most upper-class of Jews; he even attended an elite, priveleged high school out East where he was required to go to Episcopalian services. This is the story of how he slowly left that world and discovered his Jewish roots. Cowan writes from the heart, expressing all his emotions about his journey, including his fears. I am from an extremely traditional Jewish background, and was very impressed at his openness to first learning about something that he really knew little about, and then gradually beginning to practice it. (One of my favorite parts of the book is when he puts on tefillin, a morning ritual for Orthodox Jewish men). In addition, this is also a story about his wife. Raised as a Protestant, she comes to share his love for his new-found faith. A unique book. It is a shame that Cowan passed away so young; a sequel would have been great.

1 comments about Lillian Roxon: Mother of Rock.

1. Robert Milliken has written a fine biography of the pioneering journalist Lillian Roxon, author of ROCK ENCYCLOPEDA (1969). On one hand anyone would feel sorry for Roxon, who died alone in a crumby New York apartment surrounded by giant cockroaches, and so young, only 41, and she died of asthma which thank God very few people die of. One has the feeling that if only she felt able to share her life with someone she might have lived; as Milliken hints there are some unanswered questions about her death.
   
   However on the whole the book is a colonnade of sustained joy, for Roxon's life was an extraordinary one and she seems on every turn to have found the most fun available. Plus she lived during a great period in Australian history, finding herself at a very young age (as a schoolgirl) part of Brisbane's chic, avant-garde "Pink Elephant" crowd, a young girl in a wild scene of poetry, homosexuality and small, intensive galleries and late night cafes and bars. She never looked back, becoming a top journalist in Sydney where she worked for the city's top paper, the Morning Herald, where eventually the corporation sent her to New York City. In 1960, just in time for Camelot and the Kennedys and the beginning of the Twist and Nureyev and Fonteyn and, finally, the scene where she found her niche, the rock/art back room at Max's Kansas City. Nearly everyone loved her, for she was not only beautiful and brainy but she had a shrewd, native generosity, and helped out her fellow writers wherever she could. She befriended Linda Eastman, who broke her heart by ignoring her after her marriage to Paul McCartney was brokeraged. And she encountered another Australian wild woman, the provovateuse Germaine Greer, who wrote THE FEMALE EUNUCH in 1971, dedicating it to Lillian as most of us have forgotten by now. All these tangled stories and scenes Milliken lays out like the pro he is, and yet never losing sight of his main thread, the way Roxon took to innovation and the experimental like a dog to water.
   
   As a bonus, Milliken included a shrewd selection of some of the highlights of Roxon's famous ENCYCLOPEDIA, now apparently sadly out of print, as well as some pertient and previously uncollected articles that were published before her death. This small anthology of Roxon's work makes us long for an edition of her critical slash gossip writing in toto.

No comments about Extraordinary Women Journalists (Extraordinary People).

No comments about Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen: A Memoir.

No comments about The Americanization of Edward Bok.

1 comments about I Am My Father's Daughter: Living a Life Without Secrets.

1. I had to read this book for a class. The book was amazing and very interesting! I love the book!! Worth buying and reading!

1 comments about Newspaper Days: Mencken's Autobiography: 1899-1906 (Buncombe Collection).

1. It's great to see that much of Mencken's work is still available to the common people. It shouldn't be isolated in Baltimore's Enoch Pratt Free Library, and/or Johns Hopkins' University.

   The H.L.Mencken room at the Pratt, has been called "the cradle of 20th Century literature." Alistair Cooke, said it exists..."for the comfort of sinners and the astonishment of the virtuous."

   As you can see, the author of "Newspaper Days: 1899-1906", was regarded as an iconoclast during his lifetime, and is still celebrated for fresh, refreshing views and commentary. H.L. Mencken was, above all else, a critic.

   Mencken wrote his autobiography in three separate volumes cumulatively known, in the world of journalism and literature, as the "Days Books". In addition to the work under consideration here: "Newspaper Days", the other two are "Happy Days: 1880-1892", and "Heathen Days: 1890-1936." As the title suggest, this book looks at H.L. Mencken's life from 1899, when at 19 he began his half-century career in journalism - at the now defunct Baltimore Morning Herald - through his move to the local newspaper of record: The Baltimore Evening Sun. This relationship with the Sun Papers (there was also a Morning Sun) lasted until 1950, when H.L.M. retired from the board of parent A.S. Abell Company.

   It was apparent, even this early in the career of "the irreverent Mr. Mencken", that his niche was writing opinion and criticism; some of it shocking to the establishment; all of it entertaining.

   Don't let the early period under discussion in this book (1899-1906) lead anyone to believe that the material is dated or old fashioned. Au contraire, Mencken is indeed talking of events which occured a long time ago, but evey word is perfect for the job it is called upon to do. His diction and syntax are all-important.

   After all, the reason for remembering and reading a critic of an earlier time, like Mencken, is not the issues he wrote about, but the manner in which he said what he said. It is the WAY he said it -- he was a stylist.

   A great man. A great book. Enjoy!

No comments about George S. Schuyler: Portrait of a Black Conservative.

5 comments about Friendly Fire: The Remarkable Story of a Journalist Kidnapped in Iraq, Rescued by an Italian Secret Service Agent, and Shot by U.S. Forces.

1. Like many other hostage tales, there are moments of true human interaction between the hostage and her captors in this book. Interestingly enough, but not surprisingly, some of these moments occur during various soccer matches that are watched by the kidnappers. Although Sgrena is anything but a sports fan, her Italian nationality gives her credence if only because of one of the kidnappers obsession with Italian soccer. She describes her discussions of religion and non-belief with the mujaheedin holding her and their difficulty in understanding her relationship to her unmarried longtime partner. Unlike other hostage tales, especially the recent story by US journalist taken hostage Jill Carroll, Sgrena refuses to accept the rationale of the occupiers and insists thgoughout the text that it is the occupation that is the primary culprit in Iraq, not the resistance. The descriptions of the aforementioned conversations reminds the reader of the contradictory nature of the human condition--warriors able to hold a woman prisoner yet curious enought of this person from another culture to converse with her and debate, even though their commanders and clerics might not approve.
   
   As regards Sgrena's thoughts on Iraq, it is her contention that the fighters against the occupiers are primarily composed of two elements: the nationalist insurgency and the jihadists. Sgrena states that the jihadists want the US in Iraq because it gives them a front in their war on the infidels, while the insurgency wants the US and other occupation troops out so they can get on with their lives. As I write this review, the news broadcasts are reporting on a demonstration of hundreds of thousands against the US occupation of Iraq and the Israeli war on Lebanon in Baghdad. The primary component of this demonstration were Shia Iraqis that support Muqtada al-Sadr. According to the news report, US officials claim to be concerned that this massive show of strength by these Shia Iraqis could provoke attacks on them by members of the Sunni community in Iraq. While there may be some truth to this possibility, the fact that the US command is expressing concern is so transparent as to be laughable. After all, the US military and intelligence have certainly killed more of Sadr's supporters than their fellow Iraqis have. It is more likely that the US is concerned that the solidarity being expressed across religious lines and across the Arab world for the resistance of Hezbollah to Israel's onslaught will become the dominant current in Iraq. If that occurred, the resistance to the occupation would be nearly universal among Iraqis. That would spell the end of not only the occupation, but of the jihadists as well.
   Of course, the Pentagon and White House (with approval from Congress) remains convinced that the situation can be remedied in favor of Washington via military means. Indeed, the commander of US Central Command, General Abizaid, went on record in early August stating that he could "imagine" the US military "winning" Baghdad. As Sgrena's book clarifies (once again), this imaginary scenario is nothing more than a pipe dream for the US generals and a nightmare for the Iraqis. As the occupation and its consequent mayhem continue no one is certain what the next phase will look like. The civil strife between various religious trends is but one facet of the aforementioned mayhem. Underlying it all is the continuing dismal state of most Iraqis' economic lives and the lack of any apparent future of peace.
   Sgrena's understanding of this desperate situation and Washington's fundamental role in creating and maintaining it are the subject of much of her commentary in the book. It is interspersed with a narrative describing the physical realities of her captivity and her means of dealing with the boredom, fear, and hopelessness that are part of any imprisonment. Her journalistic abilities are quite apparent in these descriptions--one feels that they know the characteristics of the room she spent her captivity almost as well if they had seen a walk-through video of it. Her discussion of the emotions she experienced are interwoven into her story in such a way that they become like the darkness of her mask that the kidnappers insist she wear at times of their choosing. Or the daylight that we assume will always be. They exist but they do not overwhelm. In fact, that is how Sgrena tells her story. Perhaps it is her journalistic detachment or perhaps it is the only manner in which she could write it down. No matter what the reason may be, it works. Friendly Fire is more than the tale of one hostage's ordeal and it is more than just another tract on the US-created debacle that is Iraq. It is not a cry for revenge, but a tempered statement on a nation's shattered psyche and an individual attempt to share a perspective influenced by her unforeseen role in that nation's history.



2. "Hostages are weapons of war, a powerful means of blackmail in an asymmetric conflict like that in Iraq. In two years of occupation, all foreigners have become the enemy; there's no longer any distinction between governments and those who oppose them..."(page 68)
   
   In November 2004 the United States launched an especially violent assault on the resistance stronghold of Falluja, laying siege to the city and creating a civilian refugee crisis. On the trail of this crisis, interviewing civilians, antiwar Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena found herself sucked into the war in a most unexpected way: One of the resistance groups kidnapped her.
   
   Sgrena's powerful book not only documents her personal drama as a hostage but reflects on the wider situation in Iraq that led to hers'--and many others'--kidnappings. She clearly explains why the "unbearable" living conditions feed into a general discontent that is (literally) violently stirred up by the presence of Coalition troops and their sledgehammer anti-insurgency tactics...tactics which almost led to her own death and did lead to the death of her liberator, Nicola Calipari.
   
   "What happened to me after my liberation, the car hit by "friendly fire", took me back to the real origins of the current situation in Iraq: the war. The violent fall of Saddam did not bring liberty, but the decline into barbarism of Mesopotamia, cradle of civilization of the Sumerians, the Assyrians and the Babylonians. This is the reality." (page 187)
   
   (Kudos to the translator and editor for producing a highly readable English account of the author's remarkable story and exceptional political insight.)



3. The journalist author of FRIENDLY FIRE reported under war conditions, was kidnapped, rescued by an Italian secret agent, then shot by U.S. forces. If her name sounds familiar, it's because her story was detailed on 60 Minutes and other world media, but no show could prove the punch and impact of her memoir FRIENDLY FIRE, which chronicles her experience as a hostage. Any who would understand occupied Iraq in general and both military politics and hostage situations will find this packed with insights and answers lending to both study and browser interest. Especially recommended for military and public library collections.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



4. I have not read this book but I am going to buy it today. This is a comment on the editorial review and this line in particular.
   
   "either she or translator Riva fail to distinguish between government and citizens in reference to "the Americans"
   
   Uh, last I checked (just watched School House Rock to make sure) the American People ARE the government. There are no two separate entities as "the government" and "the people" as we are a government "by the people, for the people, of the people".
   
   If they don't treat the Americans as two separate entities, then maybe they know something about our system of governing ourselves that we'd do well to remember.
   
   Yes, that makes me and you and anyone of voting age responsible for the war and for letting "our government" get away with what's happening.
   
   I have abstained from rating the book, merely because I have not read it yet, but I felt I must make this comment and I will buy this book immediately and update my rating accordingly.



5. 
   Irony is hardly the word to describe the situation of this hostage. Not only is she a stalwart champion of the suffering Iraqis including the ones who kidnapped her, but also she has little politically in common with the Italian Prime Minister who negotiates her release.
   
   The book was most interesting when Sgrena spoke to her own experience. More that 1/2 or more text was devoted to the issues such as utilities and insecutiry in Baghdad, the factions, the role women, religion, etc. 50% (or maybe more) of the text could have been written by others.
   
   It seems to me, readers interested in Sgrena and her story would be well versed in the Iraqi situation and would buy her book to hear what she has to say that speaks to her experience.
   
   I would have liked this book to be more about her captivity, her understanding of others who have been held hostage in this way, her observations of her captors, and a more precise reconstruction of the negotiations to free her.