5 comments about Few Returned: Twenty-Eight Days on the Russian Front, Winter 1942-1943.

1. Above all, this book is a record of one man's experience as an Italian soldier fighting on the Eastern Front during World War II against Russia. More specifically, it is about a few horrible weeks of fighting and retreating. It is *not* a story or novel, really, but almost like an after action report. The book contains the author's feelings and some of what he saw, but you get the distinct sense while reading this book that he wrote it as a record of what he saw and did, and as an homage to his friends who never made it out of Russia, but not as an attempt to write a story. The author never really tries tying the events into a broader context or explaining the full experiences he had on the Eastern front; it is just a snap shot of a limited time frame, and only limited snapshots even within that time frame.

   This book is not a blow by blow recitation of combat. While the author is clearly involved in a number of intense fights, both before and during the period covered in the book, we never really hear about it. It's almost as if he is trying NOT to make this a book about combat. If there is an engagement we hear of the troops forming up for it, a sentence or two about the fight, and then more pages about the aftermath - the wounds, the dead.

   The most insightful and remarkable aspects of this book to me are: 1) the ability of the author to show us the horrors of war; 2) the brutality on both sides; and 3) how horrible the Nazis were even to their allies. I take each in turn.

   1) This book makes very clear how much human suffering war brings with it. Through its dry, almost camera-like recitation of horror after horror (friends freezing to death in front of him, morter shells cutting people in two) we can almost imagine what it must be like to be walking through a combat zone strewn with bodies and wounded men and animals. We also see how war turns honorable, good men into self-interested beings centered only on survival. The author, for example, is clearly a brave, honorable, educated man and officer. We watch as his pride in being an officer and an Italian soldier slowly gives way to self-survival. We also watch as this man with deep loyalty to his unit and his friends gives way (as we all would, I'm sure) to self-interest. Fascinating.

   2) Suffice it to say that the book makes clear how brutal all sides were in this war: Soviets and Nazis alike commit brutal, heartless acts.

   3) The savagery and callousness of the Nazis towards their allies is stunning. While paying homage to the combat skills of the Nazis, the author shows clearly how the Nazies treated the Italians serving and dying in their cause only slightly better than their hated enemy the Soviets. For example, we read of a time when, during the retreat, the Nazis held up thousands of Italians, subjecting them to withering small arms and artillery fire from the Russians for hours, in order to clear mud off of German trucks. We see how Nazis failed to share food, information or shelter with their "allies." We see Germans shooting at wounded Italians (their allies, remember!) who dared to try and get a ride on a German vehicle.

   This book is somewhat dry, somewhat repetititious, but worth a read for those wanting a sense of what the winter retreat was like for an Italian soldier serving in WW2's horribly grueling East Front.




2. .. I think that one of the "soldier view" of the whole Eastern Front history from axis side is "The Sergeant In The Snow" by Mario Rigoni Stern.



3. This book is different from others in that it does not glorify War,it does not tend to over exaggerate what happened in battle, it does'nt even try to blow up the truth with nonsensical war heroics recounted ( like many german or British books, dare I say).
   Its a straight forward recount in diary form of how onw Italian officer and his brave troops dared all to fight back the Russians, the bitter cold and the odds of making it back on foot without decent rations , heavyweapons or transportation which were rendered useless in battle or just plainly nevr had their ammo resupplied by the faster retreating better equiped self serving Nazis.
   It si common for the uneducated armchair historian or plainly ignorant war hobbyist to brand the Italians as cowards, however when one delves deeper into the actualities of WW2 and gets to the events as they really happened unaltered by propaganda and rascist reporting then we really see that the Italians which were up against it from the start, put in as brave a performance as any fighting man could and beyond that in many a case.

   I recommend this book to all for the honesty and open portrayal of the horrors of War and the true nature of men when faced with the harshness and desperation of survival.
   Its not a novel as anyone who's half literate can plainly see, but a diary of man brave man and his troops that fought their way thru the russians, the elements and evn the Nazis cruelty to survive!
   Enjoy the read! A must have for the war historian at heart.




4. I have always been interested in the Second World War and especially the little known battles and actions of that war.
   Lately; I have delved into the Italian part in this conflict and the tragic consequences to their brave soldiers.
   "Few Returned", gives you a first hand glimpse of what it was like for man, pack animals and equipment, fighting and struggling to survive on the Eastern Front.
   You will wonder how anyone returned from that winter retreat.
   The author Eugenio Corti also gives the reader a good feel for the national differences between the Italians, Germans and Russians.
   Combat is sporadic throughout the retreat, but again Corti gives you a good feel of how it was for all sides.



5. Corti who was a twenty-one year old artillery officer on the Stalingrad front, was part of the Eighth Italian Army that was cut off when Zhukov sent in the pincers that surrounded the Sixth German Army. His group was in a pocket northeast of Stalingrad that was made up of Italian and German soldiers.
   
   Out of the 30 thousand Italians who held the front at the Don north of Stalingrad, less than four thousand made it out of the pocket and up to one thousand of those died from their wounds and exposure. Corti doesn't pull any punches as to what happened in the pocket or who was to blame.
   
   Many of the Italians had just come to the front over the last two weeks. They were totally unprepared for what was going to become a retreat over one hundred kilometers while constantly under Russian fire. They had to walk most of the way in inadequate uniforms and boots while the Germans requestioned horse and mules and sleds for their own use.
   
   Corti speaks of how the Germans were much better organized and kept their military lines-or-command intact, whereas the Italians in many cases became a mob without any reason or understanding of the situation. At times no one was in charge of taking care of the wounded or giving out provisions. While the German Luftwaffe dropped food and ammunition by parachute, the Italian Air Force was conspicuous by their absence.
   
   The story is straight forward and brutal. Corti does not try to make excuses for anyone (including himself) in the treatment of fellow soldiers or of civilians. It was survive at any cost.
   
   Zeb Kantrowitz

3 comments about A Long Way from Saigon: Phin's Memoirs: From Bar Girl to Dignity.

1. This book has a flow to it that is so beautiful. As I read it I could hear her accent. I could see
   the buildings and the people. I could hear the sounds of the city and smell all the wonderful
   smells.

   The book is a wonderful story on several levels. First it is an inspirational story of a girl born
   into circumstances more difficult than most of us could ever know. A dysfunctional family, a
   national economy in shambles and a nation in the darkest days of a losing war. Still what ever is
   placed in her way can not stop her. She not only survives, she flourishes. As each hardship is
   thrown at her she rises to it, and above it, and with all that has happened there is not one word of
   bitterness or self pity in this book.

   On another level it is a love story, but not a warm and fuzzy one. It is a solid love that, like
   our heroine, takes the pressures of life and, instead of being weakened, grows stronger.

   And still on another level it tells of life as a bar girl in Saigon, during the war. This is an
   important story since these girls were often dismissed as having no value. Now we find that, at
   least this one, had values, hopes, dreams, strengths and a spirit that would take her from the
   emptiness of the Saigon bars to a full and exciting life.

   She once asked would her friends still be her friends when they had read the book. As I read it
   I gained more respect and admiration for her with each chapter. I feel like I know her. I feel like
   I have always known her.




2. Yes, I was. I know what you're thinking and you're way off the mark! I finished this book just last night. It brought back so many memories of Vietnam past and present. Having been with the author this past summer in Vietnam on a humanitarian project, I can vouch for the authenticity of her life and the very personal story she shares with the reader about that life. The book kept my interest quite well. I thought the early chapters and especially the later chapters were moving and personable. Nothing phony here. You will be come away from this book impressed with all she has accomplished in spite of incredible obstacles! If you ever wondered what life was like during the war for the average Vietnamese family, Phin's story will take you there. It will leave you with an appreciation for those that served as well as the South Vietnamese who had to endure the war on the home front. She wrote the book as she speaks today, so your reading experience will be genuine and personable. Quite a remarkable story about the resiliency and desire of a young woman who had to earn everything in her life and do so completely on her own! A triumph of the human spirit and a testimony to the greatness of the "American Dream!" Enjoy!!!



3. As I started to read the book, I was intrigued and looking forward to Phin's life story. As a Vietnam Veteran & Psychologist, it didn't take long before I realized the book lacked enough substance to maintain my interest. There is minimal information about the Vietnam War. There also was very little about relationships with immediate family members. The book went into excessive detail about her careers in America which included chapter after chapter of unnecessary information that included memos, emails, & letters which cast negative light on those she's worked with. Since this was an autobiography about a "bar girl to dignity", you expect this to be a story of reviving ways and moving beyond past hurts to acheive possibly "enlightenment" or "success" as an individual. With more than a touch of narcissism, this is one of those biographies where you have to read beyond the lines to really understand who you are reading about. From that perspective, you feel sorry for this girl who has lost so much touch with reality. In summary, if you are looking for drama, you'll find it here. Do not confuse this book as a war story which was my mistake to begin with.

2 comments about Time Never Heals.

1. This is an intriguing story about a young doctor who served in Viet Nam. It was a very enjoyable read and I was able to get a brief glimpse into what life must have been like for the brave men and women who served so valiently during this conflict. As I read, I couldn't help but think about our hero's who are currently serving in Iraq. This is a must read for every American so they can understand and appreciate what makes our country the best in the world, our soldiers.



2. This book was sent to me by a Vietnam Veteran who I have a great deal of admiration for. It is a moving and exciting account of one of our countries finest, that answered the call and volunteered to serve in the Vietnam War. This may debunk a lot of Hollywood and media stereotypes of the War and the people who fought in it. Fear and heroism, humor and despair, this book has it all and with photographs as well. Lunati is a true American hero and Ligotti has done a great job of helping to write his story. It was hard to put down and impossible to forget. Thanks to both for writing this great account of what it was actually like to be in Vietnam during the conflict.

No comments about John Wesley (Ambassador Classic Biography Series).

1 comments about Rebel Chief: The Motley Life of Colonel William Holland Thomas, C.S.A..

1. 5 stars for Thomsen's study of Indian Agent William Thomas
   3 stars for his research regarding senator and Cherokee chief Thomas
   1 star for his research on Colonel Thomas's American Civil War service / latter years
   
   An overall rating of 3 stars is considered a generous rating.
   
   Paul A. Thomsen, in his research "Rebel Chief: The Motley Life of Colonel William Holland Thomas, C.S.A," offers a basic study regarding the Cherokee Agent and Cherokee Chief Will Thomas and briefly covers the history of the William Holland Thomas Legion (North Carolina's only American Civil War legion and it recruited Cherokees and mountaineers). There are, however, flaws in Paul Thomsen's research; Thomsen states that William Thomas frequented the "Red Light District" and most likely contracted and died with "syphilis." Thomsen's speculative proposition, based totally on Thomsen's opinion and 113 years after the death of Chief Thomas, would be scorned in a debate and dismissed in a court of law. His proposition is a "supposition" and is stated without one source or fact and is the weakest argument based only on sheer speculation.
   Chief Thomas's violent emotional outbursts were initially recorded during the Civil War and based on a present-day diagnosis may have been attributed to: A "Nervous Breakdown," Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) or Clinical Depression, senility or dementia, or perhaps a combination of maladies, etc. Paul Thomsen omits any of these possibilities and simply states "syphilis."
   
   How would anyone relate and cope with the following nightmarish and traumatic situations, experiences, and conditions?
   
   Cherokee Chief William H. Thomas endured the most horrible series of various traumatic stressors:
   Cherokee Agent Thomas had spent numerous stressful years lobbying Washington to secure the right for a number of Cherokees to remain in North Carolina, Senator Thomas experienced years of constant political infighting with rivals, his beloved Cherokees were starving by 1864, Colonel Thomas witnessed death and dismemberment of several comrades, he handled dead bodies, absorbed the traumatic loss of comrades, the Colonel faced imminent death, he had killed during the Civil War--and was helpless to prevent others' deaths, and he endured several court-martials. Furthermore, by 1865, William Thomas was a defeated Rebel of the "Lost Cause," and how would the Victor, the United States, respond to Thomas and his rebellious Indians? Would his many exhaustive but fruitful years as mediator and voice of the Cherokees be crushed as the Rebellion was crushed? What will become of the rebellious Indians? Chief Thomas and his Cherokees faced a very uncertain and questionable future. He also witnessed mumps, measles, and smallpox kill more than one hundred Cherokees. His selflessness and profound generosity kept him in debt and on the constant brink of bankruptcy, and Thomas also endured several lawsuits. His father had died months before his birth and while Will was in Washington, conducting business, his adopted father died. His mother and wife also preceded him in death. Mental illnesses, including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), pervaded many Civil War veterans during the Reconstruction.
   
   During the Civil War, there was no shell shock, battle fatigue or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to help explain and legitimize a mysterious condition.
   
   In concluding: Thomsen has not proven his argument that Will Thomas frequented any "Red Light District" or contracted and died with "syphilis." Thomas was, however, diagnosed with Dementia and Will's violent emotional outbursts were initially recorded during the Civil War. And in 1867, at the age of 62, he was admitted to the North Carolina Insane Asylum at Raleigh. An argument can easily be made stating that Thomas had PTSD, MDD, dementia or senility, or a combination of aforementioned maladies. Subsequently, on May 12, 1883, Thomas was admitted to the Western North Carolina Insane Asylum at Morganton (currently Broughton Hospital, it catered to western North Carolina, and is approximately 200 miles west of Raleigh). In 1883 and 1884 the North Carolina Insane Asylum diagnosed only one patient with syphilis and the patient wasn't Will Thomas (one patient constitutes less than one percent of total admissions). Moreover, during the Reconstruction, asylums were filled with Civil War veterans that exhibited PTSD and MDD. On December 8, 1875, Sarah Love Thomas (Will's wife) wrote to her sister Maria Love Stringfield and stated that her husband Will had "mental anxiety." Why state that Thomas most likely contracted and died with syphilis? Why make a proposition based on opinion 113 years later? One may also ask, why didn't Mr. Thomsen further speculate "why" Sarah Love Thomas died at the age of 45? Was Thomas also suffering from syphilis and insanity? There is no definitive answer and, until any facts surface, it should only be viewed and stated as an opinion.
   
   Unfortunately, based on Thomsen's flawed conclusion, editors are now stating that Chief Thomas died from syphilis.
   
   With the title "REBEL, COLONEL, and CSA," Paul Thomsen offers a less than impressive study on Colonel Thomas's American Civil War service (1861-1865). There is very little explanation or exploration into Will's "military service and Confederate strategy." For example, Thomas's military strategy clarifies or defines why he was court-martialed. There are also minor errors regarding the Thomas Legion. On one page Thomsen even refers to the Sixteenth North Carolina Infantry "Regiment" as the Sixteenth North Carolina Infantry DIVISION (there wasn't a Sixteenth North Carolina Infantry Division). Thomsen further states, "Lieutenant Colonel Major Stringfield." There is, however, no said rank. It is either Lieutenant Colonel or Major.
   Moreover, regarding Thomas and the Civil War, this study lacks "primary sources and references" and is considered a freshman study at best.
   Consequently, there is not one picture or map in this study. How can the reader envision, interconnect, and relate to western North Carolina, East Tennessee, North Georgia, "Upstate" South Carolina, the Thomas Legion or its field officers, its skirmishes and battles, William Thomas (with the exception of the cover picture), Sarah Thomas, the Qualla Boundary, Stekoa Fields, the discussed cities, towns, counties and regions, and the Cherokees without one picture or map? What is western North Carolina and what counties are included? Including one cartographic era map would have been a start.
   
   Chief William Holland Thomas: A Summary
   
   "Cherokee Chief, Confederate Colonel, Lawyer, Entrepreneur, and Politician: William Holland Thomas."
   
   William Thomas never knew his father, was raised by a single mother in a lowly mountain home, lacked any formal education, but is one of the most prominent figures in Western North Carolina's history.
   
   Chief Thomas lived to the ripe old age of 88 and was admitted to an asylum, however, there is no official record or document stating that he was diagnosed with syphilis. Thomas is also the only white man to serve as a Cherokee chief. As Indian agent, he was in Washington during "The Treaty of New Echota" negotiations and he successfully lobbied for the right of a number of Cherokees to remain in North Carolina; these Cherokees are the present-day Eastern Band. He was very instrumental in the preservation of the Cherokees during their forced march west or "Trail of Tears" in 1838. His intervention provided safe haven for approximately 1000 Cherokees and, furthermore, it is noteworthy that his intervention is currently reflected with more than 12,000 Cherokees residing in Western North Carolina. It is widely believed that without his intervention there would not be an Eastern Band.
   
   An alternative but brief history of William Holland Thomas is "Confederate Colonel and Cherokee Chief: The Life of William Holland Thomas" by E. Stanley Godbold, Jr. and Mattie U. Russell (Godbold and Russell make an inference to syphilis).
   To study Will Thomas's Civil War service, consider "Storm in the mountains: Thomas' Confederate Legion of Cherokee Indians and Mountaineers" by Vernon H. Crow.
   To understand and fathom the sociopolitical and geopolitical "tone" of western North Carolina and the American Civil War, purchase "The Heart of Confederate Appalachia: Western North Carolina in the Civil War" by John C. Inscoe and Gordon B. McKinney.
   
   Matthew D. Parker

2 comments about Soldiering: Observations from Korea, Vietnam, and Safe Places.

1. The profession of arms is a strange one. t simply asks that you be willing to go out and fight for your life with another man doing the same thing. And both of you are doing it for home, country and other nebulous things that are very hard to define. In recent times the opinion of the public has not held soldiers in high regard. I remember the stories of Chelsea Clinton insulting soldiers in the White House.
   
   Henry Gole was a career Army officer. He served in Korea, VietNam and in lots of peacetime positions. Along the way he got a Ph.D. and retired as a Colonel. Why, he asks himself. It was the men with whom he served. A most enjoyable book, especially at this time while so much of the Army is in Iraq.
   
   I'm reminded of the Kipling poem 'Tommy:'
   
   Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy how's yer soul?"
   But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.
   
   Thank you Col. Gole.



2. Colonel Gole's latest work, "Soldiering" is an absolute delight to read. This book is full of humor and wit as the pages unfold to show us a contemporary life spent in service to ones country. Gole cleverly traces an historical thread of events through the medium of what he calls "zeitgiest"..a picture of what's happening in the big world and in his own world at that particular time. Of course, adventure courses in the veins of any career soldier, and the author provides the reader with ample exposure to heart pounding moments and violent death from his own experience as a snuffy in Korea and as a Special Forces officer in Vietnam. His vignettes which spring from a life in the Army will bring back fond memories for all who have served..and it will kindle in those who haven't a wish that they did.

2 comments about Warrior: ...By Choice ...by Chance.

1. Jack was my battalion S-2 sergeant. His narrative of events describe the frustration & problems faced by units poorly prepared for fighting an enemy we couldn''t understand. It's a must read for the untrained as well as the professional soldier.



2. At seventeen Jack leads a rifle squad and, later, a rifle platoon in some of the worst figting in the Southwest Pacific Area. You will marvel at extra ordinary events. You will experience his grief as comrades and companions are wounded, killed and lost to the Japanese, Korean and Chinese enemy.
   Then you will rejoice with him in his successes, in the deep friendships that come his way; and for a loving, praying girl he marries, and a Savior he knows. His brief stay as a POW to the Chinese will wrench your heart.

2 comments about Who Was Who In The Napoleonic Wars.

1. Haythornthwaite's 'Naploleonic Source Book' contains a small biographical section which I had always wished to see expanded. This is it! I have been able to find entries for even the most obscure bit-part players. The author has even given spaces for significant historians and artists of the period (not necessarily living during that period either!) I think this is an imaginative and necessary inclusion. Readers interested in the War of 1812 will not, I think, be disappointed, as there is a generous spread of entries for participants from both sides of that conflict.



2. A handy reference, of the "whos" of the French Revolution and Napoleonic eras, I find myself reaching for again and again. A must companion for Haythornthwaite's Napoleonic Encyclopedia, or for your library in general.

5 comments about Literature or Life.

1. Jorge Semprun was born in Spain and while studying philosophy in Paris, he was arrested. Accused of being member of the resistance, he was sent to Buchenwald where he spent 18 months before the camp was liberated. "Literature or Life" is his account of what it meant to survive Buchenwald, from the perspective of a highly intellectual mind. It represents a desperate search for understandiing the horrors of Evil, using philosophy and literature as reasoning tools, as well as psychological justification for survival. It is literature of the "living dead!"



2. In this elegant piece of literary philosophy, Semprun treats readers to an extraordinarily rich remembrance of two years in Buchenwald. This work is shot through with memories of his life before, during and after the war and references to many of the thinkers and writers he has known. Passages as delicate as lace adorn chapters sound as bedrock. You could do much worse than to build a set of Holocaust readings on this foundation.

   One aspect making this an especially vibrant Holocaust testimony is that Semprun is not Jewish. While he approaches the subject of Jewish suffering with sympathy, gravity and deep respect, his reminiscences are framed by a lifetime of learning and an important non-Jewish perspective. Readers taste the suffering Semprun has experienced through continuing memories and glimpse what must have driven celebrated Jewish survivors like Paul Celan, Primo Levi and Tadeusz Borowski to suicide.

   Another laudable feature is Semprun's sure knowledge that in politics, as in everything, there is such a thing as paramount Evil, to which philosophers like Heidegger contributed. Deep thinking alone does not, according to his view, constitute righteousness. Semprun elegantly examines ends and means as well as thought processes, dramatically dismissing the moral relativism common among intellectuals these days.

   Despite the difficult subject matter, I found this work highly educational--and eminently hopeful and uplifting. Alyssa A. Lappen




3. Jorge Semprún is one of the many survivors of the Holocaust who has left his memoirs written to the later generations. But what makes him different is the fact that he did not wrote just what he saw or lived: he wanted us readers to know the feelings, the thoughts and the worries that accompanied and still accompany a Buchenwald prisoner as well. Their words are not hateful to the Germans, nor show pity or regret towards the writer himself or his former fellows. Semprún does not analyze tha causes or the consecuences of his experience, he seems more to go through them once again, but from a diferent point of view: that of the free men. From there, he tries to explain things; not in a very reasonable or settled order, but simply as they come to his mind. The structure of the book reminds that of our own memories: fragmented, realistic, or perhaps a little more distant as time goes by; uncomplete. That lack of organisation makes the book even more sincere and pure, while still keeping a beautiful prose to tell the most amazing horrors.
   A must for anyone who is interested in the Holocaust and its survivors, who are fading silently as time goes on.



4. Jorge Semprun spent two years in a concentration camp, Buchenwald. He was a known writer before and continued to be a writer afterwards. In this reflection on his life experience he reveals himself to be first of all a true human being , the Yiddish word is 'mensch' and it applies to him though he is not Jewish. Semprun's meditation on the meaning of his writing and the meaning of his life is a moving one, and a unique one. He is an original person with a way of thinking and understanding things of his own. Who reads this book will get to know a mind and a human being of unique distinction.



5. Literature or Life by Jorge Semprun
   
   This is a great book. Like Semprun's previous book on World War II, "What a Beautiful Sunday," this one uses his experience in Nazi concentration camps to tell a quite remarkable story (and stories within stories within stories), but also as a jumping-off place for wide-ranging musing about life, and art, and the dependency of each on the other (hence the apt title).
   
   The book circles around the liberation of Buchenwald and the first few weeks afterwards, with extended forays into his experiences there, previous experiences with the French underground as a student at the Sorbonne, and with a lot of discussion of writers and philosophers along the way.
   
   He starts by addressing the question of whether an experience like being in Buchenwald can be truly and fully addressed in literature - he says yes, certainly, given enough skill and commitment by the writer. Finding readers who are capable of comprehending and believing what is written is the problem. I think we have a good writer/reader match here, because I find Semprun to be startling in his clarity, illuminating, riveting and very funny from time to time (a sense of humor and absurdity that obviously served him well, and those that leaned on him for support well, too).
   
   There is a bizarrely funny scene at the opening of the book, for example, when three British soldiers, brand new to the scene in Buchenwald walked up to him, and he was so happy to see them ("I felt more like laughing, gamboling in the woods, running from tree to tree") that he tried to engage them in what was, for him, normal conversation ("Say, I bet you fellas are noticing how quiet it is here - it's the birds! The smell of the crematory has driven them off, so the usual racket you hear in the forest just ain't happening here!") - Meanwhile these soldiers are staring at him in open-mouthed horror, as if he was a talking corpse, some kind of zombie... It takes Semprun a few minutes to figure out what the problem is here, and he decides, on reflection, that their perception is correct - that he and his comrades, the survivors, are a sort of zombie, that they hadn't really avoided death - that death and what he calls "radical evil" were so pervasive in the camp that nobody there survived in the usual sense - and he said that for the rest of his life, much of it as a younger man spent continuing to put himself in danger as a revolutionary fighter of various kinds, he felt an odd sort of invulnerability - an assumption that he would not be killed or even caught because he'd already been there, and somehow been given a pass to return to finish his business here.
   
   One of his extended side trips is a discussion of Heidegger, of whom he says, in part, "Of course, there was a certain fascination - sometimes mixed with irritation - with the philosopher's language. With that abounding obtuseness through which one has to hack one's way, cutting clearings without ever reaching a definitive clarity. A never-ending labor of intellectual decipherment that becomes absorbing through its very incompletion."
   
   It seems clear to me that Semprun used his experience with Heidegger partially as a guide in his own development as a thinker and writer, because, again - he writes with exceptional clarity, and no matter how far afield his musings range, he never loses the thread or the point of a remarkable and essential story in the process.

No comments about Moon Princess, The: Memories of the Shan States.