5 comments about Robert E. Lee (Penguin Lives).

1. I like the Penquin series of short biographies but this one was too much of a strange psychohistory. As other reviewers have pointed out, author Roy Blount seems to have a need to go into details 9at fairly great legnth) such as Lee's small feet and that he liked to play games with his children where they tickled his feet. First of all, I knew this because as a Civil way buff, I have read a lot about Lee so I come across such material. However, someone who knows less about Lee who is reading a very short biography would want to know more substance and less psycho nonsense in those few pages.
   
   There is not a lot of military history but, then again, this is a short book. Still, military history is basic to an initial understanding of Lee, therefore, perhaps Blount should have been more carefully in allocating scarce page space in this short book. In general, I have enjoyed reading short biographies of historical figures I am familiar with. I have read several biographies of Grant, for example, and I found two short biographies to be worthwhile in that in the few pages, they added insights. I suppose this book is OK for someone who knows nothing about Lee but it would be better to include more of the military and political facts. However, I found that it didn't really add much to my personal understanding of Lee.



2. In the pantheon of American history, few figures are as elusive and unknowable as Robert E. Lee, the commanding general of the Army of Northern Virginia and the principal Confederate military leader in the Civil War. To try and encapsulate his life into one small, concise little book is pretty much impossible, but Roy Blount Jr. tries his best. And for that, he is to be applauded.
   
   Over the course of less than 200 pages, Blount examines Lee's life from his troubled past (Light-Horse Harry Lee, his Revolutionary War hero of a father, abandons the family and leaves his mother to raise their children), to his early military career (including brave missions for Winfield Scott during the Mexican-American War), up through his Civil War generalship and subsequent retirement to a small college to live out his last years. And Blount does it with the charm and wit that make him one of America's (and the South's) most treasured writers.
   
   Robert E. Lee, more a marble giant than a man in most other biographers' attempts, is fleshed out by Blount as a stoic, almost Calvinist man with some unusual attributes that make him more attractive than before. Blount does not try to apologize for Lee's decision to side with his state over the Federal Government, he also tries to illuminate Lee's human side with interactions with his children and various ladies other than his wife over the course of his life. The Robert E. Lee that emerges is a man who had a hard life, with little hope for more than a passing whiff of happiness, who saw his duty to his state and his class overreaching that of the nation he served so gallantly before. And he paid the price for that in the end.
   
   Blount is at his best when describing Lee's human side (such as his flirtations with other women, his relationships with his children, his care of pupils while in charge of West Point), and also in showing that Lee's military record during the Civil War was less than perfect. Indeed, the book focuses on what Blount calls Lee's "instinctive" generalship and how his inability to communicate with his subordinates cost him victory at Gettysburg. Lee's war is not a success in the end, but his image as a fatherly leader of his men helps to cement the postwar elevation to Godlike status among the defeated Southerners who clung to the ideals of the Confederacy.
   
   Robert E. Lee is too complex a figure to be summed up in the space of 200 pages, but what Blount does is provide a quick survey of his life and infuse it with enough detail to make for a great brief appreciation. In appendices to the main book, Blount also discusses Lee's humor (his fondness for a certain, almost obscene phrase a highlight) and his attitudes to slavery (Lee was sadly a product of his times, no matter how "kind" he may have been to his own slaves). Blount, a southerner himself, takes pains to show Lee in real terms, not as the demigod he has been promoted to in the wake of postwar nostalgia. Robert E. Lee was not an easy man to know, and Blount makes no attempt to act as if his is the "definitive" study. But through clever and interesting sidetracks into Lee's personality, Blount comes as close as anyone yet to getting a handle on the man behind the curtain, the real Robert E. Lee and not the myth.
   
   Roy Blount Jr., through the auspices of Penguin's Brief Lives series, gives us a portrait of Robert E. Lee than transcends the myth and looks at the facts behind the myth. The result is a man that emerges as a troubled and complicated leader of men whose failings had as much to do with his legend as his successes. Blount makes Lee human, something that other more esteemed historians seem to miss. For that, he should be commended. The Marble Giant comes alive, however briefly, and fans and detractors alike can find something to treasure in Roy Blount's honest appraisal of his life and times.



3. I came away from this biography of Robert E. Lee feeling that the author didn't like his subject very much. It was almost like he wanted to prove that General Lee was just another man with more than his share of faults. He kept trying to pick Lee's personality apart and gave meaning to every gesture and casual comment that Lee had ever made. I felt that the historic facts in this book seemed accurate as far as I could remember from other things that I had read, but I also felt that there was not enough information given to substantiate some of the negative comments. He painted Lee as somewhat of a flirt, ignoring his wife, and being a cold and indifferent father to his children.
   
   If you want to read about General Lee, there are better biographies available.
   
   



4. This book fails Gen. Robert E. Lee.
   
   It's noble in intent and confused in reality; like the Confederate army, half of which deserted, it greatly misses its full potential; like Lee's ability to overawe Northern generals, the topic seems to have overawed Blount; and like the Confederacy itself, it's a sadly flawed effort in defence of a doomed cause. In other words, it's a fitting portrayal of the Slave-ocracy itself, all smoke and mirrors and little substance. People who live off the labour of others are rarely noble, decent, competent or useful; that is why the Confederacy failed, not due to the shortcomings of General Lee or any of his soldiers.
   
   Again and again, Blount approaches fatal flaws in Lee's character and comes away uninspired; he writes "Lee was a great defensive general but on offense he got away with murder." It's an astute assessment. But he doesn't suggest the outcome had Lee fought a solely defensive war instead of wasting his best troops in futile attacks.
   
   Even his assessment of Lee as a "great defensive general" can be questioned. At the start of his long retreat to Appomattox Courthouse, Lee had 64,000 troops. He inflicted 63,000 casualties on Union forces; but, at Appomattox, his army was less than 10,000. Lee lost 53,000 men, or 83 percent of his army. Had the Germans lost the same proportion in Normandy in 1944, World War II would have ended by Thanksgiving.
   
   Blount touches major issues again and again, then retreats without a single thought. He spends more time psychobabbling about Lee's shoe size, a 4 1/2 C, than discussing Gettysburg. Surely, in a 206-page book about one of the great flawed figures of American history, there is more intellectual depth than to report, "We have no evidence that Lee and his wife, Mary, ever massaged each other's feet."
   
   "No one has ascribed any psychological significance to this socks fixation," Blount writes later about Lee's complaint that his wife sent only 64 pairs of socks, instead of 67 pairs. Although his soldiers often subsisted on mule meat and green corn, Blount can't find any psychobabble to explain Lee's order to have a soldier at Antietam shot for carrying a "stolen" pig. But he explains in great detail Lee's murder of a Canadian "snake" early in his career.
   
   When it comes to pure babble, Blount says Lee's joining the Confederacy "is one of the most famous American decisions." So, he compares it to the purely fictional decision by Huck Finn to help Jim, a runaway slave, to escape. Such insight is surely equivalent to saying Roosevelt's action after Pearl Harbour was inspired by Superman's decision to save Gotham. This is history? Or is it Blount's sense of humour, testing the acumen of readers hoping for anything more serious.
   
   Having wrapped up Lee's life in 163 pages, perhaps the strangest element is three Appendix afterthoughts that fill up the otherwise blank space from page 165 to the end. Maybe those pages should have been left blank for readers to fill in their own notes, observations and ideas. Or he could have psychobabbled about 'General Lee', the Dukes of Hazard car.
   
   Regardless of anyone's opinion of him, Lee deserves better.



5. Obviously, to get a REALLY good idea of who someone was, one must read more than one biography, but Roy Blount, Jr.'s "Robert E. Lee: A Life" is a pretty good start for anyone who has slight trouble wading through the heavy stuff. It keeps a lighthearted air while still managing to be extremely informative. I learned some little things about Lee, which I hadn't heard anywhere else before, and it was presented in such an enjoyable fashion. I already have two people asking to borrow this book, and I'm confident that they will come out of it with no complaints, just as I have. Enjoy. There's no way you can regret this purchase.

5 comments about Memoirs of a Warsaw Ghetto Fighter.

1. Memoirs of a Warsaw Ghetto Fighter, written by one of the surviving members of the ZOB was a well-written account of not only life as a resistance fighter but also what life was like for the few that fought in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. This is an easy read and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning more about this period and what the Jews and all victims of the Nazis had to endure.



2. Kazik was a 19-year-old Jewish lad who survived the Nazi terror and systematic mass killings of Jews, the Warsaw ghetto uprising of 1943 and the Warsaw uprising of 1944.
   He was also led many fighters out of the ghetto through the sewer, and he was responsible for the care of many Jews who were hiding in Polish homes. Kazik also managed to find shelters for his parents and his two sisters, and after the war he was one of the very few Jews whose parents were still alive. After the war, Kazik, his sister Raya and parents all immigrated to Israel. Kazik's other sister, Dina, was killed during the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Kazik didn't at that time know that his sister was in the ghetto.
   
   I found the book interesting and heart gripping at the same time. It is amazing to read how Kazik manages to stay alive, and always seems to stay one step ahead of the Nazis and their helpers.
   
   Kazik writes how he found one thing difficult when he arrived in Israel: When he told people that he was one of the very few survivors, it seemed like some almost blamed him for having survived. Kazik tells how people kept on asking him about people who had died, but never about those who had survived. This made him reluctant to talk about his past.
   He writes about how one man told him that he (= Kazik) screamed every night in his sleep.
   If Kazik had made a volume II about his life after the war, I surely would have read the book. His history is fascinating, and I hope his life was mainly a happy one after he immigrated to Israel.
   I liked this book, and I found Kazik's story very interesting. Kazik tells us that he is not much of a talker, and that it was therefore difficult to dictate this book to the writer. Kazik may not be a talker or a skilled writer, but his story is one it is hard to forget.



3. The author is sincere and spontaneous in telling his personal experience. The description of events, places and facts is also very well. But from the very beggining it is clear that the author is not a writer (or, at least, not a good one.)
   I am convinced that it is not only a plain true story what captivates the reader but, more than anything else, the way it is told. This book is a good example of that difference.
   Nevertheless, an applause for Simha Rotem, an extraordinary human being that not only fought hard to survive himself, but also to save the life of others.



4. A good book written by one of the few survivors of the uprising. The author tells a harrowing story about what seemed to be a hopeless situation for the Jewish fighters as the Nazis decimated the ghetto around them with bombing and fire. The Jewish resistance fighters held off the Germans longer than the Polish army did. The author freely admits that he is not a writer and the story gets a little rough in spots but overall a good book from an insider who was there and lived to tell his heroic story.



5. I am disappointed in this book. The premise is good, and the author lived through it. However, this is a very uneven book. Even the author admitted he skipped around alot. There are so many Polish and Jewish names thrown in, I was wondering who the heck was who. The film made much better sense. I could have even rated this book a two star, but since this is the story of a brave man, I gave it an average rating.
   
   Kazik is a Polish Jew from Warsaw who saw his family imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. As a way of getting even with the Germans, he joined both the Jewish and Polish resistance. He was essentially a courier, who went from place to place organizing things. His story is the overview of NBC's Uprising. I liked the movie. His book was not as good, even though the movie is based on his book. Essentially he throws a lot of memories together, and states this was the story of the resistance. I think this author is a brave man, but his writings leave a little bit to be desired.

3 comments about The Gun that Changed the World.

1. Although, I only came upon this book by chance, and read it out of curiosity, I can see it falling short of the expectations of those who are serious firearms or military enthusiasts. Despite the title, this book is less a story of the AK-47, and more the story of its designer, Mikhail Kalashnikov. It follows him from his childhood during which he and his family were expelled to the fringes of Soviet civilization, through his service during World War II, and finally life surrounding his work as a weapons designer. As it is written in first-person based on interviews with Kalashnikov, the narration seems only loosely edited and has a tendancy to go astray in presenting the inventor's views on politics, people he likes and dislikes, and his constant humble reminders of the honors bestowed upon him for his design. While I found all of this fascinating, the relatively short length (150 pages) leaves the AK-47 as little more than an afterthought in context to the other events of Kalashnikov's life.
   The book also has a tendancy to repeat Kalashnikov's tiresome disclaimer that he has never actually seen any royalties from sales of his weapon (he never applied for a patent), nor does he endorse the ubiquitous nature of the AK-47 as the weapon of choice for terrorist organizations.
   Overall, this is a compelling and quick read for those with any interest in one of the finest weapons in military history, but its content and narration may be more suitable for a television program.



2. The title of this book is somewhat misleading. It's not a book about the Gun that changed the world, but about the designer of the gun that changed the world. It's basically composed of discussions with Mikhail Kalashnikov.
   
   We see a lot of biographies of people in the US or England. We don't see much of people who were born in Stalinist Russia before World War II, was sent to the Gulag with his family, was wounded in battle and wound up receiving awards from the president of Russia. It's a story of life in a society so far from what we know that it is difficult to imagine.
   
   Interspersed throughout the book are comments on the AK-47. But comments about how a change was made in the design of the breechblock are just as frequent as comments about the impact of the gun on the world scene. There are other books that cover the gun better than this one. But this is the story of the man behind the gun, and it's a fascinating story.



3. This book is not really about the gun, but about the person. I highly recommend it. You will get a better understanding of what it means to be a Russian, and how Russians felt and lived under Communism.

5 comments about Alexander the Great.

1. I worship ATG and feel sooo guilty because I should portend these intense emotions for the saviour, GOD and such but this man....Oliver I do not think u were much present for this direction as your commentary is wonderful but you do not even know how to pronounce your main characters NAMES...JESUS!! I found the red light of his arrow attack in India sooo obtuse and the back n forth history unrequired...BUT MUCH BETTER than the Burton film and then there is the bookend of the ring drop is VERY powerful, I just feel faint when I see that...his history is soooo profound and I appreciate your attempts to capture any part of it...Colin was beyone my comprehension as a superb actor with his incredible range, I know no other that could do this role....Angelina was beautiful, evil and loving simultaneously and I could care less about anyone's accent...I would have liked to see more of ATG's accomplishments (i.e. TYRE, etc) but know that this would have been a 16hr film...thank you all for giving me a wonderful excitement that there existed true leaders in this world...



2. A brilliant book. It reads like an historical novel, but it isn't. Sure, there is some speculation, but based only on the author's impeccable grasp of logic and circumstances. If you want to know about Alexander the Great, but want more than a list of dates and events - there is no better book than this IMHO.



3. I've picked this book up in a Florida mall basicly because the movie just came out featuring Colin Farrell. The film took me 3 hours and the book took me 3 months, but every piece of extra time was worth it.
   
   This book describes the hardships during the journey and is comprehensive in detail. Seeing the movie afterwards made it feel like so much detail was missing, it just wasn't the whole story. And the movie was based largely on this book.
   
   If you like the movie and want to take it a step further, I recommend this book. This is the real story.



4. 
   This is a big book in volume as well as content being over 500 pages long but Oxford historian Robin Lane Fox has contrived to make it interesting for the reader from beginning to end. Many facts have been written about Alexander over the years, some true, some doubtful and much that is pure speculation. This in turn has given Alexander a mythical quality, bordering on god like proportions.
   
   The author's writing style is both concise and lucid with no pretensions to the fact that he is the master and the reader by his very nature is the pupil. In a nutshell the author writes for everyone not just the scholar. This book is for anyone with an interest in the life and times of Alexander. The author progresses through the life of Alexander putting a little more meat on the bones with every passing phase of Alexander's relatively short life.
   
   This is a book for everyone. For those who have found it difficult, or even impossible in the past to read and I mean read a history book from start to finish, rather than just go cherry picking facts from the numerous pages, then this is a good book to get your teeth into. It can be read almost like a novel, but is far more interesting than any fictional book.



5. This is the best biography on Alexander the Great.
   
   It covers his entire life and a short period thereafter. We find Alexander growing up in Macedonia, being tutored by Aristotle, and his military training in his father's expeditions.
   
   Then we are taken on Alexander's military conquest of the known world. Through, the Middle East, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and to India.
   
   We have a front row seat on all the known battles.
   
   This book is the definitive biography of Alexander the Great.
   It is excellent.

5 comments about I Am a Soldier, Too: The Jessica Lynch Story.

1. When I first heard about the Jessica Lynch incident, i thought like most other soldiers at the time we thought she was a hero. THat was untill the facts came out. I served with the rangers when the jessica lynch incident happened, and most of us had already heard about the mishap. When the facts finally came out most of us were angry. Ive read the ghost written book, and seen the ghost written movie. For those of you who dont know what ghost writter mean its a book about a person or biography that written bye another person without much or any input from the actual person. However the actual interviews and personal statments of lynch are mostly diffrent. After the stories of the other people involved in the incident came out i knew she was no hero and that the real heroes would never heard from.
   
   The resons for Lynches hero status are for 3 reasons in this order.
   Pretty face
   A Women
   Politics
   
   For those of you who still believe shes worthy of a bronz star i will explain why she not. Most of these facts came from her interview with times and other television media (though i hate times i will use them anyway.) All these facts here down are by Lynches own admission.
   
   1. Didnt fire her weapon. Most will say her m16 malfunctioned and it did, though the trouble it had was the most common malfunction and easily fixed, a bullet got stuck in the chamber. This problem is easily fixed and usually caused by dirt (aka) sand or not enough lube. (why they didnt maintian their weapons is another good question) Every person in the armed forces from navy army air force to marines is taught sports (slap pull observe release tap squeeze) in basic no matter what their mos. Its one of the most important facet of military basic training. If she wanted to fix it all she had to do was pull the chargiing handle back, but nope she paniced.
   
   2. She tried to get another soldier in the humvee to fix it in panic but when they didnt (because they were to busy shooting) she threw down her weapon.
   
   3. She then curled up in a ball and started crying
   
   4. She had atleast 45 minutes to get over her sulking and atleast hand out ammo, reload weapons or even fix her own m16. (i might be wrong on time frame of ambush)
   
   5. she countinued to sulk as each of her fellow soldiers died around her.
   
   6. she surrenedered. Though i cant hold it against her for surrenedering.
   
   7. she came back home proclaims herself a hero with help of media and makes million dollar book and movie deals off of her dead friend, which wouldnt bother me so much if she actually did something heroic. And do give me the bull she want to be left alone, got to here website aka shrine to herself and look at the opening picture.
   
   Some of you might say well she never experinnced combat before and just broke down, while that may be true its not deserving of a heros status let alone a bronz star. She broke all of the core army values and then some.
   What makes me mad is that she was made out to be a hero, though there were several others people during that incident that did way more then she did and are deserving of silver and other medals.
   
   THe real heroes
   The soldiers in her humvee that protected her and shot at the bad guys while she sulked.
   Pfc Miller who was in a humvee few trucks behind her who deserves a silver star for taking out a mortar position with a "cough" malfunctioned rifle that he fixed.
   the other soldiers who died fighing.
   The rangers and seals who rescued her
   If you can trust the story, the doctors who protected her.
   
   The double standard
   
   Though i cant remeber her name off hand, the black female pow and 2 other soldier who were captured while fighing long before Lynches story. They didnt get bronz stars or a heroes welcome, why because their not a pretty face.
   
   And for those bush basher out there, no i dont think this was a propoganda thing to flm the rescue inbed reporters asked to come along with the rescue unit and they did. The hype over the incident was mostly the media doing, aka fox and cnn. The pentagon didnt put out the same number of release for the previous POWs.
   
   If you want the truth about the incident read her interviews right after the incident aka times and walter i think was the other one. The book itself is a sham.



2. This book is just what it claims to be, The Jessica Lynch Story. And she IS a soldier. All the reviewers who have chosen this format to start spouting political agendas based on their own theories are in the wrong place. People read reviews to decide if they want to buy a book, if they want to hear a bunch of media spin and MIS-information, then they can watch TV or read the New York Times.
   If Jessica had been a man and been rescued, that soldier would still have been given media attention, and probably a book deal. The battle that was fought during the time of her capture was one of the bloodiest and most deadly for our troops. Whether or not she actually fired her gun does not matter to me.
   Any solder serving in our military is already a hero. Anyone brave enough to sign up and go to war for our freedom, including the rights to speak about whatever we want, are my heroes.
   The people who sit home in front of their computers and televisions, spouting off arm-chair politics without knowing the truth are not educated enough in the facts to declare who is a soldier and who is a hero.
   So while I got off track in trying to compensate for the political reviews, suffice it to say that this book is an easy read. Well told from a young girls' perspective and something I would have never wanted to endure as a 20 year old girl; Rick Bragg has the perfect style to compliment the story.
   
   Soldier: 1.a person who serves in an army; a person engaged in military service.2.an enlisted man or woman
   Hero: a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal.



3. At first I didn't want to read this story. This woman was subjected to some great cruelity, and there is not much pleasure in reading about that. Lynch was a young West Virginian teenager when she enrolled in the U.S. Army. Her recruiter told her she could see a little of the world and earn some college money. Fast forward two years, and Jessica is in the battle of her life. Her humvee in racing away after an ambush and then an RPG slams into it causing her best friend to die and her to be critically injured. She is then subjected to three hours of cruelity by Saddam's Fedyeen. The Iraqi doctors at the hospital try to save her and then she is "rescued" by U.S. Special Forces. The rest of the story is about her homecoming.
   
   Jessie's story shows the cruel nature of war. Some of her fellow soldiers were executed in front of her eyes. She was abused for three hours by the Fedyeen. Jessie wishes this war was never fought because she lost her best friend. It also shows the friendship and sympathy she gained nationwide and especially in West Virginia. A nice story about the difficulties of the Iraq War.



4. I just saw on the news that she said this was fabricated. While I think what she went through was horrible, and she did survive it. There are a few issues. First of all she was out of it most of the time according to her. She did not fire a single shot. There were several real herose in the book who endured torture and stuff like that. It was dumb luck and she made money because of it.



5. Counter Terrorist
   I Am a Soldier, Too The Jessica Lynch Story
   The Jessica Lynch book, I am a Soldier Too, is about her time in Middle East, and her coming home. This woman was caught in route that every soldier has to go on. She was conveying in thirty-three vehicles operation. Lynch, was driving a truck, for the duration of five hours, and she was only going about nine miles. While driving the
   trucks, her transfer case broke. This rode, was very tricky for all; the commander was only given a cd-rom, and a global position device. The commander only hoped he could skip Nasiriyah, which was the danger zone.
   This battle in which many of the 507 Maintenance Company was attacked and killed was early in the war. This was a company of cooks, clerks and mechanics. The unit did not have any anti-tank weapons or grenades.
   Their where a lot of thing that soldier needed such as more land navigation training, and armored Humvee, and bullet proof vests, in the start of "Operation Iraq Freedom".
   Lynch wanted to serve her country, coming from a patriotic place, like Palestine, West Virginia. She entered basic July 20, 2001.She was only 18.She went to Ft Jackson were their motto read" Victory Starts Here". Her recruiter Sergeant Grady never lied, she joined to leave, Palestine, West Virginia for a little while and to see the world. Her birth control glasses, a army term referring to government issue glasses was what she got when she arrived, and a uniform that was to big but I guess the Army hoped she gain weight and get more muscle and fit into them. The drill sergeant saw her as weak, she learned Army values.
   The continue decline of needs of factories, and factory workers, leads to little chances for young people trying to come up. This predicament only gives the young people of many rural areas, the military. They can only survive, and still be able to leave their matriarch or patriarch rule.
   A soldier is not taught much in basic, often as a soldier you are told, you will get more when you get to your unit, or next time the unit decides to train on common task.
   Jessica as a young private first class was really not given enough training, and being supply, often times is to busy to train. This really hurt this girl, in my opinion. She had a great fear of being left behind, and this fear is very normal.
   The Iraq enemy was known for raping their captive women. This is always told by friendly, while discussing their enemy, throughout history. Although, during the time when Lynch was found, and brought to the hospital, in which she was treated, there was three hours lost, and some evidence of anal assault. Lynch is not sure what happened.
   Lori Piestewa had slightly more ready to go being a Specialist, but had a shoulder injury. Piestewa had not pick up Lynch she would not be home today. The sergeant that went with lynch was put in anther truck.
   One must think their where severely failure to this mission. Since this occurred basic training is longer, and most soldiers receive more land navigations training. The 507 Maintenance Company almost got wiped out; because of lack of basic convey proceeding.
   The weapons soldiers used, has long history of failing soldiers in combat. The M-16 needs to go. No soldier could keep this weapon clean in any terrain, this jammed weapons makes people die
   Basic convey proceedings include, having a working radio in every vehicle. Having flags on each vehicle, so they can be easily seen from a distance. Everyone traveling at a convey speed, establishing a catch up speed. Their must be a rally point for soldier, if some trucks get lost. Everyone who is part of convey, must know were they are going. It is also nice that everyone gets a, strip map. The soldiers must have grasp on mounted and dismounted land navigation. More Preventive Maintenance Inspection (PMI), these things did not happen in the beginning of the war.
   Jessica Lynch was taken to a friendly hospital. The hospital she was in made her a POW. While there she thought she was being tortured. She had a lot of leg trouble and Iraq doctor almost, decided to take her leg. The doctor had put a rod in her leg that was the wrong size. Jessica had a nurse that would sing to her. Iraq tried to move her Iraq ambulance could not get threw American check point. Changed to Saddam Hussein hospital, nurse would sing to her. Losing classes made it hard for her to see, she was not sure why she was saved. Cut her leg off to transport her to make her dog and pony show she worried about Lori
   While in hospital Lynch often times had thought of her friend Lori, Lori had a daughter named Carla and a son named Brandon and a son .Jessica Lynch did not know she died. The care Lynch got in hospital was the best the Iraq people had.
   Jessica was missing in action. Her boyfriend, Reuben thought she was all right. The Lynch family watched the news, for clues, to what had happened to their daughter. But, the Lynch family really knew that the military gave bad news in person. The family really felt like she was alive because she had a ability to hide even just within herself helped her in Iraq, where Jessica was from, the mountains. The family would say she was "Country Tough".
   Many things had to be done to the Lynch home for Jessica return. The whole neighborhood chipped in to make the home safer for Jessica. The town people were not sure how this girl would come back. A girl that got good grades in school, was a good kid and played basketball and softballs, Worried about her nails and hair, they were not sure how she would come home. The townspeople wanted to help the Lynch family, the father drove a truck, the townspeople wanted any way they can, since they can't go over their and do anything. The mom cut out horoscopes
   Jessica injuries were right arm shattered, made it useless.3 places in spine. During the rescue a Special Forces soldier put a patch in his
   
   hand to keep her calm her. She said to the soldier am an American soldier too.
   The army event of the 507 Maintenance Company there is phrase that was used to take the blame off other, and that is it was not a wrong turn but a missed one. The unit was hit by a rocket propelled grenades on a rode they should never have been near.
   Two years, has gone by since March 23, 2003, when Lynch ordeal began. In March 2005, there was a two year gathering, in which Lori Piestewa was honored. Lynch was given an award, by the Native American Veteran Council. This was multi Native American Nation event.
   The Siox and the Havasupai-Grand Canyon Tribe's tradition were represented, in the medal presentation.
   A Foundation was made to help Carla and Brandon Piestewa.This is called the Jessica Lynch Foundation. Later the foundation also helps other military veterans children and other veterans with injuries, am sure we will hear more from Jessica Lynch in the future.
   
   
   
   
   1)I Am a Soldier, Too, The Jessica Lynch Story, Rick Bragg, Alfred A .Knopf, Publisher, New York, 11/2003.
   
   2) I Am a Soldier, Too, The Jessica Lynch Story, Rick Bragg (Audio book, author reads book), Random House Audio.2003 Jessica Lynch, 2003 Random House, Inc

No comments about My Life (Hesperus Classics).

5 comments about Duffy's War: Fr. Francis Duffy, Wild Bill Donovan, and the Irish Fighting 69th in World War I.

1. I've read a lot about the American Expeditionary Force and the Fighting 69th, but Stephen Harris's study really expanded my knowledge about both. I'll certainly have a much better appreciation of Joyce Kilmer's "Rouge Bouquet" next time I hear it read and of the goings on at the River Ourcq next time I visit that battlefield. What I really enjoyed, however, was the author's biographical sketches and background on a whole raft of fascinating individuals. These include average Joes caught up in the adventure of lifetime, Medal of Honor recipients, plus well-known characters like Kilmer, Wild Bill Donovan and--most importantly--the namesake of the book, Father Francis Duffy. The good father turns out to be amazingly multi-dimensional: a good Samaritan to Teddy Roosevelt's returning malaria-afflicted Rough Riders, a learned modernist intellectual who works his way into his bishop's doghouse, a military politician of the first order, the proud protector of his Irish and unofficially Irish flock, and New York City's most beloved humanitarian. A strong recommendation for Duffy's War.



2. The 69th regiment, is one of the oldest and most famous units in the United States Army. It's history goes back to 1851 when it was known as the 69th New York Militia. ('A' company can trace its roots further back to the Revolutionary War.) The unit gained fame at numerous Civil War battlefields and Gen. Lee gave it the name 'The Fighting 69th.'
   
   This book takes the regiment into the next war, World War I, where its actions were no less heroic. It spent 170 days in the front lines suffering hundreds killed and thousands wounded. Perhaps its most famous members were Father Francis Duffy (whose statue is in Times Square, which technically is really Duffy Square), Wild Bill Donovan who headed the OSS in World War II, and the poet Joyce Kilmer ('Trees') who was killed. The regiment was part of the 42nd Rainbow Division under Douglas MacArthur.
   
   This is the full, previously unpublished story of the regiments actions in World War I and fills out a trilogy of stories concentrating on individual regiments by the same author.
   
   The 69th still exists. It was one of the first military responders at 9/11 - having two men killed there, and it was federalized and sent to Iraq in 2004.



3. This is a very good book and thoroughly researched about the Fighting 69th Regiment New York US Infantry. It provides a very detailed account of the Regiment's actions in the Great War of 1914-1918, although the United States did not declare war on Germany until early 1917. The Regiment was transported to France towards the end of 1917 and went into the trenches in February 1918. The book describes the various actions in which the Regiment fought and the doughboys suffered very heavy casualties in its advance to the Hindenberg Line. The book was based upon the writings from his diary of the regimental chaplain Father Francis P Duffy, who also wrote a book in 1919 about the Regiment, a copy of which has recently been received from Amazon and will be my next read.



4. My husband has this book in hardcover and liked it so much that he bought the soft covered version for an older gentleman he knows from the Catholic War Veterans: Father Duffy Post in Manhattan, NY. It is a well written and informative story that does great justice to the bravery and courage of this Catholic Chaplain and others from the Fighting 69th. It also tells the story of the immigrants of NYC as they fought and died together during this first World War.



5. Top notch telling of the adventures of Father Duffy and the Fighting 69th. Maqnificent battle sequences as well as historical background.Fine piece of work...R.D.Morgan..author of "The Tri-State Terror" and "Taming the Sooner State".

2 comments about Faith in the Fog of War: Let us Die to Make Men Free.

1. Once again Capt. Chistopher Plekenpol reaches down deep to stir your heart with more stories from war with Christ at the center. Writing with the ability to bring you face to face with the battles in your own life, Chris challenges you to look closely at your faith. Through the stories of life in war and the opportunity for personal reflection, you can't help but be changed.



2. After finishing Cpt. Plekenpol's first book, I immediately picked up the second, and was instantly captured again by his stories of war and God. This sequel has more intense stories of his time in Iraq, which makes it a real page turner. The applications from the stories will meet you where you are, and encourage you to keep fighting through whatever life is throwng at you! I would recommend this book to anyone who would like to get a firsthand account of what Iraq is REALLY like, or who needs some inspiration in their day to day life.

5 comments about Lee's Lieutenants: A Study in Command.

1. The abridged volume of Lee's Lieutenants is an excellent title for anyone interested in Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. I have looked at the original 3-volume series and the only difference as one earlier reviewer points out is that the footnotes have been taken out. Given that Douglas Freeman was the editor of a Richmond, Virginia newspaper, one would expect several pages of footnotes. However, the book's essence is still retained.
   
   Freeman covers the army's life from the Seven Days' Campaign in early 1862 to the bitter end at Appamattox in April 1865. He mentions just enough detail of the battles for the reader to comprehend the importance and result of each engagement. The deeper focus is on the main officers in Lee's army and their relationship with Lee and each other.
   
   The narrative is free flowing and is easy to read without being simplistic. Indeed, while the book is just over 800 pages, I found myself reading several pages on many occasions.
   
   If you are looking for a book about the Confederate side of the Civil War's Eastern Theater, then this is your read! The only gripe I had was the few maps - there could have been more and could have been more detailed. However, there are plenty of books out there on specific engagements that can make up for the difference.
   
   Read and enjoy. Highly recommended!



2. .....your time, and money, will be well used. Stephen Sears has done a one volume abridgment of one of the greatest works in the English language, and done it quite well. When this book came out in 1998, it filled a gap; Richard Harwell had written one volume versions of Dr. Freeman's other two masterworks back in the 1960's.
   
   For the uninitiated, "Lee's Lieutenants" is the history of The Army of Northern Virginia told from the viewpoint of those who served under the command of General Robert E. Lee. Douglas Southall Freeman's magnum opus "R.E. Lee" had been published in the late 1930's; Dr. Freeman was afraid that the "other generals" would be forgotten [and some would have been], so he published the three volumes of "Lee's Lieutenant's" during WWII. It quickly became a standard work for historians, and for students at every military academy on Earth. It was required reading at West Point for years, and may still be.
   
   The first two thirds of the volume focus on Stonewall Jackson, and the last one third on James Longstreet; that is proper. The others are not forgotten, which was the idea in the first place; John Bell Hood, A.P. Hill, D.H. Hill, JEB Stuart, Jubal Early, Dick Ewell, Billy Mahone, "Maryland" Steuart, Wade Hampton, Fitzhugh Lee, John Brown Gordon, etc., etc., etc. Dr. Freeman made the point that not every Confederate General was a hero, and that many mistakes were poured out of a bottle. Alas, he was right, BUT, there were far more good than there were bad and indifferent....
   
   Following Mr. Harwell's model, Sears had cut out all the footnotes and appendices, most of the bibliography, and much of the dialog. For 99+% of readers, this book is all you will need, or want. It will give you an excellent overview in a well written manner. I own three copies. Still...But... The full three volumes are absolutely definitive. They are not difficult to find at a decent price ["R.E. Lee" is difficult, and "George Washington" impossible]; I own two sets. While I heartily recommend the full version, I have to recognize that most people don't need to go that far. Read this; it may make you want more, and the full story will make more sense if you've read this first.



3. I have not read this abridgement. I gave it two stars because it is still Douglas Southall Freeman, more or less. I have read the three volume set twice now and no doubt will go through it again in the future. In three volumes this is a classic of the genre, books that set the standards for all the others, just like Shelby Foote's three volume compendium. An abridgement of this type is for the novice set. My opinion is that everyone who is interested should get the three original volumes. I believe they can still be found or at least ordered.



4. Even though the original three-volume version of Douglas Southall Freeman's "Lee's Lieutenants" is not absolutely punctilious about bowing before the altar of Twenty-first Century political correctness, if ever a historical study and a historian deserved five stars, it is this history and this historian.
   
   The book that has generated this review, however, is not the book that Freeman wrote but an abridgement, this is to say, about 800 pages rather than the 2,395 pages, plus CXLIII pages of introductory material and photgraphs, to be found in the three massive, dignified, black volumes issued by Charles Scribner's Sons at the height of the World War II paper shortages.
   
   As an abridgement of a masterpiece, this book isn't bad. But it is not the real thing.
   
   Even a little bit of Freeman is still a good thing, so four stars--but seek out Freeman's real, three-volume "Lee's Lieutenants"!
   
   LEC/AM/8-08



5. Bah, humbug. Having read the original 3-volume works (my parents gave it to me for Christmas of 1954), and re-read it from time to time, I found this abridgement unsatisfying and almost a mockery of the original. I recommend that any person seriously interested in the Army of Northern Virginia spend the additional money for the original.
   
   I supposed the current work would be satisfactory for a newcomer to the Civil War and might even give this work five stars. Freeman was the undisputed giant with respect to Southern History, also writing the 4-volume set "R. E. Lee, A Biography," and editing the 52-volume set of the "Southern Historical Society Papers," which is usually purchased as an adjunct to the 130-volume "War of the Rebellion, Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies." All of these are still available (for up to $2,500.00), and they are indispensible for the committed Civil War Historian.
   
   Freeman's prose is as lively and readable today as it was when he wrote in the 1930s and 40s. In fact, I would give five stars to all his works including "George Washington" and "The South to Posterity." I am not sorry I purchased the LL abridgement, as it is of course a good read, but not the reference the original was.
   
   So buy this abridgement, but then move up to the original or buy the original in the first place.
   
   Freeman develops all of the subordinate commanders of the Army of Northern Virginia, with a particular emphasis on Stonewall Jackson. Personnel from Major Pelham on up are treated with sympathy and respect even when their battlefield performance was not up to par. It is as if Freeman was emulating his hero, Robert E. Lee, who spoke kindly whenever possible about his people. There is no attack-dog writing here, but the reader will be able to form valid and accurate judgments from Freeman's evidence and commentary. Many of the generals featured in this work are not household names, not having been spectacular failures or featured prominently at Gettysburg. Officers like Ramseur, Rodes, Pegram, Anderson, Rosser, Early, A.P and D.H Hill, Pender, Gordon, Mahone and Field all come alive in Freeman's work, lightly in the abridgement, but thoroughly in the original.
   
   There is much to learn here, and much to be proud about for all Americans, Union and Confederate.

3 comments about Muhammad: Islam's First Great General (Campaigns and Commanders).

1. This is a scholarly attempt to look at the life of Muhammad, the founder of the religion of Islam, in a whole new light. The author intends to examine his military accomplishments, and freely admits his lack of qualifications with regards to the religious aspects of the Prophet's life. Those military accomplishments were considerable, and the ensuing discussion of the Prophet's life, through his military exploits, is interesting.
   
   The author begins with an overview of Arab warfare prior to Muhammad's epiphany. He spends several chapters outlining Arab politics at the time, and is especially careful to discuss military organization, tactics, and strategy, as much as he can. One difficulty is that during this era, warfare tended to be of the follow-the-leader variety, with little in the way of formal military organization, no standardization of weapons or equipment, no uniforms, no real organized units with a formal chain of command, pay structures, ranks, and that sort of thing. All of that, more or less, existed during the Roman or other ancient periods, but wouldn't re-emerge until towards the end of the Middle Ages. Instead, Arab warfare was essentially tribal, low-intensity warfare, rather like what the American Indians or African tribesmen practiced in later eras. Wars went on constantly between neighboring tribes, but could go on for years with ritualized battles and campaigns in which few, if any, warriors were killed. Instead, the tribes relied on these "wars" to provide opportunities for warriors to exhibit their bravery, and as an aside, they raided their neighbors, stealing livestock and women.
   
   Muhammad, rather like Shaka Zulu, changed the way warfare was conducted. In Shaka's case we're not sure why what happened occurred: some outside sources attribute his actions to influence from a white man, while African sources insist that his ideas were homegrown. Regardless, Muhammad's transformation is easier to trace, and Gabriel makes a point of it: he didn't come up with something new. Instead, he transformed one form of warfare into another, with devastating results.
   
   At this time, Arabs only engaged in war to the death when there was something called a blood feud occurring. Such events could last for years, even generations, but they tended to be rather vicious. Essentially, in Arab society, there was no objective right or wrong. Instead, everything was based on the tribe you belonged to. You didn't steal from those in your tribe (but you could steal from others). You didn't kill members of your tribe (but others were fair game, provided you were brave enough to defy their tribe). When someone from your tribe was killed, your highest duty in life was revenge the death by killing the killers, which in turn could of course lead to that tribe wanting revenge against you. The only way out of this was to pay money to the relatives of the dead.
   
   Muhammad transformed Arab tribal warfare by making all wars between Islam and non-Muslims blood feuds. This meant that while he was alive, anyway, warfare between him and non-believers only stopped temporarily. He believed that fighting must continue until either the other side surrendered, or they paid that blood money for the insult done to Islam (by not joining it). This sort of warfare, where things were brutal and you showed no mercy to the enemy, was completely confusing to the Arab pagan societies around the original Muslims, and it conquered them in short order during about a decade.
   
   This book is interesting, and it spends a lot of time discussing tactics, organization, and equipment used by the Muslims and their opponents during the era. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone not interested in military affairs: it's pretty dry and workmanlike as far as the writing goes. The author's a professional soldier who now teaches at Canada's military academy, and it shows in his writing. Nevertheless, if you're very interested in Muhammad or in military history, this is a good book.



2. Muhammad: Islam's First Great General is not a typical biography Muhammad, prophet and founder of the religion of Islam. Military historian and retired U.S. Army officer Richard A. Gabriel presents a close examination of Muhammad as a military genius, who introduced innovations that would transform armies and warfare throughout the Arab world. With a keen eye upon the connections between social, economic, and cultural environment in which Muhammad lived and the religion he founded to Muhammad's military achievements, Muhammad: Islam's First Great General is an exceptional chronicle of how a brand-new religious movement survived its tumultuous birth through eight major battles, eighteen raids, and thirty-eight other military operations in its first ten years alone. Also covered is Muhammad's masterful application of nonmilitary methods including bribery, alliance building, and political assassination, to fortify his long-term position and goals, even at the expense of short-term military objectives. Muhammad: Islam's First Great General reveals how Muhammad's talents and inspirations enabled his successors to defeat the armies of Persia and Byzantium, and establish the foundations of the Islamic empire, and is a singularly fascinating study of historical warfare and leadership. Highly recommended.



3. Although the authors many military history books and his international recognition have been familiar to this reader, the new information provided in this book, earned my appreciation.
   A new presentation of the Prophet as a military leader put the conflicts which are being played out in our days appear in a clear historical light providing precedents.
   The book is a very important contribution to understanding Islam since it is the only book from the military history of this leader