2 comments about The Moral Vision of Cesar Chavez.

1. Frederick John Dalton is to be congratulated for this beautifully written and spiritually inspiring study of the moral vision that underlay Cesar Chavez's activism. Following in the tradition of Jesus, Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker movement, and the Berrigan brothers, Chavez's orientation was biblical to the core. He preached and practiced nonviolent resistance, personal and group sacrifice, the transformative power of love and forgiveness, and individual prayer and meditation as essential tools in working for peace and justice. Unlike so many activists then and now, Chavez wasn't concerned with protesting and demonstrating just to say "No." More fundamentally, he was interested in working for social and economic conditions that would affirm people with a resounding "Yes!" Chavez's deep faith in God and the Gospel of justice and peace grounded that "Yes" and made it truly prophetic. As he himself said, "What keeps me going? Well, it's like a fire--a consuming, nagging everyday and every-moment demand of my soul to just do it. It's difficult to explain. I like to think it's the good Spirit asking me to do it. I hope so...If you really want something, you have to sacrifice. Because of my faith the concept of sacrifice is understood" (p. 162).

   This is a must-read for anyone who yearns to integrate a passion for social justice with a deep, mystical faith in God. Cesar showed us, as all genuine mystics do, that the two are not only incompatible but necessarily conjoined. Dalton's sensitive and well-written study has done Chavez proud.




2. Cesar Chavez has been likened to the American Gandhi, using the powerful tools of nonviolence, including fasting with prayer and mass mobilizations, to affect political change, labor rights and human rights for his people, our people, for Americans now again forgotten, rejected, despised, blockaded, dispossessed. We need him now. We need him again. Read this book. Be him now.
   
   Published by the excellent Catholic printing house Orbis Books, this biography was written by a professor of moral theology at Holy Rosary College in San Jose who briefly and intermittently volunteered for the UFW after the death of Cesar Chavez, whom he had seen once deliver a speech.
   
   I met Mr. Chavez a few times nearly twenty five years ago at Mass in the tiny chapel of the Maryknoll House in Manhattan, as he was visiting during conferences in New York. Mr. Chavez was ever a faithful and a profoundly practicing Catholic, inspired by our Faith to work for peace and justice and labor and human rights for the most poor and despised, just as Our Holy Father His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI recently exhorts us in Sacramentum Caritatis: el Sacramento de la Caridad: una Exhortacion Apostolica Postsinodal that the Eucharist in itself compels us to alter the unjust economic structures which entrap so many of us in desparate poverty.
   
   Ceasr Chavez therefore inspires and guides all Americans and all Catholics in the true realization of living our Faith integrally. Professor of Moral Theology Dalton here examines deeply the life of Mr. Chavez, exploring his moral vision and his true path in Faith.
   
   Briefly the professor sums up this intense and real moral vision thusly:
   
   "Cesar's moral vision centered on sacrificial service, solidarity through voluntary poverty, nonviolent confrontation, and faith in God and others. These virtues shaped the identity and character of the union community just as they shaped Cesar's own identity and character. These characteristics were from Cesar's perspective, non-negotiable (p. 152)."
   
   I fonud the references to the great Bishops Connelly and Curtis of Connecticut tantalizing yet welcome. Despite the revised Code of Canon Law's bias which might throw cold water on such faith necessities, they performed truly Catholic work in line with Pope Leo the Great's famous encyclical Rerum Novarum, a courageous labor which may be studied more fully and thus usefully at Cesar Chavez, the Catholic Bishops, and the Farmworkers' Struggle for Social Justice. We need them and their truly Catholic hierarchical witness and orthopraxis and deeply moral vision and integral living of our Faith now more than ever.

5 comments about Stonewall Jackson: The Black Man's Friend.

1. This is an excellent work on the in-depth Christian character of Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson. Mr. Williams has obviously spent countless hours gleaning the information contained in this volume. His interviews with several direct links to the Lexington Colored Sabbath School add just the right touch to tie all the information together.
   I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking information on the true character of T.J. (Stonewall) Jackson.



2. I find this book extremely interesting. The other side of General T. Jackson and the work he accomplished within the Confederacy. A must for the students of Stonewall Jackson.



3. This is an excellent book about a side that most people do not know about Stonewall Jackson. Not only was he a great general, but he was also a great man and christian. I found this book easy to read and really enjoyed it.



4. REJOICE IN THAT DAY WHEN THEY CAST OUT YOUR NAME AS EVIL
   
   REJOICE
   
   This book has had my name on it and I had a hard time finding it. The book is dear to my heart in that I do not think the whole truth has been told about the South and the Civil War. Somehow I may be related to Stonewall Jackson. Most of my ancestors were protestants from Northern Ireland as were Jackson's.
   
   This is the book to read to reveal a gentler glimpse of slavery in the Old South. Stonewall Jackson broke a Virginia law by teaching his slaves to read and teaching many others about Christianity. Mr. Williams presents this untold story of the famed Confederate General as Stonewall's most enduring legacy. Many descendants of Jackson's black Sunday School class completed divinity studies and have pastored untold hundreds of others in the way of the cross. The blacks of Lexington, Virginia loved Stonewall Jackson and that love was passed down for generations to people like Richard Williams.
   
   The book is a true gem, not to be missed for a completed view of slavery in the Old South. Thank you so much, Mr. Williams.
   
   This side of the Civil War story has not been told. Little do you know the real reason why Thomas Jackson left the U.S. military. His commanding officer was using his influence, as we would say today, to obtain sexual favors from a little slave girl. Such were some who liberated the slaves and their descendants are here with us today. The abolitionist movement was christian supposedly too, yet what a huge mess they made in my neck of the woods. O.K. Being a christian man of honor, (would that there were more these days), he quietly left the service, though his immediate family knew the real reasons. Most people see white southerners as hypocrites. We live in the bible belt, but we're not really christians in that many of us had slaves at one time. I could go on and on about this subject. Careful who you listen to, careful who you ally yourselves to; 99.99999999999999999999999% of self-professed christians ARE NOT.
   
   IF the truth be told.



5. This book is very informative and very accurate. It is told from the viewpoint of the Black People. I would recommend it to everyone who is interested in the truth about the history of the Civil War and Stonewall's compassion for the Black People.

3 comments about Hidden Lives: A Family Memoir.

1. Hidden Lives is the story of four generations of women in Forster's own family. She uses her brilliance as a novelist to create a fascinating and emotionally compelling history. Without going into dry statistics she gives us a picture of the lives of working class women in Carlisle, England from the late 1800s to her own successful life today. It tells social history through the ordinary details of everyday lives, but on another level, the book is just a great read and highly recommended.



2. I really enjoyed this book. It moved me to think about all the people in my life and all the people before me. Margaret Forster writes with so much feeling and depth. She guides you through the people and the events surrounding these characters and it seems you too may have family relatives just like hers somewhere. Margaret Forster is a highly skilled writer. The strength of this memoir I felt was in is the detail and the social commentary. It is also a great tribute to women and their work and their many roles in life.



3. this is an excellent and riveting tale of the depressing lives of the author's mother and grandparents. But, at the end it is akin to turning the last page of an Agatha Christie and reading "and thus the identity of the murderer remains a mystery". The fundamental questions raised in the first pages are never resolved.

1 comments about Jesse Ventura (A & E Biography).

1. Now that Jesse Ventura and his stint as governor of the Minnesota has been relegated to a footnote of American political history, this juvenile biography from the A&E "Biography" series reminds young readers of what all the excitement was about. The headlines and talking heads were all about the fact that Jesse "The Body" Ventura was a former professional wrestler, which overwhelmed what could (and perhaps should) have been the true story, which was that a third party candidate was voted into major office. The back cover of this book claims that Ventura's "upset election victory shook the structure of modern politics," but what we have seen in both Minnesota and across the United States is that his election was a political aberration. However, Keith Elliot Greenberg certainly explains why Ventura was the right person in the right place at the right time.

   (I know some of you are wondering whether or not I voted for Ventura. No, I did not, because I did not think he had a chance to win. If I had thought that he really had a chance to win I probably would have voted for him because shaking the structure of modern politics certainly appeals to me.)

   Greenberg begins with Ventura being sworn in as governor and points out that electing a professional wrestler is not the same as having a former actor Ronald Reagan be president, former NBA star Bill Bradley be senator, or Sonny Bono being a Congressman. He also emphasizes the idea that Minnesota has a reputation for being different when it comes to politics (a sidebar later in the book examines the state's renegade tradition), and points out that Arnold Schwarzenegger was sitting in the second row when Ventura was sworn in (they had been in the 1987 film "Predator" together, which speaks well for any attempt by Carl Weathers to become a governor).

   The rest of the book tells the story of how James George Janos became a Navy SEAL, a professional wrestler, Hollywood actor, radio talk-show host, and mayor of Brooklyn Park. It was those last two that came together with Ross Perot's Reform party movement and voter outrage to get Ventura into the 1998 election. The chapter on Ventura running for Governor includes lots of quotations from the campaign, most of which make some telling point about the process of contemporary politics. Greenberg also covers Ventura's more controversial ideas, such as legalizing prostitution and not having the government pay for college education, and relates how the major party nominees for Governor ignored Ventura. Consequently, young readers will have an appreciation for the various factors beyond Ventura's one-liners that brought the political stars into alignment for his election.

   This juvenile biography of Ventura does not cover his administration, which might be fitting because it was all down hill once he became Governor. That actually helps reinforce whatever lesson there is to learn here, because Ventura's term in office would be an entirely different story and a decidedly different lesson. The book is illustrated with photographs from Ventura's personal life, colorful career, and the political campaign. The back of the book includes footnotes sources and an index. Other paperback editions in the "Biography" series look at George Lucas, John Glenn, Legends of Dracula, Princess Diana, and Rosie O'Donnell (which makes me wonder why Glenn is on that list given the pop culture direction the rest of the titles seem to indicate).

5 comments about Mo: The Life and Times of Morris K. Udall.

1. The authors do a masterful job in telling the story of one of America's most valuable public servants during the 2nd half of the 20th century.

   The authors, two gifted journalists and writers chronicle the good, bad, ugly, and the excellent parts of Mo Udall's extraordinary career in congress.

   And (a terrific plus) this is a very readable book. I love reading authors who can tell a complex story using simple everyday English -- the kind they use with thier friends. This is real nitty-gritty history -- documentation, footnotes, and all -- but the story reads fun and easy. I highly recommend it.

   Jay Rochlin




2. This meticulously researched and scholastically outstanding biography of Morris Udall follows his life and political times, focussing on his career, his 30-year congressional history, and his radical challenges to seniority systems. Recommended for anyone studying contemporary American politics in general and House/Senate politics in particular, Mo is a "must" for the legions of Mo Udall supporters and admirers.



3. Its amazing how quickly we forget our leaders. After serving 31 years in Congress, running one of the most likeable Presidential campaigns in history, and nearly getting elected majority leader of the U.S. House of Represenatives, Democrat Morris Udall's political career was cruelly and tragically brought to a halt by Parkinson's disease. Once famed as perhaps the wittiest man in Congress (as well as one of the most effective), Udall died seven years after his retirement -- his sterling wit permanently silenced as the disease robbed him of his ability to speak. Most tragically, this man who -- with his brother Stewart -- co-founded both the current conservation movement and America's first Mormon political clan, died a forgotten figure, remembered only by a few political junkies like myself. Fortunately, however, Donald Carson and James Johnson have produced a wonderfully engaging biography of this man that gives us a warts-and-all portrait of a remarkable public servant. While giving ample reason why the man was so beloved, they also don't flinch from revealing why Morris Udall ultimately remained a mystery to even his own family. Unlike other political biographies, this book neither sets out to debunk or canonize Rep. Udall but instead stands as a sharp portrait of a complex man whose public service -- whether you agreed with his liberal politics or not (I certainly don't) -- made this country a better place.

   Written in a breezy, conversational tone that still manages to maintain a proper biographical distance, Mo follows Udall from his strict Mormon childhood in Arizona to his first election to the U.S. House. While a great deal of the book focuses on Udall's legislative achievements -- Udall was an environmentalist before it become trendy -- the best of the early chapters deal with Udall as a liberal upstart setting out to reform the stodgy House. As Udall himself would often wryly point out, his political life was often a bizarre tragic comedy of second-place finishes that ultimately became victories for others. Both of Udall's insurgent campaigns for both Speaker and Majority Leader ended in failure but sparked the revolution that overthrew (however briefly) the Congressional seniority system. The book's highlight is the detailing of Udall's 1976 campaign for the Democratic Presidential nomination where he managed to finish second in a record number of primaries without ever once finishing first. If Udall didn't set the electorate on fire, he did distinguish himself by revealing himself to be one of the most genuinely witty Presidential wanna-bes to ever pop up on a primary ballot (or, as one columnist put it, "Is Morris Udall to funny to be President?" That's the 70s talking. As of late, some genuine and intentional humor in American politics would be a bit of a relief, I'd think.) The campaign made Udall famous for his wit but as this biography reveals, that wit often concealed a rather distant temperment that so focused on work that even his own children grew up calling him "Mo." As a politician, Udall was that rare thing -- an honest and sincere compassionate liberal who actually saw big government as a way to help the downtrodden. Yet this same man who dedicated his life to helping strangers drove one wife to divorce and another to alcoholism and suicide. The dichotomy makes for a fascinating read and Carson and Johnson explore these issues without ever descending into lurid muckracking. The book concludes with a touching (and quite frankly heartbreaking) section dealing with Udall's final, brave, and tragic battle with Parkinson's Disease (which, as I read it, was also sadly reminicent of Ronald Reagan's -- another politician never given the respect that was his due -- current battle with Alzheimer's; another nefarious disease that, like Parkinson's, cruelly robs men and women of their dignity without reason or warning.)

   Despite the fact that, politically, I'm probably about as far to the right as the late Congressman Morris Udall was to the left, I still find myself mourning the comically tragic failure of his 1976 campaign for the Democratic Presidential nomination. As the election was the first post-Watergate election and the Republican Party was going through one of its periodic near-deaths, the election of a Democrat was pretty much assured. All Udall had to do was win the nomination and, for four years at least, a one-eyed, 6'5, former probasketball player and nonpracticing Mormon named Mo Udall would have been President. Of course, the nomination didn't go to Udall but instead went to the far less witty Jimmy Carter. Considering the way the world was in the late 70s, its doubtful Udall would have had any a better time of it than Carter but instead of hearing that America's problems were due to "malaise," a President Udall would at least find time to tell at least one corny, Ayatollah joke. And, even if the voters didn't realize it at the time, America would have been better off for that joke. Just as its now better off to have this book to remember Morris Udall by.




4. Every student of U.S. politics or Arizona history should read this book. Carson and Johnson thoroughly and brilliantly chronicle the life of a man who profoundly influenced the course of America in ways that politicians of greater renown never did. The authors reveal how Mo Udall could champion the most liberal causes and yet gain the respect of someone as conservative as Barry Goldwater. Read this book and you'll wonder what turns America might have taken had Udall fulfilled his dream of becoming president.



5. Morris King Udall was one of the great Democrats of the 20th century. After reading this book, you will see why - and you will also regard "Mo" as one of the greatest legislators of the last century. Rep. Udall certainly was one of the most complicated.
   
   The strength of this book rests in the writing style as the authors present a human portrait of a legendary politician who is model public servant. The writing is tight and the story is brisk. The book is a solid work that covers all the facts in Udall's public and private lives - warts and all. It is a perfect blend of personality and public policy as the book discusses Udall's towering legislative achievements regarding environmental protection and Native American rights, his legendary and futile White House run, all the while describing the price his career cost his family and, with heart-breaking impact, the toll Parkinson's Disease took on the legendary Arizonan and his unrelenting battle against the illness.
   
   By the end of the book, regardless of political persuasion, you will regret that there are no more Mo Udalls in public life today. And, you may lament, as I did, that Morris Udall never achieved his dream of serving as President of the United States.

No comments about Ralph Johnson Bunche: Public Intellectual and Nobel Peace Laureate.

No comments about William Howard Taft - Progressive Conservative Leader (Biography).

No comments about Mao and the Chinese Revolution (Interlink Illustrated Histories).

5 comments about Wesley K. Clark: A Biography.

1. Felix has written a very positive, but not especially deep, biography of former and probably future presidential candidate Wesley Clark. This looks like something of a political leap for her, since she has written bios, apparently equally uncritical, of Laura Bush and Condi Rice. But it's less of a leap than it seems; there is nothing in this book to offend the strongest Clark supporter, but also nothing to offend partisan conservatives. For instance, Felix mentions that Clark's decision to run for President in 2003 was motivated partly by his disapproval of the direction of Bush's policies, but goes into little detail about what he disliked or why.
   
   What she has focussed on is a list of the many highlights of Clark's life and career, from his early successes in High school swimming and forensics competitions to the numerous companies that invited him to become a director from 2000 - 2003. She particularly highlights the impressive list of awards and honors Clark has won, from "Boy of the Year" as a Little Rock teen and the oddly named Peruvian Army plaque (for 1st in his class at West Point) to the Presidential Medal of Freedom after his retirement from active duty.
   
   Most of the book is necessarily about Clark's career in the military. There's an important and potentially fascinating story here of how the US military rose from its disastrous post-Vietnam condition to become the efficient powerhouse of the first Gulf War and the Kosovo campaign. The generation of young officers who served as junior field commanders in Vietnam and then rose through the ranks, such as Clark and Colin Powell, played a big role in this story. Felix does show Clark's focus throughout his career on training and the welfare of his troops, but her account of Clark's rise is too much a listing of positions held, units commanded, and honors awarded to adequately tell this broader story.
   
   Certainly those unfamiliar with Clark and his background will learn a lot from this book; those already aware of the general story from the coverage of the 2004 campaign will be disappointed by the relative lack of new information. The book reads almost like one aimed at children due to its short length, simple vocabulary, and generally superficial treatments.



2. This book is very thin as a biography; it appears as something produced in haste to take advantage of the national political scene. My interest was on General Clark's military career with an emphasis on the early years. The writing appears as a collection of comments from past officer efficiency reports and some of the narrative from awards and decorations General Clark received over his long career. It was obvious that the author doesn't know much about the military as an organization and it shows. General Clark deserves a better biography written some someone who understands the military culture as well as national politics; Ms Felix did the basic job of putting the facts together; she didn't take the time to do an interpretation of the facts. Over the past few years as more is know about General Clark, the critics both in and out of the military, are providing many valid questions for the next biographers.
   
   Full disclosure: I served as the brigade operations sergeant for then Major Wesley Clark in Bamberg Germany in 1977. Of the five operations officers over three years plus clearly Clark was the most brilliant, intelligent and complex of the five and two of them, still friends today, were really intelligent officers and worked well with the Noncommissioned Officers Corp. I was disappointed that his time as a battalion and brigade operations officer was skipped over. Besides, the biography misspelled the name of his rater Lt Col Dick Schonberger. All that not withstanding, I bought several copies of the book to give to others who were in Bamberg at the time.



3. It's a good read, but didn't add much to what I already knew. But I doubt that it was written for avid Clakies.
   
   I'ts breezy, easy to read, and a good primer or introduction to Gen. Clark who don't know much about him.
   
   Stan Davis
   Lakewood, CO



4. This is a great primer on the life of Gen. Wesley Clark. I think this would make a great pairing with Clark's own book "Winning Modern Wars." Both books gives the reader thought to how the military and the White House work together. In Felix's book she paints a picture of an American who not only worked towards his American dream he gives back to his country.



5. For folks interested in the prestigious and impressive history of Wes Clark, this book presents the basics. While not the in-depth biography I hoped for, I found it - coupled with Clark's own "Winning Modern War" to provide a fairly fleshed out picture of one of our history's greatest Generals.
   
   Worth a read.

No comments about The Political Legacy of George D. Aiken: Wise Old Owl of the U. S. Senate (Regional Interest).