5 comments about William McKinley (The American Presidents).

1. I have read 5 or 6 volumes from the American Presidents series, and this one is entirely different in approach. It is not a straight chronologocal biography like the other volumes in the series, but a political analysis of McKinley and his administration.



2. Kevin Phillips has been a political and economic commentator for more than 30 years, and written many books. William McKinley was elected to two terms and avoided any major scandals. America became a world power in his terms. McKinley was the best of the seven Ohio-born presidents. McKinley's reputation declined after 1932 with the changes in tariffs, the gold standard, and the power of corporations. Phillips lists six beliefs about McKinley that he calls "calumnies" (p.4). McKinley's inscrutability, avoidance of written commitments, and oratorical style shows "great political skill" says Phillips (p.5). McKinley was a progressive Republican (p.6) and deserves a better reputation. McKinley's children died young, his wife developed epilepsy (p.25). [This book lacks a map of Ohio in McKinley's times.]
   
   Chapter 1 tells about Ohio and William McKinley. After the Civil War McKinley became a lawyer and entered politics. Chapter 2 describes a Modern McKinley. He was sold "like soap" in 1896 (p.30). Victrola records passed on speeches. He was the first president to visit California. The first permanent national labor union (printers) and the AFL started in Ohio, so did the United Mine Workers (p.32). McKinley defended striking coal miners in 1876. Tariffs kept American wages high (p.37). McKinley refused to profit from his political policies (p.39). The tariff questions of revenue and protection were recurring political issues (p.43). Then came the issue of silver currency (pp.51-52). Phillips explains the interests behind the conflicts.
   
   McKinley was popular with the party rank and file, and was nominated on the first ballot. The many recessions affected voting for Congress (p.64). Phillips doesn't mention the reason for Bryan's many campaign stops (p.75). It was to talk directly to the voters. Major northern cities backed McKinley (p.77). There were similarities between Bryan and McKinley (p.83). McKinley's term saw America become a world power (p.87). [This seems a little premature.] There was an entente with Britain. Expansionism was an American tradition (pp.88-89). The naval victories at Manila Bay and Santiago Cuba helped McKinley's popularity (p.96). It was a short and successful war. The Platt Amendment kept Germany out of Cuba (p.105). The annexation of Hawaii was to keep Japan out (p.106). Fear of Germany affected Britain's politics. McKinley's plans for tariff reciprocity died with him (p.123). McKinley intended to recommend an income tax (p.124). McKinley was friendly with labor (p.125). McKinley's cabinet continued with Theodore Roosevelt (p.127). McKinley had introduced Granger resolutions (p.128). Roosevelt enacted the Elkins Act and the Hepburn Act. There were threats to nationalize the coal mines and steel industry (p,129). McKinley enacted an arbitration system in Ohio. McKinley also began the naval increase (p.132).
   
   Chapter 6 concludes the reconsideration. Senators were chosen by state legislatures and were against progressive legislation (p.135). McKinley's assassination prevented him from achieving his political objectives (p.136). McKinley sought affection and popularity, but this was mistaken for weakness (p.138). McKinley's strength was shown by his running the State Department and the War Department (p.139). [Or did he put men there who he could override?] Those who knew him admired him (p.140). McKinley's thinking was formed by the Radical Republicans (p.141). Politics changed with the theories of Herbert Spencer (p.142). Phillips compares McKinley to Lincoln or FDR (pp.156-157), but admits McKinley was a "near great". This short chapter explains why. [McKinley's portrait was on the $500 bill, I think it should be re-issued.]



3. I was very disappointed by this book. As someone who didn't know much about McKinley, I read it with the aim of finding out all the basics about him - who he was, what he did, how he died. Yet after reading it I feel like I know little more than before.
   
   The entire book seems to be written as a rebuttal of other biographers' lackluster opinions of McKinley. Liberally interspersed throughout the narrative are refutations of supposedly popular beliefs about McKinley, from his education to his influence on his successor, Teddy Roosevelt. This would probably appeal to someone who has read several books on the topic, but it is a strange pick for the American Presidents series, which should be a basic primer for the uninitiated. The book says little about what specifics McKinley accomplished in his presidency, says little about the Spanish American War, and says nothing about his assassination, except for where it happened. I feel like I now have to go and look him up on Wikipedia to find the information that was not included in this book. If you are not already quite familiar with the topic, I'd recommend reading something else on the subject first.



4. This is yet another entry into The American Presidents series of brief biographies, under the general editorship of Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. One of the more intriguing facets of this series is the sometime use of eminent authors. Here, Kevin Phillips, a political commentator who once projected a Republican majority, writes an interesting work on McKinley, to some extent a political essay as much as a biography. His contention is that McKinley was one of the few really top notch presidents from Lincoln's assassination to FDR's service.
   
   The book argues that McKinley's rise in politics--from the Ohio state political world to president--was largely self-orchestrated. That he took control over his political ambitions (and was not a mere puppet of Mark Hanna, his key political operative later in his political career).
   
   Earlier in the book, his family background is described as is his solid service in the Union Army during the Civil War (indeed, he served with Rutherford Hayes, another American president--and another Ohioan).
   
   As his political career developed, Phillips argues that his political views were more "enlightened," for want of a better term, than many of his Republican peers. He had some sympathy and provided some support for workers; he seemed to have recognized the value of blacks and women having political rights; he exhibited a much more nuanced view of tariffs than standard pro-capitalist Republicans.
   
   When he became president there was one new aspect to his administration--no owing political bosses Cabinet positions and so on; some predecessors were hamstrung by deals made with party leaders in order to gain the office. His defeat of Bryan in the critical 1896 election helped realign politics. Phillips argues that there was another realignment--of America's international role after 1896, presided over by McKinley.
   
   All in all, an interesting take on McKinley as a person and as president. I think that Phillips does make a case that McKinley, while not a great president, might well be ranked as near great. One can be critical of McKinley's imperialism, illustrated by the Philippines and Hawaii. But he laid the groundwork for Teddy Roosevelt's presidency (indeed, Phillips says that Roosevelt's presidency needs to be coupled with McKinley's for something like a McKinley-Roosevelt extended administration from 1897-1909). At any rate, a useful short biography of William McKinley. A strong addition to the series.



5. Kevin Phillips is an odd choice to author a biography on Republican William McKinley but not a surprising selection given that Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. is the general editor of this presidential series. The author is a former Republican who worked in the Nixon administration and, like many Nixonians, grew disillusioned with the party and chose to serve penance as a far-left commentator for NPR and other leftist organizations.
   
   The author pursues a thesis that elevates McKinley to the rank of Near Great presidents as judged by occasional polls of historians (polls championed originally by Schlesinger's father, a progressive professor at Harvard who selected fellow progressives to rank the presidents with the unsurprising result that progressive presidents topped the list, ipso facto).
   
   With his bifurcated background, the author denounces McKinley's "middle class" heritage and views, instead touting a hidden progressivism the author espies in McKinley that coulda, woulda, shoulda emerged had only the president not been assassinated. The entire argument is off-mark not only because the author attempts to rebrand McKinley as a liberal progressive but also because recent polls of historians are no longer skewed completely to progressives and have already elevated McKinley, which is the cause célèbre of this biography (i.e. the two most recent polls both list McKinley at #14 all time, which is the rough position the author champions). The author's passion for developing this thesis is the reason that some reviewers lament that the second half of the book is less a biography and more a disjointed argument that McKinley is really a progressive.
   
   As a youth, the author developed an affinity for McKinley. While a member of the Nixon administration, the author shared many values with McKinley but, once he grew older, the author identified with progressives. In this book the author has attempted to translate his own philosophical journey to McKinley. I was not convinced by the argument but then I believe it is fatuous to hold that a president needs to be progressive to be considered successful.
   
   For those interested in McKinley or Teddy Roosevelt, the book is a decent introduction. The author does a good job painting a portrait of the culture and times that forged McKinley. The writing, especially in the beginning when he explores McKinley's Ohio heritage, Civil War service, and initial foray into politics, is well-crafted. Also, the author does an excellent job explaining why the Republicans pursued tariff protections so vigorously during this time period - a position at odds with the party today but understandable given the context of an emerging industrial nation.
   
   Bottom-line: I recommend the book for a quick read given the caveats detailed above but note that the second half of the book is more of a dive into the psyche of the author than an overview of the president.

5 comments about Soldier: The Life of Colin Powell (Vintage).

1. One of the best biographies of a political character that I have ever read. There are times where I lose track of who the players are and what a particular politician or officer's title means. Yet, overall I was able to follow what was going on and how it affected our nation. Powell did an excellent job of speaking at the Speaker Series. He was smooth and easy to follow with quips and humorous antidotes throughout the evening. He reminded me of that member of everyone's family who is easy to talk to and one who people are drawn to. That is probably why he has been such a great leader of our generation.



2. This biography of Colin Powell is very impressive. It details both his career as a serviceman and then as a political appointee for a period totalling almost 50 years.
   
   As a non-American, it is interesting to read a biography of an individual who is both influential in terms of the positions he has held, and a positive role model for many. Colin Powell comes across as a fundamentally decent human being in an environment where power can have a corrosive effect.
   
   I recommend this biography to anyone who wants to know more about Colin Powell and his life and times, as well as to anyone interested in understanding the world events and political influences within which he served the USA.
   
   Jennifer Cameron-Smith



3. Overall, this book is an excellent, informative look into the life of Powell. However, it certainly seems to have a definite slant towards the left in the personal opinions of the author, with opinions on Republican presidents and leaders being less favorable than those of the Democrat leaders. However, those slight tilts are so minute as to possibly be non-existent, but simply a figment of my own imagination.
   
   Overall, excellent reading, and a great source of recent American Historic overview in general.



4. Reviewed by Laura V. Hilton
   
   Colin L. Powell is probably one of the most admired men in recent American history. A military general and serving a tenure as U.S. Secretary of State, Powell also had a brief run for the White House which he bowed out from early due to threats made to his family.
   
   Soldier takes you on a trip to Powell's Bronx childhood days, as the child of Jamaican immigrants, and follows him as he grows up, enters the military, serving in Desert Storm, and then later serves as Secretary of Sate.
   
   Ms. DeYoung is associate editor at The Washington Post, and this shows in the book. Written in a straightforward, report-the-news style, she introduces us to the man so many of us admired, without a lot of flowery prose. The bad thing is that the whole story is told to us, and as a mostly fiction reader, that mean that I was able to put the book down a lot. That is the only reason I'm giving it 4 stars (out of 5). Otherwise, it was excellently told, very well-written, and very informative, including pages and pages of notes so if you doubted anything the author said and cared to research it, you could find the author's source with ease.
   
   I learned a lot about Colin Powell that I didn't know, and a lot about my country I didn't know--for instance, there is a War College to study war, both how to fight and how to avoid.
   
   The book is flattering to Powell, presenting him as a soldier, forever more, and is comprehensively researched.
   
   Armchair Interviews says: Recommended as excellent biography for students of history and to learn about this much-admired man.



5. I don't know what Karen has in mind but this is one book that does not have a table of contents. She seems to want more that readers read this cover to cover of 700 page book than saving reader's time. For someone one who does not respect reader's time, I give a one star review no matter how good the writing is!

2 comments about Reagan's Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 And the Rise of the Right (American Presidential Elections).

1. This little book is a disappointing analysis of the presidential election of 1980 by a conservative scholar of American politics. Even though it contains somme interesting insights about the political dynamics of the late seventies and about presidential campaigning at the end of the party era in presidential politics, the book does not add much to the existing litterature on these topics and suffers from its unmistakable -however hypocritical-conservative bias.



2. I thought this was a fair, nonbiased look at the 1980 Presidential election. The author covers all aspects of the campaign, from the summer of 1979 when it looked like Ted Kennedy was a shoe in to beat Jimmy Carter for the Democratic Nomination to the eventual Reagan landslide in November 1980.

5 comments about America's Queen: The Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

1. It was fantastic to be able to grasp a better understanding of the stoic, graceful beauty that was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It was great to see the different facets of her personality from political darling to yacht hopping party girl. Her desire to control and veneer everything that happened in her life was inspiring. Couldn't put it down, was consistantly interesting throughout.



2. My comments concern the narrator of the audio cd who felt that she had to change her voice inflection when she read quotes of various people. She talked in a soft wispery tone when quoting Jackie, however, she continued to use that same voice for any of the females quoted. She then attempted a deeper tone for the male voices. Due to all the voice shifting it was disruptive and the reading did not flow. Since it was a narrative and not a play it would have been more pleasing to the ear if the narrator did the entire reading in her natural voice.



3. Jackie Kennedy was the closest thing that America ever got to home-grown royalty. Her birth and upbringing in New York City, refinement, etiquette, and Olympian cool ... Jackie radiated a deep mystery that remains. She was iconic in her need for privacy and protectiveness of it. A woman of another era who remains enigmatic and unique in her persona ... an American icon who seems both American yet not typical of the United States. A sophisticate, debutant of the year, equestrienne, well-manner, posh Park Avenue social doyenne who intrigued the world until she died in 1994. Fluent in several language, a writer of poetry, political wife, patron of the arts, native New Yorker, and poised like any Queen in Europe. She wasn't perfect but she was Jackie. America may never see another quite like her.



4. Sarah Bradford has written a very complete story from Jackie's childhood to her death. There is lots of details about Jackie, as well as her husbands, JFK and Onassis. The book also focuses on JFK's affairs, and how much it hurt Jackie.
   
   Even before Jack died, Jackie was determined to be free from the Kennedy family. To separate from the Kennedy family, Jackie used wit and charm and focused on her children and her own interests, like art.
   
   One of the highlights of the book for me was how Jackie restored the White House. She asked for free donations, like a valuable portrait of Ben Franklin. She enlists the help of experts.Everyone seems willing to help her, because of her charisma and her position as first lady.
   
   I have no way to know how accurate this book is, but the author cites a lot of other books for research. Jackie was a very intelligent and determined lady. It is a shame that she died at only 64 years old.I enjoyed reading it.



5. This was a great book - it was packed with information. Sometimes it had a little bit too much detail in certain sections and it got a little bit boring. Overall, it was really interesting and I was glad that it was so well written as opposed to a quick read that leaves you with more questions. Highly recommended.

4 comments about Big Daddy: Jesse Unruh and the Art of Power Politics.

1. At last! A political biography that's also a page-turner! Bill Boyarsky's "Big Daddy, Jesse Unruh and the Art of Power Politics" is a great political biography that has everything; sex, war and larger than life personalities. Follow Jess Unruh from his roots in Depression era Texas though the turbulent sixties and seventies to the prosperous 1980s. Unruh revolutionized civil rights legislation and was instrumental in making California the great & prosperous state it is today.
   
   Bill Boyarsky has written an incredibly colorful book about the hard-drinking California politics of the 20th century, when politicians weren't expected to live like clergymen. Boyarsky brings this era to life with oral history from the principal players throughout Unruh's life. This book is great reading, and a fascinating inside look into the personalities that once ran California.
   
   Fully referenced and indexed, with lots of photographs, this book will be a welcome addition to any library and should become required reading for any student of California history or political science.



2. I found the book extremely interesting as I either knew or knew of most of the people mentioned. I wish there had been more about the numerous bills Jess sponsored and/or was instrumental in their passage. Also more about his ability to get along well with the Republicans and with Ronald Reagan when he was governor of California....and perhaps less about his "womanizing".



3. I have not finished the whole book; but at this point, it gives one a good feel for what it was like in Sacramento for politicians in the 50's and 60's. A most enjoyable read for a Democrat and Jesse Unruh fan, even though the book gives an objective view of Jesse and his faults.



4. A man of huge appetites--for power, food, drink, and women--Unruh shaped a political culture that was rough around the edges but got a lot of work done for the people of California. As an AP and LA Times reporter, Boyarsky covered Unruh in Sacramento and brings a valuable, first-person perspective to this story. He resisted the temptation to produce a tome; this nifty little book (265 pages) can be read in a few sittings. As a significant political figure in a fascinating era, Unruh could support a longer work, but I like Boyarsky's decision to keep it relatively brief and moving quickly.
   
   Boyarsky's portrait jibes well with a growing list of books on California politicians of that period. These include John Jacobs's bio of Phil Burton, Lou Cannon on Ronald Reagan, James Richardson on Willie Brown, and Ethan Rarick on Pat Brown. *Big Daddy* is a solid contribution to an impressive collective portrait of mid-century California politics.

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 My Life: The Presidential Years Vol. II (Vintage).

1. As a Clinton Democrat, I grew up with issues like Social Security and welfare in my mind. I found out more about Clinton from this book then watching him for the last 14 years on TV. Clinton uses easy to understand words yet at some points he uses more complicated rhetoric. A fun book to read and will test what you know about Clinton's term in office.



2. As someone who has written a lot about Bill Clinton over the years I was disappointed by his book. This was a chance for him to set the record straight on both the good and bad in his administration and he did neither. He talks about a lot of the issues but not how he approached them. He talks about what his administration looked at but not what he did and did not solve. He allows Yassir Arafat to get off completely free for his rejection of the Clinton plan the book is very well written and is still worth reading if nothing else to understand Clinton's perspective on what happened but overall it could have been far more enlightening.



3. A homecoming of sorts, as much for Clinton as his readers---it's a weaving together of philosophy, religion, sex, and a deep love of country. Book was not what I expected, but in a word it was, compelling. Mr. Clinton explains the stress in those years in a manner that leaves the Clinton gang, I'm sure, wanting less compassion for those who tried their best to destroy him and his family. That's the difference between a politician, any politician, and a human being.
   
   I too felt stress in those years. It was impossible to find employees--everyone who wanted a job had one. Even more stressful was what to do with the huge surplus of money in our national treasury. Then there was that fulltime worry about Bill's sex life. That wouldn't have been an issue for me had I had a sex life. Then there was all that training and money we were spending on our armed forces who were not out there earning their keep invading oil rich countries so the likes of Exxon-Mobil and Halliburton could exploit their natural resources.
   
   Life has been worry free for me during the Bush years. It's the minorities and middle income whites who are doing the worrying now--about things like where to bury their war dead, employment and paying the bills. I confess, I'm not sure how these people are going to handle the national debt with me getting a tax cut and them without a job. But Mr. Bush said not to worry. What a relief! I'm Bob Miller, a registered Republican.



4. Most interesting of all is reader reception. For some reason, hundreds of readers commented upon the first volume of My Life. Yet, on the second volume, I am the fourth to make any remarks. So, why do people pay such great attention to the "developmental" volume and so little attention to the "consequences" volume? That is the question of prime importance, in grasping how Americans, in particular, have been overly receptive to issues of character and less attentive to more critical issues of policy formation, in the crucible of current circumstantial events. People would rather cling to some indefensible opinion of the man than explore the interleaved nuances of public necessity and private interest that we call politics. [Perhaps, volume III will draw our attention better to the stories we ought to read, of American public values processes!]



5. As a long time follower of Bill Clinton, I have enjoyed his books. Clinton's time as President was overshadowed by his sexual encounters, which is disappointing. In my opinion, Clinton was an excellent President. Clinton gives insight in to his adminstration and the condition of the political world during his time in office. It's an unknown fact that we have only had two Presidents who did not have mistresses or affairs at some point in their lives. As Nixon had to face the music for Watergate, Clinton faced the music for his sexual indiscretions. Both became poster children for actions that neither were the first to participate in, nor the last, leaving their legacy's forever tarnished. Politics is a dirty business and for those who manage to endure the mud slinging and back stabbing, I take my hat off to them. Bill Clinton is a survivor who has managed to shake off past negativity, to reemerge as a strong and trust worthy leader. I highly recommend this book for any Clinton follower looking for insight in to the Clinton administration, as it is a very detailed, honest accounting of his life.

5 comments about Inside the Economist's Mind: Conversations with Eminent Economists.

1. Thomas Keene has an Amazon Listmania List called "Book Reviews: Must Reads." It links to each of the books in Amazon that he recommends as a "must read," and there currently are eighteen of them on his list. But oddly the Amazon system does not provide reverse links from the Amazon page for each of the recommended books back to his review.
   
   He is the very influential Host of the radio program, "Bloomberg on the Economy." This book is on his list of "must reads." Here is his review:
   
   "Rules are meant to be broken. Samuelson & Barnett goes on the list without a complete read. Sixteen stunning interviews; the candor shocking. But then, this is Samuelson. Taylor interviews Friedman; Blanchard interviews Fischer. You get the must-read picture."
   
   Keene's rule that he says he is breaking is never to put a book on his "must read list" before he has finished reading the book. When he finishes reading this book, as I have, I am sure that he will not change his mind.
   
   I have only one criticism of the book. The stellar endorsement quotations that appear on the back cover are set in a rather small font on a black background. It would seem that the publisher could have found a way to make those quotations more inviting to read. But of course this is not a criticism of what is in the book.



2. This is a collection of interviews commissioned for a journal, Macroeconomic Dynamics. The idea is to gauge the position of the profession by asking the people who invented large swathes of the theory their motivations for doings what they did, when they did it, and how they did it. Readers find eccentric and irascible characters behind some of the major innovations in economic science. I loved this book, and read it cover to cover in a day.
   
   The book purports (pg. xi) to "contain[] unique insights into the thinking of some of the world's most important economists, whose work contributed to the evolution of modern economic thought", and indeed it does.
   
   Scientific biography is a passion of mine, ever since reading Richard Feynman's writings on his life and work. Looking at the path integral method as an undergraduate, you can see how he came up with it (if, in fairness, I didn't really understand it), how startlingly original he was in doing his physics, because that's how he lived his life---he followed different paths as he felt he needed to, and arrived at different destinations that others because of his personality.
   
   So it's great that William Barnett, the editor of Macroeconomic Dynamics, and the co-editor of this book, decided to ask these men these questions.
   
   In future editions of this book and the further volumes to come, I'd love to see a focus on the characters behind different approaches to economics and their reasons for taking contrarian positions to the mainstream---Foley, Nell, Solow and Velupillai (my thesis advisor, in full disclosure), as well as more traditional mainstays of the profession. A focus on economists regarded primariy as great teachers would be great as well, not just the theoretical giants.
   
   The book is a very rare thing---an economic page-turner, like The Worldly Philosopher, Adam's Fallacy, and Freakonomics. The personalities behind the science's blleding edge make for compelling reading.



3. The editors should be commended on their choice of interviewees! A better, but still "mainstream", selection of major economists of the last half century could hardly be put together. While the selection is hopelessly skewed towards macroeconomics, it seems fitting, given the M.D. connection.
   
   Several interviews (e.g. Modigliani, Sargent) could be very interesting to graduate economics beginners, who'd like to put the contemporary tools and theories they learn in a more historic perspective. They also show how the rumors about the demise of "traditional Keynesian" concerns are largely exaggerated. (Modigliani is not shy about his views concerning unemployment in contemporary EU-15.)
   
   I don't find the book to be accessible to non-professionals or even to scholars in related fields such as PolSci. Some of the interviews are highly technical, which is not helped by the fact that the interviewers are often former students or junior collaborators of the interviewee. -- This is, I think, a good thing, since this level of discussion will be most useful for (future) professionals who look for insight and perspective rather than Principles hand-holding.
   
   On the down side, many interviews read like the interviewee is simply sampling his publishing record. "I wrote X and then I wrote Y..." The more politically-minded reader will be disappointed by the policy content (or lack thereof) in several interviews.



4. "Inside the economist's mind" is not a title that will attract readers without some background in economics, nor should it. This collection of interviews is by economists and for economists: there is a fair amount of economic jargon used that will make the book hard to read for laypeople.
   
   Having said that, most of the interviews are entertaining. Getting an author's personal view on well-known ideas makes those ideas come alive, and it is interesting to read about the career paths and choices of famous people. The selection of people is impressive, although in my personal view (as a micro-economist) there is an overrepresentation of macro-economists, and within this category an exaggerated interest for the rational expectations `revolution' and monetary policy.
   For those with other interests, treasures are more limited. There is a great and provocative interview with Robert Aumann that ranges from the existence of God to the foundations of game theory. The interview with János Kornai is great because having started his career on the other side of the iron curtain, he has a different perspective on the discipline. This is welcome, because it turns out that top-economists are a rather incestuous bunch, mostly bred within the top 10 or so departments in the US. This generates a lot of uninteresting institutional insider talk, the summit of which is reached in the useless last chapter in where James Tobin and Bob Shiller argue about the existence or not of a `Yale school' in economic thought, as if anyone cares.
   
   Some reviews talk about the `astonishing revelations' or the 'fabulous storytellers' in this book. Don't get your hopes up, it's still economics, unless they refer to the fact that Cass once said "[...]" to his head of department. The reviewer who calls this "A Beautiful Mind scaled up 16 times" must have read a different book (or did not read ABM).
   I would recommend getting this book from the library and reading the chapters that you are really interested in. Although interesting and occasionally entertaining, there is not too much here that you want to keep for reference. Still, 4 stars for the Aumann interview.



5. This book can make you fall in love with economics all over again. A collection of interviews with sixteen eminent economists, it presents the attractive face of the field--one rediscovers an economics concerned with improving the human condition by putting to good use tools borrowed from disciplines as diverse as mathematics and psychology.
   
   The book is a labor of love for William Barnett, the editor of the journal Macroeconomic Dynamics in which these interviews originally appeared between 1997 and 2005. Though the interviews were aimed at professional macroeconomists, much of the book is of broader interest. That's because these eminent economists, interviewed by their peers, are often able to describe their complicated work in simple terms, with modesty and humor, and enriched with anecdotes from their lives.
   
   Link to full review: http://www.imf.org/external/np/vc/2008/072508.htm

5 comments about The Voice of Hope: Updated and Revised Edition.

1. I have been intrigued with the situation in Burma since watching the movie Beyond Rangoon some time ago. It was therefore with great interest that I ordered this book as soon as it was available. In "The Voice of Hope" Alan Clements brings us into the present with this tragic situation through the person of Aung San Suu Kyi and her incredible life. But what sets this work apart from histories, biographies, and oddly enough even self-help material - is the powerful integration of beliefs and action found in Aung San Suu Kyi's life and philosophy. In reading chapter seven alone, ("Saints are Sinners who go on trying") I was personally and deeply moved by the clear connectedness described between her experience with a repressive government and the need for thinking people everywhere to courageously fulfil our potential as thinking, "questing" individuals. The repressive government in Burma is shown to be an extreme and yet still relevant metaphor for intellectual repression in all its forms. And Aung San Suu Kyi's message offers specific insight together with believable emotional support for those who struggle to reconcile what we discover and know through our own searching with what we are expected to believe by others. If it helps anyone who is deciding whether this book is worth the money - I can only say that as one who buys and reads more than 100 books a year - this book has earned a unique place in my library and in my heart. I would trade every other book I have read this year for Alan Clements' latest contribution. Thank you.



2. This book shocked me awake to the realities of countries where freedom is not enjoyed as in the United Sates. The government's repression and horrific inhumantiy are just unbelievable. But, more amazing is the dedication to nonviolence which Aung San Suu Kyi and her party follow in their democracy movement. Her manner in speaking of Burma's serious situation is so calm, hopeful, and loving that it makes one reinterpret and recast their interactions with their own worlds. One may also reflect on one's place in humanity and see that Burma's tragedy, Burma's fate, is our own and we must act now. Aung San's hope and strength are qualities we would do well to adopt as our own. I do not think it is possible for one to read this book and NOT feel urged to take some form of real action (via letter writing, publicizing the issue, etc).



3. I have always been fascinated by Burma in all its aspects and I wanted to be more informed on the current political and social situations. The subject is certainly very interesting but I personally found the book itself very boring and repetitive: The concepts and ideas are repeated dozens of times in different chapters, over and over again. This book would have been much more powerful and appealing with 100 pages instead of 300.



4. In this book, as in "Freedom from Fear" and "Letters from Burma", Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi exposes to the world the grim realities of her land and her people, seen through her very eyes. As always, she is able to jump with great ability from more personal and sentimental accounts of the situation, to hard data, from recollections of her childhood, to perspectives on Burma's future. Always filled with thrill and dense with emotions, her writings are for the expert and the ignorant alike, easy to understand, yet of high value historically and academically. For anyone wishing to know more about Burma and the struggle of her people for human rights, this is must reading.



5. Now in an expanded second edition including an interview with U Gambira (a leader of the All-Burma Monks Alliance that organized the protests of September and October 2007), The Voice of Hope: Aung San Suu Kyi Conversations with Alan Clements is an extensive interview with Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Laureate, mother of two, and practicing Buddhist who led the pro-democracy movement in Burma in 1988. The movement was harshly crushed by the military junta that renamed Burma as Myanmar. Alan Clements, the first American ordained as a Buddhist monk in Burma, met with Aung San Suu Kyi after her release from her first house arrest in July 1995. She delivered her perception of engaged compassion and spoke of how she maintained her hope and optimism despite continued governmental oppression. "You must not forget that the people of Burma want democracy. Whatever the authorities may say, it is a fact that the people want democracy and they do not want an authoritarian regime that deprives them of their basic human rights. The world should do everything possible to bring about the kind of political system that the majority of the people of Burma want and for which so many people have sacrificed themselves." A singularly powerful and also deeply spiritual testimonial on behalf of a troubled nation.

5 comments about Sandra Day O'Connor: How the First Woman on the Supreme Court Became Its Most Influential Justice.

1. This is a most engaging portrait of a model justice in the common law tradition. Justice O'Connor is a true American icon of humble and hardworking origins rising to the heights of leadership based on character, critical thinking and an ethic of service. Her good will and civility toward those with whom she disagreed is an example to follow. The narrative is well informed, nuanced and flows steadily in a current that merges national, judicial and personal events in the judge's life most artfully. A wonderful book about a wonderful lady and an excellent Supreme Court justice. It is the likes of Sandra Day O'Connor that make one proud to be an American. And though I've never (yet) voted Republican she is also one more beautiful reason to love Ronald Reagan.



2. Joan Biskupic's biography _Sandra Day O'Connor: How the First Woman on the Supreme Court Became Its Most Influential Justice_ provides a compelling picture of the first woman Supreme Court justice and of the inner workings of the Supreme Court through four presidential administrations. Biskupic combines assiduous research with a writing style that makes the intricacies of Supreme Court proceedings accessible and fascinating. The biography is impressive on many counts, especially in how it captures O'Connor's skilfull handling of the challenges of being the nation's first female Supreme Court Justice. Throughout, Biskupic's stance is balanced, outlining the strengths of O'Connor's jurisprudence while acknowleding O'Connor's critics.
   
   While the main focus of the biography is on O'Connor's work in the Supreme Court, the early chapters offer a snapshot of O'Connor as a driven career woman, a devoted wife and mother, and an adroit politician. Biskupic shows how O'Connor's life on the family's "Lazy B." farm in Arizona was a formative influence, even though her parents consciously separated her from the farm in order to give her more educational opportunities at a private school in in El Paso. Her father's independence and opposition to the expansion of federal powers in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal, and O'Connor's experiences as a trial lawyer, an Arizona state senator, and a judge on the Arizona Court of Appeals shaped an approach to law based on pragmatic, narrow definitions as opposed to overarching theoretical positions in rulings. As Biskupic shows, O'Connor's Arizonan, Western roots are manifest in her respect for the Tenth Amendment, which gives to states those powers not directly assigned to the federal government.
   
   Biskupic is sensitive in tracing O'Connor's role as a trailblazer (though, often, in a purposefully understated way), and the biography shows how attitudes toward women have evolved from the 1950s to the present. O'Connor, for instance, despite graduating in the top 10% at Stanford University's Law school in 1952 and having been a member of the Stanford Law Review, received no offers at firms. One prestigious firm, Gibson, Dunn offered her a legal secretary position, which she declined. In an irony reflective of social changes, when Fred Smith, Ronald Reagan's White House Counsel and a former lawyer with Gibson, Dunn, and Grutcher, interviewed O'Connor in 1981 for the Supreme Court vacancy, O'Connor asked him if it was an interview for "a secretarial position." Biskupic begins her book with this effective anecdote, and the biography throughout reveals how O'Connor astutely negotiated gender prejudice in public life.
   
   Biskupic also offers a detailed picture of O'Connor's important votes related to Roe v. Wade, affirmative action, capital punishment, and Bush v. Gore as she became increasingly the fifth tie-breaking in a deadlocked court. Biskupic chronicles O'Connor's evolution as a jurist, arguing that her role as a centrist often made her a baramoter of where the nation as a whole stood. Biskupic points out that O'Connor's legislative background as an Arizona State Senator--as a person who ran for office and thus who was directly accountable to the electorate--gave her a unique perspective in the Supreme Court with its life-time appointees.
   
   Chapter 15, "Scalia v. O'Connor," highlights O'Connor's judicial pragmatism and minimalist interpretations, offering a contrast with Scalia's philosophically driven understanding of law on originalist grounds. In this chapter, Biskupic addresses critiques of O'Connor's decisions and legal reasoning from both the right and left. This chapter is fair in its discussion and highly informative about different approaches to law and about the role of the Supreme Court, in general.
   
   An anecdote at the end of the book reveals O'Connor's personal style. In an interview with Biskupic, Clarence Thomas recalled O'Connor's congeniality and even the subtle impact this had on the court . O'Connor had attempted for a number of years to convince the other justices to eat lunch together after listening to cases. Although Thomas and other justices initially resisted, prefering to work on cases, he and others later relented. Thomas remarks, "Now, you have a group of people who really enjoy other's company." Biskupic argues that such tact helped lead to O'Connor's ascendant role in the court.
   
   Biskupic's biography chronicles O'Connor's own life and provides a view of the day-to-day dynamics of the Supreme Court, including shifts in the court with retirements and the investitures of new justices. The biography, while telling many important stories affecting American law and life, maintains a clear argument of O'Connor's unmistakable influence.



3. As an admirer of SDO for quite some time, this book opened me up to admire her even more. This book told me so many things that I never knew. It also explained her reasoning behind many of her decisions, both as a justice and in life. Worth the read.



4. No author to date has fine-tuned the story of O'Connor from ranch to robes as well as Ms. Biskupic. The extent of her study and interviews shows, but does not become an academic report. It is fresh and insightful, and certainly as amusing and straight-shooting as its subject.
   
   If you are interested in the law, the Supremes, history in the making, or simply the politics of what it means to be a woman in the law, this is the book you want to read.



5. Joan Biskupic's biography on Sandra Day O'Connor is one of the best biographies I have read. She discusses Justice O'Connor's life from before she became a Supreme Court Justice to when she announced her retirement. Not only did Ms. Biskupic discuss how the court changed in the early 1980's with the addition of the nation's first woman Supreme Court Justice, but she discussed how this effected the other justices as well. Moreover, the reader who may just be wanting to learn about Justice O'Connor learns about all of the Supreme Court Justices that she served with during her tenure. It is an easy read and would be a great book for high school and college students, who were not born yet when Sandra Day O'Connor first joined the Supreme Court and gave them an idea what she had to contend with to get her job and also what life was like during the 80's, 90's and early 21st century. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the life of Sandra Day O'Connor. She is truly a very interesting woman and a role model for young women today.