5 comments about John Wayne: American.

1. John Wayne (1907-1979) was a man of more complexity than many folks would suppose. Consider:
   1. He portrayed macho cowboys and military leaders in the movies but never served in World War II (which caused him a good deal of guilt in later years.)
   2. He was an advocate for strong family life (including strong
   male bonding with his friends) but was wed three times and
   had several affairs.
   3. He enjoyed drink, good food and profane activities with his buddies Ward Bond and director John Ford but was noted for his
   strong he-man appearance (he was 6'4' tall and at one time weighed over 260 pounds.)
   4. He was at one time a member of the John Birch Society and
   supported the right wing during the McCarthy era but could also
   express individuality in politics (he supported LBJ and was a
   friend of Jimmy Carter). He resigned from the Birchers and was
   a man who valued America freedom. He was constantly having money troubles with the IRS and disdained (loathed!) big government.
   5. He believed in God but did not become a member of an organized religion until converting to Roman Catholicism on his deathbed),
   6. He was a good but often absent father to his seven children.
   7. He was well read and memorized his lines quickly.
   8. He was an excellent actor who finally won his Best Actor Oscar for "True Grit."
   Randy Roberts and James Olson have told "Duke's story from
   his life in middle class Iowa and Glendale (his parents despised one another and later divorced)to football player at USC to work
   in the movies.
   Wayne's first film was a flop and for almost ten years he labored in the B Western factory in such minor studios as Republic and Monogram. Only with 1939's turn as the Ringo Kid
   in John Ford's classic film did the Wayne star begin to rise.
   Wayne will live forever in such classics as "Red River" directed by Howard Hawks in 1948; "The Quiet Man with his best
   screen lady Maureen O'Hara" the immortal Cavalry trilogy of John
   Ford: "Fort Apache" ; "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon" and "Rio Grande:
   His best movie was "The Searchers" in which he portrays Ethan
   Edward's in the Ford film set in Monument Valley!
   Roberts and Olson's book is long; well documented; well written and their hard work has paid off. I found a tear in my eye as I read of Duke's last few months battling cancer which he called "The Red Witch."
   Wayne had many faults as a man. He was a chauvinist; did not
   understand women and could be rough and rowdy. His positive
   traits were many: a generous and loving heart; kindness to others
   a respect for his fans and a love for his country the United
   States of American. Take him all in all whether you be a liberal or conservative or indifferent to politics we will never see another John Wayne!
   I loved this book and recommend it highly. If you do not understand John Wayne you will not understand the America he
   loved so deeply, so long and with so much honor through a lengthy and lustrous career in the movies!



2. I enjoyed this book more than I can Say . Being 80 yrs. old ,
   
   I have grown up with John Wayne , more so than any other movie
   
   " STAR ". Buy this book , you will treasure it .
   
   Jack Yannuzzi



3. I had wanted to read a John Wayne biography for some time, but never got around to it until buying this book. I think I picked the right one. It is chock-full of interesting information regarding 'the Duke'. I was surprised to discover how nasty director John Ford could be to his actors, John Wayne included; and yet the two were good friends. Surely Wayne must have wanted to punch the guy out a time or two. Regarding Wayne's mother; I don't think the writers did an adequate follow through. In the first sections of the book, much was written about the relationship between mother and son, but there was no follow up later in the book. Did his mom ever come around and begin to appreciate him before she passed away, or did she remain cold and aloof until she died? As a reader, I felt like I was left hanging on this one. Otherwise, this was an excellent book, and I highly recommend it. The final sections, covering Wayne's last days were sad and disturbing, but the man left us with quite a legacy on film. There will never be another like him.



4. The acid test of any biography is does the personality of the subject come through the pages of the book? After the reader is finished, do they feel they have meet the man or woman they were reading about. Historians Randy Roberts and James S. Olson have done so with this book, which is very difficult for two distinct reasons: 1) Wayne left no papers; and 2) there is the legend of John Wayne that gets in the way of knowing Marion "Duke" Morrison, the man behind the famous stage name.
   
   Roberts and Olson have given their readers a well-written, engaging study that is both traditional biography of the actor, but a study of his status as an American icon. The authors also show that Wayne was a talented actor in addition to being a movie star and deserved the Oscar he won, even though he expected to lose.
   
   A decent and diligent son, he was never able to win his mother's love. For whatever reason, she showered her affections on her second son who was a mediocrity in life. Wayne was a conservative, but mainly because he was a classical liberal in that he believed in limited government that did little to impose on the liberties of individuals. Even though he was worth millions when he died, he had invested poorly and had gone bankrupt, squandered most of his earnings, and most of his fortune was the result of his having an honest business partner that had looked out for him.
   
   He went through three marriages, but was a loving, if removed father. In many ways, he placed more value in his friends than in his family. Perhaps because his friends could never hurt him the way his wives had.
   
   There will be other Wayne books, but it is difficult to see this book being surpassed anytime soon.



5. I am French and a huge fan of John Wayne's career.
   I've found this book very complete whithout having long movies résumés.
   This book is more focused on anecdotes' movies.
   Moreover, the life of John Wayne is not depicted only as a pure "American" cowboy (despite the title of the book)and the authors really want to explain the choices of John Wayne in politics or in his own life whithout trying to influence the reader.
   That gives us the impression that John Wayne lacked confidence in his own life but barely never in his career.
   I've been reading biographies for a very long time and I can say that this biography is really well written and as I was reading it, I watched several movies with John Wayne, just for pleasure!!

5 comments about Jackie Ethel Joan : Women of Camelot.

1. I found this to be a very intrigueing read, but the reader should have a working knowledge of the history, events and relationships that shaped the Kennedy dynasty because they are not going to be detailed in this book. In fact, some will be glossed over or entirely omitted. What you will read about is the experiences of those intimately involved in the events and tragedies: their personal thoughts, conversations and feelings, wrapped up in fierce political ambition and family loyalty.
   Even though I'm sure the conversations and personal information, albeit based on substantial research, has been "developed", anyone who has experienced a family death or misfortune will easily relate to the Kennedys' amazing ordeals, struggles and fortitude.
   I thoroughly enjoyed it.



2. Heard the cassette version of JACKIE, ETHEL, JOAN: WOMEN OF
   CAMELOT by. J. Randy Taraborrelli and enjoyed it--in a guilty pleasure
   sort of way.
   
   It is a tell-it-all about the three Kenney wives and listening to it
   helped me relive some days of my younger days when John, Robert
   and Ted Kenney were alive and running for various political offices.
   
   For some reason, I never followed too closely the dirt behind
   their respective careers . . . yet this book more than made up for
   anything I may have missed.
   
   If everything in it is to be believed, I now know that Joe Kennedy
   offered Jackie $1 million not to divorce JFK and Jackie allegedly
   replied, "The price goes to $20 million if Jack brings home any
   venereal diseases." . . . also, that Bobby had an affair with
   actress Lee Remick who actually called Ethel to tell her that they
   were sleeping together--only to be told by Ethel that he was
   home in bed (when he was actually with Remick) . . . and that
   Ted once showed up for drunk with a prostitute for dinner with
   the king and queen of Belgium, whose priceless antique coach
   Ted's date ruined by wetting it.
   
   Overall, the book left me feeling sorry for the Kennedy women . . . although
   they appeared so glorious from afar, how they were forced to live
   their lives because of the constant spotlight made life anything
   but easy for them.



3. I really enjoyed reading this book because I am fascinated by that time in our history and with Jackie Kennedy. I found this book to have an interesting point-of-view on all three Kennedy women. Ethel seemed to be easily envious or jealous but loyal and loving of her family. Jackie seemed to be snobby with a mind of her own, but again a deep loyalty for her family especially her immediate family. Joan seemed to be sad and a 'door mat' until she grew much older. She seemed to put up with the most crap and lost the most in return. I have no idea if any of what I read was accurate or not, but I liked reading it regardless. It was fun and fast in a very tabloid sort of way. If you're interested in the Kennedy women, then you'll probably like this book. The movie that was made based on this book is also pretty good, but naturally the book is by far better with more details.



4. This book is well worth reading more than once! It has so much information that I could hardly put it down!! You feel so very bad for Joan and what Teddy did to her. He was a very poor specimen for a husband and it is amazing she has managed to hold onto life. I don't know what the quality of it is now, but what she endured was truly unfair. My heart really goes out to her and now that Jackie is gone I can't imagine how she is doing.



5. I Loved reading this book!! I recently saw the TV movie version, so I decided to read the book. I was SO impressed! I was 10 years old when Pres Kennedy was killed, so of curse I'm familiar with Camelot and all that goes along with it. Now that I'm in my 50's I thought I'd look for a book written in recent years about the Kennedy wives. I'm so glad I found this one! What these 4 women had to endure, Especially Joan, being married to a Kennedy is incredible! The last 66 pages! are devoted to "Acknowledgments and Source Notes", which I didn't read thoroughly, but now know this isn't just another made up Kennedy story, but Facts!

5 comments about Purgatory: A Prison Diary Volume 2 (A Prison Diary).

1. While passing through the airport in London two years ago I had a six hour layover and decided to look around the bookstore where I found a book called "Prisoner FF8282" by some author named Jeffrey Archer.
   
   Since I speak english (American) and am not English I did not know who this Sir Archer is or was. I, however, purchased the book, and, proceeded up to the BA business lounge where I proceeded to begin, reading this book. I, did, finish, the first book "Prisoner FF8282" before I arrived on my nonstop, flight to New York. Sir Archer is a great, author, who, knows, how, to write, a, diary, of, the, workings, and, goings, on, inside, prison. I took pause, upon, arriving home to, re-read, the book and enjoyed it, even, more, the, second, time.
   
   Now, out comes the second Prison Diary from Archer. Again,,, I loved the second installment. In it he details his stay at the second prison called Wayland that sounds pleasant but is far from it. Several House of Lords Sirs visited Sir Archer and were shocked to find that the food was bad, the bedding dirty, and two inmates have to share each cell.
   
   Mr. Archer ended up involved in several fights where he had to defend himself from advances from other inmates. In one horrible incident Mr. Archer had to use a snooker ball (pool ball for we American's)) in a white sock to keep a mentally retarded (his wording, not mine) inmate from entering his cell and having his way. Keep in mind that Mr. Archer is 73 years old and had every right to protect his and what is his.
   
   Jeffrey Archer is to be applauded for his writing skills and dedication to sit each day and document the cummings and goings inside the three prisons.
   
   Each book in the series has received five plus stars from the New York Prison Diary Book Reading Club that I volunteer for.
   
   Should you ever find yourself convicted and on the way to prison the ten books in this series are must read to know the in's and out's of prison routine and unroutine and how to get through your sentance without being violated or made to do things that you generally wouldn't do, even if paid.
   
   I highly recommend this book to all Amazon customers that read books. This book and the other nine in the series are gripping.
   
   I would recommend that you purchase each of the ten in the series... all are well worth reading.



2. Prison is boring, unpleasant. This book is boring, but not unpleasant. That is the lesson learned from reading this book. Archer spends so much of his time objecting to and fighting his conviction to really analyze prison life other than to make a few facile observations on the unintended consequences of some laws and prison practices.
   
   Archer has a few admiring reviews. From the Independent on Sunday: "The finest thing that he's ever written." From The Washington Post: "A tale that is not only important but true." These read more like sarcasm than praise. Just read them again, and scratch your head.
   
   Archer has written some readable fiction. I've read and enjoyed many of his novels and short stories. He can write well enough. Regardless of your perspective on whether or not he should be in jail, or deserved to be convicted, my conclusion is that Archer should stick to fiction.



3. archer has written a book that gives us a clear insite into the workings of a c-cat prison its easy reading with interesting characters full of dark humour a bit showy when he states that he can do 2000 miles or kms on a rowing machine(they are really hard and tiring) in 10 minutes though read them from the start as you won't have experiences hell and you know that would be cheating



4. I have to disagree with some of the other reviews. I find this book very easy to read, not boring at all. I could not put it down.
   
   I'm no big fan of Jeffrey Archer, but this Second Book does go into more of the dark side of British Jails and Prisons. The drugs, the violence.... the way the inmates stick together, swapping Mar's bars for Phone Cards.. Very good.



5. I read this trilogy out of order and Purgatory was the last one I read. The first I read was the finale Heaven which is where this edition leads up to. I must admit I have formed a totally different opinion of Archer than I had after reading Heaven. I actually felt sorry for him after Heaven but after reading the initial and more to the point this Volume II edition my opinion has drastically changed That empathy disappeared after the first diary series Hell, and has transformed into disgust with Purgatory as this edition highlights what a selfish and uncaring about his fellow man type of individual Lord Archer really is.
   
   His pathetic refusal to drink tap water (where does he think bottled water comes from anyway) and eat the every day food that every other prisoner does continues on from the first novel. He disgustingly avoids doing this in his new prison by purchasing with his money from the outside world additional water, chocolate and other food as well as phone cards, additional pillows, blankets, towels and other luxuries from the prison black market. He never once mentions remorse for these actions even though obviously his supplier Dale isn't going to the local Tesco Supermarket and purchasing these items. Obviously other prisoners are either swapping these items for drugs or being severely beaten and threatened for them and having to do without just so Archer can be more comfortable and not have to lower himself to do things like drink tap water. Even though he always has visitors he has no problem with purchasing phone cards the same way even though the victims' phone cards he is using may have no other way to communicate with their loved ones. When he is caught by the prison officials he tries to evoke the feeling of pity for him from his readers for these repulsive actions, it is just disgraceful!
   
   If he'd at least acknowledged the detrimental outcomes for others as a result of his selfish behaviour I would have at least given him some credence but he never mentions this once in his diaries. He is however quick to criticise any prison official who doesn't provide him with special treatment such as the guard who told him he could be put on report for going into the enhanced wing that every other prisoner has to wait three months or so on good behaviour to visit, let alone live there which he shortly there after is granted. I find it hard to fathom how he constantly complains about the papers saying he is given special treatment when that is exactly what happens and he uses the media as an excuse for everything such as demanding his own cell, as his cell mates will talk to the papers if he has to share. He never once criticises himself or his actions for being in prison, always maintaining he is a victim and his sentence will be overruled in the near future which history has proven never happened.
   
   Other unique aspects of this edition to the others are that Archer befriends a Columbian prisoner to get the prisoner's brother smuggle out an emerald from his homeland and sell it to Archer so he can save ten to twenty thousand pounds. He also wanted a painting from a Columbian artist at a much cheaper price as his prison buddy's relatives knew the Columbian family selling it and could convince them (which obviously would have involved threatening them) but thankfully this turned out to be all talk. Either Archer is extremely naive and stupid from living such a privileged and sheltered life, or an extremely selfish individual prepared to live of the misery of others to further himself and live more comfortably. Obviously Britain doesn't have the law that criminals can't profit from their crimes that Australia and other countries do. Although this does result in an interesting look for readers into prison life for the wealthy. It is just a shame Archer is allowed to make money from these books. Surely he could donate proceeds to a childrens' hospital or victims of crime groups or something but I guess as he proved by actions in this book, he has no conscience.

3 comments about John F. Kennedy, Jr.: A Life in Pictures (Kennedy Family).

1. For those of us lucky enough to remember President Kennedy and his family, this retrospective about his son John, couldn't come at a better time. With all the rage of war in Iraq it's nice to think about a time when life was more at ease. This book helps.
   
   John Kennedy was not a hero or a saint. He was a son of a president who tried to make a life on his own against tremendous odds. Yes, he had things going in his favor, but he also had talent, courage and died far too young. Study the photos of this man. We are not a country of kings, queens or princes. But we did have John Kennedy for a few, brief years, and I think we were all the better for it.



2. Focused and experienced editors Yann-Brice Dherbier and Pierre-Henri Verlhac have created the third volume of photographic tributes to the Kennedy Family, the closest this country ever came to royalty - in the most positive sense possible. Having successfully enshrined JFK and Jacqueline Kennedy for the still mourning public in their previous volumes, this sizeable portfolio likewise confines editorial comments to a few pages then lavishes the viewer with photographs, not all professionally created, but justifiably saved for posterity.
   
   The life of John-John was never easy - from our first memories of his birth as a White House baby, to the indelible impression left by his captured farewell salute during his father's funeral march, to his struggle for privacy in the clangor of paparazzi, to his schooling, creative adventure with George Magazine, to his throne as the world's most eligible bachelor and his subsequent marriage to Carolyn Bessette and tragedy of their deaths in a plane crash - and the ideal young man was beset with undercurrents of sadness. Yet he remains a heroic figure in the minds of the people who adored him from his birth to his untimely death.
   
   The book is rich in memories as captured by both professional and non-professional photographers and is one of those volumes that remind the reader of a saner, kinder time. It is worthy of everyone's library. Grady Harp, December 05



3. This book contains wonderful pictures from John's early days to his last ones. If you are interested in the Kennedy family, this book is definitely a must have. Unfortunately the quality of the text doesn't equal the picture's ones. There is only few information delivered with this book and very often you would wish for more.

5 comments about I Toto: The Autobiography of Terry, the Dog who was Toto.

1. I was looking at silver-screen bio's in the library when I came across this clever little volume. Author Willard Carroll knows a lot about Oz, and he also understands a lot about animals and the people who love them. Whether you are a fan of the Wonderful Land of Oz, a dog-lover, or both, you are going to get such a kick out of this book. If you're like me, you're going to breeze through it, and then go back and read it again, preferably with someone nearby to whom you can read the funniest, most touching or trivia-friendly bits. Toto, who began as Terry, a little dog abandoned by her owners, has a very good friend indeed in Mr. Carroll.
   
   This is a story about Toto, but it is also the story of Carl Spitz, who had been training dogs since 1919. When he came to Hollywood in 1927, he opened a training school which combined kindness and discipline, an innovation which most at the time considered "nonsense." Mr. Spitz and his dogs broke into silent movies; he developed a series of silent commands when talkies came along. His dogs appeared with the stars: Prince the Great Dane and Lawrence Olivier in Wuthering Heights; Buck the Saint Bernard and Clarke Gable in The Call of the Wild. The English mastiff and the Scottish terrier were in major productions, too.
   
   Mr. Carroll captures Toto's "voice" so perfectly, even using a font that looks like my mother's old portable Underwood typewriter for the star's narrative. Toto also comments on the dozens of photos, movie stills and other memorabilia of a busy career with red pen.
   
   Toto hobnobs with the stars and has some once-in-a-lifetime moments, such as when Mr. Gable came to visit the kennel owned by Carl Spitz, the trainer who adopted and worked with Toto and many other canine performers. (Don't want to tell you what happened, but it made Mr. Gable smile. Eventually.) She works with Spencer Tracy in Fury and Shirley Temple in Bright Eyes. (Of the latter, Toto reports, "Shirley had her hair cut and recurred and had endless wardrobe fittings and makeup tests. I had a flea bath, a toenail trim, and an enema.")
   
   And then there was Oz. Toto is miffed when a studio official gushed, "She's the one! Looks just like the dog on the cover," for she considers said beast "a genetic mutation of terrifying proportions," but the role is hers and she revels in it, for she soon realizes that the story "IS ALL ABOUT ME!!! ... I'M IN ALMOST EVERY SCENE IN THE BLESSED PICTURE!!!" Toto includes a page from the shooting script with all six of her lines circled, as proof positive of her importance to the film.
   
   Of course, it isn't all green grass and marrow bones. There are those scary wind machines and the shock of seeing that nice Maggie dressed up in black, with her face painted green and the biggest nose since Durante, cackling away. Oh, and the Winkie guard that stepped on her paw by accident. Ouch! And the creepy flying monkeys. But Mr. Spitz' training paid off; Toto found herself able to rebound from such situations and perform like the trooper that she was.
   
   I, Toto is now one of my favourite movie books. Cute but never mawkish, sentimental but never saccharine, informative but never overwhelming, this little story of a little dog is a big winner.



2. A must read for any Oz fan as well as dog lovers of all kinds. I never knew how many movies Toto was in, and the Oz trivia was really fun, too. It was very cleverly written from Toto's point of view. I actually laughed out loud at some parts. Don't pass by picture captions and comments on the sides of the pages. It's all worth reading! Not bad for a dog no one wanted!



3. Since my all-time favorite dog star is Toto, this book was easy for me to love. However, once I began to read, I found it to be something extra special. I, Toto is a mood lifter as well as an interesting piece of Hollywood history. Beautifully written in the first person, I, Toto will captivate the heart and mind of any dog lover.



4. 
   As a child, my favorite movie was THE WIZARD OF OZ. For Chirstmas ,I received this wonderful book that is all about the famous "pet-actress" named "Toto". (Yes, Toto was actually a little female dog named Terry,not a male , as most people would think).
   
   Anyhow, this book is all about the tiny Cairn Terrier "Toto" (Terry) and how she came about becoming one of the principal characters in the movie.
   
   The photos are just amazing also. My favorite photos are the behind-the-scene photos showing Toto "acting" in the actual movie, just as the trainer was in the background giving Toto her directions. Sooo cute!
   
   If you are a dog fan, or a Cairn Terrier fan, or a Wizard of Oz fan, you'll love this book.



5. I, Toto is a delightfully well written book by Willard Carroll about the life of Terry, a Cairn Terrier who became famous in movies. The book is based on a scrapbook Willard Carroll found that documented the life and movie career of this well trained dog; and the book is primarily set up to look just like a book typed on an old typewriter--written, of course, by the dog itself.
   
   The book starts with the story of how Terry was born, adopted and eventually given up by her owners because of her troubles with housetraining; and we learn how Carl Spitz professionally trained dogs to perform in movies. Spitz, an excellent trainer who worked with many dogs, wound up training Terry professionally. Spitz used both kindness and discipline to train his dogs, including Terry, very well; his talents are obvious when we consider that Terry (aka Toto) appeared in at least fourteen major motion pictures including The Wizard Of Oz.
   
   Carroll cleverly writes the memoirs of Terry, or Toto, in the first person as if the dog herself had written the book. This provides the reader with an extra slice of humor when Carroll writes about things that happened on the sets of pictures or in Carl Spitz's training camp for dogs. Carroll does an excellent job of getting readers to be charmed out of their trees by Terry who eventually becomes renamed Toto for the sake of her career. A movie star dog has to consider Hollywood politics, after all!
   
   The book is filled with wonderful reproductions of ads for the movies Terry was in; and we see numerous publicity shots from movies including Bright Eyes with Shirley Temple and Terry as Rags the dog. Of course, we get plenty of stills from The Wizard Of Oz and there are very nicely done "hand written" asides to the reader that also appear to be written by Terry. The result is a charming look back at the life of Terry, the dog who became Toto and enjoyed great movie fame--and treats along the way!
   
   Overall, classic movie buffs will enjoy this book; and people who love The Wizard Of Oz will appreciate this book very much since so little was known about Terry before Willard Carroll wrote this book. The book is well written and a real page turner; it grabs your attention and never lets it go.
   
   Great job, Willard Carroll!

No comments about John Wayne - An American Icon (Biography).

1 comments about American Empress: The Life and Times of Marjorie Merriweather Post.

1. Superb biography which open the window (and the door) into Marjorie Merriweather Post's fascinating life - - and shows that "money cannot buy everything" ....

5 comments about Katie: The Real Story.

1. Edward Klein's Katie: The Real Story is a probing portrait of the multiple personas of Katie Couric -- the strong independent woman and the needy wife and lover, the grieving widow famed for her kindness to others and the fiercely competitive diva, the consummate television interviewer and the stumbling network anchor. Many critical of this book consider it to be a hatchet job and/or a whitewash. In my opinion it is neither. I view it to be a truthful, no-holds-barred portayal of a woman who used every wile she could to claw her to the top of her profession. While this can be said about many successful men as well, it doesn't make it any less true about Katie Couric. Couric never seemed to mind using her femininity to help her reap the rewards she so desparately desired. However, she was the first to cry "sexist" or "jealousy" to anyone who pointed this out in regards to CBS paying her $75+ million to be the first solo anchorwoman on a network nightly news program. Further, she never seemed to hesitate using these defensive mechanisms to counter claims about being less successful than anyone at CBS ever expected her to be. To me, and apparently to many viewers and industry experts, Couric's rapid decline from queen of morning television to the falling star of evening news is that, at heart, Couric is not an anchor person -- sober, authoritative and wise. Rather her failure to-date as a solo anchorwoman is due to those qualities that helped her meteoric rise on The Today Show -- her cuteness, funniness and girlish charm. These do not seem to be the qualities many people want when watching a "hard news" program. Klein succeeds in delivering an unflinching book about a woman who is fast to blame anyone else but herself for her lack of success in making her monumental career move. In short, Katie: The Real Story is basically a book about a woman who could not reconcile her ambition with her personality.



2. This book is the height of Katie bashing. I'm an admitted fan but not so myopic as to think she is without faults and never did a single thing on her rise to the top that some might find objectionable. The author had little, if anything, good to say about Katie and that's an unbalanced view that causes me, like an earlier reviewer, to regret having bought this book. I'll now do something I seldom do - toss it out rather than pass it on. The least I can do is spare others.



3. Edward Klein, author of "The Truth About Hillary," "The Kennedy Curse," and "Farewell Jackie," has turned his attention to one of America's most important media icons, Katie Couric, in his "Katie: The Real Story." Klein felt that there were many unanswered questions about Couric - What explained her extraordinary success in the world of morning television? Who helped her on the way to the top? - and set about to find the answers.
   
   After two hundred interviews with both her critics and most ardent supporters, he has produced the first unauthorized biography of Couric with the claim that "Katie" was not based on a negative premise. He intended to be scrupulously fair while saying something true and important about this media icon.
   
   The book is a tightly woven story of Couric, "America's Sweetheart," from childhood (Arlington, Virginia) to her role today as anchor for CBS Evening News. Klein's inside sources describe Katie in her early professional years as young and hungry - "one of the most ambitious women I have met."
   
   She has abundant self-confidence, is cheerful, carefree, and fearless but is easily hurt, quick to tears, and susceptible to feelings of embarrassment and humiliation. She projects an image of a strong and independent woman but privately she is extraordinarily needy and dependent on the support of men.
   
   Couric's father is a soft-spoken man with conservative values. He was a reporter then publicist for the National Association of Broadcasters. Katie showed her father's fascination with journalism, particularly TV journalism. He always said that the number one job was Walter Cronkite's, as anchor for CBS Evening News.
   
   "Katie" provides plenty of background, not only on Couric's rise to the top, but also a behind the scenes look at CNN, NBC, and CBS. Klein provides little known tidbits on how Katie barely escaped from being fired by CNN, her years at CNN Headquarters, and the help she received from the CNN executive, Guy Pepper, with whom she had a long-standing affair.
   
   Some of the juiciest tidbits of the book center on the NBC's Today Show and Couric's rise to America's Sweetheart including departure of Jane Pauley, the rise and the fall of Deborah Norville, the difficult Bryant Gumbel and his eventual dismissal, a growing rivalry with Diane Sawyer, her marital strife with husband Monahan, and her efforts to become more glamorous. Through it all, Couric transforms into a diva with all of the perceived negatives.
   
   The book contains sixteen pages of pictures detailing Couric's life. While this is a fast read, it took some time to get through it as my wife kept taking my copy to read for herself. That is about as good a recommendation anyone can give for this book!



4. Seemed more interested in telling about what she did to get where she is & who cares???? I still have the book opened with about 1/4 to read & may never even finish it..... when usually I read a book a day, if it's god.



5. Who really cares about Katie Couric?!? She has never really been that relevant and is not a good solid television news journalist. Katie Couric is your typical ultra-liberal "face-girl" who has always slanted her stories and is not shy about tipping her pro-democrat hand while attempting to report the nightly news. She and the "mainstream media" needs to get a clue and start reporting the news impartially with no agenda, hidden or not.
   
   Why do you think the viewership numbers have been eroding over the years for the evening news? It's the same as the dwindling numbers for the newspapers as well. People are tired of being presented with overtly pro-democrat propaganda. If they would go back to reporting in an unbiased fashion they would see their viewership and subscriber numbers jump.
   
   Don't waste your money on this book. Katie Couric brings absolutely nothing to the table that is remotely interesting or worthy of being published in a book ever.

5 comments about Ordeal.

1. I found this book unexpectedly in a public library about 7 years ago and was elated. I believe that it was out of print at the time. This book did move me. I have read several of the other reveiws and some of the folks were and still are skeptical about Linda's story of abuse and being forced into prostitution and porn.
   
   I couldn't help but feel so passionate about this story when first read it. I zealously defended her story (or I wanted to believe it so much). I still believe that there are elements of truth to her story, but as someone else once said in their review, you don't need to look carefully to see that she has a tendency to blame nearly everyone else for her mistakes and for the bad things that have happened to her. I sincerely believe that Linda was abused by her husband, Chuck Traynor, and that he was not a nice person. The question is whether or not she willing engaged in prostitution and pornography, or if she was forced or coerced into doing it. There is still much debate over that. The problem is that once LL became an overnight sensation (something she wasn't expecting or prepared for) she made some damning statements about loving what she did and these things later came back to haunt her when she tried to recant those things that she said. Unfortunately, many of the things that she said and much of the unspeakable things that she did on film followed her all of her life. She apparently couldn't escape LL.
   
   To me, it is interesting that the woman that Chuck Traynor married and managed the career of none other than Marilyn Chambers. Unlike Linda, Marilyn Chambers always said that she liked what she did and had no regrets. In her book, LL says that she had been advised to just be the person that the world knew as LL, because no one would believe otherwise. She said all along that this was not really her. She tried to hold her ground. Some people believed her and embraced her, while others scoffed at what she had to say and said that she was just bitter. Who knows?
   
   I'm not a fan of porn. To me, this book is a harrowing story of abuse.



2. I am going to defend Linda Lovelace against those reviewers here who really don't believe her story by quoting from the groundbreaking psychotherapy book "Trauma and Recovery" by Judith Herman:
   
   "Most people have no knowledge or understanding of the psychological changes of captivity. Social judgment of chronically traumatized people therefore tends to be extremely harsh. The chronically abused person's apparent helplessness and passivity, her entrapment in the past, her intractable depression... and her smoldering anger often frustrate the people closest to her. Moreover, if she has been coerced into betrayal of relationships, community loyalties, or moral values, she is frequently subjected to furious condemnation.
   
   "Observers who have never experienced prolonged terror and who have no understanding of coercive methods of control presume that they would show greater courage and resistance than the victim in similar circumstances. Hence the common tendency to account for the victim's behavior by seeking flaws in her personality or moral character."
   
   So, think hard before you judge her.



3. I'm an ex-sex worker. I now belong to Sex Workers Anonymous. I've lived this industry and I know the crowd Linda spoke about in her books. She had the courage to write about what wasn't just her experiences - but also many of ours experiences - but we go off into hiding and fear once we leave rather then speak out like she did knowing what it could and did cost her. I watched while people who knew nothing of this industry attacked her for speaking out about this industry doing what men do - always blame the woman/victim. Speaking out about what really goes on in this world affected her health deeply from the stress and contributed to her early death I'm sure. She's not the only one who had lasting health problems to deal with after having left the sex industry though no fault of her own. In America - a man can go to jail for raping his wife - but not for raping a sex worker. What people don't realize is that many of these men, women and children are living out Linda's story - they can't get out without fear of themselves being killed or their family members. I knew a pimp once who would hold a woman's child hostage until she came back each night with "his" money. One night she got arrested and wasn't able to come home on time. The pimp cut off the left arm of this six year old girl. Anyone who thinks you can't be held in this business against your will - obviously hasn't been there and should shut up about something they know nothing about. I consider Linda a martyr for taking all the guff she took to tell our stories and to try to enlighten people about what goes on every day - but we don't have the guts to tell about our stories ourselves. Anyone who wants to know what this industry can really be like - should read her stories. If all she wanted was to keep making money and just made this up to sell books - she would have done what Xavier Hollendar or Norma Jean or Heidi Fleiss - did. Sell a hell of a lot more books feeding into the american myths about this business - without any of the flack she took for telling the truth. The woman had the courage of a lion - not only to survive what she did - and to live to tell about it - but also to tell about it in the hopes that us "unknowns" are more believed when we try to tell our stories and try to get help to get out.



4. What really did happen with Linda Lovelace? According to ORDEAL, waved as a bloody flag by feminists as a symbol of the so-called oppression of women, she was a nice girl who found herself in an unbelievably abusive relationship with a man who put her in porn. Given the tone of our times, one cannot question this account without finding oneself the object of hysterical execration.
   
   And yet.
   
   There are just too many questions. For all the adamant talk coming from certain quarters about how abused women can't, just can't, leave their abusers, the facts is that, although at times difficult, they can. And the portrayal of Chuck Traynor, Lovelace's husband, is so over the top it is as if he were specifically created to play the role of the literary wife-beating bogeyman. Traynor allegedly made Lovelace engage in the most degrading and humiliating sexual practices imaginable, all presented to the reader in the style that makes one drool with excitement in that guilty sort of way. No way are you actually going to admit to liking it, are you?
   
   Events subsequent to ORDEAL's publication have cast doubts on its accuracy. Some fellow adult stars around at the time have stated that they saw no sign of abuse and that Lovelace herself, far from acting like the poor frightened waif, instead was as sexually voracious off the screen as she was on, even, or even especially, when her husband was not around.
   
   It is a cliche to say that the truth is somewhere in between. Sometimes it is and sometimes it isn't. But Lovelace's saga is probably one of those times when it is. She seems like a girl who dreamt bigger than her personality and talents could lead her, got in with a tough crowd, and got swept away. When things don't go as planned, many people re-interpret things to make themselves more passive than was actually the case. And for Lovelace, aided by feminists who exploited her as badly as any man ever did, re-interpretation of her past was the way to face the future. Hers was a sad life, but probably not as sad as portrayed in ORDEAL.



5. I have known women who have done porn and based on this as well as the testimonies of countless other sex industry survivors such as Shelley Lubben and Crissy Moran, I have no reason to doubt the claims made by in this book. The sex industry is an evil exploitive, multi-billion dollar industry and LL was brave in sharing her story with the public. This book haunted me years after I read it as a teenager.

5 comments about Heaven: A Prison Diary Volume 3 (A Prison Diary).

1. The final book of Archers tales in the Prison System.
   
   I read this in 1 day... just wanted to get through it and again could not put the book down. A lot of the material and experience is the same as book 1 and 2. Though now in a Cat D prison (an open prison) he has more freedom, it does still show the drugs and money.
   
   And of course, the press continue to try and get the scoop on him, paying other inmates to get "archer with his clothes off"
   
   All in all, a good book. I am glad he did not do a 4th.
   
   If you read book 1 and 2, get this to wrap up the set.



2. This makes more sense if you read the first two prior books. Interesting and well written and an easy read, come to mind when describing the book. It is what it is - an on going diary of prison time. The tone of the book gets a bit darker as the reins are tightned and he is forced back into a more secure population. His depression is evident as he eventually trails off in his writing and picks it up the day of his discharge. None of the books were gritty in the sense of true prison drama, but it is an interesting prospective.
   
   It is almost comical in some aspects as I have worked in the prison system. He is gleeful at the prospect of getting his very own coffee cup when most men spend their days trying not to get stabbed. He rails at people called Lady this or Lord that and loves to name drop. It's difficult to imagine that in a prison system and therefore the unsual prospective. Interesting.



3. This is the final volume of three volumes about Jeffrey Archer's Prison experience following his conviction for perjury and perverting the course of justice in 2001.
   
   Archer gives the reader an excellent picture of what it is like to be in prison in the United Kingdom. He writes pithy descriptions of some of his colleagues, including two of them who were model prisoners only to reoffend shortly after they were released. His comments on the drug problem in prisons are almost certainly applicable to prisons here in the United States as well.
   
   This book is easy to read, hard to put down, and does not waste words or descriptions. There is also plenty of Archer's good humor. He expresses his unhappiness at the people who turned on him and testified against him, but does not indulge in self-pity. This book is well worth reading.



4. I haven't actually read Archer's first two prison diaries yet but have ordered them after stumbling across this fascinating insight into daily prison life. Volume III Heaven can definitely be read as a stand alone non fiction novel or before reading the other two as it doesn't really refer to anything before Archer's arrival at North Sea Camp. Arhcer's final stage of imprisonment is in one of Britain's cushy D-category prisons, the final chapter of prisoners' lives before they are released, where there are no fences keeping prisoners in, and they have a lot more freedom and luxuries than ever before.
   
   Archer tells the reader through his diary entries about the difference in the way he is treated at North Sea Camp in comparison to the places he was held previously. How he is being picked on by corrupt political opponents, how the media who are camped out on the doorstep for a photo of him is portraying a completely different scenario to what he endures daily. The drug problems of other prisoners and how the system works or doesn't for prisoners in North Sea Camp. Archer explains the different jobs within the prison and takes us through the daily tasks of his various job promotions including the one he refers to as heaven, hospital orderly. There are also a few pictures included in what is a fascinating insight into prison life. Obviously it is a diary by Archer so we have to assume he was well behaved inside or if he did anything wrong he certainly didn't include it. There are plenty of despicable or stupid actions from some other prisoners and the outcomes of those actions inside to keep the reader entertained though.



5. Jeffrey Archer is one of my favourite authors and to read of his time behind bars has added a whole new dimension to his writing.He not only survived,but has gone on from where he left off,writing very readable books.
   Loryn Potroz