No comments about Don Martin Brain Games For Kids.

5 comments about Jackie After Jack: Portrait of the Lady.

1. This is a very good book, the author seems to bring Jackie O to life right before you. You see all sides of the most famous First Lady in America's history. You see the person behind the famous smile and sunglasses, her grief and depression after JFK's murder, her restless traveling and fascinating and ultimately unsatisfactory marriage to Ari Onassis, her rediscovering herself after Ari's death and her final years with the true love of her life, Maurice Templesman. The author makes you realize that this was a real life person, not some Goddess from Mt. Olympus. She was a flawed human being, but then again, aren't we all? I highly recommend to anyone who wants to learn about this fascinating lady.



2. My favorite part about this book is the fact that it gave such a refreshing look at someone who could, so easily, be idealized. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was human & possessed all the failings of a human being. I don't think she saw herself as anything else, & reportedly, could be very self-deprecating among her friends. The Kennedys & all of their family will forever fascinate our imaginations, but this book was a look at a very real woman, who withstood many challenges. She was able to present herself to the world as almost superhuman, which may have been her greatest failing. As they say, everyone is fascinated by power & strength, but too often rejoice in seeing those who possess those qualities topple from grace.



3. After the tragedy in Dallas, Jackie Kennedy became America's national hero and inspiration. Author Christopher Andersen takes us into a fascinating and often controversial journey into the real Jackie. The book wastes no time in getting to the action. It begins just seconds after John Kennedy has been shot. No story could be more heartbreaking than the the tragic journey back to Washington, DC and the days after Kennedy's death. According to Andersen, both Jackie and John relied heavily on Max Jacobson, also known as Dr. Feelgood, to relieve their pains and stresses. Jackie was kept well sedated during the funeral to become the brave grieving widow who inspired the world. JACKIE AFTER JACK is a surprising revelation. The widowed Jackie has numerous affairs often with married men and is always drawn to wealthier men. She shatters her golden image by marrying the wealthy and much older Aristotle Onassis. Jackie is portrayed as a woman who demanded loyalty and would end friendship over any perceived slight. Her shopping sprees and extravances were a strain to both her husbands. Although the book can weaken one's admiration for Jackie, it doesn't last long. By the end of the book, no one can feel anything but love and respect for a very remarkable woman. It's a fascinated and well-researched book.



4. There was alot of intrigue in Jackie Kennedy's personal life in New York after JFK died. In fact, alot of it was like a soap opera with all its innuendos and intrigue. Jackie had alot of attractive qualities ... and she did things that weren't so attractive .... because she was human. Admiration is complex. One can admire many things about someone but not others. It's fascinating to uncover that underneath it all, she was human.



5. What a fantastic book! One of the best i have ever read.
   I`m very interested in books about Jaqueline Kennedy Onassis and this was great.
   The writer Christopher Andersen seems to be very serious and
   is not just writing gossip, he has done a great job, intervjuing
   a lot of people who knew Jackie.
   I`ts about JFK, politics, her children, friends,drugs, Onassis,
   her work at Doubleday and Viking,her grandchildren, it's fantastic that Christopher A has spoken to so many people.After reading this book you really see Jackie O in a different light. I`m very glad i have this book in my collection.
   There are 62 black and white photos in the book.

3 comments about The Whitney Women and the Museum They Made.

1. "The Whitney Women and the Museum They Made" pays tribute to Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, who founded the museum through sheer force of will and social power, and Flora Whitney Miller, her daughter, who gave us the enduring legacy through charm and persuasion. It is mostly, however, a memoir about the author, Flora Miller Biddle who is Flora Miller's daughter and Gertrude's granddaughter. This is disappointing because Gertrude and Flora (mère) are fascinating people. Flora (fille) is decidedly bourgeois by comparison.

   In the preface, Mrs. Biddle reminds us "...this memoir does what all memoirs do; it tells only part of the story. Don't memoirs allow writers to keep from revealing all they know?" The sad truth is a reader can learn much more about Gertrude by reading "Little Gloria, Happy at Last". Mrs. Biddle admits she barely knew her grandmother, but surely this doesn't mean there is little to know or tell about her.

   The Whitney was a family institution. Gertrude built it and dared New York to defy her taste in art. Flora (mère) had the grace, the connections, and the remnants of the inheritance to ensure its place in history. They may have been rich and from one of the most socially important families in New York, but this is an astonishing accomplishment for that time. Women simply didn't do these things. Oddly enough, the book takes this achievement for granted.

   Mrs. Biddle has seen - not steered - the museum through its most difficult times, albeit in a role less grand than her mother's and grandmother's. At the same time, Flora, like Flora (mere), has not lost focus of Gertrude's mission to serve the living American artist; not simply be a repository for early to mid twentieth century American art. We are all richer for this achievement.

   It is quite an insight into a museum I have visited since I was a child. Who would have though how disorganized it was? How desperate at times! It is a tribute to the author and her family that they had the vision to recognize the Whitney could not survive as a family institution.

   The relationship the author has had with so many of the artists is awe-inspiring. It is a gift so great she doesn't seem to realize it and these characters, which should fascinate, seem cardboard. The book is a strange combination of chronography and reminiscence; its structure is hard to follow. The author is constantly lamenting that her family is no longer fabulously wealthy (for the museum's sake, of course) which is tiresome. Mrs. Biddle makes quite a show of her rebellion against her parents' society lives and her strive towards `normalcy'. Sadly, this does not seem to have made her happy.

   I love the museum and learned much of the concealed history of an old friend. This got me through the book. If you're genuinely interested in the Whitney Museum of American Art you should read it. If you're looking for the story of four generations of women, for the drive and energy it took them to build and maintain this remarkable institution you may be disappointed.




2. While I certainly enjoyed the Vanderbilt and Whitney family backgrounds, I found nothing worth noting in this book regarding the early days of the Whitney Museum. I purchased the book because I am writing a research paper on the founding of the Whitney Museum. Alas, the book focuses much on the fate of the Museum after Gertrude Whitney's death. There is very little detail or specifics concerning her role in the Museum, nor that of the main catalyst, Julianna Force.

   I will say that the book is a good, juicy look into the aristocratic Vanderbilt family, but that's about it.

   There is focus on later years, but very few details concerning the early days of the Museum.

   I'll shelve it for now and save it for a rainy day!




3. Although I like this book for what it is, it isn't exactly what I expected it to be when I bought it. I expected the book to give much more insight into the actual creation of the Museum by Gertrude, but for the most part that aspect is just gleemed over. Also, as another reviewer has pointed out, the contributions of Julianna Force are barely even mentioned in the book. If you didn't know better, you'd think Julianna did next to nothing the whole time she worked there, which is more than a little untrue.

   However, it must be noted that Ms. Biddle says first and foremost that her book is a "memoir," and as such certain factual omissions might be expected. Consequently, the book is filled from nearly beginning to end with quite a bit of gossip that those interested in the Vanderbilt or Whitney families or in museum politics will find terribly interesting.

   What I got most from the book though is the wonderful sense of supreme devotion that Flora Whitney Miller must have had to the Museum and to her mother Gertrude's memory. This was illustrated time and time again when Flora donated more of her money and capital to keep the Museum functioning in a way that befitted her mother's name. As other members of the Whitney family have shown in recent times, a single painting of the calibur that Flora Miller sold for the Museum's sake could have set her heirs up for life, had she chosen not to sell it and had passed it on.

   The book also seems to give insight into the recent controversies at the Whitney involving the display of Hans Haacke's controversial art display, with different members of the Whitney family taking different sides. After reading this book, it's obvious that certain ill feelings by some members of the family for others go back many, many years.

   In summary, if you like gossip, then this book is for you. If not, there are other books about the Whitneys that might be of more interest to you.

No comments about Feeding the Fame: Celebrities Tell Their Real-Life Stories of Eating Disorders and Recovery.

5 comments about Christine Jorgensen: A Personal Autobiography.

1. I had read Jorgensen's book and this is a great reissue of her very polite autobiography originally published in 1967. Susan Stryker's introduction adds a great deal of insight into Christine as she truly was: ambitious,tough,witty, and truly talented. Jorgensen was not a successful nightclub performer because of her sex change, she had taste and talent. She strived for more such as films and theatre. She was successful in the latter a few times. This new edition has great photographs never seen before. Jorgensen had written, at least in part, a new auto-biography that did not hold back intimate information which she felt the audience of the 1960s were not ready for. Why Christine Jorgensen has been largely forgotten (she made TV appearances into the 1980s and died far too young in 1989)is something that I don't understand. She was constantly in the newspapers throughout the 1950s and when this book was originally released, she was on several talk shows. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to understand transsexualism. Christine was not the first, but she was the first major celebrity sex change. The lady had class, dignity, intelligence, and a great wit. It is an intriguing read of a shy lad who was troubled and catapulted into a celebrity status and become very comfortable with herself. One cannot help but to admire her courage. If the reader wants to find out about her love life,back issues of such periodicals as The Advocate will have to be perused.Details of her three surgeries are not described indepth. Nevertheless,she was a phenomenon who is often left out of books on the 1950s. The reissue of her book will enlighten many, bring back memories to others. It will also cause several to wish someone would do a biography on Christine Jorgensen.Susan Stryker's introduction evokes great intrigue and I wish it had been much longer and filled in the many gaps which Jorgensen's publishers persuaded her to leave out. A very worthy read of an all but forgotten lady of history! I highly recommend it. Christine Jorgensen unintentionally moved the sexual revolution along. She caused society to re-evaluate what gender is during a politically conservative climate. If you have never heard of her, it is a must. If you heard of her but forgot her, revisit her. It is worth the time to get to know Ms.Jorgensen.



2. This is a must read book for those interested in gender identity issues, as well as for those who enjoy memoirs. Ms. Jorgensen was the first American to have a sex change operation and undergo such public scrutiny. Though she never intended to have her transformation become public knowledge, it was leaked to the press, and from then on, her life was never the same. In the cultural milieu of the nineteen fifties, Ms. Jorgensen's sex change was big news.
   
   Starting her life out as George Jorgensen, she never quite felt that she fit in and became a loner by inclination. One striking issue in the book, however, is that she came from an extremely loving and supportive family who always unconditionally accepted her as she was, both before and after her metamorphosis. Not every transgendered individual is as lucky as Ms. Jorgensen appears to have been with respect to familial relationships. Perhaps it was because her parents were of Danish descent, and Scandinavian people tend to be more accepting of these issues.
   
   Relentlessly upbeat, the book is a flattering and politely idealized memoir, as if anything too dark were exorcised from its pages. The chapters which cover Ms. Jorgensen's time in Denmark, where her change took place, are somewhat superficial and non-clinical. There is no real indication of any personal struggle or self-doubt with respect to her decision to undergo a life changing transformation. One has to remember, however, that this book was originally published approximately thirty five years ago, when the public's sensibilities on such issues were far more delicate.
   
   What does come across in this autobiography is that Ms. Jorgensen had the courage to make a decision that for the time was somewhat unique and cutting edge, as there was virtually no literature available for the general public on transsexualism, and gender identity studies were still in their nascent stage. Ms. Jorgensen essentially paved the way for others by bringing to the public consciousness issues that had not before been the subject of public discussion. In bringing these issues into the public domain, she was subject to a torrent of abuse, as well as discriminatory practices, and seemed to be the endless butt of jokes. She took these problems in stride, however, and always managed to have the last laugh. Laughter, indeed, appears to have been the best medicine.
   
   Ms. Jorgensen, an attractive natural blonde, who personified the stereotypic feminine ideal of the time, became an entertainer. Given her notoriety, her career options were limited, as she gathered a crowd whenever her identity became known. Playing the hand that was dealt her, she parlayed her notoriety into a successful club act, digressing into acting. She managed to make a success of herself, living a life that was interesting, but hardly scandalous. While this is an intriguing memoir, it is not an in depth profile of Ms. Jorgensen. The reader comes away knowing about Ms. Jorgensen, rather than knowing her. Still, all in all, it is a worthwhile read.



3. I had read this book before. I am a gay male, 48, and i first read it about 15 years ago. I now have a trans-gendered friend. I never understood transexuals until I read Christine Jorgensen's story. Then, I did. She is candid, very forthright, and a good example for everyone. I recommend that anyone who is inquisitive about the subject, first read this book. It is excellent. She was a pioneer, perhaps and American heroine.



4. Equal parts Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, the Christine Jorgensen story, as cheerfully recounted in her 1967 autobiography, demonstrates the ideological attractiveness of the passive reinvention of the persona. There's no shortage of 1950s Prince Charmings in shining armour here: Jorgensen's primary doctor informs her "No, I would not charge you anything" for HRT or SRS. In gratitude, she names herself after him. Later, another Father-Knows-Best magic man sweeps Jorgensen off her feet - a talent agent who grooms her for a lucrative show business career. Presto - Sleeping Beauty awakens upon the American Idol stage. This is the fairy godmother of all TS memoirs - the loveliest, silkiest read ever.
   
   [This edition has a solid preface by Susan Stryker and updated, occasionally 'naughty,' photos.]



5. EXCELLENT BIOGRAPHY, EASY READING, THOUGH INFORMATIVE AND FUNNY AT TIMES. I HIGHLY RECCOMEND THIS BOOK ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE INTERESTED IN PEOPLE. THIS CASE ILLUSTRATES THE IDEA THAT EVEN THOUGHT FACED WITH ADVERSE CIRCUMSTANCES ONE CAN OVERCOME ALL ODDS IF ONE IS HONOST WITH ONE'S SELF AND DETERMINED. THIS STORY IS AMAZING.

5 comments about The Life and Legend of Jay Gould.

1. Klein's in-depth Biography is a fascinating account of the life of businessman Jay Gould. Although accurate, Klein's analysis is too kind and almost invariably forgiving to the highly contrversial actions of this complex figure. I recommend this book very strongly!



2. Jay Gould is remembered as the worst of the 19th century "Robber Barons" - a destroyer of companies - yet as Maury Klein so ably details, this reputation was almost wholly fabricated by the media and bears little resemblance to a man obsessed with building a transportation and communications empire. Klein's book is more than about Jay Gould, it's about the vast gulf separating all-too-common media generated myths and the truth.



3. In the "Life and Legend of Jay Gould," historian Maury Klein seeks to resurrect the image of the archetypal -- but now largely forgotten -- early American industrialist.

   The names Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Carnegie and Morgan are familiar to nearly everyone, and in this 497-page biography Klein makes a convincing case that Jay Gould belongs in that pantheon of early American business giants. From his early maneuvers (which Klein claims permanently undermined his reputation) in fighting for control of the Erie Railroad and an attempt to corner the gold market, to his Herculean efforts to build and maintain a vast transportation and communications empire in the face of brutal competition and economic and political chaos, Gould emerges as a true pioneer in American corporate finance. Moreover, perhaps more than any of his contemporaries, Jay Gould was the personification of the so-called "robber baron"; the man and the myth were consummate.

   Yet, for all of its promise, this book is a huge disappointment. Klein is a classically trained historian and accomplished professional academic, yet this book reads as if it were composed by a fawning amateur. A project that began as an effort to "set the record straight," ultimately degenerates into a frustratingly air-brushed portrait of a very complex and capable man. Rather than a balanced and objective review of Gould's character and business acumen, the book takes on the form of a giddy valentine. Seemingly every move Gould makes is judged by Klein as "brilliant, masterful and unexpected," while his long list of formidable rivals are portrayed as bumbling morons. For example, after Gould ascended to a leadership position in the Union Pacific railroad, he moved to thwart the ruinous rate wars in transcontinental shipping that had erupted with the Pacific Mail steamship company, the Union Pacific's sole competitor in that market at that time. Shortly thereafter the Panama Railroad, the critical nexus upon which all of Pacific Mail's business depended, was acquired by another speculator and the transit contract with Pacific Mail abrogated. Klein describes Gould's actions in acquiring Pacific Mail and in getting out of the Panama railroad jam in glowing terms, but not a word is said about how someone with his supposed perspicacity could leave such a obviously vulnerable flank exposed in the first place.

   Also, the author almost totally neglects Gould's private life. Early in the book Klein confidently pronounces that "Two concerns dominated the rest of Gould's life, business and devotion to family." Yet, from that point forward, nary a word is spoken about Gould's relationship with his wife and family -- or specifically about his relationship with the son whose incapable hands the family fortune would be left to and squandered. In comparison to Ron Chernow's and Jean Strause's treatment of the private lives of John D. Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan, respectively, in recent biographies, Klein's performance in this regard is particularly disappointing.

   In closing, two things are clear after reading "The Life and Legend of Jay Gould": 1) Jay Gould was a giant of American business, easily on par with Rockefeller and Carnegie; and 2) the definitive one-volume biography of his amazing life has yet to be written.




4. This is book that one needs to purchase if you are interested in the guilded age and one of its smoothest operators. Rising from humble roots Gould camer to dominate the american railroad and finance businesses. Launching many famous raids on wall street, he teamed up with Fisk to try and corner the Gold market.

   Jay Gould is a classic american. A trader who was born and worked in a tannery and as an surveyor as a young man he rose to fame and infame. An amazing story, worth the read!




5. This book was very long and had very little information about the life of Jay Gould. It is very well researched. If you want to know the details of every railroad Gould bought, it is a blockbuster. If you want to know about what his life was like and who he married and where he lived, this book will not please you. There is very little personal information.

No comments about 21 Years Gone: The Autobiography.

5 comments about A Thousand Suns.

1. I have read almost all of Lapierre's books and loved them. They were vivid, well-researched and absolutely riveting. But this book seems dated. He takes old pieces and pieces them into a book. We've been there.



2. This is an interesting book by a man who has obviously had a fascinating life. He takes us across many continents and interviews many people, throwing in anecdotes about his life and interests.

   However what stops me giving this book a 5 star rating is the fact that I feel that some of the topics are given superficial treatment (despite the lengths of the chapters), and there is too much emphasis on the author's own involvement. Fair enough, you might say, it is his book about his experiences, but I feel it is these experiences which should take central stage.

   This is however only a small criticism, and it is a VERY interesting book, about interesting people in interesting times.




3. After reading Beyond Love and City of Joy, I expected this to be just as good. Two third of the book is interesting - although I discovered what a prejudice author this is - but the nearer I got to the end of the book, the more disappointed I was. I expected a great ending, instead I found a very slow one.



4. 1. 'A Thousand Suns', a fascinating book by Dominique Lapierre, famous author of books like `Is Paris Burning' and `City of Joy' takes its title from and Indian proverb that the author chanced upon during his stay in South India. It comes from (as indicated by the author) "Behind every cloud, there are a thousand suns". A perfect message for life in present day's gloomy outlook of life.
   
   2. It goes without saying that the book, which has such a beautiful and motivating title ought to be full of life energy and epitomize everything that is the very essence of meaningful life. This book actually is a byproduct, but a beautiful and useful one. It consists of 15 independent well researched real life stories, which the author encountered in the run up to doing a specific assignment mainly related to the prime characters or places related to these stories, initially as a news correspondent and later as a writer.
   
   3. At the end thus, he filed his reports / wrote his books, but the enduring beauty of life enshrined in the background of these reports / books remained. The author has really done a wonderful service to mankind by writing this book; else such beautiful pearls of human endeavor, wisdom, perseverance and enterprise would have been lost forever.
   
   4. Written in a simple style with stress on delivering the message right, the author might have not achieved perfection of narrative, but what needed to be achieved i.e. delivery of the essentials of beauty of life has been achieved with perfection.
   
   5. It is rightly said that `make your hobby your profession and you would not have to work for a day'. It is evident from reading this book that Mr Lapierre seems to have not worked for a day but have thoroughly enjoyed this life following his passion for writing.
   
   6. All those who have faith in life and mankind and all those whose faith on these is wavering for some reasons must read this book to derive the requisite benefit.



5. 
   
   Dominique Lapierre was one of the twentieth century's most prolific international journalists and a highly prolific author of both novels and historical works, many together with his lifelong coleague Larry Collins.
   In this digest he takes us through some of his greatest journeys and encounters with people who shaped the course of events. He includes some of the encounters behind his joint works with Dominique Lapierre, such as his interview with Ehud Avriel, who helped Jews to escape Hitler's infernos to get to the Holy Land, and gathered together arms to help the fledgling State of Israel survive the overwhelming military force of six Arab armies who attacked the tiny state, as soon as the United Nations agreed to partition of Palestine.
   He also describes the starvation and misery of Jerusalem's Jewish inhabitants during the siege of that city by Arab armies intent on massacring all of Jerusalem's Jews.
   Some of the events described in his article about Avriel, who Lapierre was a good friend of are recorded in O Jerusalem!
   He also recounts his interviews with Lord Louis Mountbatten, who was instrumental in negotiating the independence of India and it's aprtition into the two states of India and Pakistan.
   Lapierre was with Mountbatten a few days Mountbatten's assassination by IRA terrorists in 1979.
   He also recounts his meetings and interviews with the men behind the assasination of Mahatma Ghandi, as result of Gandhi's favorable policies towards India's Moslems.
   These events form part of the bakground to Freedom at Midnight.
   Lapierre details his relationship with the man who was executed for somebody else's crimes, Caryl Chessman, and Chessman's campaign from prison against the death penalty.
   He describes the refusal by General Dieter Von Choltitz refusal to obey Hitler's orders to completley destroy Paris but ignores the evidence that Von Choltitz had been involved in the massacre of Jews in Russia.
   He also writes of his interview with the evil terrorist murderer Kozo Okamoto from the Japanese Red Army Faction, who together with two other psychopathic Communist terrorists murdered 26 Puerto Rican pilgrims in 1972.Interesting that even then those hellbent on murder and destruction chose Israel as their first target for butchery.
   But the world made a lot more sense then, as most the world reviled these horrible terrorists acts, unlike the macabre Orwellian nightmare we are living through today, were so much of the world supports terror against the tiny nation of Israel.
   Interesting even that the first t
   He also writes of his encounters with the great conservationist Rafael Matta in the Ivory Coast, and the authoir's first car and how he acquired the foal of a prize horse in San Tropez France, by the name of Preferido.
   
   Most touching is Lapierre's recounting of work in Calcutta, which the author was involved in with Indian leper and other orphan children
   Lapierre donates half of his royalties to the foundation set up to save these children
   It is heartbreaking to read of their plight and uplifting to read of their joy in life despite their suffering and death all around them. You can read more about these poignant and heartrending accounts in The City of Joy
   "behind every cloud" as the author recounts "there are a thousand clouds."
   Overall a fascinating and exciting read.

5 comments about Juicy: Confessions of a Former Baseball Wife.

1. I bought this book because I already knew what Jose had to say, but wanted to hear what Jessica had say. The 1st half of the book she said absolutely nothing except repeat how she would catch Jose cheating, they would fight, break up, and get back together again. In fact she just repeats this throughout the whole book. How many times can you read the same story before you get bored?? You really get to the point where you just want to slap her and knock some sense into her for being so stupid.
   
   I really dont know why I kept reading this book. I kept hoping something eventfull would happen, but it never really did. I wouldnt recommend this book unless you want to hear an ex-wifes story about how her husband cheats on her and abuses her in a never ending cycle of 230+ pages



2. From the Playboy pics, it looks like she is on steroids, too. Trophy wife, but aren't trophies made of plastic?



3. Who probably wish they could look half as good as Jose's ex-wife. While her tale wasn't the most profound or riveting, it wasn't anything to scoff at, either. Unless you people have walked in similar shoes, shut the hell up with your judgments - what was it Jesus said? Let he who is without sin cast the first stone? Or something like that, but you get the point.
   
   It's funny how women get blamed for a men's misbehavior, even though Jessica ADMITS that she was addicted and co-dependent on her relationship to Jose. We forgive drugs addicts, alcoholics, even gambling addicts, yet when a woman, and an attractive one at that, is stuck in a rut, she receives the big brush off, is labeled a gold-digger, a bimbo, an idiot, she should have "known better," etc etc etc....Yet everyone else is entitled to forgiveness, compassion, and understanding.
   
   I found the former Mrs. Canseco's story to be of some use as perhaps another woman in a simiar situation will recognize the signs and bail out before her own self esteem spirals further downward. One thing you petty naysayers need to remember is how young she was when she met him. How many times do we hear of the influential older man taking a naive woman as his partner and molding her into what suits his needs? A man with a healthy self esteem would want to find an equal partner, not a young, unsuspecting female he can crap on. (Another similar scenario would be OJ and Nicole Simpson). Yet Jessica is blamed for being an unsuspecting woman, then a (co-dependent) addict, and she still gets reamed for trying to find her own way (whether it be posing in Playboy or writing this book).
   
   As for the comments on being an unfit mother, and the reviewer who wrote that Jose would make a better parent only because he did steroids, you have got to be kidding. Another case of misogyny and sexism - does the same reviewer blame Nicole Brown Simpson for her own murder and the murder of Ron Goldman?
   
   Maybe Jessica is cashing in on the Canseco name, but after all she's been through, I say she is well deserving of doing so.
   
   Also, if you are going to judge someone by their recreational drug use and sexual exploits, I suggest you move out of the country, hell, move off the planet and colonize one of your own - news for you - a lot of people experiment and it doesn't make them UNFIT or BAD and in fact, I admire her candor for coming out because it is an integral part of the story and relates to how BAD she felt about herself, and how she used drugs to escape and tried to save her marriage by pleasing Jose.
   
   However, I suspect it's a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
   
   I will sum up this review by saying that while the book was enjoyable and a fast read, I do wish I had saved my money by going to the library instead of purchasing it. As I stated, it wasn't groundbreaking enough to part of my book collection.



4. Juicy is an appropriate title for this book. A great read for the beach. No, it's not deep and insightful, but rather, fun and trashy. Highly recommended!



5. ...but then you're left with a bad taste in your mouth.
   
   I've read a few of these autobiographies from trophy wives of stars and they're pretty much all the same, and all have the same themes. Let me sum this book (and about 3 others) up for you, to save you some time:
   - Don't hate me because I'm beautiful, I had a tough childhood
   - It's really, really difficult for me because no one takes me seriously, because I am just so much prettier than everyone else
   - I spend more on clothes, beauty products, and spa treatments each month than 5 average families spend on food and rent
   - The only wage-paying job I've ever had involved me showing off my amazing body, but again, don't hate me because I'm beautiful
   - I really thought my incredibly handsome husband who couldn't keep his pants zipped for FIVE MINUTES before we were married would be faithful to me! And I was totally heartbroken when he cheated!
   - Even though I ditch my kid(s) with the nanny every chance I get, my children are my life! And I am such a great mother I could win awards!
   - I would LOVE to get a real job and support myself like a normal person, but going back to school is just too hard, so I'll keep living off the alimony, thanks. That is, until I can find a new rich guy to pick up the tab of my incredibly shallow and image-focused lifestyle.
   
   Yawn. Jessica Canseco obviously has some big issues with Jose and wants to make him look bad, but just makes herself look like a gold-digging bimbo. I mainly read this looking for some kind of input from a baseball wife on the whole steroids-in-baseball issue but all I got out of this about that was: people in baseball do steroids. I did learn a lot about how baseball wives have tons of unnecessary plastic surgery when they get bored.
   
   I will say that Jessica does seem self-aware about the shallowness of her life in some points, but in others just seems completely self-absorbed and clueless. The book was very obviously ghostwritten, and despite that, the platitudes and therapy-speak still get very old fast.
   
   I think books like this are valuable for one reason, and that is to serve as cautionary tales for women who follow celebrity men around thinking they are one wild night away from the good life. Jessica may have been rich but her life seems incredibly empty and devoid of meaning to me. No wonder these trophy wives are so anxious to have kids - they probably need something, ANYTHING, to latch onto to give their lives some kind of shape or meaning. If this is grabbing the brass ring, I'm happy to be living in the slow lane of life because no amount of money is worth giving up your self-respect, in my opinion. It's too bad so many other women don't feel the same way.

No comments about Jordan Massee Accepted Fables.