5 comments about Bobby Fischer: Profile of a Prodigy (Revised Edition).

1. Fischer was a genius, no question about that. This book is a good buy for the price: you get a (weak) biography of a great player, 8 pages of pictures, and 90 (poorly) annotated games for less than US$15.00! Altogether not a bad deal. However, I take issue with the author. Because he was a friend of Fischer's he did not want to ruin his relationship with him by revealing Fischer's odd character traits, as many other reviewers have noticed. Worst, the author wants you to believe Fischer was a good boy, the American self made sportsman who increased the popularity of the game while fighting for better playing conditions and higher appearance fees, which would ultimately benefit chess professionals as a whole. This might be true. However, it is also true that Fischer left chess players as a whole with an undeletable image: that of nerds, eccentrics and the like. All in all I think his contribution to the image of chess was negative, not positive. Upon reading the book it struck me that Spassky allowed himself to play that fatidic match in Iceland. Fischer did not show up at the date and time they had originally agreed. Spassky gave in to Fischer's absurd demands, falling pray to Fischer's psychological warfare. He should have walked away and kept his title, period. Since he did not the rest is history. At the end of the day the character of a World Champion is seem not when he wins a world championship match but rather when he loses it. Fischer, unlike Spassky, Karpov, and Kasparov never showed up to defend his title. This will be his sad legacy.



2. I bought the first edition of this book by mail order when I was about 16, and devoured it eagerly. In those days world-class chess was relentlessly dominated by the USSR, challenged mainly by other Eastern Europeans and the occasional American like Reshevsky, Evans and the Byrne brothers. Boris Spassky was soon to play "iron Tigran" Petrosian for the world title, and the only wild card seemed to be a crazy teenage genius from New York who could beat anyone at all on his day. Frank Brady's writing captured the sheer excitement of it all. For instance, in a great tournament with most of the best players in the world, Mikhail Tal expected Petrosian to crush the upstart Fischer, "but when Bobby beat the USSR champion the crowd roared".
   
   Brady's style is journalistic, but it fits his subject quite well. This much expanded edition takes Fischer's story all the way to winning the world championship, which is probably a logical place to stop. (Fischer stopped playing chess at that point, so the rest of his life has been lived in a very different world). The book is full of interesting facts that you could not read about anywhere else, and until a professional biographer turns his attention to Fischer - which may never happen, because he is about the least cooperative subject imaginable - it will remain the last word.
   
   The games section is a different story. Only a narrow cross section are given, with notes by Brady that reveal his lack of expertise. They are only there for completeness' sake, and should be read as an extension of the biography. If you want to understand Fischer's chess, read his Collected Games, his own "My 60 Memorable Games" (which is itself very limited in scope, though superb in depth), or Elie Agur's brilliant "Bobby Fischer: His Approach to Chess".



3. Frank Brady's "Profile of a Prodigy" is a frustrating combination of good and bad. The good first: Brady gives fascinating behind-the-scenes information that I'd read nowhere else, giving you the sense that you are there. The bad: the book is riddled with mistakes, stuff you wouldn't find in a High School newspaper! Dates and misstatements of facts, too numerous to mention. And some chessic misjudgements too, like when Brady says, speaking of the 1972 Title Match, that Fischer varied his opening repertoire to an English Opening in Game 8 from the QGD of Game 6. But it wasn't Fischer who varied; he played 1.c4 in both games. It was Spassky's reply in game 8 that changed the opening. The book would've benefitted from a good editor, one who knows how to play chess. But despite all this, I'd still recommend the book. It's a fascinating read.
   Bob Hunt, Hillsborough, N.J.



4. 3.5 stars
   
   It is just so hard to review this autobiography, completed at the height of Fischer's triumph, knowing what was to come. Though not meant to be ironic, the author's comments about Bobby having finally found his place atop the chess world cannot but seem ironic now.
   
   That aside, and it is not wholly the author's fault, the book is neither as much as a puff piece as the earlier version was, to my mind at least, nor was it as penetrating as it could have been. It comes across as a sterile recounting of Fischer's career with little mention of a personal life, or wondering about the lack of one.
   
   Though not penetrating and mentioning the seeds of behaviors that even then would have been known to Fischer's friends before they fully blossomed before the entire world the book is not full of praise for Bobby either. The recountings of his continued dropping out of tournaments, his altercation with Benko do not cast Fischer in the kindest light.
   
   The author does seem to be softening, and explaining and excusing, these events but he is enough of a scholar that he leaves them reasonably unvarnished for the reader to make their own decisions.
   
   Interesting, but now incomplete, reading to see the rocky and troubled rise of the solo chess prodigy Bobby Fischer.



5. Nearly everyone who has some decent experiance with chess has heard about Bobby Fischer and his mysterious behavior. He is one of the best chess players in history and I bought the book recently to get more insight into his character and mind. The book has about 400 pages and a little more than a half consists of his biography from childhood up to 1972 Fischer-Spassky Championship and the other part is 80 selected Fischer games with very good annotations and turnament results.
   
   The biography in itself consists very little of Fischer's personal life, and majority of it are various turnament events and how well Fischer did at them. I think it's well worth reading for people who have interest in Bobby Fischer, and would like to immitate his career to some extent.
   
   The part that has put biggest imprint on my memory is when the author (Bobby's early chess advisor) and Bobby went to meet one of the NYC bussinesmen who offered to fund Bobby's travel to a turnament. 'Tis what happened: after a short conversation the bussinessman added:
   
   "[...] 'However there's just one thing I'd like you to do. If I put up the money and send you to this turnament, and when you win and are interviewed by the press, or anybody, I want you to say: 'I couldn't have won this turnament without the help of Sam Blanker."'
   Bobby was on his feet immediately, seeming to have grown years in a moment. 'I can do that', he said evenly. 'If I win a turnament, I win it by myself. I do the playing. Nobody helps me. I win the turnament myself, with my own talent.'" Bobby rejected the offer for one particular reason.
   
   This gives a lot of insight into Fischer's mind.
   
   The pluses and minuses:
   1. Pluses: The book was written in a very simplistic form without input of unnecessary words and information which makes it quick and pleasant to read. I read entire book in 3 days and I don't regret it. The attached annotated games and turnament results are a very good idea for people who are interested in Fischer's chess style (if it can be called a style) besides his biography.
   
   2. Minuses: There's one huge problem with the book which to some extant destroys the postive impressions with the book. I took a way 2 points for this. The author over and over again rationalizes Fischer's behavior in a positive manner which might not be true and tries to impose on the reader the idea of Fischer being the greatest and most rightous genius on the planet. This happens especially in conclusion, of which I read only 2 pages as I couldn't cope with its "Fischer worshipping tone". I advise anyone who reads the book to simply not care so much about those parts.

1 comments about Lee Takes Command: From Seven Days to Second Bull Run (Civil War).

1. I read this book because my library didn't have the voices of the civil war book for the 7 days campaign but this book filled in just fine and was probabbly better then the other series. this book explains the 7 Days battle in the areas around Richmond. It also tells the story of the begining of the Manassas campaign and will introduce you to battles that you might not have heard of before

5 comments about Mr Lincoln's Army.

1. Around the time of the Civil War's Centennial celebration, Bruce Catton dominated Civil War writing in this country. His books still speak to the reader in a literary style that brings the feeling of the war and its participants very much alive.

   "Mr. Lincoln's Army" is the first of his three-part trilogy on the Army of the Potomac. Catton traces the tragic evolution of this army -- always a superb fighting force in the ranks -- from a misused and abused weapon to the anvil that finally broke the rebellion.

   In this book, Catton focuses on one of America's few men of Destiny -- at least until he had the opportunity to confront destiny in the face -- General George B. McClellan. McClellan picked up the pieces of the Army of the Potomac twice. First, after its inauspicious start at the First Battle of Bull Run and again after the army's route following the second tussle with the Confederacy near that same small battlefield.

   McClellan was good at everything in which a general had to excel except fighting. An outstanding organizer and moral builder, "Little Mac" trained the army to a professional level and instilled in it an esprit de corps that helped sustain it through disappointment and disaster.

   The one thing McClellan could not do, as Catton illustrates through his focus on the Peninsula Campaign and the Battle of Antietam, was use this superbly honed weapon decisively in battle. Always thinking he was outnumbered when in fact he held the advantage in forces, and lacking the inner confidence to take even good battle risks, he wasted multiple opportunities to end the war (or at least the existence of the Army of Northern Virginia) and save years of conflict and hundreds of thousands of lives. McClellan ends up as the ultimate in tragic figures, outwardly seeming so perfect for the job and bearing the loftiest of expectations as a savior, but inwardly cowed by fears and suspicions that he wasn't up to it.

   This book is a wonderful and evocative portrait of the spirit of the Army of the Potomac in the McClellan era. Catton's great strength is the use of anecdotes to draw the big picture and sniff out "what was in the air" at different points in time. Thus his books are not exhaustive campaign and battle portraits and are short on troop movements and deployments of particular units. He seeks to demonstrate what was actually happening when all the personalities and actors of a moment are factored together. It is a big picture look at his subject buttressed by observations, iconic stories and the unusual that allows the reader to understand the feeling that surrounded events.

   Thus, Catton focuses mightily on the relationship between McClellan and Lincoln's administration, his relationship and the performance of senior officers and in deciphering the motives, mindsets and chess game that seemed to envelope significant figures in the Army of the Potomac to a much greater degree than any other Union or Confederate army engaged in the conflict.

   As all of Catton's writings on the Civil War are, this one is a classic.




2. What a wonderful book. I was so lucky to be able to pick up a great condition trilogy of the AOP (Mr. Lincoln's Army, Glory Road, and Stillness at Appomatox).

   Catton's style is so amazing. You get the broad strokes of tactical movement, political wranglings, down in the ditch tales, camp life, and of course the human equation.

   Excellent. Excellent. Excellent.

   I must say, I'm glad I had a little working knowledge of the ACW before reading. He does have a tendency to just start up. For instance, Lincoln's Army starts in the middle of 2nd Manassas, then kind of works back into a flash back and fills in some of the bios. This may be a little confusing for an un-informed reader. You may want to read a very general, one volume sort of history before moving on to Catton.

   The good thing though is the book is suitable for a beginner and yet I think the more you know about the ACW, the more you will enjoy it. There are so many great little stories about politicians, soldiers, officers, etc.

   Highly recommended.




3. When it comes to writing, Catton's style is nearly impeccable. When reading Catton's book, you get the feeling that this is a great writer writing about the Civil War, not a great Civil War historian who is writing.
   
   Catton paints with broad strokes regarding the campaigns of the Army of the Potomoc up to November 1862. People who are interested in the Civil War will definitely want to read more detailed histories of the individual campaigns, but for those who have already done so, reading Catton is great because he ties them all together and really gets into the psyche of the soldiers and the army as a whole.
   
   Much of the book focuses of course on McClellan, who is persona non grata in most histories being written these days. But Catton is able to evoke some sympathy for McClellan's odd position in the power struggle between the military commanders and the Administration's politics, let alone the power struggle within the Administration itself.
   
   All in all, this is a great book for people who have read about the Civil War in depth and are looking for enjoyable reading.



4. This is the second of Bruce Catton's "army of the Potomac" books that I have read. I have the whole series but let them sit on my shelf for years until I discovered Catton's genius for communicating history while reading "Glory Road". Some historical books are written by persons adept at research but short on writing skills. Others are adept at writing but short on research skills. A good book is when you find someone good at both. Catton EXCELS at both. His ability to show us the Civil War through the eyes of the participants is quite impressive. It's even more impressive when realizing that he takes us across a lot of ground in a mere 339 pages yet never lets us feel that we missed anything nor that we were bogged down in anything. He gives us his philosophy yet seems to try and give us enough leeway to decide for ourselves on a number of issues such as the merits of McClellan as commanding general.
   
   "Mr. Lincoln's Army" covers the war from post First Bull Run with emphasis on the Penninsula Campaign and Antietam. Along the way we get a lot of insight into the politics that had many a politican exasperated with McClellan while the majority of soldiers worshipped him. As we explore the book, we frequently come across many a sideline subject. For example, he covers in this vollume the food that the common soldier had to eat. It was surprizing how thorough he covered the subject in far fewer pages that I encountered in other books.
   
   I've read plenty of fiction that wasn't written as well as Catton writes. Given the fascinating subject matter, this book was a pleasure to read. I can't wait to read "A Stillness at Appomattox".



5. One reason I am a life-long Civil War buff is because of the pleasant memories I have as a teenager reading several of Mr. Catton's books. Just recently I bought some used ones at a flea market and have decided to read them again. This book is the first one I have reread.
   
   Rereading this book reminded me why Catton is one of the best writers on comprehensive or themed Civil War histories. He was not known for many titles on individual battles but instead focused on particular themes (US Grant taking command of the Army of the Potomac in 1864, a comprehensive history of the Army of the Potomac, etc.).
   
   Mr. Lincoln's Army covers the time from Bull Run to the Battle of Antietam, mainly from the Union perspective. Yes, the folks who like a histories on the Confederacy may like not the perspective, but the book is fair in evaluating the leaders of the Army of the Potomac. The book also has Catton's unique writing style - excellent descriptions of troop movements, battles, and personalities.
   
   The only reason I did not give the book 5 stars was not the content or style of the text but the maps. The maps were few and were of okay quality. To be fair, the book was written in the 1950s, so one should not expect the quality of maps one sees in newer titles.
   
   Complaint aside, read the book and enjoy what is in my humble opinion one of the best histories of the Army of the Potomac.
   
   Recommended.

1 comments about The Grand Old Man of Maine: Selected Letters of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, 1865-1914 (Civil War America).

1. While some in the Civil War community complain of "Chamberlain fatigue," it is difficult to gripe about this marvelous new collection of postwar correspondence from one of the most articulate officers on either side of the conflict.
   
   Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain survived the Civil War - including a horrible wound at Petersburg - to become one of Maine's most prominent citizens. His postwar career included four terms as governor of Maine, a stint as president of Bowdoin College, numerous business enterprises, and perhaps most importantly, many years as a writer and lecturer on his Civil War experiences.
   
   The correspondence included by editor Jeremiah Goulka covers nearly every aspect of Chamberlain's personal and professional life. Chamberlain's heartfelt letters to his family, especially those to his wife Fannie, reveal him to be a loving, thoughtful husband and father. His relationship with Fannie, stormy and difficult though it was for many years, survived numerous crises until Fannie's death in 1905.
   
   Chamberlain's Civil War experiences transformed him, and his separation from the army often left him feeling restless. In 1870, Chamberlain wrote to the King of Prussia and offered his services in Prussia's war with France. In 1898, Chamberlain contacted the Secretary of War to volunteer for the Spanish-American War. Even with all his postwar positions and projects, Chamberlain never quite filled the space in his soul left empty by the end of the Civil War.
   
   Critics of Chamberlain, in his lifetime and in our own time, claim that he inflated his role at Little Round Top in an attempt to horde the glory of that important engagement. At least one letter included in this volume refutes this criticism. In a January 1910 letter to Union veteran and author Oliver W. Norton, Chamberlain says of his brigade commander, Strong Vincent, "He was a noble man, and I have not known an abler commander in his grade. Nothing could exceed his skill and energy in taking the position on Little Round Top and the confidence he inspired in his subordinates. To this the result of the fight on the left at Round Top is very largely due [emphasis added]."
   
   The correspondence also clarifies an often incorrectly reported fact concerning the July 1913 fiftieth anniversary reunion at Gettysburg. Chamberlain, while he visited Gettysburg in May as a member of the planning commission, did not attend the July reunion. Chamberlain's doctor strongly urged him not to go due to his declining health, and he stayed behind in Maine.
   
   Rather than being castigated for his prolific eloquence, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain deserves the timeless thanks of everyone who studies the Civil War. Jeremiah Goulka deserves thanks as well, for his skillful editing, and for giving us a deeper understanding of a genuine American hero.

No comments about The Making of an American.

5 comments about Freedom's Child: The Life of a Confederate General's Black Daughter.

1. The description of Mrs. Mary McCray as an adult in Montclair, New Jersey and her struggles for "full freedom" are truly inspiring. I felt as if I was sitting in that kitchen listening to the anecdotes as they were told. I found the early part of the book, however, to read like a research paper with the footnotes included.



2. It seems to me that this book, along with Edward Ball's Slaves in the Family, offers a new and important look at the history of race relations in America. Both of them deal with situations that were not unique, but carefully swept under the rug. I applaud both authors for their work, and since Mrs. McCray has said she's writing another book, there is at least one reader, here in the nation's oldest city, who is anxiously awaiting it.



3. This is an amazing true story of one woman's searh for her past. Not only does she find it, but her pot of gold at the end of the rainbow was, at first, a mixed blessing. Carrie Allen McCray was forced to face her own prejudices when she discovered that her grandfather was not only a white man but he was a Confederate General in the Civil War. But he also played a major role in the life of his Black daughter. That daughter became a powerful civil rights leader and she was Carrie's mother. FREEDOM'S CHILD is wonderfully written and absorbing from the first page. I HIGHLY recommend it. It is not just the story of a Black family's history, it really is a story of America's history and how we are all truly linked.. like it or not. IT WOULD MAKE A WONDERFUL MOVIE!!!!



4. In Freedom's Child : The Life of a Confederate General's Black Daughter by Carrie Allen McCray, the author relates how her maternal grandfather, a former Confederate general, was a very affectionate and responsible father to his mixed-race children. When the children married, however, their black-identified spouses were vehemently opposed to hearing any fond recollections of Papa, nor did they want the grandchildren to think of a white man as Grandpa. The author herself discovered her grandfather's relationship to her mother and uncles through research. He was not talked about in family circles.
   
   The general's daughter was a very white mulatto and not "black." There was a strange family need to divorce themselves from their white ancestry while prizing the genes those ancestors bequeathed.
   
   Passing for Who You Really Are



5. Freedom's Child is an excellent read but I would not call it an academic read in any sense of the word. This is one woman's personal history, she is the grand-daughter of White Confederate General who openly acknowledged his mixed-race offspring but who also lived quite happily in the violent segreated world of the deep South of the time and who was not willing to stand up for his own children's rights much less anyone elses.
   
   Carrie Allen McCray endeavours to look at her maternal grandfather in a neutral light, she is after all of mixed heritage herself but in the end she is forced to admit that he was as much a secret to her as he was to the rest of their family, even her own mother didn't talk much about him, other than he was her father and he was white.
   
   I enjoyed Freedom's Child but it is not as good as say The Sweeter the Juice, Finding Grace and Life on the Color Line, Dear Senator mainly because I think that the author tries to hard to explain why her Grandfather was possibly the way he was whilst trying to stay true to her own mixed race background.
   
   All the same it is a good read and I am happy to give it five out of five because it adds to the subject of passing, mixed heritage, the aftermath of slavery and the legacy that has been passed down to many families throughout the USA.

4 comments about Standing Firm: A Vice-Presidential Memoir.

1. Rarely do the media and the entertainmenr business ravage a person as thoroughly as they did Dan Qauyle. Everyone thinks that they know who Quayle is, but by the time that I was done reading this book, I felt as though he were my long lost uncle. His insights are uncompromising and clear, and he places blame where it should be in every instance, sometimes on the media, sometimes on his political opponents, sometimes on President Bush, and sometimes with himself. Quayle is honest with himself and his readers, making no unecessary apologies for the decisions that he has made or the reasons that he made them. He makes no bones about the influences in his life, starting with his God. Once a skeptic, I am now a full-fledged Quayle supporter, and I will patiently explain to anyone who says anything nasty about him that they simply need to find out what they are really talking about before they open their mouth. Reading this book is a good place to start.



2. Perhaps it is appropriate that Dan Quayle belongs to the GOP because in his public life he has displayed elephantine qualities-strength, courage,decency,loyalty,love of family and an ability to fight back from adversity. His book, Standing Firm,reflects his values. From the searing media attacks of the 1988 campaign,lack of support from GOP heavyweights like Jim Baker, and the bruising vice -presidential debates of that era, Quayle would have been less than human if he had not been unsettled. He admits that in that early period he quit trusting in himself.For some liberals he would never be trusted. In refusing to bow to trendy positions Quayle continued to attract odium.Yet, in his defence of the traditional family over the 'Murphy Brown position' he espoused eternal values. Some of his critics preferred to concentrate on his incorrect spelling of potato! ( Well, the rest of the English speaking world has always known that Americans are funny spellers-big deal!) In reading this book you quickly discover Quayle is a values-driven politician. Precisely because of the poverty of values amongst today's elites Quayle's views will continue to be ridiculed despite the fact that he articulates the views of middle America. This book give some idea of the challenges and loneliness that a Veep faces,particularly one under constant media pressure. In standing firm to his values Dan Quayle fought back-his performance in the 1992 vice-presidential debate (against Al Gore) mirrored the increased assurance of the man-and this book should be reflected on by his fellow Americans and perhaps those further afield.



3. Let me preface this review by saying that I am a conservative. I am a Christian (both of which can easily be verified by reading my other reviews). And until I read this book, I wanted to like Dan Quayle. He always seemed like the media's whipping boy, like the guy that couldn't get a fair shake. I remember watching Rush Limbaugh's TV show and seeing Slick Willy laughing at a funeral, and then after spotting a camera instantaneously becoming very sad. I wanted to know why other politicians weren't hounded like Quayle was?
   
   Unfortunately, Dan answered this question in his book: he really is as the media presents him. The media paints Quayle as a guy who's smarter than average, conservative, and something of a mistake-making dufus. I found nothing in the book to refute this portrait. Quayle goes into gaff after goof that he made in a very short time period, and one comes away seeing that, yes, he really does have a problem that would be the death of any politician. Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure Mr. Quayle is much smarter that I will ever be; he's probably also more charismatic, well connected, financially secure, etc.
   
   But none of these things can save Dan from himself. He's the Yogi Berra of politicians, and you can't blame the media for jumping on the chance to make a few dollars off of his persona. Mr. Quayle's a capitalist and a conservative, surely he understands that? (though, of course, he could point out the hypocrisy in the media's claim to be unbiased, when they have biases just like the rest of us)
   
   I don't know why, but it seems like conservative politicians--e.g., Quayle, Gingrich, Keyes, etc.--have self-imploded any time they have been given a chance to do well. Meanwhile, conservative pundits--e.g., Limbaugh, Hannity, etc.--have done astronomically well when given the chance. I suppose the Republican party needs another man like Reagan, who can be a bit of everything at the same time, and still come off as seeming like much more than just the sum of his parts.
   
   Whatever the case in real life may be, I do admit that I found this book to be somewhat entertaining (if somewhat self-promoting, as most biographies are). Unfortunately, the let down that came from realising that Quayle had hurt his own case made this book very unlikable in my own eyes. It's never pleasant to see someone shoot themselves in the foot.



4. As readers of my reviews may have figured out, I read many biographies and vice-presidential memoirs are within my purview (see my Amazon review of Richard Nixon's "Six Crises"). This one is a gem! Dan Quayle gives us an inside perspective on the first Bush administration, which presided over a crucial period in the lives of most readers. It is written in a style that is easy to follow and to understand. I know what some of you are thinking. Of course it is simple, it is written by Dan Quayle. Get off it! It is not written simply, it is written very well!
   
   In "Standing Firm" Former Vice-President Quayle provides the reader with his view of the administration lead by George H.W. Bush. While Quayle obviously has very high respect for President Bush, he is had on others in the administration including, at times, himself. It seems that the only ones above criticism are President and Mrs. Bush and Marilyn Quayle. There is plenty of honest assessment of others to satisfy any but the most sanguine reader.
   
   Mr. Quayle gives us an introduction to his early life, which disposes of the claim that he came was a trust fund baby who rode to school in a limousine. It sounds like he really came from an upper middle class family.
   
   These are times worth looking back on. He gives us his perspectives on the issues which confronted the administration and him personally. He begins the book with the call to be the running mate and the chaotic rush to get through the crowd to Spanish Plaza in New Orleans for the announcement at which he was, as he admits "too hot." He then steps back to us on a walk along the road leading to his selection. It wasn't something that just happened. He was a carefully thought out choice. After rhe announcement the press assault immediately began. The first to come to his defense were his neighbors at the "Battle of Huntington." He gives us his own impression of the famous "You're no Jack Kennedy" incident.
   
   With the election won, Quayle started to establish his own role. His analysis of the opportunities for a vice-president and the pitfalls, such as taking a position without the clout to be effective, give the reader a unique perspective on the office. He carved out a particular interest in Latin America. His perspectives on Desert Storm, the Clarence Thomas nomination, the saving of President Aquino and the nailing of Noreiga provide up close looks at crucial events of the era. He provides reminders of his prophetic calls for legal reform and recognition of family values. Remember the "Murphy Brown" speech?
   
   With victory won in the Gulf, the political juggernaut, seemingly invincible, started to sputter, stopping before crossing the finish line in 1992. Quayle gives us his viewpoint of what went wrong and why.
   
   Whether your interest is in the vice-presidency, the era or Quayle himself, this is a book you will enjoy. Even though the Bush 41 era is receding into history, it is a good time to take a look back.

5 comments about Wheels for the World: Henry Ford, His Company, and a Century of Progress.

1. Wheels for the World by Douglas Brinkley is a lengthy, but well written book that details the Ford Motor Company's epic history and many accomplishments. Brinkley offers the reader plenty of information on Henry Ford, the pioneer of mass produced auto manufacturing. He details everything from Ford's instabilities and contradicting behavior to his impeccable business savvy. A major downfall for Wheels for the World is Brinkley's inability to make clean transitions from one idea to the next. The reader gets attached to one idea, and the next thing you know Brinkley has begun an entirely new concept. But, in the end I believe the author did a great job of capturing the struggles and successes of the Ford Motor Company, while also taking us through an interesting journey into the life of an extremely intelligent man in our nation's history. I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the nation and the auto-making industry.



2. Last year, I read a book about Henry Ford and his anti-Semitism. At that time, I had a very narrow view about the man - I wish now that I had read this book, Douglas Brinkley's study of Ford and his company, before I had read that one.
   
   Brinkley's mammoth volume on this one man and the company he created is a tremendous addition to American business history. Brinkely gives us a comprehensive study (about half of the book) of Henry Ford the man and how he created the Ford Motor Company. This segment of the book really gave me a new respect for the man as an innovator and an idealist, though his engineering skills were apparently lacking (at one point Brinkley tells his audience that Ford couldn't even read a blueprint). Brinkley intertwines the story of Henry's son Edsel, who was given the unenviable task of running Ford Motor while Henry was still alive and wouldn't release control over some of the day-to-day operations.
   
   After seeing Edsel die an untimely death, we see Ford Motor transition to Henry II. This is the first time that Henry Sr. relinquishes some control, and we see what the company can do (and does) during this period. Brinkley vividly tells the story of Henry II and his interactions with the labor movement in conjunction with operations at Ford Motor.
   
   Towards the end of the book, we see the post Henry II era. We see a couple of different CEO's, including Donald Peterson, who seemed to help the company, and Jac Nasser, who probably isn't missed much by the Ford family - his reign saw the depletion of massive cash reserves from the corporation. At the conclusion of the book, Brinkley shows us the path that the company is taking today under the leadership of Bill Ford, Jr.
   
   I believe that Brinkley has given us a wonderful book here - telling us the story not just of a man or a company, but a combination of so many facets of American history. What made Henry Ford tick? Why did he create Ford Motor Company? What did he do to make it survive? How did Ford Motor Company impact Michigan and America as a whole? All of these questions, and so many more, are answered in this splendid book. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a strong understanding of how one man and the business he built can have such a tremendous impact on America and the rest of the world.



3. Wheels for the World is a captivating look at the Ford Motor Company from its earliest conception to the present day. Douglas Brinkley, being granted unrivalled access to Ford's archives, takes the reader back to the beginning of Henry Ford's youth onwards to the incorporation of the Ford Motor Company to today. The richness and detail Brinkley provides is what sets this apart from other historical biographical works. And in a sense, this is what the book is, a biographical look at Henry Ford and his family with a historical look at the company. Brinkley brings to life so many different characters that brought profound changes to Ford that have long since been forgotten today. People such as Alex Malcomson (who provided the finances in the creation of the final iteration of Ford), James Couzens (the financial and administrative wizard in the early days who created a corporate structure from scratch), and many others are all covered in-depth in this book as well as the main players such as Sorensen and Iacocca. He also covers different aspects of Ford such as the creation of Ford's Aviation Department and the positive relationship he had with African-Americans. Neither does Brinkley whitewash the controversies Henry Ford nor the Ford Company stirred in their day (from anti-Semitism to the Pinto debacle). However, there are a few issues with this book. Although overall very detailed and encompassing, after the passing of Henry Ford, the book begins to accelerate through the companies' history. This is especially profound after the retirement of Henry Ford II where Brinkley rushes through 2 decades until he reaches the inauguration of William Clay Ford Jr. and then proceeds to faun over him as if he were a great saviour (which even today we still don't know). Although not an extreme problem, it does unfortunately not tie in as well with the rest of the books fascinating details and perspectives. One feels that Brinkley was growing tired of writing (and it is quite the read at 764 pages) and wanted to speed things up a little so he could wrap up sooner. All told though, this nagging detail is not enough to negatively affect Brinkley's work. Wonderfully written and full of details, Brinkley's book may literally be one of the last books you may ever need to read on Henry Ford and his company.



4. Douglas Brinkley has convinced me that you can at once be sponsored by a corporation to do its history AND not fawn over the organization AND write readably.
   
   Someone else here descreibed the book as an "endurance test." I would not agree...I thought the book, though long, was well-organized, well-paced and easy to maintain reader interest.
   
   Henry Ford I is the centerpiece, all right, but I especially enjoyed Brinkley's insights into the much more private, even reticent, Edsel Ford. Edsel really saved the company during the late 20s and then the depression, but is largely forgotten for his role. Henry's crazed desire for control caused him to embarass and berate his only son at every opportunity. Edsel died relatively young; in fact, Henry outlived him.
   
   What is it we want out of life? Of we want our lives to make a difference, then Henry was an unqualified success. Self promotion aside, Henry changed the whole world more than any other single figure of the twentieth century - and did so despite glaring personal inadequacies and near-fatal quirks. When he was wrong, he was incredibly adamantly and brutally wrong.
   
   "Never complain, never explain." Henry I didn't say it, but his grandson Henry II did - and Henry II led the company through its time of turnaround, unprecedented growth and earnings in the 1980s. A great book!



5. Excellent corporate history of Ford Motor Company, and unavoidably, a biography of Henry Ford, who for the first 45 years of the company was Ford Motor Company.
   
   The chaotic early years of the automotive industry are captured in the two failed car companies Ford left behind, including the Henry Ford Company which was taken over by Henry Leland and renamed Cadillac (the first Cadillac was a Ford design!), and in the thought processes of Henry Ford thinking and planning for a million cars per year while other car makers were building a thousand cars per year.
   
   Ford loses a little of his luster in this book, as we learn that he was rabidly anti-Semitic, belittled his son Edsel even as he made him president of the company, and had very little to do with engineering and production of the cars that carried his name around the world.
   
   But we also learn that his genius lay in constantly pushing for improving processes and reducing cost and thus price so that the automobile could become affordable to Everyman--a process that shaped the 20th century and reshaped history. We learn that black was the only color option for the Model T because the black paint dried faster and thus enabled shorter production time, and that while the Model T was produced almost unchanged for 20 years, the processes that produced the Model T changed almost literally every single day (according to the book, every day of production at least one machine on the Model T production line was added or modified).
   
   Overall well-done social and technical history that explains and frames Ford in context, and doesn't detract from the pride of ownership of Ford products.

No comments about Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Biography (Greenwood Biographies).

1 comments about Driven Patriot: The Life and Times of James Forrestal (Bluejacket Paperbacks).

1. I was impressed with this book's scholarship, but after looking into the sources for the chapter on Forrestal's death, I have had some second thoughts. James Forrestal fell from a window of the 16th floor of the Bethesda Naval Hospital in the wee hours of the morning of May 22, 1949. The authors relate numerous details of the Forrestal's actions prior to his going out the window, but none of them are sourced directly to any of the witnesses, the various medical personnel who were on duty that night. Rather, the strongest assertions that support the popular theory of suicide, which they endorse, turn out to be from sources that I was unable to trace, even using the services of the Library of Congress in person.
   
   The best source to start with would have been the official investigation, the work of a review board convened by the head of the National Naval Medical Center, Admiral Morton Willcutts, which took the testimony of most of the witnesses (with a few notable exceptions). Hoopes and Brinkley unforgivably neglect to tell the readers that at the time of their writing that testimony was still being kept secret. They also fail to tell us that the conclusions of the review board were released in brief summary form almost 6 months after the conclusion of the board's work, and that summary concluded only that Forrestal had died from injuries suffered from the fall. It did not conclude what caused the fall, that is, it did not conclude that it was a suicide, and it made no mention of the cord that was tied tightly around Forrestal's neck.
   
   On my third try, I obtained the report, including all testimony and most of the exhibits, using the Freedom of Information Act. It contradicts almost everything that Hoopes and Brinkley have to say about Forrestal's actions prior to his death. (...)