4 comments about FDR: The New Deal Years 1933-1937.

1. I bought this book on a flyer in 1987, read it once and put it on the shelf. During a televised Clinton address from the Oval Office, I noticed on the credenza behind him "FDR: The New Deal Years" in its distinctive silver and red jacket. Well, if its good enough for the White House...so I read it again, and now understand why it stood on the President's desk. It's an outstanding work of narrative history. Volume one was awarded the Francis Parkman Prize, but this is clearly the next best in Davis's monumental five volumes on FDR and his times. It is a lively depiction of the New Deal and its famous characters, including Louis Howe, Harry Hopkins, the Brain Trust, Eleanor and Sara Delano all orbiting around the Sun King FDR. It is also an excellent analysis of how outright revolution was avoided and our capitalist system preserved in the darkest hours. But most of all it is an enjoyably facinating portrait of the man who everyone wanted to be near but almost no one, not even Eleanor, really knew.



2. This really is a remarkable book and outstanding contribution to FDR scholarship. All of the books in this series are probably the best books on the life and times of Franklin Roosevelt, but I think this is one is the best.

   In this, the second volume in the series Davis explores just how much of the early stages of FDR's presidency owed to his career as governor, how his concerns as governor of the state of New York were later transfered from Albany to Washington. Concerns with conservation and the power monopolies in these years were later to serve as the springboard for a number of New Deal initiatives.

   Anyone wishing to learn more about the greatest president of the 20th century should look no further than this series of books by Mr. Davis. Sadly, Mr. Davis did not live to bring the series to its logical conclusion in 1945. Had he done so, this would be the definative study of FDR. As things are, it is likely to be the best biography for many years to come, despite some problems with vol. 4 and its premature conclusion.




3. Some people claim that Arthur Schlesinger wrote the definative history of the New Deal and FDR back in the 1950s. These same people probably are unfamiliar with this wonderful book by Kenneth Davis.

   This is not just a history of the period of 1933-37, but an extended mediatation on how we are a nation are going to respond to the changes brought about by industrialization.

   Do not be put off by this last statement because Davis is an excellent writer, historian and philosopher. The best part of this book deals with how social security came to be shaped in the form that it finally was. How all manner of elements came together for the legislation to be written. It is just remarkable.

   Davis is evenhanded in this book and in the series as a whole. He identifies FDR's triumphs but at the same time is willing to be critical when he feels the actions warrent it.

   Davis and his series have been recognized repeatedly although I believe that they probably were not given the praise that this series deserved. They are simply the best thing to be written on FDR by a historian.




4. Life was hard here at home for most people in the 1930s, but most especially those who depended on the land for food and sustenance. His New Deal ruined the farming industry and now we are indepbted to other countries for the majority of our food, soon to be medicines also. Huey Long would have made every man a 'King' in his own home, but that was not to be. We have no kings in the USA, only politicians.
   
   TVA was developed in the Thirties with all the many dams built in Tennessee and Alabama to harnass the wild Tennessee River. I wish he had picked the Mississippi and left Tennessee along. I was born at the forks of the rivers where the Tennessee began, and that is not such a good heritage. TVA is still run by the government, but it has seen its time. It is obsolete. Like Johnson's Grand Illusion, Roosevelt's New Deal was just a political ploy to win the election.
   
   We all know that the Great Depression started in 1932. In August, 1934, Utah became t he 36th state to ratify the 21st amendment, ending Prohibition. Made Jack happy, though he hadn't been born for 20 more years. In July, 1934, the bank robber Dillinger was gunned down by government men as he leaves a Chicago theater -- betrayed by a woman in red, whom he trusted. Just proves you can't trust those women who like to show off. Bonnie and Clyde had been killed a couple of weeks previously. Why didn't they come on to Knoxville and catch Billy the Kid was he escaped across the Gay Street bridge? In September, 1934, the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma sent lots of people moving from that hell hole to California where the dreamers and schemers had congregated. They crossed the deserts not for the Gold Rush this time but for jobs and money to pay the exorbinant prices for vegetables and meats they were not allowed to grow on their own anymore, delcation of the U.S. Government, which is still in effect today in some areas.
   
   Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal (due to the assassination of Huey Long of Louisiana on September 8, 1935 -- exactly 71 years ago) took effect. FDR was the first American president who did not think in terms of this country being a place set apart from the rest of the world. He had the foresight to see the future of Europe, and especially England (with the help of Churchill), as being closely tied to the future of the USA. According to Mr. Vaughan in 'Hard Times,' there were many isolationists in Congress and the Senate who would, if they could, separate the globe into two halves.
   
   The number one box office draw for 1934 in Hollywood films was Will Rogers, followed closely by Clark Gable; on down the list of major stars were Mae West and Joan Crawford. It was a grand place back then. In 1936, Eugene O'Neill won the Nobel Prize for Literature. His plays included "Anna Christie" and "Desire Under the Elms," both were later made into wonderful movies.
   
   In 1938, Orson Welles played his radio stunt reading H. G. Wells' 'The War of the Worlds.' ONe local radio station here plays it every Halloween night as that is when the great Orson scared this country to death almost. June 4, 1940, Hell is Dunkirk. Roosevelt was just the president we needed to work with Winston Churchill of England whose parentage was half American. However, it took Truman to have the bomb dropped to stop the war.

No comments about Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Biography (Greenwood Biographies).

No comments about Free Some Day: The African-American Families of Monticello.

3 comments about I Fought With Custer: The Story of Sergeant Windolph, Last Survivor of the Battle of the Little Big Horn.

1. This book is compiled from the found writings of a sergeant of the Seventh Cavalry who survived the Battle of the Little Big Horn. The first hand accounts of men like Sergeant Windolph and Theodore Goldin are very valuable and interesting reading. They were not men defending their performance as were the officers like Benteen, Reno, and Godfrey. They had their biases but didn't have to grind axes. This account is worthwhile reading for students of the Seventh Cavalry and the Little Big Horn campaign.



2. As a Custer buff, this book has been on my shelf for a long time. A great book to read, one that fleshes out a lot of the daily life in the Seventh as well as the battle along Greasy Grass. Right up there with "Son of Morning Star" and Walter Camp's book on the subject. Check 'em out, you won't be disappointed.



3. It is difficult to really rate a work like this. This is the story of Charles Windolph, the last survivor of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, in his own, simple words. Windolph told his story to a father and son historian team in the 1930s and 40s. Windolph's distinction as last survivor is a bit misleading--he was the last man who was present at the battle to die, but his title as last survivor does not mean he was with Custer's column of troops. He wasn't. In fact, he was under Benteen, and was one of many who survived the battle because they weren't as heavily engaged in it as Custer.
   Windolph presents an interesting perspective on the battle, and seems relatively objective. He does tend to romanticize a little, but for the most part he refrains from throwing blame on Custer, Reno, Benteen, or anyone else (though he does state up front that he is partial to Benteen). His story is not all that unique when compared to other primary accounts of the battle, but it is nevertheless valuable as the testimony of a survivor of that horrible tragedy.
   Included with Windolph's narrative are a number of primary documents, cobbled together in chapters and laced throughout with author's commentary. This is all right, but it would have been better to present these documents in their entirety, with only enough commentary (perhaps in the form of footnotes) to give the reader an idea of the background surrounding the documents. Still, the Hunts have done a relatively good job of remaining objective as well, something that is rare in a Custer historian. This is perhaps not the best account of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, but it is nevertheless an important one.

2 comments about One of the Most Daring of Men: The Life of Confederate General William Tatum Wofford (Journal of Confederate History Series).

1. " This biography offers a provocative study of one of Georgia's truly great sons, an appraisal which is long overdue."



2. " Needless to say, it has happened again with John McGlone's excellent Civil War series. ONE OF THE MOST DARING OF MEN by Gerald J.Smith tells the life of Confederate General William Tatum Wofford. ... It is an outstanding work... if you like the Civil War period in this nation's history, you just can't get them any better."Damon Veech,TIMES-PICAYUNE,July,1997

4 comments about Mrs. Ike: Portrait of a Marriage (Capital Classics).

1. Susan Eisenhower, granddaughter of President Eisenhower, has written a beautiful portrait of her grandmother and the strong marriage between the President and his First Lady.



2. Ike is one my historical favorites. I think his life testifies to the American dream - that a poor but enterprising boy from Kansas could achieve everlasting distinction as a Supreme Commander and President.

   In Mrs. Ike you learn about his life partner. It wasn't always a happy marriage, and it was certainly tested by tragedy (death of 3-year old son) and the rigors of nomadic military life, particularly during the disarmament era after WWI. Yet they hung in there and made the most of their life together.

   This is easy reading and a sometimes touching intimate portrait of a nice old-fashioned couple. They shared a 53-year marriage that took them from a difficult penny-pinching existence post WWI to great distinction and wealth later in life.

   For those interested in the Ike-Summersby question, I think this book puts another nail in that silly coffin. I particularly like the description of their relationship as like "Lou Grant and Mary Richards" (from the Mary Tyler Moore Show). Based on everything I've read they were more like affectionate father and daughter than lovers. Yet its painful to read how, after Ike's death in '69, Mamie had to endure rumors and scuttlebutt during the next decade, including a nutty divorce story by Harry Truman, now discredited and widely cited as perhaps testament to Truman's senility late in life.




3. I thought Margaret Truman cornered the market on good writing about parents. However, Susan Eisenhower has written a book of the same caliber. Being born in 1955, I only vaguely remember when DDE was President, though I certainly remember when Ike died in 1969. I had read so many unflattering things about Mamie, with the main exception being J.B. West's book of memoirs about being Chief Usher in the White House. Mamie is largely forgotten nowadays, particularly in light of the Kennedy administration that followed. What greater contrast than between the sixty-something Mamie and the thirty-something Jackie! After reading this book in all its details, one can better understand that Mamie considered herself first, last and always as an Army wife. It's easy for us to think of the period during and following WW II when Ike shot up through the ranks, with the perks that such a position brings. This book reminds us of the many, many years of their marriage with constant moving and not enough money to go around. Was it any wonder, then, that she would shop the newspapers for bargains while First Lady? I think we all hope that by our sixties we have a good working conception of who we are and what we want--this Mamie had in spades. She wouldn't change her hairdo or wardrobe for whims of fashion--she knew what worked for her. We also might be reminded that the position of First Lady is indeed unpaid and she is truly under no obligation to perform for us, the American public. In this book Susan Eisenhower reveals that in the eight years that Ike was President, Mamie only entered the Oval Office 4 times! Now, that's what I can call a separation of duties. We are also reminded that no President before or since had the foreign experience, including living in many foreign countries. They were a most cosmopolitan couple, perhaps masquerading as our grandparents! As West said, no couple looked more spit-and-polish than the Eisenhowers in their formality, and this included the Kennedys.

   This is a must read for any fan of 20th century American history.
   Many thanks to Ms. Eisenhower for her work.




4. I never knew much about Mamie Eisenhower other then she was a first lady until I read this biography it was well written and a fun read. Reading about Mamie's wealthy childhood and marrying Ike and becoming a army wife. Reading about all the places they've lived Denver, Panama, the Philippines, Europe, and the long separations from her husband. The sad death of their first child. I defiently recommend this book.

5 comments about The Button Box: A Daughter's Loving Memoir Of Mrs. George S. Patton.

1. What an amazing window into the true lives of the "Cold Roast Boston" aristocracy, and what a tribute to a strong, multi-talented and insatiably curious woman. Hilarious, insightful, poignant, historical, and best of all...completely uncensored.



2. Ruth Ellen Patton Totten has left us with an extraordinary insight into the lives of the Patton family & most especially a wonderful tribute to her mother, Beatrice Ayer Patton. This book does more than present facts as a biographer would. Ruth Ellen tells the story from an insider's perspective. She not only tells the story but more importantly gives her mother's reaction to some of the most trying events in her lifetime & how she handled those events. The underlying theme of the book is the way Beatrice faced life; positively. She summoned courage, dignity & perseverance in the face of trials.
   
   Ruth Ellen makes a great point by saying that soldiers are not the only casualties of war & it is evidenced by the sufferings which Beatrice, Ruth Ellen & Little Bea (Beatrice's daughter) endured, each of them being married to husbands in the Army.
   
   This is an inspiring book that makes you wish you had met Beatrice Patton. Ruth Ellen herself is an incredible story teller & must have been one amazing woman in her own right. The Patton family has much of which to be proud because of the courage & strong character of Beatrice Patton. You don't have to be a fan of General George S. Patton Jr. to read the book. If you simply want to read a great book about a great woman, read this book.



3. Great Read for any Patton fan. Reads quick and is insightful.



4. If you think you've read everything there is on George Patton as I had, then you owe it to yourself to read this book or you will never really understand his life's story. His daughter did a masterful job of putting the family story in a readable fashion and I could only dream of having such an adventurous life as their's was.



5. General George S. Patton's younger daughter, Ruth Ellen, has written an interesting and readable memoir about growing up in this military family. The hero is her mother, Mrs. Beatrice Patton.
   
   Beginning before World War I, the author takes us on several tours; life on military posts, growing up before radio and television, the folkways and mores of a society where children were raised by nannies.
   
   Although replete with anecdotes and family myths that reveal Mrs. Patton's role in the success of her husband, the events and relationships which give her substance in her own right are a major and significant part of the story. Not a hagiography, the author easily and with good taste recounts family matters that would not have been shared with outsiders.
   
   For some, the connection to 'Patton' will be the reason to read this book. I think, however, the publisher, The University of Missouri Press, saw this memoir in a much broader context.

2 comments about Seeds of Destruction.

1. Instead of all the usuall junk and rehash that is in most, if not all books Ralph Martin takes a different view. He studys how the father and his ways affected the sons and how this made for a strangely dynamic family group. He ( Martin) probes into the mindset of each generation and how each tragedy or world event changed each member. Fascinating to see each of the sons grow and how they were raised differently and influenced by different members of the family.



2. I don't know what was the author's rationale for writing this book. To me this book shows the futile efforts and attempts of a power-hungry man to influence his family and his sons. Finally Providence took over and gave him nothing but grief and perhaps regret. I am glad there was never a 'Kennedy' political dynasty. It would have been disastrous for the U.S. and for the world !!

5 comments about Tom Horn: Blood on the Moon : Dark History of the Murderous Cattle Detective.

1. The best word I can think of to describe this book is FANTASTIC.Chip Carlson has written another masterpiece on the subject.
   To me just about every chapter leaves you craving more information, and thats what a good book should do.His indepth research is amazing on how he has put it into a format for persons interested in this period of western history.
   I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants more insight into the times trials and tribulations of 1890's Wyoming.



2. Chip Carlson has established himself as the most prolific and knowledgeable Tom Horn buff since Dean Krakel, and his work is extraordinarily readable. To understand a true American (choose your own term) outlaw, rogue, bounty hunter, lawman, Westerner ... whatever ... pick up Carlson's work, which is full of the grittiness that haunts the legend of Horn.



3. An exceptional documentary dealing with one of Wyoming's most notorious citizens, one that reads like a novel. Although much has been written about Tom Horn, Chip Carlson has done an excellent job of presenting new facts and information furthing adding to the controversey over Horn's guilt in the murder of young Willie Nickell.



4. Although this book seems to contain a well documented, and at times, interesting account of Tom Horn and the Nickell murder, its about as much fun to read as a treatise on the history of linear-regression analysis. Mr. Carlson's poorly constructed syntax and meandering story lines makes this book a "plodding" experience.



5. Introduced to the epic of Tom Horn by the excellent western movie starring Steve McQueen, I wanted to find a book and read more about the history of a man who, on the one hand, seemed a ruthless killer and on the other seemed the unfortunate dupe of the big business of the day--the cattle barons.

   Tom Horn: Blood on the Moon: The Dark History of the Murderous Cattle Detective fit the bill marvelously. I came away with what I believe is an accurate history of the hapless Tom Horn and, more interestingly, names of several interesting characters who contributed to the demise of arguably a great American hero.

   Key among these characters was Joe LeFors, the very same detective and lawman who made life miserable for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Named Joe Bell in the movie, LeFors methods were, shall we say, "creative."

   We are tempted to believe that political scandals, scapegoats and other applicable cloak and dagger are primarily of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Read Tom Horn: Blood on the Moon... and find out the rest of the story.

5 comments about Rebel: The Life and Legend of James Dean.

1. I just finished reading this book about two weeks ago. I had never read any other James Dean books and I thought this was a very good book, very informative. I didn't get bored or bogged down once. I enjoyed every part of it - Jimmy's early life, life in New York, and his short, but brilliant Hollywood career. I would get totally absorbed in reading it, sometimes staying up way too late just because I couldn't put it down.

   I have read other reviews that consider this book "generic" or more detached, but since I am not a James Dean expert, and have never read a book on him before, I can only give my perspective and opinions. I thought this was a very well-written and researched book. I am now reading "James Dean, little boy lost," by Joe Hyams, which I bought through an Amazon Marketplace buyer.




2. Coming from a small town in Indiana wo which people from the South had migrated with their attitudes of bigotry -- where the KKK chose as their state in the 1920s, he chose to be a Rebel. One of his three movies, appropriately named 'Rebel Without A Cause.'
   
   By the age of twenty-two (1953), he was or had been on sixteen television programs and appeared in a multitude of plays on and off Broadway. What was the Dean 'mystique'? Race, creed, or sexual preference had no bearing with Dean's estimation of others; he judged them on the basis os what he could learn from them. In essence, he used people. At one time, he showed scorn to the playwright Tennessee Williams.
   Two of his relationships he had with women were Barbara Glenn who was Jewish and Terry Moore who was a Mormon. He also liked men; it seems that being bi-sexual was an Indiana trait.
   
   His director in the "Rebel" movie, Nicholas Ray said, "James Dean shied away from social convention, from manners, because they suggested disguise." When Terry Moore took him home to meet her parents, they were shocked when he unzipped hispants and let out a belch after dinner. He had no manners.
   
   Some of his female co-stars came to the opinion that he acted strangely, brooding and incoherent as an "act" to get attention. But he played that part so long, maybe he became the act." His unmistakable mannerisms, movements, and behavior were premeditated, just to be different.
   
   The director of his other movie, 'Giant,' described him as brilliant, sensitive young actor. And yet, in high school, he appeared dorky and played sports. He had a lack of discipline which made him unreliable and temperamental.
   
   In Hollywood, he wanted no part of the social scene which included up-and-coming actors Jeff Chandler and Tab Hunter. Both books (this one and THE LIFE AND LEGEND OF JAMES DEAN by Donald Spoto) had lots of pictures of him from the early Fifties. In them, he aged twenty years in five. He burned out and that horrific accident on September 30, 1955, while speeding in his racy Porsche was probably his destiny.
   
   His friend and agent Clayton arranged fro Dean to buy a sleek, red 1953 MG which he loved to drive at a terrific rate of speed and squeal the tires. He died at the age of 24. The photos show that he was not much different from Montgomery Cliff and Marlon Brando. Like Princess Diana, he burned his light out early. He was really not a man at all, still just a confused boy when he died.



3. Being an Elizabeth Taylor fan, I had seen James Dean in "Giant" - his final film and knew little of his life, save for his interest in fast cars, and his tragic death. I had recently become interested in Dean and his work and picked up the recent Warner box set of his three films on DVD. On a quest to learn more on Dean's life, I picked up Donald Spoto's biography "Rebel". I chose "Rebel" because from what I'd heard, it offered a respectable look into the young actor's short life and career, and tried to dispel many rumours that surround Jimmy's legend. I felt that it indeed did that, and I learned quite a bit of who James Dean was.
   
   Dean's life and his relationships were forever altered because of the death of his mother, the only person he was ever close to (at the time). His father was always distant in Jimmy's life, even when his mother was alive. This was heightened when Jimmy was sent to live with his Aunt and Uncle in Fairmount, ID - the state where Jimmy had lived early life. This is paramount to understanding Dean, his motives, and his relationship with others. His fears of abandonment plagued all of his relationships, and stopped him from opening up to others. As quickly as he would make friendships with certain people, he would drop them and move on, without another word.
   
   Donald Spoto's "Rebel" was an intriguing look into the life of a mythical Hollywood figure, James Dean, who as I quickly found out was a complex and tormented young man.



4. Donald Spoto writes what you would expect from the noted author; a well-researched fact-based bio of culture/pop icon James Dean. The book starts out with a somewhat scathing account of the fans who make the pilgrimage to Dean's home town of Fairmount, Indiana to "celebrate" his death. Once Spoto puts some of these sycophantic fans in their place, he moves on to the meat and potatoes. He does a great job of pointing out that Dean was still finding himself at the time that he died; Spoto avoids putting him in a category as so many other authors have attempted to do. Donald's very dry humor makes it an easy and enjoyable read.



5. Of the many biographies of Dean that have been written, the range is as broad as one can imagine. There are the memoir bios (Sheridan & Bast); there are the fan-based (the two Dalton bios); plus the sensational and the shorter more factual-oriented ones written to capitalize on the Dean legend.
   
   Spoto's bio is perhaps the most cynical of them all. To use the word deconstructing to describe this book is euphemistic.
   
   He has little if anything good to say about Dean in this book and when he does say something positive, it almost seems he does it begrudgingly.
   
   He skips over numerous facts and episodes in Dean's life and career and focuses primarily on negative aspects of Dean.
   
   This is not to say that Spoto does not have anything to contribute as there are instances where his critical (if not hell-bent to destroy) attitude offers insight into Dean, but there is little, if anything, here that is new, which leads one to wonder as to why this book was written at all.
   
   It seems to this reader, Spoto does not feel Dean deserves the status of a Hollywood star and has written this book to show why he doesn't belong in the pantheon of Hollywood greats.
   
   One gets the feeling Spoto has an axe to grind (for whatever reason) and that is what he does here.