5 comments about Allan Pinkerton: The First Private Eye.

1. This books encompasses all of Allan's PI's work. I had an enjoyable time reading it. It is a fasination subjet for me. I am considering of changing careers and going into the PI business.



2. Pinkerton Biography

   The story of Allan Pinkerton, a poor Scottish immigrant and former working-class radical who rose through the ranks of society to become the protector and confidant of presidents and tycoons is a quintessential American story that deserves such a thorough telling. This book was a fascinating read, and left me wishing that the author had delved more into the numerous early cases that were only hinted at in the text.

   The only serious criticism of this biography is the author appears to have gotten a little too close to his subject, which in several points has clouded his objectivity. This is apparent in the book's tendency to rush to Pinkerton's defense, particularly regarding the handling of the Molly Maguires and other labor disturbances of the late 19th century. A sweeping condemnation of the labor activists as "terrorists," or stressing the fact that they greatly outnumbered the Pinkerton operatives during violent strikes, are intended to make Pinkerton and his agents "the good guys" in the eyes of readers. This stance is questionable, however, considering the book's general lack of background information on the U.S. labor situation at this time. The author also neglects to explore how Pinkerton, a well-known Glasgow labor radical in his own youth, so readily sided with "other side" -- the titans of American industry -- later on in life.

   But overall this book is a good read and well-researched, especially the chapters concerning Pinkerton's early life in Scotland and his association with President Lincoln during the Civil War.




3. Mackay is as talanted a literary detective as Allan Pinkerton was as a criminal detective, written in a clear style that's a pleasure to read. It's a well balanced account, explaining the character's actions in the context of the times.
   Mackay's first surprise is that Allan Pinkerton wasn't born when most biographers say he was. From there he goes on to uncover the truth about Pinkerton's early career in Scotland, and the truth about a 'supposed' assasination plot against Lincoln before he took office. (The plot was independently confirmed by a political enemy of Pinkerton who had no motive to make Pinkerton look good--which convinced Lincoln the plot was real, and to follow Pinkerton's suggestions to foil it. Political enemies of Lincoln denied the existence of the plot to make Lincoln out to be a coward.) Before he finishes the Civil War period, Mackay has 'rehabilited' the often pilloried Union general McClellan (whom Pinkerton worked for) and divulged startling information uncovered in 1967 about the plot to assasinate Lincoln. This book is outstanding, a definite 'keeper'.



4. This biography of the inventor of the private investigation industry is not only a thrilling look at a fascinating man, it is also a fresh perspective on a slice of American history. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in mystery fiction or detective novels, as well as anyone who is looking for a history book that isn't boring. While it may well be a bit biased, the presentation is thought-provoking and makes me want to research the period of the late Civil War/early Reconstruction more thoroughly.
   Better than most fiction I've encountered lately, and definitely an overlooked gem.



5. As one who is both a American history buff and a lover of mystery, Private
   Eye novels- I was very drawn to this book.
   
   I am not familiar with the author James MacKay- he is very deep in his
   research and writing.
   
   If you can get through the first 2 chapters of the book, You'll find a
   very interesting novel.

5 comments about The Sage of Monticello (Jefferson and His Time, Vol 6).

1. Jefferson and His Time: The Sage of Monticello is the crowning jewel of this sixth out of six volume set. This Pulitzer Prize winning series about Thomas Jefferson took the author (Dumas Malone) a lifetime to write, as he started it in 1943 and finished it in 1981.

   This volume takes us from the end of Jefferson's second term as President to his death. But these times are Jefferson's best in terms of his satisfaction with his immediate family, even though at times were a bit rocky, Jefferson longed of retirement from public life. Long ago friendship of John Adams was rekindled with frequent correspondence... James Madison not living too far away from Jefferson was a frequent correspondent.

   Jefferson's talent wasn't wasted as he worked on the establishment and founding of the University of Virginia. He proved himself as one of the preeminent force for public education. But, Jefferson's personal debt played a role in Jefferson's energy and dreams.

   We really get to see Jefferson as a man in this volume and his works for the public good emerge here. Also, we see Jefferson's health deminish and his battle for life play a part. This volume is masterfully engaging and well written. Impeccable scholarship and a life long dedication are very apparent.

   If you like to read history and biographical history in particular and want to read about Thomas Jefferson, this series has to be on your short list.

   I highly recommend reading this series. It has been an honor reading about one of America's most extraordinary men.




2. What can be said about this monument to Jefferson scholarship? I am sure that somewhere in universities around the United States there are "scholar squirrels who want to put down this invaluable resource in Jefferson studies. It is always the way that mice attempt to gnaw at lions. This is not a perfect work (and my remarks refer to all of the books in the series as a whole), there are somethings, namely Sally Hemmings references which are wrong and will not sit well with American 21st century mores. There is the issue of slavery which was handled much differently 50 years ago than it is now.
   Jefferson is not worthy of our interest because of Sally Hemmings and because he kept slaves. Jefferson is great because of the Declaration of Independence and his fight for the rights of man. While it may have been hypocritical to preach liberty and keep slaves, it is doubtful that slavery ever would have been abolished if Jefferson had never gained the prominence that he did. This book and the others that follow show why we should continue to honor the public man even though his private side may have been wanting.



3. Despite his clear sympathy for the late 'sage', Dumas Malone did a better job on this book, when compared to his efforts on "Jefferson and the Rights of Man".
   This book, ("The Sage of Monticello"), centered on the ex-president's life after retiring to his grand plantation. It is a well-written account, although that I disagreed with the author on certain issues.
   Yes, I may seem stubborn, but I will always like to be conscientious: I refuse to agree that a man who was a slave-holder was at the same time, the champion who fought for the rights of men. It is simply contradictory!



4. This book is the sixth and final volume in Dumas Malone's six volume biography called "Jefferson and His Time" covering the period from the end of Jefferson's presidency to his death (1809-1826)
   
   Mr. Malone truly saved the best for last in this series resulting in the best of the six volumes, quite an achievement considering he completed this volume when he was 89 years old. This volume successfuly covers in thorough detail the most important parts of Jefferson's late life including the founding of the University of Virginia, his friendship with John Adams, his thoughts on the political issues after his presidency, and his personal and family life including his increasingly difficult situation regarding his debts. While maintaining the scholarly level of detail in the previous volumes, Malone's writing style is his most enjoyable yet.
   
   In conclusion, this volume has my highest recommendation and is perfectly suited to be read as a stand alone volume, even without reading the the rest of the series.



5. When I recently finally finished the 6th and final volume of this set, I realized that I knew more about Thomas Jefferson than I do about some of my friends. There is an incredible amount of information here. Although the Sally Hemings story is barely mentioned in these books because so much information has come out since the books were written, everything else is covered in great detail.
   
   I reviewed the first 3 books as a whole under the third volume, and I'll do the same here on the final 3. I believed that the two hardest books to read were the volumes on Jefferson's presidency. Malone covered eight years in about 1,000 pages, and he went into such detail that it was actually hard to follow at times. By the time I finished reading about the Embargo Act, there was no way I could summarize it; he had written about it so much, and it was spread out throughout the volume. The same can be said, to some extent, with the Burr conspiracy.
   
   The final book was better, even though he exhaustingly covered the establishment of the University of Virginia, probably more than necessary. I would have preferred more on the correspondence with John Adams. And while Malone gets into Jefferson's family relationships here, he was, as a writer, a better presenter of facts than he is a story teller. Nothing about this series is "narrative."
   
   I would recommend the books to a very serious lover of history, and I suggest the audio book as a way of speeding up what will otherwise be a very slow read. But to one with casual interest in history who admires Jefferson, I'd suggest one of the many one-volume biographies.

1 comments about William Henry Seward: Lincoln's Right Hand.

1. This is a poor imitation of the Van Deusen Biography. Apart from the story of the Emancipation Proclamtion painting that was altered to show Lincoln and not Seward as the central character Mr. Taylor adds nothing new to the story. He could have reassessed the Lincoln/Seward relationship on the grounds that he knew when he wrote his book that Lincoln never sent the letter in reply to the "April Fools" memo, a fact that Van Deusen was unaware of. His failure to do so and to invent a meeting between the two men labels him a poor historian.Alan Lowe. Manchester Metropolitan University. England.

2 comments about The Deadly Sins Of Aristotle Onassis.

1. The Deadly Sins Of Aristotle Onassis is the true-life story of the famous Greek shipping tycoon who married Jackie Kennedy. He was the penultimate 20th century con man, able to charm the press even as he spun ever more elaborate frauds, from the illegal acquisition of war-surplus ships by falsifying ownership records to bribing Saudi Arabian officials for oil concessions to slaughtering whales in violation of international agreements to hiring Howard Hughes' hatchet man for wiretapping and intimidation, tax evasion, and more. Yet his life of deceit and control caught up with him, robbed his children of their happiness. The Deadly Sins Of Aristotle Onassis reveals how his boastful behavior and charade of invincibility ultimately trapped his son Alexander aboard his fatally defective personal airplane; how the guilt from his son's death caused him to end his own life prematurely; and how his legacy of criminal behavior lived on in his daughter, who tried to cheat Jackie Kennedy out of her rightful widow's share of his estate. A tragic true story of wicked deeds reaping grim rewards.



2. I enjoyed the book because It contained several pages about two of my cousins, and because it is very interesting to get more of an inside account as to the lives of Aristotle Onassis (whom I've never cared for, and this made me feel even more dislike for the man) and Jackie Kennedy Onassis,( giving me a different perspective of her as well ,it made me feel that she was overly interested in money.)
   
   It took me awhile to get thru the first few chapters as there was a great deal of technical information. Good information, but a little deep for someone not entirely interesting about planes and boats at that level. Again, further into the book there was lots of technical stuff that slowed me down.
   
   If you have an interest in Aristotle Onassis and family and Jackie Kennedy Onassis this would be an interesting book and if you wanted to know the depth cause and result of his son dying in a crash, THIS is the book to read.

5 comments about Governor Reagan His Rise To Power.

1. Lou Cannon was a reporter for the San Jose Mercury-News and covered Reagan's eight years as governor in Sacramento. As a result, this book is based on many personal interviews with Reagan and his staff, detailed research, and several other published works on Reagan's early life.
   
   Cannon used an interesting approach in organizing the book with each chapter describing titled with one word that describes a "role" that Reagan played at that time in his life, such as Announcer, Actor, Conservative, Pragmatist, etc. He describes Reagan's youth and early career in the Midwest, narrates how he came to Hollywood, analyzes his films, and discusses his work with the Screen Actors Guild. He shows how Reagan's work with General Electric Theater was a key turning point for him to move into politicsl. In summary, he understands Reagan's character, motivation, and goals, which is no small feat, given Reagan's very private nature.
   
   Cannon is very fair in assessing Reagan, not taking political sides in the controversies of the day. He lays out Reagan's vision, as well as the pragmatic compromises that he was forced to make in the governorship. The book describes Reagan's six-year campaign for the his first presidential nomination in 1980 and ends with his electoral victory in 1980.
   
   The many stories and anecdotes told by Reagan make this book well worth reading, and Cannon's writing is highly interesting as well. Highly recommended.
   
   Be warned that Cannon's companion volume President Reagan: Role of a Lifetime is a much different and much lower-quality book. See my review of that book on its page.



2. This is a good start to anyone interested in how Ronald Reagan started his run for presidency. This runs through the governor years and ends with Reagan being elected to the presidency. The writing is decent but tends to drag in some places. Overall though if you are interested in Reagan or California history this is a great start to that history.



3. Lou Cannon is the dean of books on Ronald Reagan. Having followed Reagan's career from the very beginning, Cannon has the insight and first hand knowledge of California politics to make this book very good.



4. Cannon has made somewhat of a career out of covering Ronald Reagan in California and Washington, DC as he ascended from "citizen-politician" to Governor and then to President. This volume provides a brief biography of the citizen years, then covers the 8 years of Reagan's two terms in Sacramento (1967-1974).
   
   Written (and read) in hindsight, it is hard to separate the President to come from the governor who was, but Cannon does an excellent job of conveying the politics and progress of Reagan in his terms. Reagan had already started making the transition from acting to politics many years before, through his stints in leadership of the Screen Actor's Guild, his years working as a spokesman for General Electric, his years hosting the "General Electric Theatre" television program, and his time stumping for the Goldwater campaign in 1964.
   
   While Reagan gave a widely-praised and nationally-televised speech in support of Goldwater, the magnitude of the Goldwater defeat scarred Reagan with the same brush, and this "reactionary" label combined with his "citizen-politician" naivety contributed to the beginning of a pattern of underestimation by his political opponents. In fact, writes Cannon, Reagan was successful at being underestimated so often because he worked so hard at it as a political strategy (and one that stood him in good stead throughout his career).
   
   Reagan's terms as governor proved a valuable learning ground for Reagan, and honed his skills and exposed his weaknesses that would later be splashed large on the national stage. He learned quickly, but tended to latch on to insignificant or misplaced facts and statistics. He could learn and perform from a "script" quickly and adeptly, but could overreach when speaking off-the-cuff. He wanted to answer every question from reporters and opponents, but didn't always have the depth or breadth of knowledge to recognize when he was out of his element. He knew when to delegate, but sometimes over-delegated or failed to provide guidance or follow-up.
   
   Politically, he was of course conservative, but surprisingly willing to reach practical compromises. He was unswervingly optimistic and trusting (he relied on Nancy for more clear-eyed assessments of those around him). While he mangled the "trees are the worst polluters" idea and was branded an anti-environmentalist, his record as governor was surprisingly strong in practical environmental actions. While a fiscal conservative, he passed the largest (at the time) state tax in crease in California history. Considered an ideologue, he worked with Democrats in the California legislature (notably Jess Unruh and Bob Moretti) to pass difficult but necessary legislation on taxes, welfare reform, natural resources, and education. Moretti, an avowed enemy who remained at odds politically with Reagan, nevertheless said
   
   ' . . . he had a philosophy that he was willing to pursue, that he was willing to enunciate, that he was willing to attempt to push. And . . . he's a strong personality. . . . Leaders are people who are willing to take positions and stand up and fight for those positions. [Reagan] had an enduring desire to accomplish something, to leave something behind that really improved things.'
   
   Moretti's conclusion: Reagan "was a good governor ('better than Pat Brown, miles, and planets, and universes better than Jerry Brown'). (p. 366-367).
   
   In short, Ronald Reagan became a more than capable governor, and better, a leader with convictions and courage:
   
   "It was often said of Reagan, from his first campaign to his last, that he was an actor who knew how to deliver his lines. This was true, but Reagan also was an experienced politician with convictions and a plan of action that he believed would rescue a nation in need of leadership." (p. 503).
   
   Governor Reagan prepared President Reagan for a role of a lifetime.
   
   President Reagan The Role Of A Lifetime
   
   Note:
   
   I never read other reviews before I have written my own, and I was surprised to find that some reviewers down-rated this book because of Cannon's corrections to factual misstatements that Reagan made at different times in his career. Some reviewers felt this was unnecessarily biased against Reagan and damaging to the value of Cannon's book. I also noticed that many of the reviewers stated their political position, and that those who disliked Cannon's corrections of Reagan were typically conservative.
   
   I am politically conservative, voted for Reagan for President both times, was there on the Capital grounds that memorable Inauguration Day 1981 when the hostages were released, and believe that Ronald Reagan is the equal of either Roosevelt in the pantheon of great Presidents, just below the pinnacle of Lincoln and Washington. But that said, I do not believe that Cannon's corrections of Reagan detract from the book. Sure, all politicians stretch and bend statistics and "misremember" facts to suit their purposes, so one could defend Reagan against Cannon's finger-pointing by saying that "all politicians do it." But Cannon's calling out Reagan's biggest gaffes is fair in the hindsight of his Presidential terms because this was a consistent problem through Reagan's career for which he was justly criticized. Even a strong supporter like myself must admit it was Ronald Reagan's biggest weakness.
   
   Now, as I said at the top of my review, it is hard to separate the governor's actions (and faults) from the President's yet to come, and it would be unfair to criticize Governor Reagan for statements and situations to come later. But I don't feel that Cannon does this either explicitly or implicitly through any politically-driven motivation.
   
   After further review, the review stands as called.



5. Having not known Lou Cannon from a can of paint prior to reading this book, I had no idea that he was a left-leaning journalist. That became more clear as I read but I didn't think Cannon allowed his political leanings to impact his writing in the first of these two books. The second, I thought was a bit unfair at times, but the first was even handed.
   
   I really enjoyed the completeness of the first book. It covered Reagan's early life completely. I didn't know the details of his governorship, nor did I know about his involvement in the SAG and the republican party prior to 1976.
   
   Cannon appears to be the right guy to tell this story. He followed Reagan for many years and had a firsthand account of what went on. I would recommend the series first because it is complete and second because I think Cannon's analysis is pretty fair, especially in the first book.
   
   Reagan was a stud as a governor. I liked the way he handled the war protestors. I'm not as impressed with his environmental record but it appears that he tried to do the right thing - or at least what he thought was the right thing - most of the time and that counts for a lot in my book.

1 comments about Indian Summer: Traditional Life Among the Choinumne Indians of California's San Joaquin Valley.

1. Indian Summer: Traditional Life Among The Choinumne Indians Of California's San Joaquin Valley by Thomas Jefferson Mayfield offers an eye-witness account of life of the Native American people in California in the nineteenth and early twentieth century as described by the author, who is the only known outsider to have ever lived entirely among the California Indians while they were still leading their traditional lives. Having been adopted by the Choinumne Yokuts at the age of six, Mayfield was raised to speak their language, wear their clothing, eat their foods, navigate their boats, hunt their game, and build with them their houses. Indian Summer is the first hand account of all of these Native American traditions season-by-season, providing contemporary readers with a glimpse into the natural daily life of the Choinumne Yokuts people. Indian Summer is very strongly recommended for personal and academic library Native American reading lists and reference collections.

3 comments about Lincoln's Rise to the Presidency.

1. Abraham Lincoln was probably our greatest president. Not surprisingly, then, many Lincoln historians have focused the spotlight on his presidency. Others have focused on Lincoln's personal life, and the development of the moral convictions and rhetorical skills that made him successful once in office.
   
   In this fascinating book, William Harris sheds new light on a third aspect of Lincoln -- his leading role in the formation of the Republican party. Lincoln made it a strong party by fusing together two powerful political forces -- the economic conservatism of the old Whigs and the moral conservatism of the new antislavery movement. Harris shows Lincoln's great political skills and shrewdness in building this coalition. Then, standing on that broad and sturdy platform, Lincoln launched his successful run for the presidency. Finally, having won with such a clear mandate, Lincoln had the political power to govern during the turbulence of the Civil War.



2. An historian's scholarly and detailed look at the political route taken by Abraham Lincoln to the highest office in our land. Not for the person wanting a general biography of our greatest president.
   
   I liked the fact that Professor Harris avoids injecting into his narrative views on family matters and guesses at psychological motives: this is straight political history. While sometimes the text is dry, if you want to know more about how complex pre-Civil War party politics were juggled by Mr. Lincoln and his key supporters, you would profit from reading this book.



3. William C. Harris, professor emeritus of history at North Carolina State University, fully deserved the Henry Adams Prize for 2008 from the Society for History in the Federal Government for this pathbreaking book, "Lincoln's Rise to the Presidency," published by the University Press of Kansas. In this seminal work, the author presents a very good case for reinterpreting Lincoln in the 1850s not so much as a political moderate but rather as a conservative in the best sense of the term that reflected well his heritage as an old conscience Whig, his background in rural central Illinois, his overall cautious nature, and the internal politics of his home state.
   
   Lincoln had a significant pragmatic streak and was able to bring together diverse interests to establish the Republican Party in Illinois during the 1850s as a coalition of old Whigs (his own political heritage), anti-slavery Democrats, elements of the Know-Nothing Party, and others. The common element of all of these groups was opposition to slavery. Lincoln's moral opposition to slavery was critical throughout this effort, and he gradually became more committed to it, but his political efforts to deal with the institution were fundamentally conserving of the American experiment. This reinterpretation of a much-studied subject is insightful and opens a new perspective on Lincoln's political ideas and influences and offers a fresh understanding of one of the nation's greatest presidents.
   
   "Lincoln's Rise to the Presidency" is a fair and even-handed account by a veteran student of Lincolniana. It seeks to modify the public's perception of Lincoln as a radical; one of the most striking of the transformations that came to his reputation after his April 1865 assassination. It is an excellent work whose interpretation will require careful consideration by all students of the Civil War era.

5 comments about The Invention of Solitude: A Memoir.

1. I'll go out on a limb here, diasgree with the hagiographic tone of preceding reviewers, and say that only half this book is worth reading - the first half. When Auster writes about how he feels after his father's death, he makes universal the sorrows, guilts and uncertainties of losing a parent. But the second half - "The Book of Memory" - gets very tedious very quickly. Real feeling is replaced by real showing off, with pages of literary criticism masquerading as fiction. If you thrill to "isms" - structuralism, deconstuctionism - there may be something here for you. But for the rest of us...



2. The first part of this book describes Auster's reaction to the sudden death of his father. His portrait of his detached divorced father who remained alone in the house his family once lived in, and spent fourteen lonely years there is restrained and moving. The portrait becomes at a certain point an extended family history and reveals a great family secret, the shocking murder of Auster's grandfather by his grandmother. The detached father who is the central figure is described as an extremely colorful character, a lonely ladies man who thrived on quick passing affairs and hard work. Auster's effort to sort out his own emotional connection to his father makes a sincere, honest record. The father- son relationship here is the heart of the story, and Auster tells the one he has with considerable skill and feeling. And this when the father- son relationship does not here have the kind of charged emotional complexity the great tormented depth that Kafka reveals in his immortal ' Letter to his Father'. It too does not come close to the kind of liveliness and depth that Philip Roth reveals in description of his relationship with his father in ' Patrimony'.
   The second part of the work in which Auster is now a divorced father meditating on his own life and literary work is less humanly interesting. Its abstract literary reflections may have a Pascalian value of their own but they do not hang together as the first part does.



3. Paul Auster's The Invention of Solitude, split as it is between a half that could be great fiction and a half that could be pure philosophy (or, if you'd like, pure rambling), is unlike anything I've ever read. In its first half, "Portrait of an Invisible Man," he not only gives a compelling, fully human rendering of a cold, unexpressive father, he makes us fully aware of the consciousness watching him, struggling to make sense of the place he still occupies in Auster's mind as he attemps fatherhood himself. The second half, "The Book of Memory," takes that death into the most mystical realm possible, discussing the way motifs, rhymes, themes, and coincidence merge to create a life, and in its brain-scrambling way of taking quotes, allusions, and personal tales into describing the ramblings on life after personal upheaval, it responds in a way most writing never can to understanding the whole complex fabric of existence. Auster's literary expertise is extensive and his prose is transporting, together these halves, moving from corporeal to penetratingly ethereal, respond to questions and evoke emotions in a way that neither fiction nor poetry can, making the book a transcendent experience - a vivid rendering of a mind hurtling, with precise diction, into the depths and implications of why and how we have lives in the first place.



4. "Portrait of an Invisible Man" starts as a reflection on the nature of life as an experience of solitude. Auster's father appears to have lived in a state of perpetual withdrawal from his self. It is for this reason that writing about him becomes eponymous with writing in an absurd world, after Becket. The task of writing has no ultimate goal; life itself is full of hollow spaces, so why would we want to transcribe it into a work of art? Why should Auster have wanted to write about his father who lived not a life inside himself? Why are we reading this book? Reading, writing and living are all part of the same ludicrous, meaningless wandering.
   
   Fortunately, just before the hollow corridors of emptiness cease to reverberate there is something that captures our attention. A murder! One almost wants to thank Auster's grandmother for rescuing the narrative from its postmodernist drift into nothingness. And the author himself for allowing us to open his grandma's hidden trunk in the attic. Yet after this exciting brief interlude, Auster returns to muse over his father's quirks of personality, and the first section finishes.
   
   "The Book of Memory" starts as a tract on writing: the craft of a man sitting alone in a room for long hours. Filling a room with thoughts is "real spiritual work", the result of an inner struggle in which the mind is made to conquer the dreariness of the surrounding world. It is also about finding oneself before looking for anything else.
   
   The section is composed of various parts distinguished by different thematic links. We have the paragraphs on Memory and the reflections on Chance and assorted instalments on a number of family-related and other themes. Auster is making himself up as a writer, and trying to say something substantial about the workings of reality or European art at the same time.
   
   To withdraw into a room does not mean that one has been madened. It is the room that restores the person, to health and to safety. The modern nothingness can be best confronted from a room or from a position of parenthood... The Book of Memory is concerned with the process of thinking, this is, with mind travel.
   
   References to the Book of Jonah introduce the theme of sleep as "the ultimate withdrawal from the world." Is sleep an image of solitude? By eating him, the fish saves Jonah from drowning in the sea. The depth of the belly is the depth of silence, the refusal to hear and to speak. It is about seeking a separation even from the conversation with God. It is a death before a life that can speak. One learns to speak in solitude. But what is the purpose of speaking? A prophecy remains true when it isn't told. After that first silence one may die, and in death learn to speak. So that a book can be written, a book that will always be closed.



5. Having been, to some extent, in the same situation as Auster with relation to his father, I sympathize with him. What's more, I understand him. And his memories. His feeling of emptiness and sadness when he finds out that his father - who was never physically there - is gone spiritually too. It's one of his best, perhaps because it dealt with a personal theme of his life, and he didn't have to use the imagination so much...
   
   I must sincerely say that this novel made me understand my father, and his 'absenteeism', much better. It provides a framework of memories, emotions, relics in which one can maneuver and come to realize that: we are all human, and we all need other human being, even if they have disappointed us, others, or people in general. Auster found that he had missed his father much more than he thought - he came to terms with what his father was and what he wasn't, and saw the world from his perspective.
   
   It absolutely goes without saying that this book, this meditation on life, family, and the inevitability of the unknown is worth reading. Twice.

5 comments about Andrew Jackson Higgins and the Boats That Won World War II.

1. This is a study in how to test ideas with practice and in leadership. The primary lessons for me in Strahan's book are how Higgins did this and became so effective, and his limitations. This book provides the unvarnished facts on both. Higgins' many boats were much better than his competitors, for three reasons: he tested his ideas, he inspired loyalty that got the job done objectively, and he was a very good listener. 1. He tested his designs repeatedly. He began building them commercially as work boats. His famous landing craft of WW II, were based first on what he learned in the business building shallow draft boats to retrieve farm equipment marooned by floods of the Mississippi River and the Ohio river. When he got a Dutch contract to build 20 boats, instead of setting up a production line to make them all the same, he made them one at a time and varied the design to see what he could learn. His next boats, for the Army Corps of Engineers, had deficiencies discovered in the bow construction by one of his sons, of being damaged by floating logs. His further boats, for fur trappers in the shallow waters of S Louisiana, also needed stronger bows. A faster and more maneuverable design was needed by people importing liquor during Prohibition, to outrun Coast Guard ships. Build it, test it, make the next one better.

   2. He inspired loyalty of the kind that got the job done objectively. To see what objective means, see (1) above on testing results, and (3) on listening.

   3. Higgins was a very good listener. He listened to his craftsmen. He listened to foremen. He listened to marine boat designers, including people who used small boats in wartime. The people he listened to, often continued to work for him for many years. He understood boats really well, and he understood people.

   One of the strong points of Strahan's book is to describe Higgins' real deficiencies as an administrator by quoting newly hired people such as his public relations agent. He kept far too much power in the hands of the same small coterie, and the loss of any of them was a serious blow to his operations. Any leader can tell you that he looks at his or her own strengths and weaknesses, and finds solutions, but few actually do that. I met few who actually did. Reading this book is a cautionary tale of one bankruptcy after another, for a company whose work was essential to winning the war both in Europe and in the Pacific.

   For anyone ever buffaloed in a meeting with people who are really hostile, and who have to make a presentation with a few people who will listen, mixed with a lot of people who want you to go away, Higgins' description of his meeting with Admiral Robinson on August 28, 1941 is of an extraordinary event. Surely Higgins' description is one-sided, but his shock tactics, built on the demonstrated successes of his boats, depict a meeting that seems unique. An unusual man. No college education. Understood his craft very well. Built more boats than any other company in WW II. People who like an inbred organization were likely hate him. Lit crit analysts might despise him. Michelangelo, and Ghiberti of the bronze doors, and others like them who knew how to make meaningful things by working with their hands and thinking it through, would have admired him and argued with him.




2. It is easy to see why Marine Corps Lt. Gen. "Howlin' Mad" Smith and Andrew Higgins were great friends. Both were dynamic men of genius who suffered the bungling of lesser men, often times, the same group of bunglers. But neither man would suffer in silence. Smith, along with other farsighted Marines, understood quite early the nature of the coming war in the Pacific. It would be a bloody contest of island hopping across the Pacific to the very shores of the Japanese home islands. The taking of those islands would necessarily require the landing of assault troops on defended beaches and the United States lacked proper amphibious craft for the task. There was a critical lack of troop transports, cargo transports and a satisfactory landing craft to bring both ashore had yet to be designed.

   From the bayous and backwater swamps of Louisiana, boat builder and designer Andrew Higgins produced a boat far superior to other designs, the now famous Higgins Boat. Incredibly, the Navy's Bureau of Construction and Repair (BCR), as early as 1934, preferred to ignore this boat. Even more incredible, in sixty-one hours he designed and built a tank lighter which far exceeded the design produced by the Bureau of Ships. Both craft were largely ignored in spite of their superior performance in multiple government tests. But the men who would use these craft first, the service men who formulated the "Tentative Landing Operations Manual" in 1934 became Higgins strongest allies and chief among them was H. M. Smith. The Marines saw the worth of the boats he designed and fought for them. They fought for the best landing craft which would carry their Marines ashore under enemy fire. But the battle against the Bureau of Ships would not be won until after widespread pettiness and favoritism was exposed by Higgins before the Truman Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program in 1942. One man, Andrew Higgins, took on the Washington and military bureaucrats, the leaders of the eastern shipping industry and won. In short order, he took on a vicious labor racket, profiteering from the war by so-called "labor suppliers". He beat them too.

   Remarkably, in September of 1943 the American navy totaled 14,072 vessels. Of these, 12,964 or 92% were designed by Higgins industry. Higgins designed and built high-speed PT boats, antisubmarine boats, dispatch boats, freight supply boats and specialized patrol craft. He produced several types of landing craft, including the famous Higgins boat (LCVPs) and the tank lighter (LCMs).

   Of Higgins, General Eisenhower stated in 1964, "He is the man who won the war for us."

   Strahan has penned a fine tribute to a truly remarkable man. Strahan's strength, like his mentor, Steve Ambrose, is his prodigious research skills. One wonders what he would have produced had he stayed in history in stead of venturing off to run Lucky Dogs in New Orleans.




3. A very interesting overview of how the Higgins family of boats (WW2 landing craft, PT boats,cargo ships)evolved to such a prominent role in WW2. Great overview of production challenges, wartime politics, war procurement, and certain national leaders during that era. The description of FDR being driven through the huge boat factory in a convertible is neat.

   This is somewhat of a "dry" read- lots of names, acronyms, etc.- but the story itself and the pictures are well worth the effort.




4. Andrew Jackson Higgins and the boats that won World War II by Jerry E. Strahan
   
   This is the story about one of the unknown heroes of WWII. While interviewing Dwight Eisenhower, Steve Ambrose was told by Ike that Higgins was critical in the winning of the war.
   
   At the end of the war, Higgins boats were 92 % of the Navy's boats.
   
   Two of his craft were the best known. One, the Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel. (LCVP) were the landing craft used in the Pacific and Italy, Africa, and the D Day landings. They carried the troops in and were commonly known as Higgins boats.
   The other were patrol craft, commonly known as the PT boats. John F. Kennedy's PT 109 was one of those.
   Higgins came from Arkansas, and moved to Mobile Ala in the early 1900's. He began making a fishing boat there, which later, modified, became the landing craft used in World War II. Higgins worked with Marine General Holland (Howlin mad) Smith on the design of the craft.
   Higgins had for years tried to get the Navy to use his designs, but the Navy was stubborn and refused.
   However, the Navy craft sunk, and Higgins boats worked, and with Smith's and Harry Truman's committees help, he finally got Navy contracts to build boats.
   Higgins also built Patrol Torpedo boats for the Navy. Before the war, Higgins moved to New Orleans and began building speedboats. Many of these were sold to rum runners, and had to be able to outrun the Coast Guard boats. Higgins typically sold the rum runners the latest, fastest model of the boats, and sold the Coast Guard last years older, slower model.
   
   With the advent of WWII, the Higgins contracts skyrocketed and he subbed out a lot of work. He had 6 plants in La, including a boatyard in Houma La. He was the largest employer in the state, with over 30,000 workers. He built housing for the workers, and they had free health care, with doctors on call.
   
   His boats, along with the LST's drove the war effort. Lack of invasion craft delayed the Normandy invasion from May until June, 1944. Higgins was able to produce another 700 craft to support the effort in the extra month. Lack of invasion craft forced the landing in Southern France from June, 1944, when it was supposed to coincide with the Normandy invasion, to August, when the craft used in June could be sent back to England, and reloaded for the Southern France invasion.
   
   Later in the war, Higgins got a contract to build C-46 cargo planes. He built a massive plant in east New Orleans to do this, but the contract got cancelled, and ruined Higgins. Higgins also designed a helicopter, and this work continued until the test pilot got killed.
   The plant in east New Orleans later became part of the Space program where the booster was built.
   
   The Higgins plants were sold, but old Higgins works still make the Navy's patrol boats, such as the one Kerry served on in Vietnam.
   
   Higgins was a giant in his time, but became unknown, until Steve Ambrose became interested and Higgins and his boats are displayed in the World War II muesum in New Orleans.
   
   Even today, the Oxford Companion to World War II has it wrong, saying that the Higgins boats went out of use after the North Africa invasion.
   
   It is an outstanding book, one that I had to read all at once, about a relatively unknown American hero.



5. This book tells one of the most under publisized and under appreciated stories of WWII, and gives wonderfull information and a good variety of photographs of the Higgens Boat,i.e. landing craft, story. My father was personnaly chosen by Mr. Higgens to be one of the instructors who taught the men how to run the craft, so I can tell you with pride and confidence that this book has great information about the A.J.Higgens story and the boat that both General Eisenhower and Sir Winston Churchill said that the war could not have been won without it. It left me wishing for more.

5 comments about Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume 2 , The Defining Years, 1933-1938.

1. Although not being an American, I'm aware that there are many in the States who are not too fond of ER and who are very critical of her. This second volume of Blanche Wiesen Cook's series on America's former First Lady is as remarkable and absorbing as was the first. There is no doubt FDR was a man of character,courage and great personal charm and warmth, there is equally no doubt that his wife suffered great personal trauma (and embarrassment) at his refusal (doubtless for political reasons)to speak out against the racial problems (in particular lyching in the South) and the Hitlerites treament of Jews in prewar Germany and Austria whilst the US continued to trade with the Germans. The same could be said of his stance during the Spanish Civil War. Eleanor was a nag (as was mentioned here in other summaries of this book) but never without good reason.
   And all of her dire predictions came true. ER's passion for life, her beliefs, her love and respect of her husband, come through over and over again. Her ability to manipulate people, a less attractive aspect of her character - is also here for all to see (as her relationship with Lorena Hickock so aptly demonstrates).
   Was there too much of Hick in this book ? I didn't think so. The relationship was a long term, on going one. The letters were not destroyed by ER, who I believe must have realised they'd become public after her death. Finally, ER's energy levels must have been extraordinary - her ability to criss cross the country seemingly non stop was remarkable considering that travel and the mode of travel was nothing like it is today. What an absolute bonus such a partner was to FDR's re electibility !
   I look forward to the next "installment" with great anticipation.



2. This is a very well-researched and meticulously written book. However, I never felt I got to know Eleanor Roosevelt. I found the reference to Mrs. Roosevelt throughout the book as "ER" off-putting. It put an emotional distance between the reader and the subject. While we are treated to many details of Mrs. Roosevelt's life, we are never really let in to her emotional life. BWC (the author) goes into such detail about everyone else around Mrs. Roosevelt and she tells us what happened, but she doesn't let us see things through Mrs. Roosevelt's eyes. I still have no idea what the relationship between FDR and his wife was. Nor do I really understand why she remained with Lorena Hick so long. This book really amounts to a laundry list of who, what, where. A really effective biography will let us into the personal lives of the subject and let us feel as they feel as the story of their life unfolds. I never found that emotional resonance in this account. Eleanor Roosevelt left behind copious amounts of source material. I think that the author could have done a much better job of letting us experience Mrs. Roosevelt more fully as a person and not just as a public figure with a lot on her agenda.



3. I was shocked to discover that volume 2 only covered 5 years, albeit 5 important years. However, that should serve as a caveat for a potential reader.
   
   This volume is a much harder read than volume 1 as this version grinds to a screeching halt in places. While I agree it was important to document ERs long, tortured relationship with Lorena Hickock, too much emphasis (and repetition) was placed on what looks to be a normal parting-of-the-ways as ER ascended.
   
   There are some very intriguing and thoughtful moments in this book (which makes its a worthwhile read), but they are broken up by too many abrupt harbringers of moral/political doom or redemption with sparse or no follow-up.



4. I have to admit that I gave up on this book. I'm hoping to find a more readable biography of Mrs. Roosevelt. Cook's style and grammar are just too jumbled for me.
   
   Look in the "look inside this book" section here and go to page 14. This is a prime example of Cook's overuse of quotes. I appreciate that she did her research, but if she was going to quote so much, she should have just included one whole article. As it is, the whole page is a mish-mash of sentances and words taken from various sources creating a confusing unreadable mess.



5. In the first volume of her series on Eleanor Roosevelt, Blanche Wiesen Cook, a historian and women's studies professor, introduced us to a compelling historical figure who, after years of living in passive submission to her husband and mother-in-law, had finally broken free to create her own "independent life" - a life filled with careers (teacher, writer, public speaker) and fulfilling private friendships. In volume two, Eleanor Roosevelt faces the challenge of keeping her independent life as she assumes the traditionally social (and passive) role of First Lady. "Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume Two, 1933 - 1938" contemplates Eleanor Roosevelt's life during the first five years of her husband's presidency.
   
   In her first volume on Eleanor Roosevelt, Cook took a feminist approach in asking questions about power, relationships, and identity. Unfortunately, volume two falls short of the first volume, in leaving many of these questions not only unanswered, but sometimes even unasked. Whereas the central theme of volume one was Eleanor's struggle to assert herself as an "independent power," in volume two, we are not just reading the story of Eleanor Roosevelt, but also the parallel story of her husband and his presidency, which places Eleanor Roosevelt in a dependent role as she must work her way into her husband's political circle to gain influence. In fact, too often, volume two devolves into a story of FDR's presidency and Eleanor's reaction to it, rather than the story of Eleanor Roosevelt as an individual, independent agent. Eleanor is often portrayed as dependent on FDR for power, her moods uplifted when his speeches reflect her views and depressed and cold when they don't, particularly when she is shut out from the inner circle and has to learn about what is going on from her own son. While she occasionally dissents from the administration's talking points, her writing and speaking career is now primarily aimed at advancing FDR's policies. The most disappointing example of Eleanor's capitulation to her husband is on the subject of the Holocaust, where she remains silent from 1933 to 1938. When a German refugee appeals to Eleanor Roosevelt's sense of justice, asking, "Can you really stand by and watch this? Can you stand and see us more or less all gassed? I should like to have your word, you will do something," Eleanor Roosevelt replies, "Unfortunately, in my present position I am obliged to leave all contacts with foreign governments in the hands of my husband and his advisers." Obviously, Eleanor Roosevelt does gain power within FDR's political circle, but it is never clear what the extent and significance of this power really is.
   
   Another central theme in volume one was how Eleanor Roosevelt's relationship with a new circle of feminist and lesbian friends helped her create her own life apart from FDR. After Eleanor discovered FDR's infidelity with Lucy Mercer, and they began living separately, Eleanor established her own new life at Val-Kill, a residence she shared with Nancy Cook and Marion Dickerman. In addition, Eleanor made her first true friend in Lorena Hickok, an established reporter with the Associated Press. In volume two, these relationships all dissolve, as Eleanor acrimoniously splits with Cook and Dickerman and drifts apart from Hickok. Hickok, in fact, is the key figure in volume two, as her relationship with Eleanor Roosevelt is chronicled in painful detail. While their relationship is clearly the most important in Eleanor's life during her time as First Lady, it unfortunately takes a bit of a tragic turn as Hickok gives up her job with the AP, and along with it, her self-respect, becoming dependent on Eleanor Roosevelt for work, in addition to financial and emotional support. As Hickok grows increasingly depressed and resentful of Eleanor's other friends and busy schedule, they continue to drift apart, to the point where, when they do share a vacation alone together, Eleanor is miserable, missing her work and eager to return to her life as First Lady. As Eleanor Roosevelt drifts away from the friends who were so important to her in first creating her own independent life, it is clear that her interests and priorities have changed. Her political life is now the most important thing in her life.
   
   What does this say about Eleanor Roosevelt's identity? This is the final question then left to be answered. Unfortunately, the question is never even posed to readers. Does it matter that Eleanor Roosevelt depends on her husband for power and she no longer has an independent role of her own? What does it say that she pulls Lorena Hickok into a dependent relationship where she retains all the power? Why is her public life more important to her than her private relationships? What, in fact, is her new identity? While in volume one, we are left with the image of Eleanor Roosevelt as an independent woman, pursuing her own career interests and developing her own loyal set of friends apart from FDR, in volume two, we are mostly left with an image of Eleanor Roosevelt not as an independent force, but as the First Lady, a woman who keeps a busy schedule and cares for a lot of causes and people, but none in particular.
   
   In focusing on the day-to-day details of Eleanor Roosevelt's life and FDR's administration, "Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume Two, 1933 - 1938" reads more like a timeline from a boring history text - a list of dates and facts - than a compelling biography of Eleanor Roosevelt the person, her priorities and main accomplishments. In trying to tell two stories - first, of the political movement behind the New Deal and, second, of the role Eleanor Roosevelt carves out for herself within her husband's administration - ultimately Cook fails to tell either story.