5 comments about The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography (Oprah's Book Club).

1. His roles in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) and To Sir, with Love (1967) were for their time landmarks in the breaking down of social barriers between blacks and whites, and Poitier's talent, conscience, integrity, and inherent likability placed him on equal footing with the white stars of the day. He took on directing and producing chores in the Seventies, achieving success in both arenas. Although he has reduced the frequency of his roles in recent years, he remains one of the most respected and beloved figures in American cinema of the twentieth century.



2. He has a nice voice, but he's boring. My husband was listening and gave up on the CD about an hour before me. I tried to stick with it...but after a while I felt as though I was watching grass grow. It was a total waste of money in my opinion.



3. I very much enjoyed this book. This book focuses on his life, and his decision-making, and what he has learned through the journey. It is a good way to get some biographical information about him, and to see him as a real person - a normal person, not an actor. If you are looking for a lot of tidbits about his acting career, you might want to try another book. This book touches on those things, but it is not the focus. Very good read.



4. I read this book and I loved it. It is a moving story about Poitiers early life in the Bahamas, how poor people lived, racism, his bout with prostate cancer, friends,family, and film career. It is a well written book and I absolute love Sidney Poitier as an actor and a man. I loved his movies Lillies of the Field, Heat of the Night, Patch of Blue, Blackboard Jungle, and To Sir with Love which are some of the ones I enjoyed watching on tv. He is such a versatile actor and writer and handsome too. My 81 year old Mother loves him too. I cant wait to pick up the book that he wrote about his grand grandaughter (MESSAGES). For those of you who love Sidney Poitier, or a great biographical read. GET THIS BOOK. Wonderfully written and moving.



5. Brilliantly written novel! But than nothing less could be expected from Sidney Poitier. Also for all of you that are learning English as a second language it is an example of modern American English at its best. This is as good as it gets!

3 comments about The Confession LP.

1. I cried when I read this. I knew Jimmy back when I was engaged to his Special Labor Counsel. What a great way to tell his life story - and "confess." Human life is precious and should never be judged. Why should a man or woman have to go through what he did....and in the face of it all...he held his own and became Governor anyway - imagine the strength.
   
   Love you, Jimmy! I'm so glad you are happy! Mark is a hottie! xoxoxo



2. This work was one of the most helpful tools in gaining insight into the political machine. Governor McGreevey constructed a great read following his path through probably one of the greatest experiences of his life. I applaud his work and effort and recommend reading this book. It had me frustrated and angry during the read, but I emerged happy and able to place him on a higher pedastal. If redemption was necessary, Jim has earned it by putting this out.
   I hear people say he did it for the money - and to that I say: It is well earned. Read the book and get a grip. Bravo, Jim.



3. All of New Jersey and the country were probably anticipating the release of former Governor Jim Mcgreevey's book. Some of the hype may have been due to the scandal involving his sexual encounters. I am completing the book and am very impressed with the wealth of information included.
   
   Governor Mcgreevey shares all of himself in relation to his sexual escapades, but he also connects these escapades to the many emotions and experiences that brought him to his political end and to his new beginning.
   
   There were many selfish acts and many acts of kindness performed by Jim Mcgreevey. There were hurts and pains thrust upon others as well as happiness and joys given.
   
   I make no judgments as to the truths or untruths of his book. I evaluate based on the emotions that were left with me as a reader. I am highly appreciative of the wealth of knowledge on history, philosophy, psychology and other educational topics that were included.
   
   Jim Mcgreevey has shown his ability to take the English language and develop a stellar performance as an author. His development or lack of development of his life is for him to decide. I thank Governor Mcgreevey for sharing.
   
   Elaine Butler NJ

2 comments about Last Man Down: A Firefighter's Story of Survival and Escape from the World Trade Center.

1. This book is frankly, terrible. The author sets himself up as the one-and-only hero in his world of self-centeredness. We can certainly admire anyone who went through the events that he did, but this type of storytelling tends to diminish the whole thing. I find it very hard to believe the truth of much of his perspective. If his attitude about himself is any indication of officers in the FDNY (likely not), it's no wonder that the FD and PD of that city don't get along.



2. I picked up this book solely because I had heard this man talking on the radio to promote this book. For the entire 1.5 hours the man talked, I was riveted to the radio. I was so freakin amazed at this mans story as he was relating it, that I had to have his book.

   After having read the book, I was slightly disappointed. Maybe I had built it up too much in my head with anticipation, I do not know. The things this man did were still great if they are true, but it is told from a very egotistical point of view. That left a kind of bad taste to the book. He did not talk that way on the radio. He describes it in the book, as if he were making decisions that may or may not have been according to protocol. All of this was being done without really knowing what was going on around him, (as in the actual buildings falling, etc.). It just left me to wonder how much of the story is true, and how much is added on. It's hard to believe that with all of these men fighting to save lives, he seems to be the best one to always make decisions, or the correct decision. This may just have been a flaw in the way the story was written, I do not know.

   All in all, it was a good book. A fascinating tale. I'm just not quite sure of the authenticity of the tale during this tragedy in American history, which is why I only gave it 3 stars.

5 comments about Catch Me If You Can: The Amazing True Story of the Youngest and Most Daring Con Man in the History of Fun and Profit.

1. We enjoyed this movie. Do not buy just because you are a Tom Hanks fan, you will be disappointed, but movie is fun.



2. Billed as true crime or as an autobiography, but when the author admits he's the perfect liar, I found I had to read this as a novel, because I doubted a lot of what he writes. If he's so good at the con, how is this book any different. As a novel, it's entertaining at first, repetitive after awhile, and offers no clear climax. A very hard book to judge, although I gave it three stars because it is engaging somehow. The lying, conns, and sexism are hard to accept, and the author doesn't seem to feel bad for all the people he conned. Difficult to like, impossible to hate?



3. 'Catch me if you can' is a fairly entertaining, badly written fiction book that served as a base for a very entertaining, well directed fiction movie. It's not an amazing true story as the blurbs proclaim.
   
   Don't reach for this book if you want to read a true-to-fact autobiography. 'Catch me if you can' is a ghostwritten, highly embellished in style and content, largely implausible narrative that diverts from what probably really happened as much as the Spielberg movie diverts from the book. In words of Abagnale himself:
   
   'I was interviewed by the co-writer only about four times. I believe he did a great job of telling the story, but he also over dramatized and exaggerated some of the story. That was his style and what the editor wanted. He always reminded me that he was just telling a story and not writing my biography. This is one of the reasons that from the very beginning, I insisted the publisher put a disclaimer in the book and tapes.'
   
   I have yet to find this disclaimer in my copy. I like fiction and don't mind reading it as long as the author (or the publisher) doesn't try to sell it as a true story. Reading 'Catch me if you can' I had an increasing feeling that I was being conned. I swallowed all the tall tales of his forgeries, swindles and impersonations hook line and sinker, but the devil, as usual, is in details.
   
   Funnily my suspicions were aroused only when I found out he was fluent in French despite the fact that a few pages earlier he used an interpreter to communicate in that language.
   
   The description of his incarceration in a French hellhole of a prison is unbelievable to the point of ridiculous, but still the time is extended from 6 months he purportedly served to about one year.
   Then he's rescued by a Swedish policewoman Jan Lundström. Fine. I understand that all names in the book have been changed but Jan is a male name in Sweden. At this point I couldn't suspend my disbelief any longer and I put the book down unfinished.
   
   A few words about the style of writing. It's about as overdone as the facts it's supposed to desribe and nearly unreadable.



4. I gave it 4 stars only because I reserve 5-star ratings for books I could not have lived without reading, so to speak. But it is a fascinating account, and if you like knowing that it's a big world out there with people doing interesting things, you'll probably enjoy this book. Abagnale is obviously intelligent and likes to have fun -- an infectious combination. I'm interested now in reading his follow-up, The Art of the Steal: How to Protect Yourself and Your Business from Fraud, America's #1 Crime. I suspect his advice will be more helpful than the dispirited, obfuscating "instructions" of the credit reporting agencies!



5. I read this book right after seeing the movie in theaters because of how much I liked the movie. The book is a great addition to the movie because you will get to read a lot of the stories that didn't make it into the movie and read the non-hollywood version of the actual events.

5 comments about Grace (G K Hall Large Print Book Series).

1. Everyone remembers his first screen love.
   
   Grace Kelly was mine, and I can still remember her clear Teutonic skin, lugubrious soft hair, her casual sophistication, all completely new fascinations to my mundane childhood. Years later, the only thing that's changed is I've grown older and she's still impossibly perfect.
   
   What Robert Lacey has done in Grace is bring us all a little bit closer to that Snow Princess whom we all would have made our Princess were we a Prince. Behind the camera, behind bedroom doors, behind the veneer of an idyllic fairy tale that proves that fairy tales are exactly that, each anecdote is like a stitch in a grand painting that is sometimes bleak (Grace ages and somewhat pathetically begins to fool around with younger men), sometimes inspiring (her persistence at overcoming her natural dramatic flaws), and always sensual (her intimate fashion shows for her boyfriend Don Richardson).
   
   Unlike many biographies of screen legends, Lacey largely eschews extended back lot stories that might involve but not support the basic image of Grace that he believes must be told. So while we learn High Noon's screenwriter Carl Foreman meant his film as an allegory about Communist witch hunts, we are spared a complete A-Z on the Hollywood Blacklist and its artistic implications. A great biography of a great person must not necessarily take on the great issues of his day. Of which Lacey understands.
   
   Grace is a woman of terrific sexual energies and ambitions but just as importantly, sports a marvelous capacity to mask those penchants. So instead of becoming Jenna Jameson, she turns into Princess Grace, a woman who sleeps her way to the top but seems so inevitably suited for the position that no one can possibly begrudge her it.
   
   As Lacey says "She managed to be naughty while appearing very nice."
   
   It's become axiomatic that the greatest personalities are deeply contradictory. Nearly every biographer, when faced with the compelling weight of his research, is forced to concede that mankind is a very complex being (thank you, Mr. Stevenson). And Grace was no different. Lacey talks of Grace's growing conservatism, her disputes with her daughters over their flagrant ways, all while engaging in her own illicit love affairs as Princess Grace. And what of her devoted Catholicism? How to resolve her piety with her philandering?
   
   Questions which can only be answered by Hitchcock's own. This is a snow covered volcano we're dealing with here.
   
   And sometimes, you can't guess; you can only watch.



2. The media reviewers quoted here harp on Grace Kelly's supposed "promiscous" behavior, the main point of the book, as far as they are concerned. Anyone who actually reads the book will find someone who had a few discreet affairs before she was married, who took her marriage vows and commitment to her family and role as princess seriously, who worked very hard throughout her life to meet her commitments, and who had a comforting relationship with a kind younger man when her marriage turned lonely as she got older. If she wasn't quite the cold, virginal image presented by Hollywood, good for her.
   
   It's a very good book about a real woman of extraordinary beauty who could have settled for a society matron's life in Philadelphia but who made an extraordinary life for herself through her own efforts. Read it for that and not the sensationalism.



3. I picked up "Grace" about a year ago when I found it in my mom's old book closet. Although I am relatively young, something about the stars of yesteryear attracts me more than the glitz surrounding contemporary celebrities. Grace Kelly is no exception. I knew nothing about this icon, except that she was an American princess and a Hitchcockian heroine. Mr. Lacey certainly did his share in informing me about this classic movie star. I enjoyed how he provides us with immense background on the Kelly's, a prominent family in their own right. Mr. Lacey also does a fine job in giving us the "low-down" on Monaco and its interesting history.
   Also of note would be the fact that Lacey attempts (and succeeds) at presenting the seemingly ethereal Grace as a person, not the sex symbol or ice queen she is usually remembered as. He does give a lot of insight into her love life and various affairs, but you never lose sight that Grace had this innocence about her. It seemed as if she could do no wrong.
   Aside from being a talented actress, Grace was a true beauty and a dedicated mother and wife. She will always be remembered as our very own princess.



4. This book has a great deal of detail. I feel as if there was too much emphasis on her sex life versus her screen image, and frankly that was her business, not important in the book. Otherwise a good book.



5. I wanted to know all about the men in Grace Kelley's life, both before and after her marriage. This book told me everything, but in a classy, well-researched way. I learned a lot about Monaco, and just the things I would have wanted to know about her family members, too. After reading this excellent book, I plan to read more of Robert Lacey's works.

5 comments about Sam Walton: Made in America.

1. This book is an inspiring all-american success story of Sam Walton and his global Wal-mart empire. Sam chronicles his days as a small town merchant all the way to when the company did $45 billion dollars in the early 90's with testimnoials and insights by wal-mart associates, family and friends. Sam is brilliant yet modest and this makes this book a really good read. I expected to read a different story but ended up uncovering the tale of a man who refused to stop ever thinking of the customer. His obsession with keeping the customer happy is the secret and the means are eye-opening. Overall this book is one of the important business books I've read. It has inspired me in so many ways. Retail the walmart way is cruel yet fascinating!



2. Sam Walton was one of the worst things to happen to America. It's a monopoly. It destroys communities.



3. I have worked in retail and competed with Wal Mart. Although I don't shop at Wal Mart often, Sam Walton's story is a unique American story of a man that went from poverty to wealth. His stores have always been competitive with most of the other discount stores in our area. This book is the story of his rise to success through the discount store concept. This book is written in Sam's folksy style. He explains his concepts on management and business through this book.
   
   Sam shows his workaholic style created a unique American corporation. I doubt few companies expect as much as Wal Mart. Long hours, weekend work, and holidays are expected. I wonder how much time Sam spent with his family during this time when Wal Mart expanded. The respect for the value of a dollar, small town America, and work all resonate in this book.
   
   There are some things I don't completely agree with. Unions have protected the working people in this country, but Sam has strongly resisted there representation in his stores. Sam's associates are for the most part low paid workers struggling to get by. Perhaps some have made it rich, but most haven't.
   
   This is a unique story of one man's success in the discount store business. Walton revolutionized this industry. His ideas created value to both shoppers, shareholders, and stakeholders.



4. An excellent, honest account of how a business grew from nothing to being the world's largest retailer. How it grew so successful that it helped shape America - for good or for bad. Walton's view on that is hard to dispute: customers wanted low prices, and that's what Wal-Mart was able to provide them. His take on labour policy (such as the notoriously low wages at Wal-Mart) was quite disarmingly frank, from a person who was unashamedly frugal by nature. An honourable man who never let the extreme wealth go to his head. Quite inspirational. JK



5. Excellent book on Sam Walton. I don't believe that WalMart has the same ideals today, but it sure started off on the right foot... Congrats Sam on an excellent business plan and visionary management style.

5 comments about Becoming Mae West.

1. Way too much attention to "social history" and "cultural commentary" and not enough information on Mae West. It was if the author felt she had to use every bit of historical background she had found - little of which served to move the book forward. I did not feel I got to know Mae West nearly as well as I did the times she was living in - which was not what I wanted from a Mae West biography.



2. I love Mae West but this book bombed. It is informative but so much that it's boring. I never finished it. It has some great photos and if you're doing a term paper on her it's wonderful.



3. This book is one of the most well researched of any Mae West bios in recent years. GREAT photos, and fascinating reading, it uncovers things even the most die-hard fans of Mae West wouldn't know! It delves into the phyche and influences that went into creating Mae West as we came to know her. A highly recommended book.



4. This book gives a sketchy account of her childhood and dwells on the characters she played rather than who she was. I would have preferred more insight to her personal life since that is what made Mae West so interesting.

   An easy book to put down.




5. Emily Wortis Leider has written a biography of Mae West that is more than a rehash of her films and a retelling of her famous lines. Leider writes well and entertainingly and has researched her subject conscientiously. The result is a clearer picture of who Mae West was as a person and how she "became" the character that became her. Leider states her intention early and clearly. While her bio does cover West's entire life, her films and her efforts to remain an icon, Leider is more interested in how the little girl from Brooklyn became a musical soubrette, a vaudeville star, a playwright and stellar star of stage and screen. Along the way we get revealing glimpses into the show business of the early 20th century, America's social attitudes and the personal rebellions that would emerge into movements. Highly recommmeded.

5 comments about All Too Human: The Love Story of Jack and Jackie Kennedy.

1. I enjoyed listening to ALL TOO HUMAN: THE LOVE STORY
   OF JACK AND JACKIE KENNENDY--written and read
   by Edward Klein.
   
   Yes, it's gossipy, but that's a large part of the fun . . . also,
   I do believe that Klein had his facts straight (or at least most
   of them), in that he had once worked for Jackie . . . and she
   became, thereafter, a lifelong friend.
   
   You'll find out more about such interesting tidbits as the
   following:
   
   * Jack had one of the worst attendance records when he was
   in the House of Representatives;
   
   * His back problems were not the result of war and/or sports
   injuries;
   
   * Their respective families had too much control over their
   adult lives (in fact, Joe Sr. even picked out the engagement
   ring that Jackie got);
   
   * While Jack was indeed a womanizer, Jackie also had
   her share of male admirers; and
   
   * Jackie had perhaps as big an impact on modern culture as
   did Jack.
   
   If you're new to the lore of the Kennedys, then you'll find ALL TOO
   HUMAN a very readable introduction . . . others will appreciate
   being given the opportunity to revisit what seems to have been
   mythical times in the White House.



2. The Kennedys may have lived in the White House but in many respects were just like the neighbors who seemed like the perfect White Picket Fence family. Both the myth and fascination with the Kennedys is shattered here. It's an intimate take on the family politics of one of the most intriguing American political dynasties.



3. I am wildly into Jack and Jackie Kennedy and their mythical 1000 days of "magic" in the White House. After hearing all excellent things about this book, I gave it a shot. It was rather disappointing, not in the effort but in the actual biography/story it tries to tell. Looking through the author's notes, it is obvious that Edward Klein put his all into researching this colossal and intimidating subject. Klein's awe and admiration for the Camelot couple is felt, and parts of his narrative brings tears to your eyes, but you still feel as if there are tremendous holes that, I suppose, can't be helped when writing about such an elusive subject as Jack and Jackie.
   
   Klein basically took all relevant parts out of available books already written about the couple and stringed them into a narrative along with inputs from interviews that he mostly conducted himself. What you get is a rough, distorted gem that is beautiful in its own way but not what we were really looking for...basically meaning that while it does shed light on some touching, intimate moments in their lives we were not aware of/did not understand before, it is still just a composite of information gathered from interviews and other books TRYING to be "the love story of Jack and Jackie Kennedy." Maybe I am being too harsh (and this is not to say I did not enjoy the book--I did), but a good love story shows clearly and distinctly who and what the main players are--gets inside their heads so that afterwards, you feel as if you have personally met them and experienced the tribulations and joys in their life too. This does not quite accomplish that. It simply left me wanting for the more, more of the truth.



4. Jackie was Edward Klein's editor at Doubleday. The book opens with chapters that present a detailed biographical sketch of Jackie's pre-JFK life and then proceeds into how Jack and Jackie came to be. Joe Kennedy needed to find a suitable wife for John if he was to advance in politics. He turned to his good friend Arthur Krock of The New York Times who suggested Jackie Bouvier. Joe approved so Arthur contacted newspaperman Charlie Bartlett, Jackie's friend, to arrange an introduction.

   John was the [fun loving person] of Washington with one of the worst attendance records in the House of Representatives. He found girling and parties much more interesting. Jack liked the challenge of conquest but once conquered he soon lost interest and was incapable of sustaining a prolonged relationship. He stated that he wanted to have children but he wanted to marry a woman who was chaste because he was worried about being compared to other men.

   Both Jack and Jackie's families had way too much control over their adult children's lives! Joe Sr. even picked out Jackie's engagement ring. At the luncheon where the mother's were to discuss their wedding, Jack acted like a scolded child. It was pretty clear that he didn't want to kiss bachelorhood goodbye and that he wasn't in love with Jackie.

   Janet Bouvier Achincloss, Jackie's mother, felt her daughter was marrying beneath her and was putting up a fight with Rose about how the wedding should go. Joe Kennedy intervened. He sneered at the Archinclosses because they were old money but were unable to maintain it and keep living in style. In the end, Joe got his very public very politic wedding.

   Jack treated Jackie as the means to an end: the White House and children. Jack even had a brief fling with Jackie's sister Lee while Jackie was in the hospital. Friends implied that the Cuban Missile Crisis caused Jack to take a renewed emotional interest in his immediate family and that he and Jackie very close. Yet he still had a mistress? Please!

   This book has it all scandal, [physical attraction], drugs and lies! It takes an intimate look inside the world of old money WASPs and of the newly moneyed and their views of each other. Klein used primary sources including interviews with many of the people in Jack and Jackie's life. One thing Klein never discussed was what Jackie's feelings and beliefs were surrounding the conspiracy theories that have grown up around JFK's murder. A great companion book to this is The Day John Died by Christopher Andersen, which focuses on really both JFK's children's lives before and after the assassination. I simply could not put either book down!




5. ALL TOO HUMAN is a touching history of the marriage of John Fitzgerald Kennedy to Jacqueline Bouvier.

   In hindsight, Jacqueline had as big an impact on modern culture as did her first husband, perhaps simply because her life lasted longer. Yet this is not to belittle her actual influence; an entire generation of women modeled themselves on her style. Her dignity, her educational standards, her appreciation of the arts, all proved to be an inspiration to the world.

   Author Edward Klein has turned writing about the Kennedys into a cottage industry. This particular biography is a nice balance to many other harsher reports, focusing here as he does on the good points of the marriage of this President and his First Lady.

3 comments about The Life and Ministry of Billy and Shirley Cole: A True Story That Reads Like the Book of Acts.

1. This book has increased my Faith tremendously! It gives you a look at what the early Missionaries went thru to make the way for us today! And the faith that they had was incrediable! It just makes me want to do more for the Kingdom of God. TRUELY A MUST READ FOR ANY CHRISTIAN!!God Bless & Enjoy!



2. Great book i seen Brother Billy cole years ago and i was blessed to see the miracles that place in his ministry,a simple message he preaches out of acts chpt.2 the spirit of God fell and many were filled with the Holy ghost!I couldn't put this book down and was so blessed by it.You will see what the church has gotten away from.After reading this book in my own thoughts and in my spirit i would consider Brother Billy Cole Modern day Apostle.You will be blessed by this book!



3. i loved this book SOOO much!
   I'm so glad I bought it of amazon.
   
   The Coles have been truly inspirational... after reading it, I got up and questioned my life's endeavours... But God really helped me put things into perspective after being imparted to, through the wisdom of the Bro Cole.

5 comments about Benjamin Franklin: An American Life.

1. Benjamin Franklin's long and productive life has a special appeal to many people. As Isaacson suggests, perhaps he is the founder who appeals to so many people because he seems more accessible. There are several things I learned in this book that I had not really considered before, mainly his relationship with his family and the opinions others had of him in succeeding generations. As the author remarks, we picture him (somewhat inaccurately) as a spectacled, elderly man engaging in his kite experiment or we see him dispensing maxims about industry and frugality. In reality, there was much more to the man than these images would suggest.
   
   We sometimes stereotype famous individuals of the past as one-dimensional, but we are delighted and sometimes chagrined to learn that they are just as complex as we are. Franklin was no exception. We see in this book aspects of his relationships with people and his family that we would not normally come across in a brief glance of the man. He would, literally, be distant from his common law wife Deborah as his overseas trips would end up as years away from home. He would part ways with his son (illegitimate son) William over the independence debate. He would champion the cause of the artisan class and the middling sort, but just as easily associate with the powerful and the rich.
   
   His varied interests and life experiences certainly endear him to many people. Not many founders can claim to have done as many varied things as Franklin. He wasn't a skilled orator or debater, or as deep a political philosopher as other founders were, as the author touches on, but these are probably other examples of why he seems more accessible to people. He was both conservative and liberal on varied issues, but was generally more democratic than other founders. He was also a very tolerant man when it came to religious sects. He was a scientist who believed in practical inventions and solutions; he wasn't as caught up in the language or theories as other scientists were.
   
   I've left out much on his well known role during and after the American Revolution. This isn't to minimize his accomplishments in his profession or in the critical events of his day, in which he was often a key player. The author ably covers all of these important facets of Franklin's life. The numerous acquaintances with various people in this country and those in England and France, the flirtatious correspondences with some of his women admirers, and so forth are also ably covered here.
   
   Clearly, the author likes this middle class / populist appeal of Franklin's and tries to present him in such a light. This is a wonderfully written biography that sheds much light on the man.



2. I am a fan of narrative nonfiction history, so I was a bit offset when I started reading Benjamin Franklin. It's not really a narrative biography, but by the end of the first page, I didn't care.
   
   The book is well written by Walter Isaacson and it is about a fascinating man. I knew very little about Benjamin Franklin when I began this book. Not so now.
   
   Isaacson looks at the many facets of the man's life--printer, author, politician, diplomat, revolutionary, inventor, scientist. Franklin was a man who defined his time and defined America, as can be seen by the fact that's he's the only American who signed all 4 crucial documents in America's founding.
   
   Isaacson also looks at Franklin's faults and contradictions. Though Isaacson tries to figure out how they could exist in Franklin, he never quite manages to get inside Franklin's head.
   
   All in all, it was a very enjoyable read. I came away with a new appreciation of Franklin.



3. Initially I imagined reading this book from time to time, knowing I would "eventually" complete it.
   
   Well, I was wrong. Isaacson's book is so engaging and Franklin so remarkable that I wasn't able to stop reading until the 84-year-old Franklin had come to the end of his life. If school books could be so appealing (and more teachers as captivated by history as Isaacson is by Franklin) - then soon we'd have a land full of knowledgeable history lovers. It would do a nation good.
   
   You also can learn more about Franklin's worldview on thinkwriter.blogspot.com. He was the right man at the right time in America's history. . . and I daresay readers will appreciate him on a whole new level after reading Isaacson's book. Enjoy - no matter how long it takes you!



4. In "Benjamin Franklin," Walter Isaacson manages to chronicle the life of Franklin in a thorough, well-analyzed fashion, while simultaneously allowing the reader to draw many of his own conclusions from the research presented in the book.
   
   I was intrigued to read this book after reading David McCullough's "John Adams." It's certainly no secret that Adams and Franklin did not get along terribly well during the bulk of their interactions in Europe, and reading that book left me guessing that, in all likelihood, there was another side to the story.
   
   While at times it seemed that McCullough could be somewhat heavy-handed in his judgment toward Franklin, I felt that Isaacson did a good job presenting the most likely facts of the case and allowing the reader to determine the most likely manner in which the pieces fit together. He did certainly tend to err on the more sympathetic side of controversies surrounding Franklin, and was probably to generous in his judgment of Franklin's thoroughly practical and emotionless approach toward religion.
   
   One thing I appreciated about this book relative to most other colonial era biographies was the focus on the years prior to the revolution, which obviously encompassed the bulk of Franklin's life. Franklin's life leading up to the revolution seems to serve as a microcosm of the views of the colonies in the years between the French and Indian War and the Revolution.
   
   All in all, I heartily recommend this book to anyone with an interest in colonial America and the founding fathers.



5. It is enlightening how the spectrum at which Benjamin Franklin's contributions to America can hardly be contained in one book. A glimpse into his common sense, wisdom, and morality are organized with precision and passion through Walter Isaacson's masterpiece. I now better understand Franklin's connection with other fathers of our country and have a deeper desire to learn about them as well.
   
   Futhermore, I am impressed at the background of the author. His experience and education give me more respect for his work.