5 comments about The Making of a Blockbuster: How Wayne Huizenga Built a Sports and Entertainment Empire from Trash, Grit and Videotape.

1. That's the return an investor in Blockbuster in Jan. 1987 would have had. And for Wayne's investment, $17.5 million, that grew to $600 million in 7 years.
   
   This is a truly intriguing story of how Wayne (and team) built TWO multi billion dollar companies, Blockbuster Entertainment and Waste Management. The author, Gail does a great job of taking you through Wayne's early days when all of his garbage company's credit lines were exhausted and meeting the day to day expenses were a struggle, up to the point that he realized that the best bet was to go public so he could use the stock as currency for rapid expansion. And rapidly expand he did. In the 10 months between March and December 1972, Waste Management bought 133 different businesses.
   
   During his forays in the water business Wayne and his right hand man Steve Berrard scooped up 16 water companies in eight months, going from zero to the thirteenth largest bottled water company in the nation, which was sold to Clorox for a profit of $16 million within 3 years.
   
   Berrard's deal making skills:
   -Don't paint yourself into a corner
   -Never say anything that won't let you come back in the front door
   -Don't say something is a deal breaker
   -A deal is never dead if you don't let it die
   -Always let the other side set the initial price
   -Always leave room to back up
   -Recognize what the other side really wants out of a deal
   -Know when to walk
   -Don't take no for an answer
   
   Talking about Blockbuster Wayne would point out that the stores were paying for themselves in roughly 3 years from the cash flow. (mental not for business buyers)
   
   As anyone who reads my other reviews or my blog knows, I zero in on the structure of the deals mentioned in the book. Interestingly you get a good idea of how the whole Blockbuster - Virgin deal was structured. Blockbuster was to be an even partner in Virgin's 15 stores in Europe and have 75% ownership of the US stores (other than the LA store which they had 1/3). Virgin would retain managing control along with its 25%. Blockbuster would fund the expansion.
   
   Great Quotes:
   
   "The biggest lesson I learned is that when you say you're going to do something, be darn sure you do it."
   
   "Huizenga held fast to two rules: Don't loose a deal because you're not paying attention to it and never talk about it until its done and in writing."
   
   "His father says, Wayne is still driven by the same force that's driven him since the purchase of that first garbage truck in 1962. (The Deal) The excitement of making the deal. I think that's what drives him"
   
   By Kevin Kingston, author of: A 20,000% Gain in Real Estate: A True Story About the Ups and Downs From Wall Street to Real Estate Leading to Phenomenal Returns



2. This is a great book that shows the natural born ability of a deal maker. This book shows how Wayne can spot a business that has a lot of potential and take it over to make it a giant. This was a great book,
   
   B. Fitz



3. This is a great book that shows the natural born ability of a deal maker. This book shows how Wayne can spot a business that has a lot of potential and take it over to make it a giant. This was a great book,
   
   B. Fitz



4. This book tells the story of a guy w/ modest means and how he created two of the best businesses in U.S history starting w/ nothing. This is not just some ego pumping motivational biography. This book tells you exactly what is required of you if your goal is to build a business starting from scratch and putting everything together working over 100 hours per week and eventually listing your company on the NYSE and becoming a billionaire. Wayne is the ultimate deal maker, and you can see very clearly in these pages how one can reach the highest levels of business succes through extremely hard work, and single minded determination and drive. Bottom line if you want to know what it really takes to build a 2.5 billion dollar net worth and get your name on the Forbes 400, and also building an international multi billion dollar company from scratch... well than spend your money on this book you won't be dissapointed... Blake bldgassets247@yahoo.com



5. I liked the book really well. I was suprised that Wayne was completly a self made billion-aire. When other guys like Donald Trump was in private school wayne was doing odd jobs to earn money. I just wish I had invested in Blockbuster when I was in high school.

5 comments about Joe Dimaggio: The Heros Life.

1. As a baseball fan and especially a Yankees fan I was anxious to read this book and I am glad I did. I am not sure how Cramer obtained as much detail about this god with clay feet as he did. But it is truly amazing the first person stories he was able to get of those who knew Dimaggio. This book is so relevatory, so much better than some of the sports biographies that are out there. You learn much about Joe's family life, or the lack of family life, both as a boy and as an adult. It is a sad story of one who failed at all human relationships, while being admired from a distance by so many. But at times Cramer gives us just a little too much as when he relates how one beauty compared Joe's male organ to Milton Berle and Joe came out champ again.



2. Joe DiMaggio was one of the most amazing athletes ever to wear the Yankee pinstripes. He was chosen as the greatest living baseball player in a poll conducted in 1969.
   
   The son of an Italian immigrant fisherman, DiMaggio followed the lead of his older brother, Vince, and abandoned the fishing boat to pursue a career as professional baseball player. Eventually, three of the DiMaggio sons would play in the major leagues: a younger brother, Dominic, played for the Boston Red Sox as a regular; Vince was a journeyman who moved from team to team; Joe played thirteen seasons in New York.
   
   He was not an easy man to get along with and not especially likeable. At an early age, DiMaggio, who had a limited education, felt that he had been cheated out of money in a contract dispute and he seemed to be determined never to be shortchanged again. He was sullen and withdrawn, but how he could play! Rookies were put on notice that DiMaggio had no use for team members who would jeopardize his opportunity to win bonus money by playing in the World Series. He was constantly looking for moneymaking opportunities and commercial endorsements. On television, he became best known for his "Mr. Coffee" ads. He owned an interest in a seafood restaurant in San Francisco for years.
   
   Off the field, DiMaggio had marital problems with his two movie actress wives. His first wife, Dorothy Arnold, was the mother of his only child, Joe, Jr., and his most celebrated union was with Marilyn Monroe. Both marriages ended in divorce, but DiMaggio remained devoted to Monroe and her memory. DiMaggio was a tough customer and he went through periods of not speaking to many of his own relatives if he was displeased with them.
   
   Throughout his playing career, which was shortened by military service and injuries, it was a rarity for an October to pass without Joe DiMaggio appearing in the World Series. During this period, the New York Yankees were a dynasty and DiMaggio appeared in the Series against six of the eight National League teams. New York only lost once in the postseason while DiMaggio was in the line up (the St. Louis Cardinals upset New York in 1942).
   
   DiMaggio could do it all, but he was best known for his hitting and his celebrated fifty-six game hitting streak record in 1941. Interestingly, after the Cleveland Indians halted the streak, DiMaggio pounded out hits in his next seventeen games. DiMaggio retired from baseball at the age of thirty-six. His career was shortened by stomach ulcers and primitive sports orthopaedic medicine that had been unable to repair his damaged knee and foot.
   
   I enjoyed this book. The author did a good job with a difficult biographical subject.
   
   An interesting aside: DiMaggio had been scouted by the Chicago Cubs while he was playing for the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League, but the team lost interest in him as a prospect after he suffered a knee injury. Within a few short years, DiMaggio and the Yankees swept Chicago in the World Series.



3. There are some negative reviews on here, and I'm not sure why. Granted this is probably the least sympathetic biography I have ever read. But I thought it was well reported. It was certainly a smooth read and provided a remarkable amount of insight into an iconic figure in American history. DiMaggio was obviously a moody and selfish superstar who was very concerned about his image and legacy in the big picture, but not nearly focused enough on being any kind of a humanitarian. My respect for DiMaggio the ballplayer was only increased by this book, but DiMaggio the individual left a lot to be desired.
   
   It's not Cramer's fault that DiMaggio's behavior often ranged from uncooperative to downright nasty. I loved the book.



4. My expectations for the book were low to begin with, but if I'd known DiMaggio had anything to do with Marilyn Monroe I wouldn't have bothered. She's a hack writer/pop culture magnet of the worst sort--and well, this biography is a prime example of the resulting genre.
   
   Half the book manages to discuss DiMaggio's baseball career, in a sort of slap-dash, free-spinning verbal assault way. I suppose if you have the attention span of a gnat this is appreciated, but this approach just makes me unhappy; skip every other sentence and it still reads the same.
   
   The second half of the book is Marilyn Monroe (the less said about that the better), and then DiMaggio's exploitive adventures in the ultimate sucker's paradise, the filthy world of baseball memorabilia.
   
   Given his sources I doubt any of this is told either fairly or accurately... and you know you've got a real weiner of a book when "cease and desist/no comment" letters are included as a way to show "well, I tried to portray both sides but they wouldn't let me!"
   
   I'm sure much of it is true, and I suspect DiMaggio was used, abused, folded, stamped, sealed, delivered. (Hey, at least he wasn't cryofrozen.) I just... gotta wonder why we really need to be told every intimate personal detail about someone, 'cause much of this stuff isn't our business.



5. I enjoyed this book very much, it was a very entertaining read, failing to get five stars from me only because the author did not provide enough documentation of his facts.
   
   Mr DiMaggio was a divinely talented ballplayer- greatest ever - no, in fact, definitely not - but certainly among them.
   
   Away from baseball Joe D always struck me as both egotistical and just plain goofy. I liked the way the author gave credit to Joe's skills and accomplishments, while steering clear of a simple advertisement for a man we already knew was great on a ball diamond. DiMaggio was a very complex man, who had his failures and shortcomings, the same way all of us do.
   
   I would certainly recommend this book as an entertaining read, it's not just a stiff baseball biography, there's a lot more here than just dates and statistics.

No comments about Dorothy Day: A Radical Devotion, Library Edition.

1 comments about Days of Obligations.

1. I first learned of Richard Rodriguez on C-Span's Booknotes program. He was an invited guest of First Lady Laura Bush to speak at an author's fair that she started hosting in Texas while she was the First Lady of Texas. Rodriguez was promoting his book "Brown" at the the time and I thought his observations were wonderful.
   
   "Days of Obligations" is in a similar vein, but not nearly as focused. He does (primarily) focus on the differences between Mexico and the United States Two interesting observations from Mexicans about America include: 1) "America is 'Organized'. Passive voice. Rodriguez notes that there seems to be no connection that actual Americans do the organizing. Rather it's almost like it is fate that America is organized. 2) Americans have too much freedom.
   
   Rodriguez digresses from his Mexico/America discussion for an interesting (but off topic) discussion about the gay lifestyle in San Francisco. Perhaps it was meant to be a comparison between Mexicans moving into California and San Francisco's transformation into a beacon for homosexuals. If so, it was poorly correlated, although interesting nonetheless.
   
   His observations on multi-culturalism are very interesting. Rodriguez is a hard man to pin down politically. He is a walking dichotomy. Gay. Devoted Catholic. Mexican, but barely speaks Spanish. American but feels that he is different. Anyway, he looks at school to be the ultimate "de-individualizer" in American society, and that is not entirely bad. He believes that there needs to be a common understanding in society - we all have a common culture if we live in the United States, even if we prefer to ignore it. For example, he stresses the importance of the studying the Founding Fathers: "These were the men that shaped the country that shaped my life." He stresses that point off and on throughout the book - the United States shaped his life, Mexico shaped his parents' lives, and even though they brought Mexico with them in their hearts, he did not buy into it - he was shaped much more by America.
   
   Rodriguez's obeservations on multiculturalism in the Catholic church and Protestant vs. Catholic (in attitude, worship style, individual vs. communal, even musical themes) take up nearly an hour of the audio edition - but it may be the most interesting hour of all.
   
   Rodriguez is a skilled and experienced public speaker (regular duty on PBS plus book tours) so I have to wonder why he did not read his own book. The reader they chose did a great job with accents(primarily Irish and Mexican) and the spoken Spanish was solid so I have no complaints, but still...
   
   I give this one an A-. Worth a read, or in my case, a listen while driving to work. Lots of thoughts about immigration, Mexico, religion - and true to Rodriguez's form, no real answers. But, the discussion is worth the time and Rodriguez can turn a phrase quite nicely.

5 comments about Patton: The Man Behind the Legend 1885-1945.

1. This is a great short bio of Patton. Blumenson paints him as a fragile, yet great leader and how those two worked back and forth. His last few pages are a great summary: "...one of America's greatest soldiers, one of the world's great captains."
   
   I read this book for a master's class and it provides two great take aways:
   
   1. Insight into his early life--Patton grew up in a displaced Virginian family in California. His views of his family and himself shaped him as a military figure.
   
   2. The interaction of his fragile and volitile personality with his outer shell which strove for personal excellence and glory for his family.
   
   It's very hard to write on Patton without taking a side--either critical of him or supporting him. Thus, the Patton family did endorse this bio, but there are pro-Patton themes (prejudice), especially in his interaction with Bradley and Eisenhower (my only downgrade of the book).
   
   This is a very good book to use as a baseline for further study. Worth a spot in your library.



2. For most, Patton is a well known name, familiar; but like most, I knew nothing more than the impact of the mythology and short squibs about his commanding manners as one of the most powerful and important Army Generals of the 20th century.
   
   The author, whom I have never heard of or fully know the relationship between him and Patton, was the staff historian in Patton's Third Army during WWII. As such, I assumed a much biased portrayal, good or bad.
   
   Instead, I found a well-thought, well delivered description of man so driven that he accomplished anything he wanted. A man so volatile yet thoughtful, a masterful and brilliant tactian born to lead with no fear of death and wanting a fight, driven to succeed at any cost and sacrificing everything but his own strict morals so that he could achieve all that Destiny had set for him, because he was destined to be great. This was a man entirely devoted to the ideology of the Warrior mold, never modeling himself on any one great legend or man, Patton followed the path of the idea of being a warrior and gave it his life. Always questioning himself, not always sure he was 'the man', Patton had an unshakable believe in himself and Fate that is truly awesome and inspring.
   
   From his early upbringing--one of wealth, privilege and good breeding--up along to each promotion and to his eventual death, Blumenson gives a personal touch to the aura that was Patton, eloquent, acerbic, devoted to his soldiers but also, the Patton that could sometimes blow up in one's face.
   
   Of the biographies that I have read, I haven't chuckled and earmarked more pages that I wanted to remember. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and couldn't stop until I finished. Reading the highs of Patton's life and career made me cheer and reading the harrowing blows made me shake my head in wonder and lament along with Patton. Biases? Only in one case: The author choicely slips in a reason for Patton's up and down mood swings that latter crippled his career and made him as infamous as his military stamina, accident prone and usually in the head, Blumenson believed that the mood swings were result from subdural hemotoma, a building of blood pressure around the brain. There's nothing conclusive, merely supposition, but entirely plausible.
   
   The writing style is straightforward, although sometimes awkward, but because Blumenson had first had account of Patton, in both images, it had more intimacy, made less formal. Even more interesting were the many photos of Patton throughout his life, in various dress and events that brought what Blumeson wrote about come to life. Even battle scenes were described in layman's terms, easy to follow and interesting--though maps would have been a nice touch. The back has a comprehensive index that I found helpful when I wanted to go over parts for memory.
   
   A definite must read!



3. This biography starts with Patton's family roots, covers his growing up years, and works through his career in the military. The book is only about 300 pages and is a fairly quick read. There are lots of pictures.
   
   Patton grew up in California, his father was Old South gentry, and his mother's father was a fairly rich self made man. Patton idealized his military roots. Fairly early in life Patton wanted to become famous and felt the honorable way was to do so in the army. Patton appears to have had dyslexia. School was a struggle for him which he overcame through hard work.
   
   As a teenager Patton meet Beatrice Ayer who later become his wife. She was from a rich family. Through her emotional support Patton was able to keep struggling all his life against his self doubts. Without her support it doesn't sound like Patton would have been nearly as successful. They had two daughters and a son.
   
   The kind of character description of Patton this book gives is a gifted man who was focused on himself. He wanted glory and he wanted to be known. He wanted to be famous. He often did things to make sure he was noticed. He pulled strings to get the attention of higher commanding officers.
   
   Also unfortunately he wasn't faithful to his wife. There were a couple mentions of how many condoms he used in a short period. Patten had a long affair with his niece. And after he died, the niece killed herself. She left a note that she would be with Uncle Georgia before Beatrice.
   
   Strategically and tactically George Patton seemed to have been almost without peer. He studied war for over forty years. But his greater gift may have been his ability to train and motivate large groups of soldiers. In two instances Patton was given an army and fairly quickly he improved the level of performance several levels. The Third Army, which was under his command from after D-Day to the end of the war, was largely an untrained and unseasoned group of men. But they took the most number of prisoners, and moved the quickest across dozens of miles in a day. George Patton seems to have consciously taken on an act of swearing and cussing to be at the level of the common solider, but then when he meet with his officers he was much more refined. He told his Third Army they were different, he told them they were on a righteous cause, and he asked a lot of them. They came through.
   
   Over all George Patton comes across as a flawed person who achieved some greatness. Martin Blumenson did a good job in giving the reader insight into the life and character of George Patton.



4. The one primary reason this ranks as the paramount biography of Patton is because the Patton family never tried to control the author. The secondary reason for the success of this biography is because the author, Blumenson, served as a young lieutenant under Patton.

   I surprised about a number of facts regarding Patton. First of all, he was dyslexic, but was able to overcome that problem through hard work. He was also kicked by a horse later in life, and this may be the reason for his "unstable" and volatile character.

   There are plenty of fun facts in this biography. I was surprised that Patton was an Olympic athlete in the pentathlon. I did not realise, though, that the pentathlon was built around an officer carrying dispatches (i.e., horse, sword, pistol, swimming, running). He also should have placed first, but they could not decide if his pistol round had punched through the same hole twice (so the judges counted it as a complete miss).

   Patton had many doubts about his manhood. He joked, while at West Point, that he made a fine woman as a dancer. Since West Point only had men at the time, they had to trade off when learning to dance. There is also a serious character flaw in Patton regarding his niece. Although he denied it, it was pretty obvious he was having sex with his niece. This is where we, as the reading public, must give all thanks to the Patton family. They trust Blumenson so much that he is the only man they have given full access to the family papers and letters. At no point did they tell Blumenson to hide anything. They recognized that their family member was an historical figure,and insisted on a complete analysis--warts and all. Otherwise, how can you form an opinion on the man?

   Blumenson ends his biography with a chapter "Behind the Legend." Patton's ideal of leadership is one key to understanding him. On page 307 he states "slef-confidence and leadership are twin brothers." As Blumenson states, "the sublime irony is that Patton's self-confidence was an act, forced and assumed, put on, riveted to his exterior."

   Blumenson is quite informative and a must see. He is positive that, had Patton lived a lengthy life, he would have been discredited. He was a real embarrassment, great in war but terrible in peace. The author is also a very humble man, even though he is a retired colonel, and always makes the emphasis when he speaks about Patton.




5. For readers who want a top-notch biography of Patton without committing to an 800-page or 1000-page tome, this is the book. Blumenson makes excellent use of Patton's personal letters, especially those to Patton's wife, to reveal the human side of his tough-as-nails persona. Patton with nervous indigestion? Patton feeling worthless and inferior? Who would have guessed! Highly recommended for those interested in historic figures and military history, but who don't want to get bogged down in minutae such as detailed battlefield tactics. This book focuses on the man, as it should, and not so much on the wars that made his career. That being said, my only complaint is that for the chapters about actual warfare the book could have used some basic large-scale maps of North Africa and Western Europe, especially France, showing the route of Patton's advances and major battles. I sometimes felt lost as Patton rolled through one village after another to attack the enemy.

5 comments about Quivers : A Life/Cassettes.

1. I am a big Howard Stern fan and I just had to read this book. I found it to be enjoyable in the begining (Robin's early life), but I got bored about three quarters way through. The book is written by her, so we miss some outside views on how she really is in her life outside of the studio.
   I found the book a little self serving and you get the impression she thinks very highly of herself.
   I would recommend the book if you get it for a good price on the used self.



2. Forget the website advertising with Negative ratings.
   If you are interested in the show, this is an interesting book.



3. I read this book a few years ago and it has stuck with me ever since.
   
   Truth be told, I was only interested in Robin Quivers because she was on Howard Stern's show. She was entertaining in her own right but I was a bit annoyed at her constant agreeing with him (or what I thought was that. If these critics bothered listening to Howard's show, they'd know that she agreed with him about half the time - if that!) and by that laugh.
   
   BUT after reading her autobiography, I came to like her just as much as Howard and developed much respect for her work ethic and her determination to overcome huge obstacles.
   
   Unlike *some* celebrities, who just about make a living from the fact that they were molested as a child, Robin dealt with it and moved on. She proved time and again on Howard's radio show (as well as on TV and the few videos that Howard made over the years) that she could have people joke about it and she took the teasing like a champ.
   
   Robin's and Howard's paths zigzagged towards each other and they've been inseparable ever since. (And, according to her, she was tricked into the military and when she wanted to get out of it, she realized she couldn't - not without being dishonorably discharged. It's the only reason why she served.)
   
   Robin fought against some pretty bad odds, got her priorities straight and has been on the right track ever since.



4. After hearing Howard Stern play a few snippets from the audiobook edition of co-host Robin Quiver's autobiography on his radio show a little while back, I knew I hadda give the whole shebang a listen. When I finally did take a listen, I was a bit bummed by Robin's unusually unemotional reading of her life's story. Fortunately, the harrowing ordeals and trials she went through in life-- from coping with parental abuse and neglect as a kid, to toughing out a nightmarish stint in the U.S. Air Force, to an enlightening membership in a cult-like outfit, to a rarely-ever-dull working relationship with the man who would be the King of All Media, to battles of will against insufferable coworkers-- were quite compelling, and for the most part took my mind off of her less-than-rousing recitations.
   
   But even though I received a fair amount of enjoyment listening to this audio presentation, I think Robin missed a golden opportunity to make this into one of the funniest audiobooks of all time! I can just see it: Jackie Martling does the reading in his "snooty royalty Robin" voice (along with his "Kingfish" impression as Robin's ham-handed dad), while Fred Norris works the goofy sound effects carts and plays the "Robin's News" theme at just the right moments. Tell me that wouldn't have been a hoot...
   
   `Late



5. this book was incredible for me to read and really changed my life. i related to so manyu of the things that Robin went through even though i am neither female, black or in her age group. Robin is an extremely intelligent woman who overcame a lot of BS to get to where she is. i highly reccomend this book.

5 comments about Circus Fire, The.

1. Good books on historical events usually tell of events before, during and after the occurence. Some much more so than others. What is striking here is how O'nan manages to refer to everything related to Hartford's fire over a fifty year period! Everything is included. We are told of circus fires and accidents back in to the 19th century, circus mishaps in the years after the fire, other disasters of interest, and of the personal lives and fates of those involved. I have extensive knowledge of historic catastrophes, and can attest that nothing of any interest was left out. The author has said the book was a lot of work to write, and this is clear given its detail. There is no other book quite like it.
   
   But the book's strength is also its weakness. So much is included that the writing suffers some. We are constantly introduced to new characters and sub-stories, interrupting the flow, and creating a kind of 'literary turbulence' that is disturbing at times. But don't let this stop you from buying, and reading, this tale of a circus tragedy.



2. My family is from Sarasota, FL, where the Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus had their winter quarters for many years. My great-grandmother on my mother's side used to watch some of the circus kids while their parents trained, and my mom had heard stories about this fire, and then when I was younger, I had heard the same stories. We had known Merle Evans, and he told us about that day.
   
   I had not known about this book until reading about it in a thread on LT, so I thought I would give it a try and learn a little bit more about that awful day. O'Nan presents what is clearly a well-researched, if not always well-written, history about that day, and the events that (may or may not have) led up to it, and the circumstances that followed. After O'Nan introduces each person, he continues to write about these people as if the reader is as familiar them as he is due to his researching them. If you can let go of trying to keep track of who is who (there is a huge number of people involved) and simply read the book and accept the facts as they are presented, you will have a better chance of getting something out of this book. I kept trying to keep straight in my head who was who, but after awhile I simply gave up on this and just read.
   
   Due to the nature of the tragedy, I don't know that it's possible for O'Nan to write this without some sense of sensationalizing the facts, but everything that he writes clearly gets across the horror of the day. The accompanying photographs help you visualize exactly what happened during the fire. The book itself suffers from some writing errors throughout, and these probably could have been fixed with a stronger editing, but they are not overly distracting.
   
   O'Nan clearly researched his facts, and while he tries to present some possible explanations to the cause of the fire and circumstances surrounding it, he doesn't try to present these as fact. He relies on the established facts that have been proven, and draws on these to present the story as best he can. This book won't be for everyone. It was a horrible day, and O'Nan doesn't try to sugar-coat the events or what happened to the victims of the fire. For those that are interested in learning more about the fire, however, this will prove to be an interesting read.



3. Having grown up in this area, I was very much aware of the fire and it's consequences. But ... nobody ever really wanted to talk about it. This is a very good account. While reading, though, I grew frustrated because I forgot who was who, where in the tent they were, seemed too much space in chapters before they were mentioned again. But then again, that it reflective of what it was like under that big top. Chaos. Where was everyone in your family or party?
   
   Also good documentation of the investigation. Sometimes a little bit too detailed, but then again, that's what investigations are.
   
   O'Nan did well with this book. Too bad more people in that area refuse to read it. Guess time doesn't always heal pain.



4. I have owned this book for several years and have read and reread it several times. Before picking it up, I had never heard of the fire in Hartford. After reading it, I wanted to find out even more. The best books about historical tragedies and disasters tell not only the story of a single event but convey the mood and atmosphere of the times in which they occurred. Mr. O'Nan does that very well here I think. This is not just a book about a fire but a snapshot of a specific time in American history. I appreciated that he did not shy away from depicting many of the more gruesome details of the fire and its aftermath in detail. To airbrush the details for readers would have shown an utter lack of respect for the victims of the fire as well as the survivors. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys learning more about American history by studying influential events. The Hartford fire, like the Triangle fire and the Iroquois fire, were great tragedies which created ripples across the entire American landscape. They lead to changes in our values, our workplaces, and our amusements. They are worth remembering, not only to honor their victims but as a part of understanding our American story.



5. Having read Stewart O'Nan's novel A Prayer for the Dying and loving it, I decided I would give O'Nan the opportunity to tell a true story of life and death.
   
   As a word of warning for those who come after me, if you are expecting a story centered around 5-10 "main characters," you will be disappointed. This is a story about the Hartford Circus Fire of 1944 and in telling that story, O'Nan attempts to tell the story of EVERYONE who was connected to it. It requires the reader to accept a large "cast of characters" who is willing to follow several threads of the "story" at one time. O'Nan's frenetic, peripatetic telling of the story gives the reader a sense of what it may have been like under the Big Top when it caught on fire.
   
   In telling the story of the Hartford Circus Fire, O'Nan also tells the story of "Little Miss 1565." "Little Miss 1565" was perhaps the most well-known victim of the circus fire. She was named after the number assigned to her body at the city's makeshift morgue. The debate over her identify rages on to this day. O'Nan does refute the contention of Rick Davey and Don Massey's contention that Little Miss 1565 was, in fact Elenaor Cook. For more on Rick Davey and Don Massey, you can check out A Matter of Degree: The Hartford Circus Fire & The Mystery of Little Miss 1565.
   
   Whether Elenaor Cook is properly or improperly identified as "Little Miss 1565" does not change the fact that she died in the Hartford Circus Fire. In telling the story of "Little Miss 1565" O'Nan is really telling the story of those who survived the Circus Fire and those who died.
   
   Dick Hill's narration is utterly breathtaking. He handles O'Nan's frenetic narrative with both style and grace. The only quirk in this production occurs in the one instance in O'Nan's narrative is where a dialog is recounted. Rather than using voice inflection to differentiate the speakers, a production effect is used in which the lines of the opposite speaker are slightly muffled as if Dick Hill is delivering the lines with his hand slightly covering the microphone. Otherwise, Hill's narration is flawless.

5 comments about Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle against World Poverty.

1. Muhammad Yunus was born in 1940, the third of fourteen children, to an extremely devout Muslim family in Chittagong, the largest port city in Bangladesh. After studies at Chittagong University, and then University of Colorado and Vanderbilt (where he earned his PhD in economics), Yunus returned to help nation-build in Bangladesh, which had declared its independence from Pakistan in 1971. The independence movement had taken its toll; three million people were dead and 10 million were refugees. In 1974, a famine struck.
   
   As he tried to alleviate the broad and deep poverty in his homeland, Yunus came to "dread" his economics lectures. They were tragically far removed from the everyday lives of normal people. In a theme that would characterize much of the rest of his life, Yunus almost completely abandoned classical book learning in favor of listening to and learning directly from the extreme poor -- the millions of Bangladeshis living off two cents a day. In 1976 he loaned $27 to 42 villagers, and thus was born what eventually became the Grameen Bank (grameen means rural). As of the publication of this revised autobiography in 2003, Grameen and its many replicants had made $3.8 billion of micro-loans to 2.4 million families in over 100 countries. The borrowers themselves own 93% of the bank equity, 95% of the loan recipients are women, and the repayment rate on the loans is 98%. For all that, in 2006 Yunus and Grameen won the Nobel Peace Prize (not to mention more than two dozen honorary doctorates).
   
   Yunus is an excellent writer and story-teller. He shares at length about the many criticisms, myths, and prejudices he's had to face, especially from the "obtuse ineptitude" of governments and the sclerotic bureaucracy of aid organizations (he's particularly critical of the World Bank). He has tremendous faith in the initiative, skill, resilience and creativity of the poor. They're the ultimate entrepreneurs. "Not one single Grameen borrower requires any special training" (205), or any collateral, for that matter. Conversely, Yunus also believes that the poor have many things to teach the rich. When the World Bank's president Barber Conable bragged to Yunus about hiring the best minds in the world, he responded that "hiring smart economists does not necessarily translate into policies and programs that help the poor." Spurning conventional wisdom about development aid and economic categories of the liberal left and the free market right, Grameen's success speaks for itself. As a follow up, see Yunus's newest book called Creating a World Without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism (New York: Public Affairs, 2008).



2. I had wanted to read this book for awhile and when I finally got to it I was not disappointed. Yunus tells a captivating story that pulls the reader in. While the tone of the book is outspoken, Yunus can back up his tone with real results and a compelling vision for the future of social entrepreneurship and a world without extreme poverty.
   
   He comes down pretty hard on well meaning but ineffective organizations and individuals that are out of touch with the poorest of the poor that he works with. Throughout the book, Yunus shows the depth of his trust in the poor to work for themselves and better their lives without charity.
   
   Definitely a recommended read!



3. 
   There is no doubt that the author seems to have done a lot of hopeless people a great service. However, this book really struck me as being more about him, why he is so amazing, and how he repeatedly overcame odds dealing with short-sighted, ignorant, selfish bankers doing things the traditional way. The book would have appealed to me a lot more if he had gone further in explaining why traditional methods failed but were maintained. Also, there was very little frank discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of microfinance. Sounds like maybe I should have read the Wilson Quarterly article instead.
   
   The book was a repetitive sales pitch and could have been a lot more.



4. Yunus with his Grameen Bank initiative has brought a new notion that the bank can be truly too at the total dedication to the poor not just the rich one. Rural poor women are changing the face of the family situation through this initiative of Grameen Bank that not only bring micro-credit to poor people but also keep introducing new opportunities and creative assets for quenching poverty.



5. Banker to the Poor, is by written Nobel peace prize reciepent, Muhammad Yunus. As a professor in Bangladesh, Yunus, with just twenty-seven dollars of his own money, was the "mid-wife" to micro-lending movement. He parlayed his success into remarkable achievements which have bettered the lives of millions.
   
   It wasn't always easy, and his telling of the story, is inspirational, if somewhat repetitive. You can easily imagine the tears of joy of villagers, who with micro-lending, are able to rise above mere substience living.
   
   He makes the case that much misery is alleviated when micro-lending is available to the poor in the Third World. While Yunus does not say so directly it is easy to extrapolate, that poor people leading better lives do not take up violence. America would be a lot more secure if it took a few millions from "military assistance" and instead invested it in micro-lending.
   
   However, Yunus claims, "everyone" benefits when trade barriers are dropped. Trade barriers have largely been lifted in the apparel industry Consequently, the textile industry in the US employs a mere fraction of workers than it used to. Guess "everyone" doesn't include the tens of thousands of former American texitle workers.
   
   There must be a way, to support the developement of the Third World, without America losing jobs. While Yunus doesn't answer that question, he does have a lot of answers. A five-star book.
   

2 comments about Ronald Reagan, The Great Speeches, Vol. I (Greatest Speeches of All Time).

1. Ronald Reagan is the first president I knew as a child. I have many memories of him as an icon, including him being shot, but I have so few of him being a political leader. As I have grown up, I have become a political junkie and have become so impressed with both he and Goldwater as abortions of the second half of the twentieth century. This album does a really good job of helping to understand the messenger of a very difficult time. In addition, it also does a great job of contrasting the styles of recent political leaders, and making me realize how the lack of a great cause has effected their Presidential aspirations. I think this is a great CD and one that really is very interesting. If you are interested in Reagan, I would recommend it.



2. Excrepts from Ronald Reagan's speeches will guide you through his years in office. From his nomination in 1980 to his farewell address in 1988, this historical compilation offers 11 of his speeches. When Mr. Reagan was President, I was young and in another country. I purchased this audiobook to get a sense of who he was, and what he meant in history. Listening to it made me understand why people say that Reagan returned the pride to Americans. His words are empowering, and while you will be listening to it over a decade later, it still has the power to make you feel energized. On the negative side, the audio goes from one speech to the other with no introduction. By listening to it, you need to figure out what was happening, where he was, and what the date was. The booklet does have dates and some background information on each speech; however, if you are planning to listen to this CD on your commute, you won't be able to read it.

5 comments about Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery.

1. Like every American kid, I grew up knowing the names "Lewis and Clark." But (also, I suspect, like most American kids), I really knew (and cared) very little about their incredible journey, or why it was undertaken. Then, 10 years ago, I stumbled across Dayton Duncan's wonderful Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery, and I was hooked.
   
   Duncan's book is a wonderful introduction to the Corps of Discovery (even the name itself is exciting, isn't it?) in that it offers information about the expedition without overwhelming the reader new to the topic, illustrates the text with fine photographs and reproductions, all of which are instructively captioned, contains a number of sideboxes and page-long essays on specializied subjects, and includes several essays from other Lewis and Clark authorities, including Ken Burns, who produced the companion film, and Stephen Ambrose.
   
   Duncan ends the book with an essay, "We procceded on," that is as reflective a meditation on the deep meaning of the Corps of Discovery journey as I've read. It also serves as an excellent preface to another of his books, Out West, a fascinating and entertaining account of his recapitulation of the Corps of Discovery's route in a volkswagon camper.
   
   If you're new to Lewis and Clark, this is the book to read. But it's also pure pleasure for afficionados.



2. The book is good and interesting (especially for someone with very little prior knowledge about the Corps), but the reading is absurd! He (I mean the narrator; the supporting cast is good) is so melodramatic as to be incredibly distracting. GOOFY. Only buy it if you are able to ignore the reader's voice and style; otherwise, order it in print form!



3. I've been looking for the audio version for a long time and found it easily on amazon. You can keep your eyes on the road and still learn something about the the most mindboggling journey in American history.
   It makes me want to follow their trail (by road of course). Fantastic set of CD's



4. This book was so hard to put down! The way the author combines the facts with the actual quotes from the Lewis and Clark journals (complete with spelling errors), the original sketches and descriptions by Lewis and Clark, old pictures and paintings, and the attention to the sequencing (i.e., he walks you straight through the entire journey and makes it flow) really makes this book come alive for me. I highly recommend it!!



5. I enjoyed this book completely...it really gave me a sense of the human experience of the journey, and made me appreciate just what an incredible accomplishment it was. The illustrations really add to the enjoyment of the book, as do the excerpts from the journals of several of the men. I also liked the background information on what goals were actually behind the exploration and how they worked to meet those goals. There's only one reason that I didn't give this book 5 stars, and that's because it lacks a good map to help understand where they were during some of the events described. But that can be found in other works, and this really is a good introducion to Lewis and Clark...it's a relatively easy read but full of interesting facts and adventures.