5 comments about Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season.

1. First, Jonathan Eig is a tremendous writer! He does have a tendency to detour along tangential lines, but that adds to the richness and backdrop of the drama that was experienced by Jackie Robinson. Eig transforms history into humanity with cameo appearances by icons such as Babe Ruth, Malcolm X, and Sidney Poitier. I felt the sense of pride that African Americans of mid 20th century America must have felt. It bolstered the idea of "Only in America". This was a civil rights story before Till, Brown v. Board.., Parks, and King. I hurt with Oscar Charleston, Josh Gibson, and a litany of other Negro Leagues stars born "out of season". I smelled the hot dogs of Ebbets Field. I met and loved Branch Rickey. I watched Pee Wee Reese, Eddie Stanky, and Dixie Walker and many others mature. I adored Jackie Robinson for his talent and demeanor. All courtesy of Jonathan Eig, who BROUGHT IT!



2. Jonathan Eig is developing an expertise at rehabilitating hackneyed young-adult biography heroes. First with Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig and now with "Opening Day", Eig takes a baseball player whose legend has become tarnished by excessive praise, and retells the story from its original context, restoring a sense of wonder.
   
   The story of Jackie Robinson has with time become a story about the heroism of Jackie's white teammates. History now tells us that they bravely accepted and embraced him, over society's disapproval at the ending of baseball's color line. At least, that's how Eig first approaches and then rewrites the tale. In "Opening Day", the spotlight rightly shifts back to onto Jackie himself, as well as to his wife Rachel, the rock at the center of his life. We hear from Jackie himself via contemporary interviews and from his assigned beat-writer from the black press.
   
   The discussion of Jackie's acceptance among his teammates is limited to how they did not in fact accept Jackie as one of them: Eig fails to uncover any evidence that the rest of the Dodgers tried to socialize with or befriend Jackie in any meaningful way once they stepped off the field.
   
   Branch Rickey, who gets rightful credit as the man who integrated baseball, is also shown as the shrewd businessman he is, in both the good and bad sense. Rickey was the executive who refused to trade one of Jackie's most vocal teammate critics, realizing that his pennant hopes resided in that man's bat. He further refused to give Jackie a significant raise for 1948 even though Jackie's presence generated value in publicity and gate that far exceeded his meager rookie paycheck.
   
   Most compellingly, Eig retells the story of the 1947 season month by month, primarily through contemporaneous newspaper accounts. We see the variable way Jackie was treated by the press, and whose agenda affected which stories. A national publication tried to anoint Spider Jorgensen, a strictly league-average third baseman, as the league's top rookie, in a veiled slap at Jackie's aggressive Negro League style of play. We also learn things not commonly told: we know, for example, that Larry Doby was the second black baseball player in 1947, but Eig goes further and tells us who came third and fourth (a cynical move by the St. Louis Browns), and which white owners opposed integration in the disingenuous name of preserving the Negro Leagues.
   
   "Opening Day" could stand to go farther and tell a bigger story. Jackie's post-1947 career and personal life is shunted into a brief epilogue that hints at a possible second book of equal depth. Of course, the space within "Opening Day" is well used: the three chapters devoted to the 1947 World Series are well researched and lively told. Even in a book about Jackie Robinson, the other unlikely heroes and goats of that series (Bill Bevens, Cookie Lavagetto, Al Gionfriddo) still deserve their space.



3. A complex, nuanced portrait of Jackie Robinson, told with stunning detail and insight into the first black man to play major league baseball in the 20th century. As an historical account, this book goes beyond myth and revisionist morality to create what feels like a genuine account of a complicated man in a complicated place. As a baseball book, it is wonderfully expansive on an important era with lots of legendary players. As a literary work, it is a top-notch narrative told in an elegant, rhythmic cadence. It also gets high marks for journalistic technique and style. If all writers of sport possessed Jon's rare combination of gifts, the genre would be a lot richer.



4. This is the second book that I have read from author Jonathan Eig. The first, Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig, was such a great retelling of the life of the Iron Horse, that my expectations when picking up Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season were quite high.
   
   Opening Day is the story of Jackie Robinson's first year in the majors, and the challenges he faced when he became the first black American to play Major League Baseball. Any true fan of baseball knows the story of Jackie Robinson, his importance to the game and the lasting impact he has had on the United States. But, Eig manages to provide a fresh look at this historical year, focusing not only on the challenges and bigotry that haunted Robinson, but also on the lives that he touched in 1947 and for years to come.
   
   One of the more intriguing stories from the book was that of Jackie's teammate Dixie Walker. When Robinson's Dodger teammates were informed that he was coming up from the Montreal Royals to play with the team, Walker wrote the team's general manager, Branch Rickey, asking for a trade. There were also rumors that he led an effort by the Dodger players to get Jackie off the team. Dixie always denied the accusation, but nonetheless, he was basically a self-proclaimed bigot - worried about what his family and friends in Alabama would do if he played alongside a black man.
   
   Like authors before him, Eig could have easily cast Dixie as the villain of the story. But instead, he details how playing with Jackie helped Walker evolve into a better man. Within time, Walker started to respect Jackie for his toughness and determination. He started giving Jackie pointers on how to improve his game, and later in 1947, he stood up for him (along with all of Jackie's other teammates) when opposing teams would hurl racial epithets at Jackie. Robinson made Walker start to question his views on minorities and Walker came to realize what he learned about blacks while he was growing up was wrong. After that, Walker played with, coached and managed black players throughout the rest of his career, and later said Jackie was "as outstanding an athlete as I ever saw."
   
   This is just one example of the impact that Jackie had on the lives of others. Stories are sprinkled throughout the book about the significant impression he left on his teammates, other players in the league, broadcasters, league executives - and most importantly, the next generation of black Americans who would continue the struggle for equality in America.
   
   Opening Day, definitely lived up to my expectations and surpassed them, and I highly recommend it for any fan of baseball and/or American history - and to anyone who is interested in understanding the important role Jackie Robinson played in the evolution of the United States.



5. Eig's extensive research and thoughtful treatment of Jackie Robinson does not vary or question the general truth of his legend: Robinson played the game well under tremendous pressure with little or no support and demonstrated in the process the skill and courage that entitled blacks to equal opportunity. But Eig does add some new perspectives that make the legend far more interesting.
   
   First is the general unpleasantness of Robinson. He's like Pete Rose in his burning desire to win at all costs and would rub some people the wrong way regardless of his color.
   
   Second and perhaps most important is Eig's ability to introduce more subtlety into the story. Eig destroys the legend of Pee Wee Reese publicly encouraging Robinson on the field in the face of racial abuse. That did not happen, at least not in 1947. Robinson is utterly alone in 1947 and has to prove himself to his teammates. Branca is the only guy to make a point of shaking his hand when he first appears, which adds to Branca's own legend as a man of character, but even Branca essentially ignores him for much of the season. Some of this is racial, of course. But some of it is the culture of baseball: a rookie must prove himself.
   
   Robinson's ability to peform in these circumstances, under the most tremendous pressure possible, adds to his legend and makes his 1947 season perhaps the most admirable of all seasons. Eig is also good at introducing subtlety into the legends surrounding Robinson's oppressors. There is some rumbling on the team, but that quickly dissipates. Most interesting is the role of star player Dixie Walker. Walker felt compelled by his southern roots, and by his desire not to have his business punished in the south, to make a point of objecting and asking for a trade. But thereafter, he drops the protest. The problem for Robinson was not simply the obvious bigotry, but his freeze-out by the rest of his team until he could prove himself under the most trying of circumstances. Walker may have given Robinson a few batting tips and may have dropped his trade demands, but neither he nor anyone else took Robinson under his wing. Even in baseball's demanding culture of ritualized abuse of rookies, a rookie will eventually be taken under someone's wing. Robinson did not have that benefit.
   
   The protests of other teams has also been exaggerated. It appears that there were some murmuring on the Cardinals to try to boycott Dodger games, but that fizzled before it started. The Phillies were grossly racist in their bench jockeying, but backed off early in the season. The Yankees in the 1947 World Series had a few nasty bench jockeys.
   
   What emerges from all this is the pain of the gross racism aggravated by the agonizing loneliness of Robinson as he has to endure everything and prove himself. Eig convincingly shows that by the end of 1947, Robinson succeeded in proving himself and was the MVP of this team. Only then was he accepted by Pee Wee Reese, the team's captain.
   
   All of which demonstrates Branch Rickey's wisdom in choosing Robinson as the man to break the color barrier. Robinson had mental toughness and competitive fire. The rap on black athletes was that they were not mentally tough, and Robinson was exactly the right guy to disprove that myth. Choosing a more passive personality would not have made the point, and choosing a less disciplined soul who would have got into physical fights in 1947 would not have worked either. But it is interesting to learn how Robinson sometimes crossed the line (such as spiking Rizzuto in the 1947 Series) and how close Robinson came to losing it.
   
   Robinson emerges as a complex and truly great man in this narrative. This is an excellent book that I highly recommend.

5 comments about Finding Fish.

1. If you have any interest in human behavior, this is a must read. It is a true story of a man who has to overcome so much to succeed. The challenges he faces are so harsh, as he struggles through life as a foster child.



2. the ending made me switch to 5. I liked the happy ending. I think what made it kinda bad for me reading this one was that I saw the movie first. So while reading I kept trying to copy parts to scenes in the movie.
   
   What makes this book great for me is the fact that it's written by a black man about his troubled life. Most black men won't even tell the people close in their lives things like this let alone write a story for the world to read.
   
   End child abuse today.



3. This is an awe inspiring piece of literary work. The narrative from the beginning inspires the reader and allows almost a walk-along journey into the author's life and the actual steps that he took. The movie was good in its setting and up to date account of a life in the 60's. The book adds so much story that went untold in the movie and is that much more moving. Antwone Fisher writes as if he has been doing this since a child.



4. The novel Finding Fish by Antwone Fisher is a very good book. The book is far better than the movie and i reccomend it to all. It entails his life as well as select readings from his poetry. It is a a story of struggle and beating the odds to become a success



5. Antwone Fisher is a child who lives from horrible foster home to ghastly foster home and eventually, almost by accident chooses a life that saves him. For someone who cannot have children - I was crushed by the neglect and abuse this poor child suffers by people whose view of children is either as a burden or cash cow. It is not a small miracle that this human being reached adulthood without having killed himself or become a victim of what our society foists upon poor black men.
   
   Although Fish has so much going against him, his ability to keep some semblance of balance inside himself eventually saves him. The tales of his childhood are almost too much to bear, but you will keep reading because you know that it turns out, you are cheered when he is dumped by his foster mother (who insisted he was evil and therefore deserved the horrible treatment he receives, including a denial of Christmas gifts), and you are gripped when he seems to find himself on the streets without a home or a way to make a living. He eventually joins the Navy - which saves him, providing him with the structure he needs to grow into an adult. He has to spend sometime in the military learning to manage his (completely understandable) anger, and he is bright enough to learn how to do that. Lastly, when he is reunited with the family of his mother (who gave birth to him in prison) I had a sigh of relief for the closure this provided him.
   
   Even though this book is hard to read because of the pain that this child suffers, it is a gripping and extremely well written autobiography and is worth every page. We should all spend more time concerned about what really happens to the unwanted children in our country.

5 comments about My Bondage and My Freedom (Penguin Classics).

1. THIS BOOK IS POWERFUL, ITS SHOCKING, AND IT IS ASPIRING. THERE IS NOTHING ON CHANNEL 11 THAT BRINGS THE HONEST, INSIGHTFUL, VERY REAL ACCOUNT THAT MR.DOUGLASS DOES IN HIS BOOK. FROM SLAVE TO FREE-MAN, THIS IS TRUELY AN AMERICAN SUCCESS. SKIP THE INTRO, AND JUMP INTO IT.



2. Douglass's second, and lengthier, narrative fills in many of the gaps left in his first autobiography: we learn about his mother, his siblings, and more details about his psychological transformation from brute to man. It's quite insightful, as Douglass is careful to relate each of his personal experiences to the innate evil of the peculiar instituition, for both the slave and the slave holder.



3. Having read a biography of Douglass many years ago, I thought I knew his story. Hearing through his pen was an entirely different matter. What a master of the language and insighful set of observations on human nature.
   
   I am a man of many words, but words fail me in my endorsement of this book. The letter to his former master in the appendix is worth the price of the book by itself.



4. Standing in line at the Lincoln Memorial, a book beckoned to me that I previously hadn't seen before. The face of Frederick Douglas grabbed my attention; a man that I've respected for many years, encountering him mainly through my study of Abraham Lincoln. On the spur of the moment, I snatched up a copy of "My Bondage and My Freedom", and within a few days, my admiration in Frederick Douglass was transformed from interest to awe.

   Frederick Douglass orginially penned his book as a response to people's accusations that someone as articulate and composed as he couldn't possibly be a former slave. With that goal in mind, Douglass wrote his memoirs, in a straight forward, powerful way. In the book, he painfully and honestly documents the path his early life took; the memories of being owned, how slaves coped during these times, and how he managed to pull himself out of it all.

   While Douglass' life in itself is amazing, (as he describes the amazing process he undertook to learn how to read), what amazed me even more are Douglass' discourses that he sprinkles through the book, discussing relevant issues during the time. In one instance, he addresses the concern about why slaves simply didn't run away from their oppressive situations. It's almost as if you can actually hear the people talking to Douglass and he responding to them.

   This book does not only tell the tale of a truly amazing American, but gives us a unique insight to the times. This book should be required reading in every high school in this country.




5. What are your impressions of Frederick Douglass? What would you say about Douglass observation that "conscience cannot stand much violence? Do you think it was possible to be a good slave owner?Why or why not? Why does Douglass view slaveholders as well as slaves as victims of slavery? Why is education incompatible with slavery? Why do you think the white children's attitude toward slavery is different from that of their parents? How would you describe Douglass attitude towards Mrs. Auld?

5 comments about Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley.

1. Highly recommend this book, the author will make you feel like you right next to Bob, and also give you an overview as if you're 'following' along, looking over or riding, right on Bob's shoulders. It has definetly made me understand Bob and humanity better... highly recommend this book



2. The book came lightening fast and was in brand new condition. I would recommend this seller and would definitely purchase from them again.



3. I was very disappointed with this book. After reading it, I have a pretty good idea of what Marley's childhood was like, a hazy picture of his adult life but no understanding at all of how a poor man from a third-world country was able to popularize a genre of music that was almost universally disdained, or considered a novelty, in the world outside of Jamaica in 1973.
   
   I would have expected more discussion of his music; specifically how he and Chris Blackwell adjusted the arrangement of Marley's reggae songs to appeal to a broader audience, as well as how Marley's music evolved over time. I know from watching VH1's "Classic Albums", that process was critical to Marley's success but I don't even get an inkling of that in this book.
   
   Instead the book has way too much on Marley's childhood (140 pages into it, we have only followed Marley up to the age of 14!). This book also has too many vague, cryptic references to conspiracy theories about the CIA, Ronald Reagan, the Jamaican government, etc.
   
   On the bright side, the book does a good job of describing the superstititious world of poor Jamaica, full of demons and ghosts, etc., which helps explain the popularity of Rastafarianism.



4. Okay, I read all of the book and learned a lot more about Bob than had preciously known, but I was disappointed by the lack of details on the making of the music. I was hoping for more details about the inspiration for a lot of Bob's music and this book did not have it.
   
   I am currently reading "Exodous the Making & Meaning of Bob Marley & The Wailer's Album of the Century." This book goes into a lot more detail if you want to learn more about the music. I would recommend it over this book.
   
   Still "Catch a Fire" is a good read if you want all the details of Bob's life.



5. The book title is also the name of the 1973 debut album on Island records for Bob Marley and The Wailers that brought the lyrics and sounds of reggae to an international audience.
   
   Originally published two years after Marley's death from cancer, the biography remains a great read due to the exhaustive research by author Timothy White.
   
   White had interviewed Marley from 1975-1981 and projects the development & growth musically, spirtually and politically in his life. White also interviewed musicians, friends, family members, music industry executives and poltical leaders, along with the typical research - newspaper articles and other media outlets - and not-so-typical - CIA documents concerning Marley.
   
   There are also sections on Jamaican history & politics, the history of reggae & Rastafarianism and how White did his research.
   
   Marley projected a militant spiritualism in his music that will remain timeless. Catch a Fire gives the reader an understanding and appreciation on why Marley's message means as much today as it did so many years ago.

5 comments about How Race Is Lived in America: Pulling Together, Pulling Apart.

1. I had the opportunity to read some of the testimonials and accounts that appear in this book when they were first published as a series in the New York Times. When I read the book, I had the chance to enjoy a few narratives that I had missed. This book makes a great effort to put into focus the dynamic of race relations in America. All the stories are touching and beautifully written. The reader is not led into any specific conclusion; once you read all the stories you will have a better picture and will be able to judge where you stand pertaining race relations. I identified myself with more than one of the subjects of these stories. Congratulations to the New York Times for this momentous documentary that surely will make history. No matter which race you identify yourself with, there is something for you in this book.



2. This collage of independant stories revealed the courage of ordinary Americans doing extra-ordinary things. In each of these stories, the indiviuals challenged their own personal beliefs, and cultural and ethnic diffrences, to come together and build alliances that transcended race. This is the ideal of what true Americans are and the values of real patriotism and heroism foiled up into an amazing hardcover, that all peace-loving humanitarians should own. The NY TImes and Joseph Lelyveld, You get 2 thumbs up for this incredible work of art. My gratitude to you,
   Sincerly, Malik Padgett



3. How race is lived in america deals with the issues of race that we are still dealing with today and how race still does matter. The collection of new york times pieces deals with how race is played out. From race being a straign on frienships (a group of inter-racial friends making the transition from middle school to high school and two cuban friends-one white and one black-coming to america and facing different challenges) to race in the work place (looking at race relations at a tyson factory in north carolina to a black-white owned internet company). The book gives a rather good detail of where are in terms of race now.



4. I picked this up last night and couldn't put it down. Not only that, but after each chapter I just stopped and thought for a minute or two. Just incredible.
   Get it and read it.



5. I read this for class the past semester and thought that while there are some really incredible circumstances discussed,(White quarterback, growing up multi-racial, and minority public servants) that some people were noticeably left out. Native Americans received a further blow of marginalization. (they were mentioned once as something of a prop) Also, the diversity among Black and Asian communities was very much ignored. I must say that it's obvious who the writers/editors are marketing towards in their readership, because many of the arguments continue some monolithic dialogues that haven't changed in 20+ years. Going into a work like this will take some serious analysis on the part of the reader to notice what I'm talking about, as it is written with an almost indistinguishable slant. The work has great potential for use as a teaching tool, but focus should remain on analysis rather than taking work verbatim.

5 comments about Finding Fish: A Memoir.

1. Finding Fish, by Antwone Fisher, is a passionate and heart wrenching look into the life of the author as a ward of the state. Thankfully, he escapes the terrors of his childhood and eventually finds success. Fisher writes with a distinctive voice. He is able to convey the emotions of the young boy he portrays in the memoir, rather than telling the story through the voice of an adult. The memoir is an honest, and shocking, look into the world of an orphan without anyone to protect him. His father had been shot two months before his birth and his mom is in prison. Throughout his life with the Picketts,his foster parents, Antwone is forced through horrific events that are painful to read about. He is molested at a young age by a babysitter, beaten, mentally abused, and treated like a ghost. He becomes reserved and shy, lacking love and the comfort of a family. Even worse, his social workers are sadly oblivious to the abuse because the Picketts are able to transform into respectable and polite adults when in public. Remarkably, Antwone braves through his torturous childhood, as well as homelessness for a short time, and finds himself in the Navy. This becomes his miracle, and inspires him to do more with his life. He finds himself traveling around the world, educating himself about different cultures as well as teaching himself English with the help of a thesaurus. In comparison to his childhood, Antwone is in paradise. This transition from a hopeless child with no allies in the world to a strong, successful Navy officer illustrates a major theme in the memoir. No matter how horrible somebody's life is, with perseverance and hope it is possible to achieve anything. Although Antwone is thrown into a terrible life, he finds his own success and thankfully escapes his past and finds happiness. This book is an emotional rollercoaster and any reader will become attached to Antwone, rooting for him against the negativity in his life.



2. and taught me something. It taught me how much we all share--the need to belong, for family, to search, to question. This book is unexpected tender and this boy's journey impacted my own journey, my own questions of family, of accceptance.
   ~Carol D. O'Dell
   Author, MOTHERING MOTHER
   Kunati Publishing, April 2007



3. At first I resisted this book because it seemed to be written by an adult looking over his childhood from a very mature place. However, late in the book it is a revelatory experience to find that this is exactly what happened when an unfair accusation concerning Antwone at age 25 during his Navy experience 'caused' him to buy a dictionary, a thesorus and learn writing almost from scratch at this age. He soon found that he couldn't stop. Later he wrote this book that has become a best seller very deservedly. It is full of remarkable coincidences that could not be other than genuine because of hundreds of tiny clews that all add up to this person having been there. This is a profound work concerning human holistic Intelligence that Confirms Joseph Pierce's 'Magical Child Matures."



4. Finding Fish was a good book. I first learned of Antowne Fisher a few years ago when he appeared on the Montell Williams show. After hearing his story on the show I immediately wanted to go out and buy his book to find out more about this wonderful young man but could never find the book. A few years went by and then a movie of his life was made. After seeing the movie, which I thought was very good, I decided that the movie did a good job of telling his story and that I no longer wanted to purchase the book. Some years later I was in a book store looking for some books to purchase and came across Finding Fish on the book shelf. Since I was in a thrift book store I said what the heck and purchased this book along with some others. Well needless to say it was meant for me to read this book. The movie just touched on a small portion of his life and did nothing to give us a better understanding of Antwone's full story. The book went into more detail and was just phenomenal. I have such respect and admiration for Mr. Fisher and all that he endured. The saying is true: "All things happen for a reason" were it not for his horrific
   childhood I don't think Antwone would be the man he is today. Kudows for Mr. Fisher!! If you have not read this book I recommend you do.



5. Wow..if you thought the movie was thought provoking..
   the book is beyond that!
   This book covers Antwone's childhood, where in the movie,
   we only saw a taste of it.
   This book tells the story of a little boy who beat the odds,
   and used his innate ability to survive, extreme verbal, emotional
   sexual and physical abuse.

5 comments about The Lost Boys of Sudan: An American Story of the Refugee Experience.

1. I will refrain from giving a summary of the book, as a couple of other reviewers did a nice job of that previously. I will offer a few brief impressions of this work.
   
   Having obtained a degree in African studies in the 1990s, I was well aware of the issues facing Sudan and the history of the civil wars in the country. Many times material I read about Africa is erroneous to some degree in its reporting of events. Bixler gets things right in "The Lost Boys of Sudan." Additionally, he does a nice job of weaving historical context into the story he tells of the young men from Sudan. I was expecting a couple of introductory chapters that would serve as a mini history lesson, but Bixler chose not to go that route. Instead, he took the time to skillfully give historical context as it was merited in the story of the "Lost Boys."
   
   The actual story of the four young men is compelling enough on the surface, but Bixler doesn't try to glorify the subjects of the book, rather he tells it like he observes it. He writes in a manner that makes for an easy read, and allows the reader to get a good picture of the lives of these men.
   
   There are now quite a few films and books about the Lost Boys, and I strongly recommend viewing one of the DVDs on this topic either before or after you read this book. While Bixler paints a really colorful picture with his words, nothing can take the place of actually viewing the camp from which they came and the people themselves.
   
   Of all the books I have read on this subject, Bixler's is the one I recommend the most for a person interested in the "Lost Boys." It does a great job of giving the reader a lucid account of the story of the Lost Boys in America and the circumstances from which they came.



2. This is a fascinating account of how orphaned Sudanese displaced in struggles with northern miltias, found new lives in the US. The volume is particularly useful because it shows the connection between wars of religion and region, the slaving expeditions conducted by janjaweed Islamic militias, and the politics of recruiting for rebel liberation movements in the south. Short on arms, money, soldiers and international sympathy, the southern Sudanese seek international attention to the problems of post-colonial boundaries and rights. They have learned to use the politics of refugee camps to leverage attention and forces. The fortitude of these survivors is amazing, no matter how complicated the story of their displacement turns out to be.



3. The Lost Boys of Sudan: An American Story of the Refugee Experience, by Mark Bixler. The University of Georgia Press, 2005. Pp. 261.
   
   The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God (Leviticus 19:34)
   
   Imagine a cluster of tall, thin Sudanese young men waiting in an airport in Washington D.C. They are all wearing the same sweatshirt. They have spent the past four or five years of their life in refugee camps in Ethiopia. This is their first time traveling by air, seeing the U.S., eating chocolate. They are separated from their parents by war or death. They seem, as Mark Bixler remarks, "to have been plucked from another era and dropped into the hustle and bustle of contemporary America" (96). They anticipate another flight to Atlanta, Georgia, where they will begin a life they have been anticipating for some time- hard work in the hopes of saving up money, passing the GRE, attending college, and making a new life.
   
   And it just so happens that other boys like them, also from the Sudan, have been featured on the CBS program 60 Minutes II and in The New York Times Magazine. On CBS you learn that these young men are committed to hard work so they can receive an education. Bob Simon in the 60 Minutes interview asks one young man how many hours he wants to work. The answer: Sixteen hours a day. Why? The answer: I need to have money so that I can go to school. In the New York Times, we see these opening words: This is snow. This is a can opener. This is a life free from terror." These are untypical, sympathetic men entering what is for them a strange new world. As a result, there are more than your typical number of volunteers calling up refugee resettlement agencies across the country asking, "Are y'all resettling these guys?"
   
   Not all refugee groups coming to the U.S. receive the kind of media attention the Lost Boys of Sudan have received. In fact, most refugees arrive in the U.S. without any attention at all from the press. This is not surprising. Refugees have over the course of history been a marginalized people, and their "refugee" status has not always been recognized as such. In fact, the idea of a refugee as someone who needs protection from the state did not become prevalent until early in the last century. It was not until the formation of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees that a thorough definition of who a refugee is and how they should be treated was established.
   
   A working definition of a refugee, one embraced by the U.N. as well as U.S. refugee policy, is summarized by Mark Bixler: "[A] person who has left his or her country and cannot or does not want to return because of a credible fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a social or ethnic group" (77). "Credible fear" is a general term that in the particular can mean a host of different things. The credible fear for these young men was often a mix of ethnic and religious persecution.
   
   Their "credible fear" is often accompanied by an incredible story. These boys, many of them Dinka cattle herders, heard or witnessed men with rifles shooting their neighbors or family. So they fled east towards Ethiopia, often walking hundreds of miles, starving and thirsty, fending off lions when they crossed deserts and alligators when they swam rivers. Finally, they arrived dazed and half-dead at refugee camps set up by the UNHCR. They lived in these camps for years, receiving some education and a bit of food, waiting to be offered shelter by the U.S. or another nation.
   
   In addition, most of them would come to the U.S. as "unaccompanied minors"- that is, minors who are admitted as refugees without accompanying parents or adult family members. Their status as unaccompanied minors makes them doubly important in the current conversation going on about refugee rights and resettlement.
   
   So to the book. Bixler narrates the experience of a group of four Lost Boys (p. 16-35, 111-210), examines the historical realities that make modern Sudan what it is (p. 56-74), explores the phenomenon of "selective compassion" as it influences our refugee admissions policies (p. 75-80), tells the refugee tale as seen from the perspective of those in charge of admissions (p. 81-94), and tells the refugee tale again as seen from the perspective of those who volunteer with them (p. 95-110). It concludes with a summary chapter, the status at the time of writing of the refugees and the country from which they fled.
   
   Bixler's brief history of the development of international policies for the treatment of refugees (pages 75-80) is just one shining example of why this book should be read not only by those interested in the Lost Boys of Sudan, but by anyone interested in the American story of the refugee experience. Two recent and relatively popular books have presented the refugee experience from, respectively, a literary and sociological perspective: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, by Ann Fadiman; The Middle of Everywhere, by Mary Pipher. Bixler's unique contribution as a journalist is his telling of a compelling story of these brave young men that also captures the entire breadth of the refugee experience. Bixler's approach is multi-faceted, narrating not only the personal experience of some of the Lost Boys, but also examining U.S. refugee policy and the political situation in Sudan past and present.
   
   Any adequate account of the method, means, and reasons for refugee resettlement by organizations like Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (for which I am an Ambassador and volunteer) is an adequate understanding of the situation itself. Most of us simply have an inadequate understanding of who refugees are (because they come from another place and diverse cultures), how they get here (because the governmental and social agencies involved in their settlement are themselves complex, not to mention busy processing refugees), and what needs to be done for and with them once they arrive (because it is the ever-recurring sin of second and third and sixth generation immigrants to fail to understand the immigrants and refugees who come later than themselves).
   
   Bixler's book goes a long way towards remedying these deficiencies in our understanding. Since his book follows some of the Lost Boys through their first two years of life in the U.S., we learn not only about their initial culture shock, but also about their first jobs, their enrollment in places of learning, their search for lost family, and their common life together. Bixler also observes, often with the candor only a reporter can muster, the relationship between volunteers, relief agencies, and the Lost Boys.
   
   As a Lutheran pastor and Ambassador for Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), I was especially pleased to see that LIRS received positive mention by Bixler as an agency that provides exemplary care, especially for unaccompanied minors.
   
   A story well told cannot be summarized, and this is true of Bixler's book. I cannot commend it highly enough. When I speak to church groups about the refugee experience and the ministry of LIRS, I am often at a loss how to share in a short amount of time all that is entailed in refugee resettlement. Book recommendations are my solution to that dilemma. Bixler's book is now at the top of my list.



4. Learned a lot about the area of Sudan and trials that a refugee faces cominginto the US when not working with a host family.



5. The story of the Lost Boys of Sudan is like no other story ever told. It is a story about thousands of young children, particularly young boys, who became separated from their families due to the long running civil war between the North and South of Sudan. In all, these children walked over a thousand miles across the wilds of Africa in search of safe refuge. Their journey was a long and arduous one filled with suffering and horrors beyond ones imagination.
   Through the skilled style of Atlanta journalist Mark Bixler, "The Lost Boys of Sudan" weaves their story with that of other refugees and immigrants who have also settled in our country, while never trivializing their incredible plight. And although "The Lost Boys of Sudan" focuses on four young men living in Atlanta Georgia, their stories are similar to those of approximately 3800 other Lost Boys who have resettled in various cities across the US. Like those in Atlanta, they too have had to come to grips with the fascinating sights and wonders of this strange land called America, while attempting to blend within our society. For the first time in their lives they are forced to work full time jobs in order to support themselves and those they left behind, while also attending school. The task of surviving in this strange and foreign land has proven difficult at best. The results of their labors however, as chronicled by Bixler, are both amazing and truly inspiring to us all.
   Joan Hecht
   Author of "The Journey of the Lost Boys"

5 comments about Obama - The Postmodern Coup: Making of a Manchurian Candidate.

1. Tired of the fake, controlled, contrived taking points both for and against Obama in the corporate media? Check this book out. Even if you disagree with everything the author says in the book, you'll still have a whole new perspective on this thanks to Tarpley.



2. First, let me begin by saying that I am no supporter of Barack Obama and believe that his election as president would be a colossal disaster. However, if I am to be fair minded I have to judge Tarpley's OBAMA-THE POSTMODERN COUP with the same objectivity that I would if he had for example published his book using MCCAIN instead of OBAMA in the title. I have no objection to any book written as a polemic. Indeed I have written numerous favorable reviews of polemics, but in those cases, each polemic that I praised was grounded in fact and backed by credible documentary evidence. Make no mistake. Tarpley's book is not much more than flimsy charges tinged with guilt by association. It is true that Barack Obama is a political lightweight but it ought to be up to the American voters to decide their ballots based on the facts, and in this case the facts that call into question Barack Obama's competency have been thoroughly documented elsewhere to such an extent that there is no need to indulge in the sort of conspiracies in Tarpley to derail Obama's quest for the White House. I shall not rehash here the Trilateral Commision brouhaha nor the Zbigniew Brezhinski controversy since neither is referenced by reliable footnotes. What emerges then from Tarpley is that the "coup" of the title exists only on the fringes of a discourse that is neither rational nor convincing. The left has no monopoly of character assassins.



3. Veteran author, columnist and GCN live radio host Webster Tarpley lays bare the tentacled arm of the insane Zbigniew Brzezinski and his main mouthpiece and puppet Obama.
   Tarpley outlines the crafting of this Manchurian candidate and the seriously apocalyptic vision that Obama will be used to fulfill culminating in WW3 with Russia.
   Look out for his new 'unauthorized biography on Obama' coming soon!



4. This book shows the hidden side of Saint Obama, and the crazed neocon/fascist agenda of those who puppeteer him. If anyone thinks either candidate for office is going to be any different than what we have, they haven't read enough.
   Webster hits the ball out of the park with this one.
   America DIED 11/22/63 and the same agenda is still going on....today it looks like war with Russia is back on target which should make Brezinski very happy.



5. I couldn't put it down. I learned alot. I had questions about a lot of things and independently did my own fact checking. and it all checked out. His conclusions seemed a bit out there, but the more you read and think about it and check it out, the more it seems to be spot on. Definitely worth the time and money.

5 comments about Inheriting the Trade: A Northern Family Confronts Its Legacy as the Largest Slave-Trading Dynasty in U.S. History.

1. I looked forward to reading "Inheriting the Trade" by Thomas Norman DeWolf when I first heard it mentioned on National Public Radio. I ordered it with high expectations, (maybe unrealistically high), hoping it would match up favorably to Edward Ball's revelatory "Slaves in the Family."
   
   Sadly, this book under-performs. By his own admission, Thomas Norman DeWolf is no historian. While one need not be a historian to write about this compelling subject, DeWolf frequently presents a cluttered and annoying mix of historical fact with personal opinion. While it is no a crime to interpret history in one's own way, the mush of blended facts and opinion DeWolf presents becomes increasingly frustrating to the careful reader. A trained historian would support his opinions with a critical analysis of facts, building conclusions one brick at a time.
   
   The DeWolf Family of Bristol, Rhode Island is a family of prominence and privilege, with a national reputation.
   
   While most of the "Family of Ten," who travel the historical journey with the author come from the more privileged side of the family, with backgrounds of wealth, status and Ivy-League education, Thomas Norman DeWolf himself comes from the less privileged side of the family. He lives in a county in Oregon with a mimimal percentage of black people, a state with one of the lowest percentages of black people. His presentation of himself is as a man laden with personal guilt for not mixing with black people, for not having had a black person as a business colleague, for not having a black person as a friend, for not understanding black people.
   
   From this perspective, he opines that all whites have "complicity" for what has gone on between the races through decades and centuries of American history. He rails against the founding fathers and he condemns the first five presidents who hail from Virginia (since they were slaveholders for parts of their lives). DeWolf does not present the controversy and struggle to end "the peculiar institution." He does not seem to know much American history. He claims that he and whites generally have "amnesia" about slavery, about the slave trade and about race issues. Where has he been hiding? His high school and university education must have been sorely lacking. Does he not know how many people, black and white, north and south, for decades and centuries worked to end the maritime slave trade, for the abolition of slavery, for equal rights in society? Did he "forget" how many Americans strove to end the practice long before it finally did end?
   
   DeWolf is on much more solid ground when he delves into the history of the 18th and 19th century maritime slave trade and the specific role played by certain DeWolf Family ancestors. These relatives are presented in a well-done genealogical chart at the front of the book which the wise reader will frequently refer back to. These were the ones who were involved in the maritime slave trade when it was still legal and who continued in it after 1808, when it became illegal. The best parts of "Inheriting the Trade" are in this portion of the book and these parts compare with the best historical documentation in "Slaves in the Family." Unfortunately, there is much less here than I would have liked to learn about the DeWolf family members as they continued in the illegal slave trade--such as how they got away with it, who assisted them, identifying complicit political figures who looked the other way or may have been paid-off.
   
   On the Cuban leg of his trip with the "Family of Ten," the family visits a sugar mill museum. Perhaps the most insidious of all the DeWolf ancestors who engaged in the illegal maritime slave trade was the one who established several plantations (coffee and later sugar) after fleeing Rhode Island for Cuba. Again the guilt emotion in the author is paramount: Thomas DeWolf feels "white man's guilt" when he notes the mark of a Buffalo, New York manufacturer on a 19th Century sugar mill press.
   
   DeWolf does understand that slavery was above all, an economic institution. He makes it quite clear that the maritime slave trade was extremely lucrative and that is why the more notorious members of his family continued to engage in it, even after it was made illegal.
   
   A few other points are important to remember: It was Africans who sold other Africans into slavery. Lots of people, not just whites "share the blame" for the slave trade. It is estimated that from 5 to 10 percent of slaves in 18th and 19th century America were owned by black people who could afford them; some of these "black" owners were the mixed-race offspring of black and white people, who understood the peculiar insitution quite well. After all, slavery was above all else, an economic institution.
   
   Many historians believe that that was why it took so long and was so difficult to end. Let's also not forget that it took a four-year long Civil War, an Emancipation Proclamation and three constitutional amendments. Let's also not forget that something pretty close to slavery continues today in the Sudan and that there is effectively, chattel ownership of people from certain tribes in some of the former Portugese colonies in sub-Saharan Africa.
   
   "Inheriting the Trade," is admirable for it its message of compassion. Unfortunately, DeWolf's guilt trip that he wants to lay on the whole of the white race gets in the way of finding effective solutions to problems. America needs to focus on class issues more than race issues. Poverty is much more a function of class and education than it is of race. America is an increasingly diverse country, home to people with origins from all over. Issues like reparations (to whom? from whom?) only serve to drive wedges between people. The past cannot be undone--only the future changed.
   
   
   
   



2. Like Traces of the Trade, the authors lack the courage to jump in, and like the stink of Zen, grasping their pride and privilege, it all looks like new age capitalists creating a new ego of "nice people" with wayward ancestors, standing firmly on the high-ground on a very un-level playing field.
   Resting in wealth and capitalistic venture, what is so sad is the lack of courage to jump in the freezing water and suffer the death of their egos.
   Without taking a vow of poverty, these fat cats will always look like Zen priests in there pretty robes, in a world of immense suffering and pain as children are incested, burned, and beaten by their parents, also children of parents generations later. Where is the commitment?
   And they sell books...



3. Learning about your family's slave trading empire must be hard to stomach, and the members of the family who undertook to study the facts deserve credit for facing up to it. Too bad they didn't hire a qualified historian to write their story. Inheriting the Trade reminds me of those self-indulgent, melodramatic "encounter groups" that were so popular in the 1970's. Let's beat up on each other for things we never did, just for being who we are. And along the way, let's read endless descriptions about the participants' clothing, jobs, hair color, and denial. And let's ignore the fact that people of all races have been enslaved at one time or another, by one culture or another.
   Slavery is deplorable, but an avalanche of angst is useless and a waste of energy that could better be expended on finding solutions to the problems that separate the races in 2008. What did the deWolfs gain from the evils perpetrated by their ancestors? Well, among their apparently endless "privileges" is the right to write a book and make a TV program.



4. It is my pleasure to invite you to read this book. Inheriting the Trade is about Tom's journey with his relatives as they documented the story of their ancestors being the largest group of slave traders in America. Their experience is told in the recently released movie: Traces of the Trade.
   
   This book stopped me in my tracks and invited me to ask questions and see new truths about myself.
   It is not just the story of one family, but of an entire world and all of us in it.
   
   Be ready to take your time when you read this and listen to the questions that surface in your heart. Answer them honestly and you will learn about more than slavery in the past, you will discover your own position and how it is influenced by privilege, your own and others still today.
   
   I highly recommend this book.



5. I thought this book was fascinating. Here's this white guy from Oregon who grew up in a middle-class family in California without much knowledge of his family history. He moves to Oregon, to an affluent, largely white town, where he encounters a distant cousin. Suddenly, he's thrust into a huge extended family with long ties to New England. Slave traders! His forebears were slave traders? Does he want to be in a documentary about the slave trade? Does he want to go to Rhode Island, Ghana, and Cuba to retrace the route of the triangle trade?* He does, and in the process his eyes are opened to places and ways of living he knew nothing about - and this includes not only the African and Cuban cultures but also that of privileged New Englanders. What an amazing set of events!
   
   The author weaves together his own deep changes with description and reflection on the history of the slave trade and its continuing impact on our still racist society. The big idea is that white people in America are largely unaware of our own unearned privilege, and that becoming aware is one step in beginning the change to erasing racism. This book shows that it's a one-person-at-a-time effort, difficult but not impossible.
   
   *Traces of the Trade, by Katrina Browne, Thomas DeWolf's 7th cousin once removed, if I read the genealogical chart correctly.

5 comments about Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey Of A Desert Nomad.

1. Desert Flower is as an excellent introduction to the nomadic culture of the Somali desert. Somalia, as described by Dirie, is a beautiful and dangerous place. The people who inhabit the desert must use all their strength to create a life using only sand and the little water that can be found. It is this strength that enabled Dirie to survive female genital mutilation, her flight across the desert to avoid an arranged marriage, living as a servant in England, and finally achieving success as a model.
   
   I thoroughly enjoyed this book, finding it to be easy to read and well-written. Dirie manages to describe the more intimate events in her life with just enough detail to get her point across. She is factual, but not over the top. I am now looking forward to reading the next book in the series, Desert Dawn.



2. This is the autobiography of Waris Dirie, an international supermodel. Waris grew up as part of a nomadic tribe in Somalia that still practices female circumcision, sleeps outdoors, subsists on camels milk, and marries off young girls at 12 or 13 to much older men. It was very interesting to read about her experiences as a child because her upbringing was the same as the upbringing of children 1000 years ago in Somalia. Waris' description of her circumcision and the problems she experienced afterward were poignant and terrifying.
   
   Waris clearly has a good sense of humor. It is interesting to read her perspectives first of Mogadishu and then of London. It is fascinating to hear about how she became a model. Unfortunately, the book degenerated in the second half. Waris becomes conceited and less likeable. She also seems a bit selfish in her behaviors towards her friends.
   
   This book was a good read because of the first half but the last hundred pages was a big disappointment.



3. I looked for a book off my shelves that I hadn't read yet and came upon this one-- one I've been meaning to read ever since I first heard of Waris Dirie a few months ago when she disappeared for a few days and made the international news.
   
   As I had a few hours to wait for my son to finish his pottery class, I dove right into this book. And, it was very good. I was able to finish it before my son's class was over 2 1/2 hours later.
   
   Waris' life has definitely been interesting and, in some cases, very sad. Born in Somalia, she lived with her nomadic family for her first 13 years. As she notes, all ages are estimates, since they didn't really pay attention to birthdays. She begged her mother to be circumcised when she was five years old-- obviously, she had no idea what that meant, at all-- she only knew it meant she was considered more grown up. And, this was the kind you read about-- the kind that removes both the inner and outer labia and the clitoris. The woman that did the "surgery" sawed her with a rusty bloody broken blade that she spat on and wiped dry before cutting. Waris' circumcision left her infibulated-- with only the smallest opening that made menstruation and urination extremely painful.
   
   She does discuss this, one of the most abhorrent practices, but she also discusses much more. Much of her life was very happy-- although they were very poor. She loved both parents but ran away when she was 13 (through the desert with no shoes or water) or so to avoid a marriage to a much older man (for the price of five camels!).
   
   Through an odd chain of events, she was able to go to London to be a servant for some wealthy relatives. And, when this family planned to return to Somalia, Waris decided to stay in London. She was very soon discovered by a photographer and almost immediately became a top model.
   
   Waris' tells her story in simple, yet stark language-- she speaks her mind and is a likeable and strong woman. Her memoir is definitely interesting and she's very open about all her feelings and thoughts. The only thing I would have preferred she talk about more were her feelings about Islam. I realize that genital mutilation is not mandated by the Koran-- it is only a tradition in many of these families. However, her thoughts about her religion and some of its laws and archaic practices that affected her family (polygyny and its treatment of women, for instance), would have made the book a bit more intriguing. She didn't go into this at all.
   
   All in all, this was a provocative memoir of someone raised so entirely differently than those of us in the West. Her introduction to our foreign culture- so different than her own- made for a very thoughtful and affecting read.



4. This is the most emotional, extraordinary and shocking autobiography I've ever read, and the one I'll never forget and will always be in my mind.
   
   Some passages of the book are so shocking, you get sick in your stomach for a few seconds. But every time I had that feeling, I thought: what's this feeling compared to the pain they've gone through? So I kept reading and was astonished that FGM is still existing.
   
   I'm now a proud member of the Waris Dirie Foundation and every month, I give a little amount of money to help these little girls and the battle against FGM.



5. I purchased Desert Flower about five years ago from a street vendor in Brooklyn. I'd have to admit that I purchased the book simply because of the pretty face on the cover. I recently grabed the book of the shelf to read the story behind that pretty face. Oh! my God. I can't remember the last time I was touch by a story like this one. It's been a week since I've read the book and I'm still trying to get it out of my system.
   
   Scream in silence is the first thing that came to my mind when I heard what these women are going through in Somalia and other countries that pratice female Genital Mulitation. To deny a woman of something so natural and beautiful, I think is the worst act ever commited against women. It's as if the women are there only to service the men: cooking their food, washing their clothes, taking care of their children and she's still obligated to satisfy him sexually regardless whether or not she enjoys it in the process.
   
   Loveless sexless and most of all painfull is the best way I can describe these countries that practice Female Genital Mutilation. Shortly after these women are born, they're sexually mutilated , and have to deal with all the medical complications that follows: From trouble urinating, severe menstual cramps, painful sexual intercourse and painfull childbirth. Pain seems to play a major roll in just about every aspect of their lives. These women are hurting and and screaming in silence.
   
   A woman's body is very delicate and sensitive. Without provation women sometimes experience or develop problem with their sexual organs. So, why make matters worst?
   
   As the old saying goes, people will only go as far as you allow them. until These women work up the strength and say enough! is enough! and also recognize that they're the one with the power This nonsense will continue. Throughout history men have been known to buy, beg for sex and sometimes take it involuntary. That in itself should give these women strength to stand up to these men and stop multilating their daughters to satisfy these selfish men. These women should take control of their mind and body.
   
   Waris is definitely a child of God. There is a special purpose for hebeing here on this earth. It was not by accident that she made it safely out the desert and jungle after encountering a lion. Waris has achieve what many women will never achieve, a successful modeling career and inspite of her situation, gave birth to a healthy son without complications. Keep on counting your blessing Waris. The Lord is not done with you yet.