5 comments about I Am Iman.

1. Tell lots about Iman. I bought for an african model friend of mine..Even tho she was too young to know her..very nice pictures..



2. This book I first read at my local library and fell in love with it. Not only does it have beautiful, colorful pics, it also somewhat empowers African American women in the fashion industry. Over the recent years the fashion shows and some of the fashion designers have made a "comfortable seat" casting white models. This book is a refreshing to read and look at the fashion industry through Iman eyes. My favorite part of this book is a photo spread of all the popular African American models togther. Good read and beautiful photos!



3. Interesting pictures. Very few stories. I was hoping for a better book from IMAN



4. This book, although brief, is a better than average book by a model.
   
   Iman adds more than just the basics; she provides her insights into what it means to her to be a black model as opposed to how society views it.
   
   It should not be expected to be an in-depth biography. Iman describes important events in her life: her early life, leaving her country, entering the modeling world. She does not tell many minor stories or go into excruciating details about why she feels the way she does about certain things or why specific people were chosen to add to her book.
   
   This book is that of an artist. The comments from friends and colleagues add to the pages and they way they are displayed is artistic and grabbing.
   
   The photographs, many which are nude or "artistic nudes," are beautiful and abundant.
   
   Overall, this is a book that people interested in models should read.



5. I loved this book, and it contains amazing photographs of a beautiful woman.
   She is a legend and it's easy to see why...
   
   
   A+++

5 comments about Victorio: Apache Warrior and Chief (Oklahoma Western Biographies).

1. A good composite of what has already been recorded. Well written, easy to read book is all that can be expected due to the dearth of information on the man most of his contemporaries said was their greatest chief.



2. Too bad he got lost in the history pages....we need to keep his legend alive.



3. 
   Having followed anthropology and sociology in college, I appreciate the intermingling of fact, ethnology, and oral tradition interwoven throughout this latest biography of Victorio. And would easily recommend this book to other readers.
   
   That said, the book I still prefer is Dan L. Thrapp's 1974 monumental study. Here's a few thoughts why:
   
   In many chapters of this newer book, Victorio's existence is relegated to the background, while in the forefront general, traditional Apache history and culture are recited. In doing this oft times the author seems to use words such as "may be", "may have", or "undoubtedly" in place of concrete historical fact. Since a paucity of fact admittedly exists for much of Victorio's life, any sidestep from fact could reasonably lead directly to errors resulting in misleading conclusions. With Victorio being such an atypical Apache warrior it cannot necessarily be stated, removed from known fact, just what his early life would have been like. And sadly many facts of Victorio's daily, early life just are not available.
   
   If Victorio, for example, similar to Crazy Horse of the Oglala Lakota, was not the 'normal' Apache, then his entire life, as true with Crazy Horse as well, probably defied in many ways rather than conformed to the Apache cultural norm. As in the case of Loco, which the author sites, a warrior could exhibit at times deviate behavior rather than the Apache cultural norm and not only get away with it, but at times be admired or feared because of it.
   
   As such the application of the words "may be", "may have", or "undoubtedly", simply may fall far short when attempting to link Victorio's behavior to other Apache children or warriors. We just do not know the exact details constituting the early life of Victorio, much less many details of his later life. Although the Apache have an oral tradition as examined by Eve Ball and others, that tradition much of the time does not help us on our fact finding quest.
   
   Though I enjoy Dan L. Thrapp's scholarly works, I find no reason not to recommend this book to others. However, my reading taste runs rather to a more military approach to biography as contained in Dan L. Thrapp's works. His book on Victorio is also more voluminous in pages and maps, and offers several more photographs to bolster the text.
   
   And though this author understandably feels her recent book the superior work, I cannot agree. While most excellent, her newer biography does not, in this reader's opinion, surpass Dan L. Thrapp's earlier, elegant time-honored work.
   
   However, reading both of these studies on Victorio can only aid our understanding of this very remarkable person of history.
   
   Semper Fi.



4. I received this book for Christmas. "Victorio"; Apache Warrior and Chief by Kathleen P. Chamberlain helped to bring out the spirit of an Apache Warrior too long forgotten in the dust of time for the more famous contemporaries such as; Cochise, and Geronimo. Victorio has always been under-played and unappreciated (much like Mangus Colorado),but who... in reality embodies the "classical" aura of the Apache warrior.
   
   Ms. Chamberlain does a good job of interweaving the historical facts and traditional Apache lifestyles as cohesive material in bonding what little written records remain of this truly magnificiant Apache who kept both the U.S. and Mexican armies at bay for such a long time. With a few rifles, bows and arrows, and pure determination, Victorio and his band of renagades proved to be one of histories best guerilla fighitng units.
   
   I did however, at times find the book somewhat slow and tedious in places. There were sections that became somewhat "text-bookish" in nature. However, these parts became quickly overridden each time Victorio decided to saddle up and "jump the reservation!"
   
   So; if you enjoy history, if you like stories, and you appreciate real men (or real women), who died for a real cause....read this book!



5. 
   Apache chief Victorio was a champion of his people during wars with the whites, but is much lesser known than his contemporaries Cochise and Geronimo. That's why college-level collections strong in Native American studies needs Victorio: Apache Warrior and Chief: it uses ethnographic sources to surmise Victorio's life, integrating insights into traditional Apache lifestyles and culture along the way, and revealing his life beyond the usual military records. It's an important survey of a spiritual and military leader and is a recommended top pick for any collection strong in Native history and culture.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

3 comments about Lady Day: The Many Faces of Billie Holiday.

1. The reason this book is so powerful is the perfect
   melding of photographs and text.

   The author's rich, empathetic text makes plain Billie
   Holiday's genius as an artist and, unlike some of the
   so-called biographies of her life, don't simplify her to
   the point of caricature.

   Mr. O'Meally focuses on what makes Billie Holiday special:
   her total mastery of her craft and her ability to share
   her vision of the world through song.




2. Tired of all the treatments of Holiday's life in film and print that forget it was her music that made her special, I was delighted to find Professor O'Meally's book. Fascinated with Holiday's life as musician, I had been routinely disappointed whenever I picked up a book or movie in hope of discovering more about her musicianship and less about the tragedies in her life. The book never loses its focus in this respect, making it quite unique.

   What made this book even more enjoyable for me to read is that almost ten years ago I was fortunate enough to have taken a class taught by Professor O'Meally. His book conveys the same enthusiasm and passion he had for the subject matter and classes he taught and, no doubt, passed on to his students.




3. Probably one of the best all-round bios of Lady Day, covering the personal and professional. Pays attention to her musical preferences and reasoning behind her unique recording style

No comments about From Black Power to Black Studies: How a Radical Social Movement Became an Academic Discipline.

5 comments about The Lance and the Shield.

1. Well researched and well rounded text. The story of Sitting Bull is
   told with respect for the man and his people without adulation. Sitting Bull's story is one of strength,integrity,and courage with enduring inspiration.



2. Robert Utley does a fine job of describing the world and worldview of the nineteenth century Plains Indians in this engaging biography of the greatest of the chiefs of the Sioux Nation, Sitting Bull.
   
   Sitting Bull was a traditionalist. Simply put, he lived the way Wakantanka, the Great Spirit, decreed. His life's task was to maintain the culture and lifestyle of his people. Mr. Utley paints us a surprisingly complex and sympathetic portrait of Sitting Bull. In Tatanka Yatanka, the man and the times had met.
   
   Sitting Bull came into a Sioux world which had only recently seen the tribe's transformation from a woodland people to the quintessential quasi-nomadic buffalo hunters of legend. The Sioux largely defined themselves by war, the hunt, and their relationship with both the natural world and the spirit world, between which they made no distinction.
   
   Sitting Bull's lifespan coincided with the slow destruction of the buffalo culture at the hands of Euro-Americans. Dedicated as they were to settling the wilderness country, the Whites finally denuded the Sioux of virtually everything imaginable. As the grand "refusenik" of the Indian nations, Sitting Bull rose to become a remarkably eclectic war chief, tribal leader, wise man and holy man of the Hunkpapa Sioux. He encapsulated in himself all of the greatest virtues of the Sioux, becoming the only High Chief the Sioux tribes were ever to have.
   
   But Sitting Bull, also encapsulated all the weaknesses of his people. Understanding and valuing only those things that were time-honored, he was (unlike his contemporary Chief Red Cloud) constitutionally incapable of grasping the import of the vast changes that were undermining his world even as the sun rose every day. Temperamentally unable to appreciate any mode of thought that was not Sioux, he was reactionarily set against any accommodation with the Whites, long resisted formalized alliances with peoples other than his own, and maintained intact the historical friendships and enmities that marked Sioux relations with other tribes. As a result, the Whites branded him as the leader of "hostiles" and "renegades." Yet, it is clear that Sitting Bull did not hate Whites so much as he would have much preferred of the White Man and the Indian that the twain should never have met.
   
   Unfortunately, this was not to be the case, and Sitting Bull fought a valiant rearguard action against White encroachment in a desperate and ultimately vain attempt to preserve the Sioux way of life. His greatest triumph against Custer at the Little Bighorn, was a pyrrhic victory marking the end of everything this gallant man had fought to preserve. Little Bighorn led to the virtual extinction of the Indian nations as free peoples, their mass hypnosis by the Ghost Dance movement, the tragic Wounded Knee Massacre, and Sitting Bull's own death at the hands of fellow Sioux.
   
   During his life and after, Sitting Bull became a symbol of resistance and determination, a living legend and a man whose heart and mind did not countenance surrender.
   
   A fine book, well worth your time and attention, THE LANCE AND THE SHIELD is a testament to one man's spirit and fortitude in the face of an ultimate disaster.



3. A proud man. Chief of chiefs.
   Sitting Bull was one of the last to give in to the encroachment of manifest destiny. He fought countless battles, of which the Custer clash being the most famous, to save his people's way of life, culture and heritage. Seems as though every time he attempted a compromise with the government, he was duped.
   With provisions running low and no where to go, he went into exile to Canada, the "grandmother land", where he and his people were treated kindly.
   After a few years of Canadian hospitality, provisions and food ran low again. The U. S. government once more convinced him to surrender ponies and weapons and to live at the reservations. Due to hunger he and his people went back to the Dakotas. Little did Sitting Bull realize he was to be held as prisoner of war for a year and a half.
   Then it was life on the reservation which must have been agonizing for him. He did get to travel and see other parts of the country (Buffalo Bill Show, etc.) but his way of life had changed forever. His death was piercing and still somewhat of a mystery.



4. Utley has written a fascinating account of the life of Sitting Bull, perhaps the best known and certainly one of the most influential chiefs of the Sioux Indians. Relying substantially on interviews of Sitting Bull's contemporaries conducted by Professor Walter Stanley Campbell in the 1920s and 1930s, Utley also draws upon other Indian and Anglo accounts and a wealth of military documentation.
   
   Sitting Bull was born in the 1830s, probably 1831, and probably at Many Caches in what became Dakota Territory. His father Sitting Bull was chief of the Hunkpapa tribe of the Sioux nation. Notwithstanding his lineage, the activities and lessons of his youth were the same as those of other young Hunkpapas. He learned to pray, fight, and live according to Sioux principles. By the time he was a young man, he had surpassed nearly everyone, peers and elders alike, in those capacities. His faith in Lakota spirituality was unshakeable; his fighting capability, including the extent of his bravery, was the greatest of the Hunkpapas, and ultimately would become the greatest of the Sioux nation; and he lived with concern not for himself but for his people, generous to the point of poverty. In the mid-1850s, he became a Wichasha Wakan, or someone with the gift of periodical prophesy through dreams and visions. Among the best known of these would be his stunningly accurate prediction of Custer's defeat at Little Big Horn.
   
   Sitting Bull's first interactions with white people came in trade. The Hunkpapas would exchange buffalo robes with French Canadians for firearms and metal tools. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 would mark the beginning of new, less friendly relations with whites. Terms of the treaty were much too difficult for either party to uphold, precipitating the conflict that would last until Wounded Knee nearly forty years later. In fairly short order, the Sioux would realize that the arrival of whites necessitated a war if they were to survive as a people. At this point, Sitting Bull became almost literally and certainly figuratively the lance of his people, employing his favorite weapon in leading his warriors in battle. By 1868, however, fractures were apparent in the never particularly cohesive Sioux nation, and many Sioux chiefs thought of accepting the whites' offer of a reservation. Sitting Bull and several others, most notably Crazy Horse, refused to consider abandoning the free life the Sioux had always led, choosing instead to live free or die trying. Gradually, however, those who felt as did Sitting Bull dwindled in number, unable to survive the war of attrition the whites fought and the decline of the buffalo. In the early 1870s Sitting Bull, now about forty by most accounts, completed Utley's metaphor by becoming the shield for his people. His exceptional prowess as a warrior had granted him the loyalty of and leadership over many Sioux peoples beyond even his own Hunkpapas. Growing older, however, he increasingly, although grudgingly, turned over the actual fighting to younger warriors and became a leader of his people in faith and life.
   
   In 1877, following devastating winters and defeats, Sitting Bull led what remained of his followers into Canada. Having gained freedom from American persecution, he then tried to keep his people alive even as the buffalo continued to disappear. Notwithstanding good relations with some of the Canadian troops, and generally favorable arrangements, he created political difficulties for Canada. Besides pushing aside existing Canadian Indians, his presence also impaired Canada's relationship with the United States. Canada then pressured him to leave, and partly as a result of this pressure, but more because the buffalo had vanished and his people were starving, Sitting Bull returned to the United States in 1881 and surrendered.
   
   His life thereafter was a mixture of the remarkable and the mundane. At various times he lived on a reservation, resided in jail, and toured the country as a kind of national sensation, the latter most famously with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Throughout he continued to push for the rights of his people and the return of their native lands, even though his followers grew fewer and fewer. Having once been among the greatest warriors in the history of the Sioux, then having ascended further into the unprecedented position of leadership over the Sioux nation, he struggled with subordination to white peoples he considered well beneath him. For nine years he accumulated enemies--both white and Indian--and lost followers as a result of his vanity and pride. Furthermore, even if he would not realize it, life had changed for the Sioux people, and he was no longer a respected spokesperson. In December of 1890 he was murdered by his own people during a botched arrest, which itself was to have been an artificial means of removing him from the scene. Largely considered a disgrace to the Sioux, he was buried with no honor whatsoever, and his actual gravesite remains unknown even today.
   
   Utley's biography is an exceptional piece of history. His greatest challenge throughout was providing a scholarly biography of a man from a completely different culture, without letting his own culture seep in. In that, he succeeds admirably. His second greatest challenge was the lack of primary source material on the pre-white days of his subject; the Sioux did not keep written records, and later white interviewers were not interested in recording such relatively dull facts as comprised Sitting Bull's early life. Utley adroitly maneuvers around this substantial obstacle by telling the story of the Sioux nation as best it is known, thereby providing a foundation from which would spring the Sitting Bull of middle-aged life about whom much was recorded. A brilliant approach, and one not easily carried off. Utley does it as flawlessly as one possibly can. Furthermore, although his approach was to build his biography by historical methods as opposed to the methods of literature his predecessor Campbell employed, his book remains as readable as popular western fiction. The prose is so fluid and the story so gripping, one ought to be forgiven if one forgets he is reading nonfiction. From an academic perspective, this book is of value to scholars on Sitting Bull for obvious reasons, but also for those needing a factual foundation for Sioux culture and its interplay with white invaders. Therefore, I heartily recommend this book to all readers, regardless of background.



5. Ever since my childhood, I have always been enamored of the Native Indians. It wasn't the Indian of the Cowboy tv shows where they were portrayed as idiots or savages ~~ but as the people who were close to nature and the spiritual world.

   This book does not disappoint. This is a very concise portrayal of Sitting Bull from an author who took great pains to portray Sitting Bull as how the Indians viewed him and as how as the Whites viewed him. He didn't allow his emotions cloud the facts ~~ it was very obvious that he took time to research the facts and present them without boring the reader to tears. He showed Sitting Bull as the greatest Sioux leader of all time and how he worked to unite the Lakotas and the Hunkpapas as well as other Indian nations together to defeat the White invasion. He also presented the facts that allowed the readers to be aware of why the Indian battles were a losing cause ~~ simply because there were more of the Whites coming. There were not enough Indians to keep populating the land.

   This is one of the most in-depth research I've read and enjoyed on any Indian leader. This one goes beyond Sitting Bull and talk about the problems the Indians faced ~~ and yes, it does have some moments in there where you just allow your emotions to override the story ~~ Sitting Bull may not have had it easy but he sure didn't make it easy for the US military or the Indian agents on the reservations. He gave back as good as he could ~~ and he never quit fighting for his people. He is admirable not only as a man, but as a leader. This is definitely a worth-while reading for anyone who is interested in history ~~ especially Native American Indian history.

   6-26-04

1 comments about The Black Girl Next Door: A Memoir.

1. THE BLACK GIRL NEXT DOOR is Jennifer Baszile's story of growing up in the middle class neighborhood of Palos Verdes and her confrontations regarding race and the effects of integration on her and her family.
   
   Baszile's face-to-face encounter with racial bias began when she won a foot race with a young white classmate and the classmate told her that black people had something in their feet which made them run faster than white people, which her teacher didn't dispute. Many examples in this memoir gave very poignant moments of the disparity of race, not money, but race, and its play on everyday life. As Baszile came of age, she realized to be successful, she must be the best at everything and do whatever is necessary to not embarrass her parents. This, however, made her feel like an experiment and she didn't feel like she was doing things because she wanted to, but because it was expected and anything less would be considered a failure.
   
   Baszile's accounts of her life, at times, were thoughtful and other times downright funny. One of the most thoughtful times was the family vacation cruise where her father told her he wasn't raising her and her sister for a white man and Baszile and her sister had to meet and a get to know all the black kids on the boat or they could not return to the cabin. He did this because he was disappointed in their lack of interaction with folks who looked like them.
   
   This memoir resonated with me as a reader on several levels because I understood Baszile's angst in trying to fit into a world her family had carved out for her, but feeling like an outsider. Baszile's life was filled with childhood memories, good and bad, but many which shaped her perception of life. She endured the expectations of her parents even with the contradictions, but also had to fight figuratively and literally in regards to being black in an era of integration. She dealt with the public face of her family and its conflicting face when not in the limelight for their accomplishments. Many who will read THE BLACK GIRL NEXT DOOR will be able relate to her experiences and still access the recesses of their minds of the days when being black really wasn't comfortable or easy.
   
   Reviewed by Cashana Seals
   of The RAWSISTAZ(tm) Reviewers

4 comments about Black Apollo of Science: The Life of Ernest Everett Just.

1. A fascinating study of an all-but-ignored American scientific genius who was staggeringly original and prolific --and an incidental indictment of U.S. racism.



2. The book was put together with alot of admiration and validity. Ernest Everett Just was definetely ahead of his time and his vision was carried well into the 21 century. I feel the scientific cloning and bone marrow technology owes its success to pioneers like Ernest E. Just, unfortunately due to his race he was not given just due until after his death. the book shows a little justice and I admired the hard work of a talented author as Mr. Manning displayed in this book.



3. With all due respect to the other reviewer, I cannot understand how the word "excellent" can be used in a admiring review - followed by the assignment of only three stars! This a is four-star book at a minimum, and I think it deserves five stars. This is an exemplary biography in it terms of the underlying research, choice of subject and material to be included, and the style of writing. As a biologist, I am familiar with Just's work and some of the primary literature of his time, and can only add my praise for the author's adept handling of the technical topics. Highly recomended, moving, under-rated and under-read book!



4. Black Apollo of Science, The Life of Ernest Everett Just in my opinion is a very excellent portrail of the complicated and exciting life of one of the leading black scientist of the early 20th century. If you are serious about learning every detail about E.E Just, then this is the book for you. It is the story of his life which goes from his early life and struggles to gain an education to hi later life where he fights to give other African Americans the opportunity to recieve a quality education. Although most of his life commitments were based to further the education of African Americans, he also had his own personal motives. He was a dedicated researcher who was not afraid to express his opinions at whatever cost it was, personally and professionally. This book offers great motivation to anyone that is fighting against the norms and against dicrimination. I recommend it to scholars as along to layman that wish to learn more about American scientifc history.

5 comments about The Courting of Marcus Dupree.

1. This book is about the South and northern places in the mid 60's-80's. To be sure it is about a gifted black athlete having to survive a white society that wants somehow to be with him in his quest for greatness. Much more than that, this book is about racism at its core, promise, insecurity, and reluctant goodness, and we should hope that Morris's honest and understandable "sorta" autobiographical dissertation on his homeland Mississippi will compel us to take another look at where we are as a society. We should not let Pete, Willie's mid-life dog, be the best of what we can be.



2. This is a must read-especially for the young athletes of today. This man was a legend! Hands down the best running back in the country during his era!
   Having met him, he's a modest, humble man who loves football and loves his hometown. Would love to see this made into a movie!
   Get it, you won't be disappointed!



3. I recently read "The Courting of Marcus Dupree" and found it to be exciting and spell binding. My entire family was caught up in it. The book is an excellent tale of the birth of a young Black male in a troubling time for the South. The way Willie Morris related Marcus' birth and powerful strength to the struggle of his town and state was awesome, he should be the Mayor of Philadelphia or the Governor of Mississippi. I expected the book to be totally about football but it proved to be much more. It made you laugh and cry at times because of the tremendous pressure on Marcus Dupree, the 17 year old athlete that was blessed with such miraculous skills. The book made you feel like you were at the games when he made some of the beautiful plays. It was so intense that you wanted to get to the next page, but never wanted the book to end. I wish it was reprinted.



4. I read this book again recently and it was better than I remembered. It was so interesting to see how one 17 year old boy could dominate one small town's conversations. I expected this book to be a tale of a high school football star and his recruitment, but I got more, much more. Willie Morris examines the importance of football in Mississippi and how Marcus brought blacks and whites together with his play. He had insight in to Marcus that nobody outside of his family and high school coach could have had. Overall, a great read.



5. As an OU fan and a person who remember Marcus Dupree light up Norman during his brief time, I was very excited to have a little bit more background on this fascinating person.

   The book hits several different topics. Obviously his recruitment of many football schools at times take center stage. But much of the book also discusses the effect of a black athlete becoming a state hero in Mississippi and gaining fans of all races. The foil of Dupree's time to that of two decades earlier when three cival rights activists were brutally murdered by the Klan. And the author, Willie Morris, contrasting and comparing his life with what he sees around him while following Dupree.

   I recommend this book to anyone looking for a great personal account that takes you back to 1981 Mississippi, civil rights, and the power of football.

5 comments about All Things Censored (Book & CD).

1. 
   Abu-Jamal is an intelligent and insighful man, and the book is thought-provoking at times, but do people really know the details of the murder case that made him a celebrity? To me it does matter who the author of a work is. Please, look into the primary sources as I have since drinking the Abu-Jamal Cool-Aid along with many others. Racism, classism, and punishment for being outspoken all may be issues our society must work to eliminate from our criminal justice system, but they're not the reason Abu-Jamal was convicted. I am sick that I was duped and will not read more by Abu-Jamal.



2. It is a very well written and thought provoking work. I truly admire what he is doing in such limited circumstances, further more appreciate his courage and strength. I was always against death penalty but after reading "all things censored" I was more aware why death penalty is such cruel and in human form of punishment. Must be abolished just like slavery!



3. Mumia Abu Jamal is undoubtedly correct with regard to his opinions about the American Judicial System, and many of the essays in this book, on everything from rap music to jail suicides, are heart rending and angering. But with regard to Jamal himself, the claims his supporters make of his innocence get more and more tenuous the harder one looks at the case. And his silence on the matter is also a bit disturbing. If an innocent man were rotting in a jail cell on death row in one of the worst prisons in the country, he would not be reminiscing about the past and the significant flaws of the system--he would write ceaselessly about the circumstances of his case, why he is innocent, what really happened that night between him and Officer Faulkner, and perhaps give us a little insight into why even his own brother would not testify on his behalf. A lucid, unsparing mind, an amazing talent, a true political activist and revolutionary, yes, all this and a vicious murderer to boot. When the smoke clears and a fair trial finally happens, some of these young kids who worship him are going to be mighty disappointed. All the lefty lawyers and goofball celebrities in the world can't cloud the actual truth, as romantic as Jamal's background may be.

   I'd still recommend the book. Just remember what kind of a human being wrote it.




4. All Things Censored

   Mumia Abu-Jamal has not only a good oratory style, but also writes vividly and convincingly. Mumia has a rare perspective, as his background as a reporter and his long and unjust incarceration give him an understanding of the political economy of the media, which serves to silence dissent, and the prejudice of the trial and punishment system. This book is essential for anyone who has an interest in US politics, justice, the issue of the death penalty and Mumia's case in particular. It is also an excellent insight into modern American society - the aspect that we are discouraged from seeing by politicians and the media. Any person who has a grasp of America's recent history knows all about police brutality, the oppression of minorities and the choking conformity of censorship, but rarely has a writer conveyed all of this so clearly. If this book is inflammatory, it is only because that is the rightful response to an injustice of the magnitude Mumia has been subjected to. His case encapsulates the blatant and ruthless prejudice of the police and the courts, and their highly pervasive and authoritarian grip on mainstream media discourse. His case echoes that of Nigeria's Ken Saro-Wiwa, and it would be to America's shame if he were to pay the same price for his dissent. Don't believe the corporate-controlled mass media - reject censorship. Find out the facts of Mumia's case and then decide.




5. The wisdom of Mumia Abu-Jamal has transcended the grim sentence our system handed him. Whether or not he murdered a man is not as important as the fact that our penal system dehumanizes its inmates. Not only that, our justice and law enforcement systems are profoundly discriminatory, especially against minorities in the lower economic classes. The death penalty merely tortures these inmates until their execution, at a much greater cost than keeping them incarcerated. Why does the system kill to teach our children that killing is wrong? Until we abolish the death penalty, our society can not hope to be truly humane, and the blood of Mumia will be on our hands.

5 comments about Lone Wolf: A Biography of Vladimir (Ze'Ev) Jabotinsky Two Volume Set.

1. Shmuel Katz has managed to collect so much useful, important and fascinating information in this biography of Ze'ev Jabotinsky that it could stand on its own as a first class historical review of early 20th century Zionist and Palestinian history. Through obsessive documentation of his topic, Katz demolishes a number of historical myths surrounding both the roots of Zionism and the founding of the state of Israel. He does this all in a highly compelling and readable style, which is certainly helpful, given its 1800-page size. It is an extraordinary read and essential to fully understanding the origins of Israel and its conflict vis a vis the Arabs, as well as the life of this unique and gifted individual.



2. Reading this book is a great intelectual adventure. There are a lot of information and the author has a very clear and envolving writing, always creating expectative over what's coming next. The author also mixes narrative with a lot of opinions and analysis about the facts. There are, as well, many quottings from other works about Jobotinsky, along with several transcriptions of classified official documents that shed light into controversial facts. The author is not afraid of polemics and gives new perspectives over matters treated as tabu, like Ben Gurion, Weizman, The Zionist Organization and the Histadrut. Much enfasis is given to Jabotinsky's unstopabble fight for the jewish rights in palestine and abroad, as well as his unfearing steadfastness against anyone who denied the goal of creating a jewish state. The book will give a complete understanding of the Revisionist movement, the British Rule in Israel, the internal Zionist Organization politics and its blunders, the arab behavior, among others. By reading this book you will also be able to better understand contemporary israeli politics and the relationship with the arab countries. The book, although very pleasant, takes quite a bit to be read, but it is a must for anyone who wants to know one of the greatest zionist and jewish leaders ever and get into the politics of the pre-state period.



3. This book is a real eye opener. It completly changed my perspective on the history of the Middle East and how the British, who so often have come accross as the "white knight" was in fact the dirty thief.

   The book is a monster in size and in the amount of information it presents. It documented and footnoted to a degree that one would expect from a work of this nature.

   I highly suggest it to anyone who wants to find out about the history of modern Israel and how the wolrd powers did what they do best, exploit. I truly learned much!




4. Zeev (meaning wolf, in hebrew) Jabotinsky was one of the greatest leaders ever, and the greatest liberal Zionist leader. His works can not be denied. Because of his many deeds, he was admired by many - and hated by the rest. And he is the subject of this book, like many other books and articles. But this one is special - the auther spent 7 years of his life reserching and writing it, and those seven years have beared fruit. The writing is of a very high quality, and the contence is extensive. Itws like no other book about Jabotinsky I know. After reading, you will enrich not only your mind - but also your spirit, by knowing this great man. Highly recomended, for all people - Zionists, students, and anyone seeking pure knolage and feeding.



5. An unapologetic biography of a controversial figure in Jewish/Israeli history. Mr. Katz's book is painstakingly well documented. It is more than the history of a single person; it provides a detailed look at competing Jewish ideologies and their role in the formation of Israel. Though biased, it is on the whole, well balanced.