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.

No comments about Psychology of Blacks: An African-American Perspective.

5 comments about Godfather of the Kremlin: the Life and Times of Boris Berezovsky.

1. This is a great book by a good author with a fantastic approach to the subject at hand.Even with all the warnings about some of the things being to good to be true ( or bad for that matter) the reality has surface just by watching the news about Russia.I like the fact that the author was able to track all the corrupt corporations in countries like Great Britain,Switzerland and USA.The author mentions names,dates and places with accuracy.Also i enjoyed his explanations and the political and economic ramifications that the corruption in Russia has brought.It is very sad to see how Boris Yeltsin drove Russia to the ground while pretending to be a good president.The Book shows how Yeltsin is as guilty as anyone in Russia of its problems.He was just a mummified puppet with a stupid smile.Anyone with interest in recient history of Russia should read this book.



2. I personally witnessed the outcomes of the corrupted rule of the culprits portrayed by late Paul Klebnikov.
   Many Russians believe that the truths revealed in this book were the cause of author's murder.



3. This book tells a powerful story that most Americans are, sadly, unfamiliar with. Mr. Klebnikov outlines in impressive detail the history of Russia during the very turbulent times of the 1990s. The development of gangster capitalism under the Yeltsin regime in an environment of political corruption was a tragic episode in Russian history and an example of an opportunity squandered. This book outlines the rise of the mafia in Russia in the post-glasnost time period and the links they had to the Chechens and to the political leaders of the time.
   
   While I sometimes became a bit lost in all the details and Russian names with which I was unfamiliar, the story came through well as Mr. Klebnikov built, step-by-step, a solid and well-documented case. This story is an important one for Americans who wish to better understand what happened during this time period and how it affected, and still affects, Russia. From political assassinations to presidential elections - the book tells a compelling and sadly disturbing story.
   
   Since I have several Russian friends, I felt I owed it to myself to become more familiar with recent Russian history. And this book did not let me down. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in understanding Russia better and I suspect it will in time become a classic for the detailed description it provides of this time period in Russian history.
   
   Highly recommended!



4. Everybody should read this book - it helps to put the entire Litvinenko killing in perspective ; the dead Russian spy worked for Berezovsky - given Berezovsky long criminal history it would not be surprising at all that he was directly involved in murdering his own employee as part of his long ongoing campaign to overthrow the democratically elected president Putin and thereby illegally regain control of all of Russia's natural resources including in particular Russia's oil and gas wealth.



5. Paul Klebnikov is a modern Russian hero. He was assasinated because he tried to show the world how corrupt Russia had become at the hands of the oligarchs. "The Decline of Russia in the Age of Gangster Capitalism" is well written and organized. It follows not only the "rise" of Berezovsky but also illustrates how the majority of the Duma (Russian Congress) was in fact acting on behalf of the gangsters or were in fact gangsters themselves holding seats in the house.
   It is a reavealing look into the saddest chapter of Russian history. A must read for anyone interested in politics or modern history. It is a shame and loss to us all that Paul was killed. Who knows what other truths he could have recovered had he lived. It is also a shame that in our modern age of information, only a few speak the truth - and if they speak to loudly they are silenced, as was Paul. May he rest in peace.
   If you enjoyed this book, Paul also did an interview called "Theft of the century: Privatization and the looting of Russia." If you google it, you will find it on the net.

3 comments about A Narrative of the Life of Mrs. Mary Jemison.

1. This book is an incredible account of the life and times of Mary Jemison, a white woman taken captive during the French and Indian War and adopted into the Seneca tribe of the Iroquois in western New York. This tale covers her more than 70 years living among them through many of the most vital years of the long history of the Iroquois Confederacy.

   In November 1823, when she was in her 80s, Mary Jemison, at the urging of many of the friendly local inhabitants, gave her amazing life story to James Seaver to publish for posterity. Though his truthfulness in some details of that account has often been called into question, this book is one of the most important and complete of any of the Indian captivity narratives to come out of the period between the French and Indian War and the War of 1812, which most historians mark as the end of the period of influence of the Eastern Woodland tribes. This account gives unequalled insight into the Seneca Indians and their ways including religion, food, hunting, warfare, culture, etc.

   Mary had many opportunities to leave the Indians and return to white civilization but chose not to do so and thus was witness to some of the most amazing events in the history of her adopted people. Her tale is important to not only historians and ethnologists, but to the general public itself as it is a truly amazing story of triumph and tragedy for a proud people struggling to survive in the face of overwhelming odds as a young United States continued to expand, forever extinguishing their way of life.




2. The narrative is fascinating reading, both in terms of the history revealed in the words of Mary Jemison and in terms of James Seaver who gives us his own version of her story. The effect is a layering of historical periods. With the help of the editing, you can peer through and see not only the period of Mary Jemison's captivity, but also the prejudices of the following time. An interesting example of the simultaneous respect and loathing with which the early settlers viewed the native inhabitants. I first read the narrative in high school, and would recommend it for young and old readers alike.



3. They say if you visit New York State you will find her descendants; many native-americans have her last name. Taken captive; her parents killed - Mary becomes part of a native-american family. She married a Delaware (Lenape) warrior, with whom she was very content and has many children. This is a dramatic, true story, told in her own words. She is in her 80's, and reminisces about her unusual life.

4 comments about Low Road: The Life and Legacy of Donald Goines.

1. This is, by far, the best biography of Donald Goines availible. It incorporates every ounce of availible material, including interviews that will soon be impossible given the presently diminishing number of individuals to consult. Some people have objected to the asides about the state of black America and the situation in Detroit in the book, but the only reason for such asides is clearly the sheer lack of information availible on the life of Goines. If one cannot describe what Goines himself was doing during a particular period of time, one might as well give a description of the events he and those around him were experiencing at that time.



2. This is a biography of Donald Goines, who wrote a lot of sleazy ghetto fiction books. The only book of his that I have read is Dopefiend, which is good, but is also one of the most depressing books I have ever read. But anyway about Low Road, its not that its bad but this is very incomplete. I really didn't feel like I knew that much about Goines except he was a junkie, he was a convict, he was a criminal, he was murdered. There is a lot of filler in this book too where the author goes into general history of the times that Goines lived. I'd only recomend this to people who are really into Goines. If you only have a casual interest in Goines this book really isn't worth your time.



3. Daddy Cool, Black Girl Lost, Dopefiend -- these and the numerous other works published by Donald Goines brought the streets to the pages of a book. Goines was most qualified to write about the themes he covered in his books because much of what he wrote about, he lived. LOW ROAD covers most of his short life, beginning with his childhood, highlighting his family life as well as his less than stellar academic career. Next his decision to join the military and his military life is discussed. Goines' military experiences are a critical turning point in his life because it is while enlisted that Goines develops the drug addiction that would haunt him for the rest of his life. After leaving the military, he returns home with no job prospects and an addiction to support; it is then that he really commits to hustling and quickly gets caught up in life on the streets.
   
   As a result of his criminal activity, he eventually finds himself incarcerated, during which time he is exposed to the works of Iceberg Slim and is inspired to write. Upon his release, Goines was able to secure a series of book deals and was able to achieve a certain degree of success as a writer. In spite of this, his personal demons continued to have a strong hold and his personal life remained one of frustration, poverty and addiction. The murders of Goines and his girlfriend remain unsolved to this day, and while there are many theories as to what killed him, most believe the murder was simply his past catching up with him.
   
   The author obviously spent a great deal of time and research and the result is a well balanced look at Goines. Readers will better understand the factors which ultimately led to his self-destructive lifestyle while seeing first hand how success is not always enough to overcome a drug addiction. Goines' murder resulted in the loss of a talented writer who had the unique ability to bring the grit and realism of the streets to life in an engaging and gripping story. The fact that his murder remains unsolved and that Goines died virtually penniless and still addicted to heroin adds to the bitter irony of his life.
   
   There were times when I felt the book had a bit too much fluff, with the author spending too much time discussing the times rather than Goines himself, I still felt the book was informative and an enjoyable read. If you are a fan of the writings of Donald Goines or have ever wondered about the man behind the books, then LOW ROAD is a necessary and worthy addition to your reading library. (RAW Rating: 3.5)
   
   Reviewed by Stacey Seay
   of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers



4. Tortured Genius. To me, that's what this cat was. Eddie Allen Jr's book revealed more about the man and the events of his time as well as any other biography about another public figure. Surprisingly, or maybe not to some, Goines grew up in a stable household in which his father owned and operated his own business with the help of his supportive wife. There is no mention of drug use by his parents or other siblings while he grew up. It makes his story even more complicated, and makes people wonder as to why he chose the route he took. Allen takes us back to the turbulent times of the early 20th century and the events that took place, not only in the city of Detroit, but the country as a whole. He drew some interesting parallels, including one that links Goines' father and Joe Louis as buddies during Lewis' reign as champion of the world. That one aspect of Allen's work re-affirmed to me it is a small world indeed. Allen continues as he tells readers about Goines becoming a pimp, bootlegger, and later, being arrested and locked behind bars. He also tells plenty about Goines' increasingly dangerous habit of heroin, which he even displays to his younger sister, all the while, warning her if he ever caught her doing what he was showing her, he would kill her. It was a frightening and hypocritical display, but nonetheless, it most likely proved effective. Allen goes on to tell about Goines picking up the works of Iceberg Slim, and forming his own stories using Slim's as a blueprint, so to speak. Throughout the book, Allen provides plenty of documentation and other sources to prove this is indeed a work of authenticity, including a piece Goines wrote one year before his death entitled, "Private Thoughts on a Lonely Sunday, September 1, 1973." Allen also lets us know about Goines' inner struggle with his addiction, and how desperately he wanted to "kick" the habit out of his life. In the end, his struggles and other wrongdoings in the past came back to haunt him. Allen did a terrific job in not turning this into a sob story. Donald Goines was no saint, but he is admired by many, such as myself, for telling his own stories, his own life, using his imagination, and telling stories from the heart in the most vivid, brutal, harsh, but also heart-felt fashion.

5 comments about A Long Way from Tipperary: What a Former Monk Discovered in His Search for the Truth.

1. Once, a Lutheran pastor went up to an author (who's also an ex-monk who spent many hours in monastic choir and Latin chant) and asked, how could one have a personal relationship with God in prayer when all was set and programmed, all was ritual, formal, and liturgical?? This author later wrote in his memoirs,
   
   "I have never, ever, thought that Latin chant opposes personal prayer. It is simply personal prayer as part of a total community at prayer. It helps you to distinguish, in prayer, between human echo and divine response, between your own will set to sound and the divine will that allegedly transcends it. As a simple analogy: Does singing the national anthem communally enlarge or diminish personal and individual patriotism??"
   
   It's amazing how much you can learn from people who've been deemed outcasts, super-deviants and heretics from your community. I suspect there are Christians who wouldn't touch the works of John Dominic Crossan with a 10-foot pole.
   
   But after reading A Long Way From Tipperary: What A Former Irish Monk Discovered In His Search For The Truth, whilst I'm nowhere near agreeing with his views on the historical Jesus, I can identify with his struggles, his doubts, his pain (I can almost weep with him over the loss of his first wife).
   
   I see a man who needs the love of Jesus Christ, yet also one I can learn from tremendously (even N.T. Wright has celebrated Crossan's genius; see the opening remarks in his chapter on Crossan in Jesus & The Victory of God). If nothing else, Crossan's wit-filled prose brings literary delight which one finds rare in evangelical works. For example:
   
   "If, in fact, you want a parent metaphor for God, I think father is much more appropriate than mother. It is the mother who is publicly knowable, visibly provable, and legally certifiable. You do not need faith to know a mother. You need faith to know a father, because he is known only on the mother's word and sometimes not even then.?" (p.37)
   
   
   Whilst evangelicals rightly ought to warn the community of the problems in Crossan's writings, we would do well to humble ourselves and learn from our enemies? (wouldn't we want them to learn from us, too?). Try this sharp observation on the Catholic-Protestant schism:
   
   "It is the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, during which Catholicism and Protestantism forced each other into opposite extremes (faith or works, Bible or tradition, individual or community, real or symbolic, etc. or etc.)in that separation within Christianity, Catholicism lost any internal but loyal opposition, any sternly self-critical voice from within. In that separation, Protestantism lost anything to protest against save itself and has continued to fracture into every increasing diversity.?" (p.72, emphasis mine)
   
   Perhaps we need (or God has allowed? or predestined?? [grin]) writers like Crossan, the quintessential postmodern Biblical scholar, drawing his inspiration from, among others, the work of Jacques Derrida, to shake us into seeing our own problems, to look closer at our sacred cows.
   
   And one day Crossan was at a book-signing event, someone came up to him and said, "My pastor told me not to come here tonight because you are even to the left of Marcus Borg.? Crossan replied,
   
   "Give your pastor my best regards and tell him that is the good news. The bad news is that both Borg and me are to the right of Jesus. And worse still, if he will recall Psalm 110, Jesus is to the right of God."



2. Rather disappointed with this book. Bought it at the local Borders and found its prose rushed; was the copyeditor asleep? I found long stretches rather tedious, not enhanced by the author's strong ego, which lacks discernment about what the reader might find engaging and what s/he might not. I appreciate much of Crossan's work, such as In Search of Paul, and this one has many good paragraphs. But the whole work never quite seems to come together.



3. If you want Jesus to be what you need, avoid this book. If you want to learn about the historical Jesus, read Crossan. This book is more accessible than some of this others; but it presumes some familiarity with his other works which should, I think, come first. Then read this one by all means.



4. Before I read this memoir, the only other insight I had of Crossan was from "Excavating Jesus", a book he and Reed collaborated on. Many times I would pause during a particular chapter and ask "Why does Crossan think that?" and I found many of my answers in "A Long Way from Tipperary." This memoir describes how Crossan's upbringining contributed to his analysis of the historical Jesus. It is the genuinity and extreme honesty with which Crossan speaks that makes this memoir truly memorable. I especially liked the parts when Crossan would describe an event in his life and compare it to the life of Jesus and ask how it influenced his conclusions on Jesus- I would have liked to see more of this for it was truly insightful. I also woudl have liked to see more of discussion on his faith in God- he makes the point that he doenst use human logic to prove God's existence yet doenst really seem to describe how he arrived at his conclusion. Overall a great read into a fascinating mind.



5. Book Review
   A Long Way From Tipperary: A Memoir by John Dominic Crossan (2000)

   Dom Crossan, the world's leading expert and best-selling author on the historical Jesus, has written a witty, hearfelt and easy reading (about 200 pages - you can finish it in an afternoon) memoir of his remarkable life. From the Prologue:

   "This book is about a series of transitions, from Ireland to America, from priesthood to marriage, from monastery to university, and from academic scholar to public intellectual. It is especially about the transition from a very traditional Roman Catholic faith...to a self-conscious and self-critical Roman Catholic faith for the next [century]."

   Born in 1934 in County Kildare, Ireland to parents of modest means, he entered a monastery at sixteen and remained in the priesthood for some nineteen years, most of which was spent as a professor in seminary. After leaving the priesthood to get married, Crossan taught at DePaul University for nearly twenty years. His memoir is a charming recollection of the very different worlds along his life's journey - interspersed with reminiscences of how each episode shaped his thinking.

   Crossan, co-founder of the (in)famous Jesus Seminar, has been a public voice proclaiming the need for Christians to revitalize their tradition. Again from the Prologue:

   "After a decade of interviews in newspapers and magazines, discussions on radio and television, lectures in parishes and seminaries, colleges and universities, I now recognize a group...who claim a center of the road between secularism and fundamentalism. They are also dissatisfied, disappointed, or even disgusted with Classical Christianity and their denominational tradition...They do not want to invent or join a new age, but to reclaim and redeem an ancient one. They do not want to settle for a generic-brand religion, but to re-discover their own specific and particular roots. But they know now that these roots must be in a renewed Christianity that has purged itself of rationalism, fundamentalism, and literalism, whether of book, tradition, community, or leader. I did not set out to speak to those people, because I did not know they existed until about 80 percent of my mail told me they did."

   In the final pages of his memoir, he says:

   "In conclusion, this is what I have learned between Ireland and America, monastery and university, priesthood and marriage, scholarship and public discourse. I have learned that God is more radical than we can ever imagine, that a divine utopia on this earth is more subversive than we can ever accept..."

   John Dominic Crossan is a monumental figure in the reformation of the Christian tradition underway in the world today. A man of deep faith, profound intellect, and searing vision, this memoir provides a window into the humble origins and very human journey of a great modern sage. His dry Irish wit is ever present, his writing style is clear and conversational and you finish the book with the feeling that you now "know the man". That's what a memoir is all about.

3 comments about The Omni-americans: Black Experience And American Culture (Da Capo Press Paperback).

1. I totally enjoyed the spirit of this book. I might disagree with a few points and admit that Murry at times overstates to make a point. But he is allowed to signify! I disagree with the person from pittsburgh. I think Murry can be a skilled polemicist/intellectual himself, but think he'd rather not. But the book was speaking to polemicist and intellectuals in their terms. That's the whole point. They gotten so caught up in their rhetoric that they've forgotten how to see or speak about the human experience in any other terms. It is positive, the book continues to add a freshness and bounce to the stale social science dialogue about race, culture and particularly Blacks. As he says 'we (blacks) can't afford to be reduced to oppression and repression'. Murry would probably rather chop it up at a jazz bar or barber shop. That's why he gets to signify.



2. Although it's now 30 years old, Albert Murray's debut has hardly aged a day, and his potshotting at the shallow pieties of sociology remains all too relevant. The reader from Pittsburgh seems concerned that Murray isn't positive enough. But I think his central thesis--that we are all omni-Americans, sharing a hybrid, black-and-white culture--is one of the most hopeful things to come down the pike since Whitman hung up his versifying shoes. Add to that the fact that Murray is funny (not an easy thing to be when you're taking Daniel Patrick Moynihan down a peg) and you've got an essential volume on your hands. Three cheers for Da Capo for keeping this in print!



3. Murray condemns both polemic and intellectuals yet he only manages to look at things from an intellectualist viewpoint when he discusses things in-depth and he seems very skilled as a polemicist himself. Very critical of anyone except those with a similar background, including many shots at social scientists, northerners and whites as well as Murray's fellow writers even. Hardly a positive work, despite the subtitle "Some Alternatives to the Folklore of White Supremacy" which makes you think it will be more than it is.

No comments about The Heroic Present: LIFE AMONG THE GYPSIES.