5 comments about My War.

1. Lately I've been reading stories about war, an unfortunate constant of human history, I'm afraid. Tales about WWII, or "The Last Good War" (a book I read many years ago), as Studs Terkel called it, abound, but I especailly recommend this one. My War, by Andy Rooney (yep, the same bushy-eyebrowed old grump you see on 60 Minutes every week), is a true gem, full of his homespun self-deprecating bits of humor and wisdom, along with the expected grim and grisly stories about the carnage that is war. As to the importance of his wartime experience, Rooney says right up front, "My life was never the same again." As a young reporter (his army ID photo looks startlingly like Audie Murphy, who of course penned his own memoir, To Hell and Back) for The Stars and Stripes, Rooney got up close and personal with both the air and ground wars in Europe, and also traveled to India and China, rubbing shoulders with Ernie Pyle, Bill Mauldin and Walter Cronkite. One particular line from the book has stayed with me: "I laugh, bitterly, when I hear the phrase, 'He gave his life for his country.' No one gives his life. His life is taken." Rooney is a newspaperman and a reporter, but more than anything else he is a damn fine writer who simply tells it like he sees it. - Tim Bazzett, author of Soldier Boy and Love, War & Polio ([...])



2. This memoir by Andy Rooney of CBS of his army days during World War II mixes humor, cynicism, and tragedy. Rooney recounts how he was drafted into the artillery in 1941, and then transferred to the army newspaper STARS AND STRIPES. The author recounts his army experiences with a mixture of nostalgia, humor and sadness. The author admits his distaste for the military, and considers him self lucky to have drawn duty as a correspondent. Yet his service record was hardly risk-free. Rooney accompanied B-17 crews on raids over Nazi Germany, then infantrymen as they battled their way after D-Day. Rooney recounts much of the war's horrors and describes several friends and acquaintances that died in combat. The author's irreverent and at times cynical tone (particularly regarding General Patton) reflects both himself and many of the GI's that served in that deadly conflict. The book is generally very readable, although it does slow in a couple spots. Still, this moving 1995 memoir written half a century after Rooney's discharge is worth reading.



3. This is a great book. Andy Rooney, who I hate, is likable here in his stories about the GReat War. He tells stories, and jokes, and rubs elbows with all sorts of famous people, and, yet, doesn't seem to be bragging as much as telling. Also, his descriptions of tanks running over bodies and the air war are heart wrenching, beautiful, and terrifying. This book isn't my favorite overall, but it is the biggest surprise I've ever read. I really did love it.



4. My grandfather was in the Army Air Corp during WWII and would tell wonderful stories about his time in the war (the good and the bad). I think he would have liked Andy Rooney.
   
   I found the book very interesting particularly his insights on Patton. I have an great uncle who served under Patton. His mind never was the same.



5. Andy above and beyond potrayed his position in WW2 if anything played down. Yes he was a private that lucked out as many do in the service,but it seems he is able to tell the truth about it and feels no lesser for the facts. He tells of several heroes and some not so good officers. We have all known those. All in all I found the book very enjoyable and would highly reccomend it to all.

5 comments about Staying Tuned: A Life in Journalism.

1. I have to admit to a certain fascination with news personalities. After all, as a confirmed news junkie, I have faithfully watched all the major netweorks and tune into NPR on my way home from work daily. Therefore, I was pleased to discover this literary gem by long-time TV and radio commentator Daniel Schorr, the seemingly omni-present conscience of the electronic media. Like many of his generation, his is a voice of reason and objectivity in a sea of faces otherwise clamouring for fame and notoriety.

   Yet, while I genuinely like the book and heartily recommend it, I must also admit to feeling a bit disappointed by what he has to say, for he seems determined throughout the book to confine his comments more to the stories at hand than I would have liked, and although he discusses personalities and the way some of his stories were affected by them, the insider's look is compromised to some extent by the very virtues he brings to the subject in the first place. Perhaps after fifty years in the business he simply cannot bring himself down to the level of a confessional tone in this self-described tour of a life within journalism.
   
   Schorr has been everywhere and seen everything, from the infamous McCarthy Hearing in the early fifties to the erection of the Berlin Wall in the early sixties; from the events surrounding the Kennedy assassination to the tumult in Chicago at the 1968 Democratic convention; from the coverage of Watergate to the break-up of the Soviet Union. Throughout all this he has rubbed shoulders with all of the titans of media news, from Edward R. Murrow to Dan Rather, from Douglas Kiker to Sam Donaldson, and from Ted Turner to Walter Cronkite.

   He has also been a witness to much of the history of the 20th century, having rubbed shoulders with everyone from Nikita Krushchev to President Eisenhower, from Charles DeGaulle to Marshall Tito, from Lyndon Johnson to John F. Kennedy, from George Bush to Bill Clinton. This is a wonderful book, and one I am sure you will enjoy as much as I did. It serves to remind us that a man of purpose, principle, and conscience can still act in accord with his ethics and values and succeed in the world of electronic journalism. Enjoy!




2. I was most impressed by "Staying Tuned". This book is Daniel Schorr's auto-biography of his many decades in journalism. Few people have had the opportunity to be the eyewitness to history that Schorr has had. Schorr was present to cover Nikita Khruschev and the De-Stalinization movement in Russia. He was present to cover post-nazi Germany under Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. He was able to cover aspects of the "Great Society" under Lyndon Johnson. Also, he was there during Watergate and was sufficiently critical of the Nixon Administration to make the White House "enemies list".

   Schorr's ability to communicate directly with the personalities such as Khruschev, former Yugoslavian President Tito, and Chancellor Adenauer of West Germany was most impressive. Clearly these were the days before journalism became swollen with hordes of "news hungry" reporters. I doubt any correspondent today could get as much access to similar political and public figures.

   While dealing with earth-shaking events and personalities, the book also touches on Schorr's day-to-day existence. Difficulties such as avoiding taxes in the Soviet Union, obtaining a refrigerator, and functioning in a communist country are interesting, as well as amusing. One also is touched by the descriptions of the people in foreign countries who worked for him.

   Schorr viewed Johnson's "Great Society" programs as failing because the administration gave up on them, and reduced funding due to the demands of the Vietnam War. He rejects the conservative ideology that the programs failed because they were inherently flawed in some fashion. Its refreshing to hear another viewpoint besides the one that seems to be parroted constantly.

   Its clear that Daniel Schorr is a person who by practicing his occupation as a journalist in a courageous and intelligent fashion, contributed much to American Democracy. The American people cannot make informed and sound decisions without good information from journalists. The First Amendment guarantee of "freedom of the press" would mean little without tough-minded journalists pursuing stories of national importance. God bless Daniel Schorr as he reaches his golden years of life. One only hopes there are other courageous men and women who will take his place.




3. Before reading this book I already believed that Daniel Schorr was America's finest broadcast journalist. But my admiration has only increased. This book accomplishes what I had only hoped the memoirs of other famous broadcast journalists (e.g. Ted Koppel, Walter Cronkite, and David Brinkley) would.

   Like those other journalists, Schorr has been very close to a remarkable number of the defining events of the last half century. But his writing seems harder-hitting, as much historical as journalistic, and he seems to be two levels deeper in understanding and perspective than they were in their books. I felt in the middle of the events with Schorr, not watching them at 30,000 feet. Perhaps it is the difference between the perspective of the man at the scene, compared to that of the anchorman. Schorr's immense knowledge of Nikita Khrushchev and (separately) of Richard Nixon are absolutely outstanding.

   The book demands a lot from the reader. Not everything is told sequentially, and not all the background material is explained. Schorr seems to expect you to remember many of the events and issues yourself; his job is to add depth, perspective, and detail. Younger readers who don't remember the 50's, 60's, or 70's, will be challenged by the book. Those who do remember those decades, will be immensely impressed, educated, and enriched




4. Daniel Schorr's book about his life makes you crave for more people like him in journalism. It is refreshing to see another person of the news media community write about the decaying values of broadcasting.

   I found it interesting that Daniel Schorr actually read his own name on Nixon's enemy list over the air upon seeing it for the first time. Yet, Schorr kept his professional composure by avoiding making himself the story, while being personally shaken, shocked and dismayed over it. This is what a true professional does when reporting to the public. The story is important not himself and Schorr did just that on that day. Today we have few Daniel Schorr's in news television.

   At the same time, the press and media over the Clinton Impeachment crisis actually damaged themselves and our Republic far more than any kind of attack on first amendment rights. What was right in reporting on Nixon should never be ignored on Clinton. The public to this day no longer trust mainstream broadcasting due to this spinning cover up.

   The mass media had far too many accomplices not reporting the truth in order to support a president who intentionally lied on TV and under oath to the American people. A Clinton's enemy list of actions and false spin without media challenge is far more sinister than a Nixon public exposed enemies lists. We can expose the known listings of people but it is the hidden agenda that is far more dangerous to our freedoms.

   Additionally, the author confirms that TV Journalists are not particularly qualified as far as educational credentials to report the news. In the book he confirms that today's TV News Readers are hired based on their looks and delivery. We know this to be true by CNN recently hiring of a "B Movie Actress" who once posed nude to further her acting career. Does CNN really expects us to believe there are not many well qualified women with educational degrees and much more journalistic experience exists?

   It gave me the reason why the O'Reilly Factor is so popular because O'Reilly did go back and acquired an Masters Degree at Harvard in order to discuss the issues for the better public edification. As opposed to the lack of real educational credentials of the three big networks News Readers. O'Reilly's rating are through the roof while Brohaw, Jennings and Rather are in steep decline. Schorr adds that today's "News Readers" are part of entertainment not real news.

   What I found refreshing in the book is Schorr's candor, character and vision. He is telling us where he has been and what he felt as he reported events. He is conveying news entertainment can never preserve the public trust. In the future will the mass media be smart enough to tell us the truth or stupid enough to just accept the spin? We already know this answer based upon who is in broadcasting today. Schorr was an example of a fine past and hopefully O'Reilly is the future.

   This is quite remarkable but then again Daniel Schorr is quite a remarkable man and dying breed of upright newsmen disappearing from the media. This genuine view of the life of a true professional who did the media proud over the years is worth your time to read it.




5. What could be worse than trying to find words adequate to describe the memoir of one of the finest journalists this country (and perhaps Europe as well) has known? Anyone who laments the ratings competition... among the various news media today will find this book inspiring and refreshing, and perhaps shed a layer or two of their cynicism in the process. Schorr's career routinely landed him in the midst of incredibly historical circumstances, sometimes without his realizing the enduring importance of the situation. This book is a rare historical journey for anyone interested in current events. For this 48 year old reader, it was better than any history course I've ever taken. We would have more hope for a fair, accurate and trusted media if every journalist - and would be journalist - read this book. Thank you Mr. Schorr!

5 comments about Whitewash: What the Media Won't Tell You About Hillary Clinton, but Conservatives Will.

1. If you want to wake up from the slumber that the media helps induce, then read this book. You get a new perspective from all the documented facts about lies and scandals that this book reveals about the Clintons (Hillary in particular). Definitely an educational read!



2. The depth and breadth of the liberal media's concerted effort to ignore (that is, refuse to report) the serious crimes these two loathsome people have committed, is both astounding and contemptible. If Bill Clinton had not been either governor or president at the time several sexual assaults were committed (Juanita Broderick, Paula Jones, Kathleen Willey), he would be a registered sex offender. As Bozell points out, not only are these three women lifelong Democrats with no reason to lie whatsoever, there are dozens more people with first-hand knowledge of the Clintons' crimes that the media also does its best to ignore. Yes, everybody is lying and poor Bill and Hillary are innocent victims. Please.
   
   The same liberals (in the media and elsewhere) who refuse to see or report the truth about the Clintons would be the first ones to get up on a soapbox and scream bloody murder if a Republican did 1/100th of what these two cretins have done.
   
   The nation of "Honest Abe" has now become the land of "Sleazy Hillary" and "Sex Offender Bill".



3. Read the book before you trust your life and your country to a woman who is dishonest, at least.



4. If you are an extremely right wing, college age, young Republican, you'll find "cool" stuff to cheer this little book.
   
   There is really nothing of substance in this book.
   
   Definitely read through a couple of chapters of this book at a bookstore before even CONSIDERING a purchase, because Bozell's stuff tends to be very low-brow, almost Limbaugh-esque.



5. Whitewash: What the Media Won't Tell You About Hillary Clinton, but Conservatives Will
   This book is truly a must read!
   This presents what I have all ready read about Hillary
   and more.
   This makes me angry not just at Hillary and Bill Clinton for their totally
   corrupt behavior, but I have to say I am angrier at the National
   media who have continuely given them a free pass when obvious proof
   was avaiable of their guilt. They have betrayed the American people.

4 comments about I Celebrate Myself: The Somewhat Private Life of Allen Ginsberg.

1. There are now many biographies of Allen Ginsberg. Shumacher's Dharma Lion stands out as a particular favorite, and the book-length poem by Ed Sanders is not to be overlooked. Most take a bird's-eye view of this poet and his life. Because of his long personal relationship with Ginsberg as his archivist and bibliographer, Morgan stood closer to his subject, both personally and through his access to the prolific journals Ginsberg diligently kept from the age of eleven to the end of his life, than any previous biographer has, or any future biographer is likely to.
   
   The result is a biography whose intimacy and authority are unparalleled. For or some at least, this will be a decidedly mixed blessing. Those with a strong aversion to sexual revelation and description will be distracted if not put off, for Ginsberg was possessed of a ruthless, at times self-defeating, candor in all matters sexual, as readers familiar with his poetry will know. But, as Morgan shows, he was equally candid in all other areas of his life and feeling.
   
   He was also deeply flawed, persistently naive and hopeful about the numerous lifelong friends he made in his days at Columbia and shortly thereafter: Kerouac, a drunk Republican mama's-boy and anti-semite, whose friendship Ginsberg treasured and whose work he championed to long after Kerouac's death; Huncke, who mooched and stole from him repeatedly; Burroughs, who, for a time lusted after him, but at others was inaccessible and gratuitously mean to Ginsberg's life partner, Peter Orlovsky; Cassady, an insatiable womanizer and artful dodger, or worse; Corso, who embarrassed and abused him often; and Orlovsky himself, heterosexual, chronically unstable and addicted to alcohol and amphetamines, and not infrequently interpersonally and physically destructive. To all of these, and to scores if not hundreds of others, Ginsberg's loyalty, generosity, and his efforts to support them financially and promote their work and enhance their lives never wavered. In his close personal relationships, Ginsberg could be, and often was, a fool, but he was not a fair-weather friend. Among the flaws that Morgan addresses and clarifies was Ginsberg's peculiar and persistent blind spot for women, their strengths, virtues, and talents. Even those close to him, not rarely in love with him, could in important ways escape his notice.
   
   In fairly documenting his flaws, however, Morgan's treatment does not throw Ginsberg's virtues into shadow. His intense interest in all things human, his passionate commitment to free speech and unfettered thought and social justice and, some will be surprised, his patriotism, all come through. But what comes through most powerfully is the loving pains he took to care for others, more often than not one-at-a-time. Undivided attention, a meal, a place to stay, the reading of a poet's work brought to him for comment, his personal responses to virtually all the letters sent to him, from friend and stranger alike; Ginsberg cared and gave.
   
   Until the last very few years of his life, and despite the popularity of his books, readings, and recordings, Ginsberg was chronically close to poverty, on many occasions simply broke, and sometimes temporarily stranded. Even when his income was nominally adequate, he bought his clothing in second-hand stores, rescued his friends again and again and again, and made up the difference. As he supported his friends, sometimes over many years, he supported numerous younger poets and writers, as well as working tirelessly to benefit the many causes, programs, and institutions he cared about; he gave and gave and gave.
   
   In the end, Morgan's biography, its chapters proceeding year by year, covers the life of a great poet who was not less a man of truly heroic love and candor, a flawed human being who can stand as a model and a beacon for that which is most tender and dear in each of us.



2. Bill Morgan's new book about the poet Allen Ginsberg, "I Celebrate Myself", rates at the top of my favorites list. I was immediately captivated when I read in the Introduction about an incident where Ginsberg saw a poor woman who was about to be attacked by an angry dog.Ginsberg went to her and asked,"Would you like a fig newton?" From then on I couldn't stop reading.
   The book is full of many interesting facts about Ginsberg's life and poetry.His writings represent the turbulence of the cultural revolution of the time and this book is a wonderful testament to this eccentric and unique writer's talent. I applaud and congratulate Bill Morgan for his superb book.



3. Its obvious that Bill Morgan had access to alot of primary materials in writing this biography of Allen Ginsberg, which is clearly a labor of love for the author. And rightly so. Ginsberg's humanity shines thru on these pages - generosity, kindness, creativity, eccentricity, but mostly a dedication to live fully and richly without excuse.
   
   I didnt know much of Ginsberg before I read the book; he seemed at best a minor talent in a discipline I knew little about, at worst a mentally ill crank. But Morgan's book drew me in deeper and deeper, and I soon saw the genius of Ginsberg, a genuis manifested in both his art and his life, which I assume Ginsberg would say were one and the same. In this age of greedy hucksters passing as 'artists', Ginsberg was the real deal. A fascinating human being in the best sense of the word.
   
   Thank you Mr Morgan for such a labor of love.



4. I highly recommend Bill Morgan's "I Celebrate Myself", a biography of the late poet, Allen Ginsberg, a "Beat Generation" writer. Bill Morgan allows the reader to understand and appreciate, in such an interesting narrative, Ginsberg's unique style of poetry. I was truly captivated by this poet's life and work that the book seemed to be much shorter than it actually was. In addition to the title "I Celebrate Myself" from Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass," I especially enjoyed Bill Morgan's innovative approach of describing occurrences in Ginsberg's personal life that influenced his writing by placing in the margins of the book, the titles of the poems that Ginsberg was writing at the time. This creates for the reader an immediate interest and desire to read Ginsberg's poetry. "I Celebrate Myself" was a joy and adventure to read, and I learned so much about this sensitive, brilliant, and compassionate poet of the twentieth century. Fascinating Book!!

2 comments about Somebody's Gotta Tell It: The Upbeat Memoir of a Working-Class Journalist.

1. This is a very evocative and entertaining autobiography that vividly recreats newfield's childhood and coming of age as a working class radical journalist and student activist in the 60s. Newfield seemed to know everyone who was anyone in the 60s and was was closely involved in the creation of SDS. Newfield also provides us great stories about the four things he loves most and writes about best: baseball, boxing, jazz and -- of course -- New York CIty. A lovely book, full of Runyonesque character.



2. Newfield has to be one of the most humorless journalists who ever wrote about the 60's. He calls this an upbeat memoir but I found it a downer. It's a lot of self congratulation with same old cliches and no real thoughtfulness. The world has changed and passed Newfield by. It's all been done before and far better too. Spare yourself.

3 comments about American Character : Curious Life of Charles Fletcher Lummis and the Rediscovery of the Southwest.

1. I live within walking distance of Lummis' home El Alisal. It's fitting that it perches on the edge of what was the Arroyo Seco (dry gulch) whose raw beauty had attracted Lummis and early settlers. And symbolic in that the world's first freeway rushes past it now. In fact, El Alisal faced demolition until preservationists--always outnumbered in L.A.--saved the site. Lummis gave his adopted city a complicated heritage: he boosted its Spanish Californian image and so lured many newcomers who overwhelmed the vistas of fragile arroyo, hills and valleys with millions more homes. The millions clogged the roads, and so freeways followed, along the riverbeds now encased in concrete.
   
   Mark Thompson's biography follows that assembled two decades earlier by Lummis' daughter and edited by his son from Lummis' own manuscripts, and one biography from the mid-70s that dwelt on Lummis but with far less access to personal papers. Thompson has access, and has used his resources well to more fully explore the complexity of a truly memorable character whose legacy spanned the Southwest, as he sought to preserve and conserve Native American artifacts and cultures as well as restore the California missions, create a world-class municipal library, write for what became the city's leading newspaper, and still found time to build El Alisal from boulders in the arroyo, hold there wonderfully wacky parties, carry on love affairs, conduct archeological research, ruin three marriages, keep a menagerie of animals and people at his home, and roam off from it on even more travels that followed his first publicity stunt--he sought sponsorship by keeping a travelogue weekly sent to newspapers in an early commercial tie-in for one who sought celebrity-- on his "tramp across the continent" (or most of it!) to Los Angeles from Chillicothe, Ohio, a Harvard dropout at 25 in 1888.
   
   Naturally an exciting story, but Thompson digs deeper into how Lummis reflected but overcame some of the prejudices common to the East Coast elite from whose lower ranks he came, and how he struggled with a tempestuous personal life and a libido that created tension, led to an early stroke, and led him on even more intimate adventures much less documented. The readable yet thoroughly documented text reads at a brisk pace; all facets of Lummis' many angles gain clarity. Well-chosen photos capture the idiosyncracies of this unforgettable sombrero-bright green corduroy suit-and-Navajo belt attired eccentric, who did so much to both sustain and unwittingly erase the traces of the Spanish and Native California he came to love.



2. Charles Lummis is a very interesting person in American and Southwest history, but author Thompson goes way beyond what most biographers would do and produced a richly researched and highly readable story. I read this book in my car, under a streetlight, while my wife attended a Christmas function. Does that tell you how interesting it is? I've passed Lummis's home/museum thousands of times but never visited--now I will.



3. Mark Thompson's long & deeply researched biography of a forgotten, complex American born just before the Civil War, is fascinating. Over a long & restless life, Charles Lummis became a poet, prolific letter writer, journalist, photographer, archaeologist, editor, champion of Spanish heritage in the Americas, & Indian Rights advocate - the classic workaholic of the late 19th & early 20th Centuries.

   It was his TRAMP ACROSS THE CONTINENT in 1884, which he weekly serialized in newspaper articles, that catapulted him into the public's eye. In time, as his assignments for the newly-formed Los Angeles Times, took him deeper into the Southwest which would capture his heart & soul, & closer to the American Indians for whom he would advocate mightily, he caught the ear of a President. Theodore Roosevelt came to consider Lummis a vital part of his "cowboy cabinet," & often invited him to Washington. Lummis enjoyed a life-long influence, via his editorials & many books, on the way Americans thought of themselves.

   In this era of bland plasticity, AMERICAN CHARACTER, reminds us of how individualistic, passionate, offensive & charming our forefathers were. It also reminds us of how devastating was our impact upon the people & the land in a time when a man could bemoan the wholesale slaughter of buffalo & Indians, while not batting an eye as he shot other critters just for the thrill of it!

   In the light of today's political correctness, Charles Fletcher Lummis' love life was as gilded with misogyny as you would expect from a man of his time - he kept his first marriage secret all through his Harvard years. As in every other aspect of his life, his thirst for affection & companionship was both utilitarian & fascinatingly eccentric.

   AMERICAN CHARACTER: Charles Fletcher Lummis & the Rediscovery of the Southwest, has been named by the Western Writers of America as Winner of the 2002 Spur Award in the biography category.

No comments about Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America-and Found Unexpected Peace.

5 comments about The Sound of No Hands Clapping: A Memoir.

1. Toby Young is still starstruck. Following on from his ill fated adventures at society gloss mag, Vanity Fair in Manhattan, chronicled in How to Lose Friends and Alienate People (the movie based on that coming out later this year), Toby returns to London with aspirations to make it as a screenwriter.
   
   Unfortunately for Toby, he lacks either the talent or the dedication to achieve genuine success. On the cusp of fatherhood, he muses greatly on the 'pram in the hall' theory of literature, how his family commitments will deny him the time to write, even though he has no great literary ideas anyway - the sure fire symptoms of a wannabe writer who sure as hell ain't gonna make it. Toby sort of knows this, and compensates by being a brat in the media establishment with a hysterical penchant for getting people's backs up and saying the wrong thing.
   
   In this volume, Toby is older and wiser, and his voice in self deprecating status anxiety hits a nice tone (some great riffs, such as when his wife drags him away by the ear from a mid air champagne rendezvous with Gordon Ramsay) . The only trouble is - now that he is so good at it, can he really continue to parlay this brand of loser lit and not make it seem affected?
   
   He is truly mingling with the high life now, with movie on the way. As Boris Johnson (one of the many media luminaries portrayed in this book) said, when removing his 'no life' Spectator column, the jig on that is well and truly up.



2. While not quite at the level of "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People," I found myself laughing out loud quite a few times while reading this one. However, I must say I was almost disappointed to see Toby becoming somewhat more of a nice guy towards the end!



3. Boring, not as good as the first one. Would make you think the first one was a bore too. Sorry Toby.



4. After reading first book, "how to Lose friends ..." Disappointed with second book from Toby Young. thru out book references to "my First" book. and what was humorous in his first becomes annoying in the second.



5. We learn in this witty self-deprecating memoir that it is vulgar and uncool to say "the Industry" when referring to Hollywood films; we must say "the Business." This is one of many funny lessons Toby Young learns when, minding his own business in London, he gets a strange call from a mysterious unnamed Hollywood producer who, having read Toby Young's first book How To Lose Friends And Alienate People, wants Young to write a screenplay about an obscure entertainment figure. Enticed at the prospect of making millions in Hollywood, Young disgruntles his new wife with his chimera quest. The book alternates between Young's Hollywood fiascos and his marital tumult, including the birth of of his first child. The most priceless moments are his correspondences with his friend, the Hollywood writer Rob Young, who teaches him, among other things, how to take a Business Lunch and the "vast repertoire of hand gestures" needed for equals, higher ups, and super bigwigs. These funny moments are part of Young's growing-up process as he becomes disenchanted with the Hollywood Beast. This has the same self-deprecating humor as his first book. For another memoir of disenchantment, check out The Working Stiff's Manifesto by Iaian Levison.

No comments about You Must Remember This: A Reporter's Odyssey from Camelot to Glastnost.

No comments about The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.