1 comments about Sunday Driver: The Writer Meets the Road--at 175 MPH.

1. As a club racer this book has inspired me the most. The insight (as far as I know) of racing, the people and the stress of a racing driver alone in the car is exact. This book covers one racers career from racing school to a couple of pro Trans-Am races. And the chapter of the first race as a mechanic for a new Trans-Am team is a must to read for every aspiring race car owner (/driver). The chapter on the 'fair' test of the 70's musclecars is a good insight into how to bend rules. Reprint it, my copy is falling apart.

No comments about John Edward Bruce: Politician, Journalist, and Self-Trained Historian of the African Diaspora.

2 comments about Rebel With a Cause: P.D. East, Southern Liberalism and the Civil Rights Movement, 1953-1971.

1. Over the years Gary L. Huey has proved himself to be one of the most influential philosophers, teachers, and writers in America history. In this writer's honest opinion, Huey's 200 page masterpiece, "A Rebel with a Cause," could be the most significant piece of literature of the past century. "Rebel" has directly influenced many of today's greatest authors including James Frey, who has said that Huey's impactful depiction of the Civil Rights Movement inspired him to to write his best-selling memoir "A Million Little Pieces." Although Huey may never again match the success of "Rebel", I'm sure that Huey will continue to inspire greatness for generations to come.



2. This book is the finest piece of literature ever produced in the long history of man. The author's hip writing style and keen sense of soccer strategy help him to portray the hardships of the American south during this time period. Plus, if you don't read this book you'll probably go to hell.

5 comments about Without Reservations: The Travels of an Independent Woman.

1. Based on the summary the book sounded amazing for someone like me, who aspires to travel everywhere! To me this book seems like a pre-cursor or more mature version of a 2006 (I think?) book entitle Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert.
   
   Parts of this book were a bit slow to me & while it is supposed to be a documentary of Steinbach's life with some advice worked in, I found certain parts hard to relate to. Specifically, Steinbach constantly refers to her childhood memories & imagines relatives of her past in her [then] present situations. I am 25 so am not @ the same point she is/was, which is why I'd say this book is more "mature". I just could not connect MY family/MY emotions with HER relatives & HER personal memories.
   
   Nonetheless, there are some wonderful life lessons that anyone, of any age, can take away from this book. Likewise, Steinbach artfully mixes in traveling advice. Last, I liked that she covered typical, popular cities (i.e. Paris) for traveling but also undiscovered, off-the-beaten-path cities as well! I would recommend this and/or read again, just not a favorite.



2. Without Reservations by Alice Steinbach looked like a good book as I strolled through Barnes n Noble bookstore one afternoon. So I bought it and couldn't wait to get home and start reading it. I think I got maybe halfway through it before the sheer boredom nearly knocked me out. I have several issues with this book and I'm going to address all of them.
   
   First, I am 30 years old. The writer of this book is potentially in her 40s or 50s and I wasn't too interested or excited by her lifestyle. Separated with kids is not appealing to me. There was not even a remote stitch of sensualness to her character - to me, it was reading the boring travels of a middle aged woman - and sometimes, it felt like she was already in her 70s.
   
   Second, no one I know travels to Europe and just walks into cafe's and meets and makes friends that easily. As much as I'd like to talk to others, I'm also very careful when I'm in a foreign country. I found it hard to believe that she made all these perfect friendships everywhere she went.
   
   Third, the Japanese man she had a "relationship" with. It was never outright stated whether they had sex and most of the time she spent describing scenery when they were together. A virtual sleep fest. Again, this made the author appear to be in her 70s.
   
   Fourth, once she left Paris - I tried to continue reading on for the London and Italy journeys but I must admit the lack of dialogue and overall lack of interest kept me from doing this. She spent eight pages being ill and talking about that...and I was bored to tears.
   
   I recently travelled for business and brought the book with me in the hopes I could finish it on the plane. I could barely read through it and had wished instead that I bought a glossy magazine. As I exited the airport, I threw the book away. $14.95 ill spent dollars and I refuse to tolerate that.
   
   I will not buy anything further from this author.



3. This was one of those books that I did not want to end. I enjoyed hearing about the author's travels and her experiences. I found her to be interesting and curious about the places and the people she encountered. She shared her experiences and her feelings in an intimate and friendly way. I look forward to reading her other books.



4. There is a lot to say about Steinbach's travel memoir. Unfortunately, most of it isn't good. The author tries to use allusions (mostly of the literary kind) that stick out awkwardly in the prose and are usually inappropriate; her metaphors are forced and distract the reader from the storyline. Many of her observations are corny, and the conversations and people she meets seem contrived and unrealistic. I'm not sure it's possible to create that many close personal friendships without the use of exaggeration. Steinbach has a grating way of using colons (which, believe it or not, is actually something one begins to notice because it is so irritating). Furthermore, she continuously dumbs down the reader with constant repetition and explanations of siutations that are very easy to understand. Steinbach also has a knack for creating a problem or drama where there is none - for instance, this gem: "The problem was, the Amalfi Coast was almost too much of a good thing," which prompted two paragraphs filled with a dilemma that was neither valid nor interesting. Overall, this book is forgettable. The secondary characters (believabilty aside) are more interesting than the author, and some of the images (when not being overused) are worth seeking out. Otherwise, the consumer should feel free to find something else, and not waste one's time on a piece of repetitious claptrap.



5. I think the title is odd because Alice Steinbach definitely had reservations about going on the trip and she made most of her overnight reservations before she left.
   
   A very pleasant book, but it really isn't about being alone--it's more about the people she met. Which is fine because that's what made the book interesting sometimes. Her dreams, earlier regrets, and postcards to herself are perfect for the nights when it's hard to get to sleep.
   
   I enjoyed reading about her romance with the Japanese gentleman. Actually, I've been to Japan many times and was astonished by it. I also loved her story about the young woman she met in Italy who was to be married soon. That was excellent.
   
   All-in-all, it's a pleasant and well written read and I felt as though the author could be a friend. Maybe because I'm about the age now that she was when she was on the trip. It might have been a wonderful adventure for her, but for me it was just a sweet travel memoir.

5 comments about Larry L. King: A Writer's Life in Letters, Or, Reflections in a Bloodshot Eye.

1. Judging from these often humorous, sometimes poignant, but always brash and candid letters, it is probably safe to assume that few writers have had such widely varied experiences as has Larry L. King. Spanning over 40 years, King's fascinating and provocative letters--along with his no-holds-barred reminiscences interspersed among them--provide a virtual autobiography of this novelist, playwright, essayist, and commentator. What makes this epistolary volume especially interesting is that King suffers no fools lightly, appears to be intimidated by no one, and is always ready to prick the balloons of the famous--and oftentimes pompous. (His accounts of working with actor Burt Reynolds and dancer Tommy Tune are particularly hilarious.



2. Parents of small children desperately need sleep, so I cannot recommend that they read this book--it has kept me awake for two nights in a row. It's as hard to put down as any thriller, and a whole lot funnier than most.



3. King's book of letters take you inside the heart and head of one of America's most perceptive and humorous writers. Roy Blount once said that King writes like an angel would if it grew up in West Texas and drank. It's hard to improve on Blount's assessment. King's rollicking missives, directed to friends, family, politicians, critics, and fellow writers offer a fascinating portrait of the writing life. There's also the vicarious thrill of reading someone else's mail. Stories range from fellow author William Styron's run-in with "Mexican boo-smoke" to King's feud with the "alleged actor Burt Reynolds." The fact that a book this interesting has been published by a university press instead of a major trade house is as indicative as anything of the sorry state of affairs in the publishing industry these days. King's book, like himself, defies the mold.



4. This book takes the reader inside the head and heart of a working writer and reveals the triumphs and the despair that are staples of a writer's life. There are a lot of famous people in it, too.



5. Larry L. King is an American hero. His work should be required reading for anyone who even thinks about the writing life. He ought to win the Nobel Prize, but then, he's a Texan so probably doesn't qualify.

No comments about Drunk Before Noon: The Behind-The-Scenes Story of the Washington Press Corps.

5 comments about Into My Own: The Remarkable People and Events That Shaped a Life.

1. I can't put Roger Kahn's book down. His writing style is personal yet detached, and he is as unkind to himself at times as he is to others. He is in his eighties now, and reviews the people and events that impacted his life. He has not grown softer with age, and still has his signature sharpness. His sportswriting and journalistic career are the backdrops from which he travels through life, but all of us on our own pathways can benefit from reading his struggles and observations.



2. The author of the classic The Boys of Summer reveals his life story via a select few main influences, from his journalistic mentor Stanley Woodward to Jackie Robinson and finally to his late son, Roger, Jr. Books like these often provide glimpses into lives we know mostly from a public non-intimate perspective. In Into My Own, we get a deeper revelation about the heroism of Jackie Robinson as the first black player in major league baseball as well as insight into his full humanity. The same can be said for all the other protagonists in Kahn's memoir, including his first wife. There is some sadness that lingers from the narrative, particularly the lack of closeness between Kahn and his mother, and especially the passing of his son, but there are also moments of triumph and joy in everyday life.



3. Roger Kahn is one of the greatest sportswriters of the century, and in this memoir he does what all great sportswriters do--bring the readers into the story. Although this is a memoir, Kahn focuses not on himself (which is in itself refreshing), but on the people he loved and worked with. The first chapter is as much about the Herald Tribute as it is editor Stanley Woodward, who taught Kahn his craft. As Kahn moves on professionally we get to know Pee Wee Reese, Jackie Robinson and Robert Frost. Even when Kahn exposes his deepest feelings in the heartwrenching chapter describing the gradual deterioration of his son, the story focuses on young Roger.
   
   This is really an elegant, moving book that everyone should read even if they've never heard of the Brooklyn Dodgers or the Herald Tribune.



4. The English poet Alfred Lord Tennyson once wrote, "I am a part of all that I have met." Roger Kahn has provided us with a heartfelt tribute on those individuals who have influenced him throughout his adult life. Stanley Woodword, his mentor at the New York Herald Tribune, teammates Pee Wee Reese and Jackie Robinson on the Brooklyn Dodgers, poet Robert Frost, polititian Eugene McCarthy, and his late son Roger Laurence Kahn are all written about in a way that author Roger Kahn can use his skill as a writer to bring these people who have special meaning to him to life. Anecdotes not found in other baseball books are included here such as Dodger pitcher Orel Hershier's kindness to Roger's late son, Dodgers' owner Walter O'Malley sending a note of warning to the author when Kahn's late wife, Joan, had her nose broken by a batted ball while sitting in the stands, Jackie Robinson suppressing anger and quietly telling a teammate to deal the cards when pitcher Hugh Casey described what folks in the south used to do when good luck was needed. Kahn interviewing Robert Frost with the poet calmly describing his son's suicide little knowing that he, himself, would have to face the same tribulation lurking in the future. We all have people who have influenced our life in a positive manner, and Roger Kahn's sincerity fills the book on those who have touched his life. This is a book that will appeal to anyone who enjoys good writing whether you are familiar with Roger Kahn's previous books or not.



5. Roger Kahn has been writing about sports and other topics for more than half a century, but it was only with THE BOYS OF SUMMER, his watershed account of the Brooklyn Dodgers, that he became a household name and a standardbearer for similar endeavors.
   
   The product of an intellectual New York home, Kahn grew into a curious, if not exactly academically motivated, young man. School was tolerated, not embraced, until his father arranged an interview for him with the Herald Tribune. Thus began a long career in journalism, writing about other people and issues. With INTO MY OWN, he invites the reader into a personal world, focusing on several individuals who were influential in his life and work.
   
   Among these are Stanley Woodward, his boss, mentor and friend, who challenged him to be not just another sportswriting hack. Kahn looks back fondly on his salad days as a young copyboy who broke into the ranks of the ink-stained wretches, earning more increasingly important assignments until he became the Dodgers' beat reporter.
   
   Since the Brooklyn team was his ticket to middle-aged fame, it is fitting that two of the key members of the team receive significant attention: Harold "Pee Wee" Reese and Jackie Robinson.
   
   Reese, the shortstop and captain, was a Southerner who literally embraced the African-American Robinson in full view of hate-spewing racists, thereby setting an example of gentility, cooperation, tolerance and friendship. Robinson was a more fiery personality and gave Kahn the opportunity to learn about the difficulties of being a black man in America on several levels. These relationships lasted long after the players had retired.
   
   Kahn was more than a one-trick pony, however; he also wrote about "serious" subjects, such as politics and his Jewish heritage (THE PASSIONATE PEOPLE). He also recalls relationships with the likes of Eugene McCarthy and the poet Robert Frost.
   
   The most touching chapter, however, is painfully personal: the difficult life and premature death of his son, Roger Laurence, a suicide at 23. Roger L. was the product of a "broken home" following the divorce between Kahn and his second wife, Alice. The author does not mince words as he writes about their tenuous relationship, which deteriorated when his son was quite young. Despite numerous therapists and private schools (including a controversial boarding school), Roger L. sank deeper into bipolar problems, much to his father's helpless distress.
   
   --- Reviewed by Ron Kaplan

4 comments about Ring: A Biography of Ring Lardner.

1. Jonathn Yardley has written the most gutless autobiography of the last twenty years. Whatever you think of his literary gifts, (I think they were marginal at best) Ring Lardner was unquestionably a hopeless alcoholic, a spineless lackey of baseball management, and an all around second rate punk. Yardley does an amazing job of NOT addressing unpleasant issues in the life of Ring Lardner.
   
   LARDNER, THE MODEL FAMILY MAN. Yardley reports with a straight face that Ring was a "wonderful" father and a "devoted" husband. Then he details year after year of destructive, compulsive binge drinking -- as if that didn't damage Lardner's relationships with his wife and sons. For the record, alcoholics make lousy fathers.
   
   LARDNER, THE GREAT SPORTS WRITER. Yardley insists that Ring was "one of the all time greats" along with Grantland Rice, Fred Lieb, and all the other lying drunks. But, right along with them, Ring Lardner steered a gutless course throughout his career, never challenging the status quo. Yardley never even hints that there were major baseball issues Lardner refused to touch even after he attained the heights of eminence. Negroes were barred from major league baseball. Did Ring Lardner approve or disapprove? Gutless and silent. The White Sox were underpaid for years. Did Lardner approve or disapprove? Gutless and silent. The Reserve Clause made players slaves of management. Did Lardner approve or disapprove? Gutless and silent.
   
   Yardley is the kind of bully-boy white conservative who can sneer at a genuine American icon like Elvis Presley for being a drug addict, but is determined to see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil when it comes to a spineless alcoholic -- sorry, I mean a great American writer -- like Ring Lardner.



2. Yardley remains one of the best critics of American literature around, and this book does Ring justice. You may enjoy this book if you're interested in the period (America from the teens to the 30s), but it's mostly for those who have read Lardner's fiction and nonfiction and want to know more. I'd recommend you read it alongside the memoir written by his son Ring, Jr: The Lardners: A Family Remembered. Both books are wonderful, entertaining tributes to a great American writer.



3. Ring Lardner began his career as a sports journalist, writing mostly about BASEBALL. He had his first literary success with stories about a BASEBALL player. There is a good case to be made that BASEBALL events like the Black Sox Scandal greatly affected his world view. So guess what? Any biography of Ring Lardner is going to have a lot of stuff about BASEBALL in it! Kind of like a biography of George Patton might mention the army here and there.

   Jonathan Yardley sets the stage with a 38 page section about baseball as Lardner knew it. If you're allergic to baseball you can skip this part. The other 362 pages of text mention baseball no more than is necessary to tell Ring's story. Mostly this is an affectionate, critically insightful, well written biography of a vastly influential and still funny American writer who is sadly neglected today. Includes a decent sampling of Ring's newspaper journalism and personal letters.




4. I was delighted to finally find a biography of Ring Lardner. I had read all his stories, and the "You Know Me Al" articles. I was full of anticipation when I began reading Mr. Yardleys history of early baseball under the guise of a Biography of Ring Lardner. I realize that Ring Lardner wrote about baseball, but Mr. Yardley's coverage of this part of Ring Lardner's life is over done to put it mildly.

   When I read a biography I expect to learn about the details of the individual's life, not baseball stories during the teens.

   Mr. Yardley does cover some very limited events of Ring Lardner's life between his baseball history lessons. If I want to read a book on Baseball history, I would find a book on that subject. While some may find the stories entertaining, I found them boring and over done.

   If you are looking for a Biography of Ring Lardner's life do not buy this book. If you want a early history of Baseball you will be right at home. I rate this book in reality 5 yawns, the only way I could stay awake reading it was on a cross trainer at the gym and even then it was an effort.

5 comments about Brother Sam: The Short, Spectacular Life of Sam Kinison.

1. 
   I remember the national climb of Kinison in the early to mid 80's and saw his breakthrough showing on the Rodney Dangerfield young comic show and also Kinison's own HBO special that shot him to national prominence. This guy was a comic GENIUS of his time.
   This book by his older brother and manager Bill Kinison is a very good insight to the man behind the comedy, shortcomings and all....



2. As I write this review, I'm sitting here listening to an old tape of Sam Kinison appearing on Howard Stern's radio show with Malika and Amy Lynn in 1991.
   
   It's hard to believe that the upcoming April 10, 2006 will mark 14 years since the world lost its last true comic genius. In BROTHER SAM, penned by his brother and fellow preacher Bill Kinison, Sam's life from the humble beginning to the tragic end is recalled in full detail by a man who was by his side for the vast majority of it. While many books about standup comics turn into a simple recount of every but they'd ever performed by the halfway point, BROTHER SAM is different. All of the familiar names from Kinison folklore are here: Seka, Malika and Sabrina, Robin Williams, Jim Carrey, Rodney Dangerfield, Howard Stern, Jessica Hahn... the list goes on.
   
   While the public perception of Sam is that of a screaming renegade former preacher that ridicules Jesus and runs around high and/or liquored up 24/7, Bill tells a vastly different story. Sam is presented as a man who is not perfect but loved those around him. He loves God just as he did while in the ministry but hates the hypocrisy of the Jim Bakker's and Jimmy Swaggert's of the world of money-hungry religion. He did drugs, drank like a fish, and had more women in his bed than most men could ever imagine, and yet after a couple of health scares in 1990 and 1991 he made the effort to slow down, reinvent himself, and turn his life around.
   
   As a Kinison fan who has several of the classic bits virtually memorized, reading the final chapter entitled "Sounds of Silence" was incredibly difficult. It's in those final pages that Bill recounts his eyewitness account of Sam's final hours of life, including the head-on collision that took his life. The ironic twist is that the driver who struck Sam's car was, in fact, a teenaged drunk driver... and it's that fact that resonates with every Kinison fan to this day.
   
   Sam's impact remains with everyone who ever enjoyed his work. When we see the commercials for hunger organizations, we all think (or say), "There wouldn't be world hunger if you people lived where the FOOD IS! YOU LIVE IN A DESERT! NOTHING GROWS OUT HERE!". We still fire off an occasional "Oh OOHHHHHHHHHHHH!" for no good reason when we see something that provides us with proper motivation. He was one of a kind. He was a legend. He is truly missed.
   
   Thanks Sam.



3. I happened to pass by this book at a book store a few years ago. I started to peruse the pages, and before I knew it, I was absolutely hooked. If you're into celebrity biographies, you will definitely love this one. You'll learn about Sam's experiences with various other celebrities and rockstars: his on-and-off again friendship with Howard Stern, his fascination and tumultuous affairs with porn stars and strippers (e.g., Seka and Jessica Hahn), his love for rock and roll, and best of all, his childhood and family and how he developed his trademarked primal scream.
   
   Shortly after I read this, I happened to see the E! TV True Hollywood Story, which felt did not do the man justice, and didn't even touch on his last great love affair.
   
   Not only this, but the book has transcripts of some of Sam's most popular comedy routines. If you loved Sam before, you'll love him even more with this book.



4. Sam Kinison was more than comedy, he was always a very loud voice of reason during bad times. He was also the Rock N' Roll comedian. I first bought his Louder Than Hell tape 16 years ago. I thought it was a rock tape, much in the vain of Guns N Roses or Motley Crue with interesting songs, because that's how he looked. If you would have told me it was stand up comedy I never would have bought it. I listened to it, and I laughed and laughed. I bought everything else Sam I could get my hands on. With the exception of Brother Sam, only because I could never find it. Thanks to Amazon I now own it. The book is great. Although there are no surprises. I always understood Sam, and in my view he lived his life in the open, for better or worse. I admire the fact that Bill didn't try to make Sam's life seem rosy, as is the case with many celebrities after they die. Bill did what Sam would have wanted, just laid his life on the line as it really was. It also has a lot of Rock N' Roll references so it is a trip back in time in that regard as well. Sam took no prisoners. He held no cow sacred. He offended every side equally. All while being a former minister. Most importantly he laughed in the face of tragedy. The best comedy always comes from pain, and Sam made that pain not only bearable but fun. I just wish Sam was alive today. There would be laughter in things we have forgotten how to laugh at. Sam touched it all. So while it is considered un American to laugh at the hypocritical self righteousness of our leaders today, I can always read this book, and listen to the voice of Sam (alot of his material is printed in here.) laugh, and remember the guy who gave comedy and the world a shot in the arm.



5. Sam Kinison's comedy was hard to understand -- if life had never kicked you in the crotch. I couldn't stand the guy, and I didn't think he was funny, until I myself hit some of the same lows he described in his over-the-top routines. This book evenhandedly describes the often sad, heartbreaking life of a very funny man. We miss ya, Sam.

5 comments about A Life on the Road.

1. I enjoyed this book. I remember seeing his show in the last few years it was on. The stories about the show are very inspiring.



2. I once heard Dan Rather on TV talking about his late friend Charles. He admired his uncanny ability to describe everyday experiences of common Americans and make them stand out in a positive way. Rather talked about how Charles went against the grain of network television, when networks were consciously "dumbing down," Charles was trying to appeal to Americans who had read at least one book per month. He had faith in the intellectual capacity of citizens and their ability to help democracy.
   
   This book contains wonderful stories, crafted only in a way Charles could. He saw the everyday heroes in the USA, the heroes who didn't make the headlines, but who mattered a lot in the hearts and minds of many. Charles was trying to be a bright light in a sometimes dark world, and he succeeded.
   
   Give this book as a Christmas present to any friend who truly cares about his country and who is tired of the partisanship that is tearing the nation apart. To call the stories in this book "refreshing" is an extreme understatement.
   
   Jeffrey McAndrew
   author of "Our Brown-Eyed Boy



3. This 316 pages of America isn't the America of the media or of Hollywood or of the headlines of shootings and money-grubbing, cheating and robbing, but of the REAL America. Of honest people and real places, of pride and honor and values that really count.

   Here you'll meet the men who built the Golden Gate Bridge and a doctor who charges whatever his patients can afford. You'll learn about a woman who spends every day of her life cooking and feeding her neighbors because she wants to be a friend to man. These are the true nobility of our country, the real success stories of lives worthy of note and respect. In comparison to these, Bill Gates, Lee Iacocca, Ted Turner pale in significance.

   These are lives fully lived, the promise of the individuals completely realized. They are the human evidence of what happens when a person does unto others as they would have others do unto themselves.

   Sunnye Tiedemann (aka Ruth F. Tiedemann)




4. Kuralt has a wonderful sense of humor. His wit shines through in every page of this book as he tells stories of Americana and his experiences while covering the news in Cuba, South America, Russia... His simple and descriptive style of writing flows by fast and I could vividly imagine his experiences. What were these experiences? Pick up the book. Suffice to say it spans from the story of a simple brick layer he met in rural america to a proud, grumpy soviet ex-pow who had been waiting 40 years to send a message to an old friend in America.

   I put this book down with a great faith in humanity and a deep admiration for Charles Kuralt. He leaves you feeling that this world is filled with thousands and thousands of remarkable stories that are waiting to be discovered and that life is full of opportunities around every corner.




5. The genius of Charles Kuralt--and what makes this book great--is his ability to find insights from the smallest of things, which the rest of us would pass over on the way to more "important" matters. In some ways his life was extraordinary. But in other ways he led a rather conventional life, going from one greased pig competition to the next hoe-down on his rickety bus. He never walked on the moon, or cured a disease, or broke a batting record, or played at Carnegie Hall. But his insights into the simple experiences in life, from a field of wildflowers to the beauty of an autumn day, make A Life On The Road a book to cherish, and return to again and again. I can't recommend this book enough. America lost a true artist when Mr. Kuralt died. He probably never would have been so presumptuous to claim the title for himself, but that's what he was.