5 comments about Life On The Mississippi LP.

1. Twain's account of his years on the Mississippi is part travel book, part memoir, and part historical work, with a few sketches, stories, and tall tales tossed in for good measure. There is even an outtake from the not-yet-published "Huckleberry Finn," along with extensive excerpts from historical and contemporary accounts by other authors. This smorgasbord of material makes for an uneven book, but much of it shows Mark Twain at his humorous and humanistic best.
   
   The kernel of the volume (and its best, most cohesive section) is in chapters 4 through 17; this material appeared in the Atlantic magazine in 1875 and recalls his early life as a crew member on steamboats in the early 1850s. His adventures as a young man are fraught with danger, full of comedy, populated by a number of ornery, mischievous, and reckless characters, and occasionally embellished (although Twain is a bit obvious when he's fobbing off a yarn). As Twain later wrote in "Puddn'head Wilson, "if there was anything better in this world than steamboating, it was the glory to be got by telling about it."
   
   After he published the series in the Atlantic, Twain added another 46 chapters; much of it an account of his homecoming (incognito--or so he'd hoped) to the Mississippi River in 1882, when the steamboat had been rendered obsolete by the railroad. Many of these descriptions are unusually (for Twain) melancholy; he remarks upon the relatively emptiness of the river traffic and notes the transformations to the river and its banks that had made steamboat travel safer but less adventurous. His new journey provides opportunities to relate a number of stories--some allegedly told to him on the river and a few unpublished tales that he deemed relevant and worthy of inclusion.
   
   The material from other sources, unfortunately, tends to bog things down--and there are about 10,000 words of it commingled in the text and included as appendices. Twain gathered newspaper articles and historical documents; he also included travel writing from earlier visitors, primarily Europeans distracted by how Americans and their homes were horribly uncouth and dirty. (You almost get the feeling that Twain would have smacked "the once renowned and vigorously hated" Frances Trollope upside the head if he'd had the chance; she provides Twain with the most interesting, if snooty, descriptions of traveling along the Mississippi early in the century.)
   
   The material Twain wrote, however, more than compensates for the dryness of the extraneous stuff. As always, he is quotable, witty, amusing, and provocative. In spite of its excesses, nobody has done the Mississippi better.



2. Mark Twain (1835-1910) grew up along the banks of the Mississippi River, and he captures the feel of the mighty river during the steamboat era in this superb narrative and memoir. I particularly liked the earlier chapters, as Twain describes his youthful tutelage as an aspiring steamboat pilot in the years before the Civil War. Readers see what it was like guiding a steamboat over a river full of dangerous snags and sandbars - in clear daylight, through thick fog, and on moonless nights. The author then jumps ahead to his middle age - describing life along the river and in the South after the Civil War, and including politics, epidemics, and the supplanting of steamboats by railroads. The book's second half lacks a bit of the magic found earlier, but remains eminently readable and informative. This is a remarkable narrative by a great writer.



3. I've been reading a lot of classic literature recently, and I also recently saw the Mississippi River for the first time...so this book seemed liked the perfect one for me to read right now.
   This is a "non-fictional" book by Mark Twain. (I guess that means based on some truth but embelished in various ways?) In it he recalls the years he spent during his youth as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River. Then he suddenly jumps forward many years in the book to when he is an older man. As an older man, he decides to go back and travel on the Mississippi River again. He finds the river much changed. The course of time (the Civil War has come and gone, the expansion of the railroad, and the forces of nature) have greatly changed life on the river. The once thriving steamboat trade has almost disapeared.
   Besides his personal recollections, he also includes other interesting stories,history,folklore, talltales, and such. It is written in typical Mark Twain style - his dry sense of humor will bring a smile to your face. I really enjoyed this book.



4. This book--at times disjointed, rambling, self-referential, and irreverent--is decades ahead of its time. It's an interdisciplinarian's dream as Twain takes on economics, geography, politics, ancient and contemporary history, and folklore with equal ease. Mostly though, one appreciates his knack for exaggeration, the tall tale, and the outright lie. It's a triumph of tone, as he lets you in on his wild wit, his keen observation, and his penchant for bending the truth without losing his credibility as a guide.

   The book's structure is also modern: He recounts his days as a paddlewheel steam boat "cub," piloting the hundreds of miles of the Mississippi before the Civil War, then, in Part 2, returns to retrace his paddleboat route. Although a few of his many digressions don't work (they sometimes sound formulaic or too detailed) most of the narrative is extremely entertaining. Twain seems caught between admiration and disdain for the "modern" age-but he also rejects over-sentimentality over the past. He writes with beauty and cynicism, verve and humor. Very highly recommended!




5. In Life on the Mississippi, Twain recounts his river experiences from boyhood to riverboat captain and beyond. Encompassing the years surrounding the Civil War, this book is an excellent source of 19th-century Americana as well as an anthology of the mighty river itself. Replete with rascally rivermen, riparian hazards, deluge, catastrophe, and charm, Life on the Mississippi is another of Twain's stellar literary achievements.

   Wit and wisdom are expected from Twain and this book does not disappoint. It is equally valuable for it's period descriptions of the larger river cities (New Orleans, St. Louis, St. Paul), as well as the small town people and places ranging the length of America's imposing central watershed.

   The advent of railroads signalled the end of the Mississipi's grand age of riverboat traffic, but, never fear, Life on the Mississippi brings it back for the reader as only Samuel Clemens can. Highly recommended.

5 comments about The Ragman's Son: An Autobiography (G K Hall Large Print Book Series).

1. I read very few "star" auto-biographies so have little to judge this one by. But I must say, I was impressed. The writing was good, the story seemed to be truthfully told and it held my interest. I have always enjoyed Kirk Douglas the actor and was pleased that I was able to enjoy Kirk Douglas the autobiographor. Mr. Douglas has certainly led an interesting life and has seemingly been able to keep his prespective on life. As I said, I am impressed and highly recommend this one.



2. This book tells the story of Kirk Douglas, from his humble beginnings in a small upstate New York town to his years in Hollywood. Douglas was born Issur Danielovitch Demsky, the son of illiterate Jewish immigrants. As a Jew, his father could not be hired in the mills or other up-and-coming enterprises in town, so the only work available to him was to go about in the street collecting old rags which he sold to paper mills. Much of this story focuses on the relationship between Issur and his father-Issur felt that his father never gave him recognition, support, or respect. All his life, he struggled in vain to get a single pat on the back from his father. In any case, Issur's life wasn't at all tragic. He showed talent for acting at an early age, managed to get a scholarship to attend college, and then went on to acting school. It was during summer service in a theatrical company that he chose his stage name Kirk Douglas, which he later took as his legal name. This book goes on to tell of Douglas' successes on the big screen and marriages and affairs.
   
   In addition to the struggle for approval with his father, another recurring theme of the book is Douglas' battles with anti-Semitism. The book is no great literary classic, but it can be engaging, and does tell an interesting story for Douglas fans. The details of his early life as the son of poor Jewish immigrants are particularly interesting for the documentation they provide of this little-known chapter of American history.



3. I was quite surprised to like this book as much as I did. As Kirk Douglas' autobiography, I expected it to be a little egotistical and over-explanatory. You know, typical celebrity autobio stuff.
   
   Kirk describes his humble beginnings (a ragman's son) quite capably. He also describes his successes and failures in what appears to be a candid and honest manner. His life has been remarkable, and his written story is believable.
   
   I hope to read his second book soon.



4. Born in 1916, little Issur Danielovitch grew up in upstate New York, the poorest of the poor. Son of illiterate Russian/Jewish immigrants, taunted by the other children, Issur breaking past every barrier imaginable became the great Kirk Douglas. This is his life story from birth through 70 years of age(before the stroke).
   
   As his life story unfolds in this well written account, you will feel like the tales of his climb out of poverty are being told to you by an old friend. Kirk doesn't hold back. He's as open about his misdeeds as he is with his fine accomplishments.
   And he doesn't hesitate to name names either!
   
   He talks about everything. From his troubled boyhood and distant relationship with his father, his dream of making it big on stage, his time spent in the service, his escapades, his loves and family, relationships with the rich and famous, his good-will tours around the world, and of course his films. It is nice that the films are discussed chronologically, and you will know exactly where he was physically and emotionally during the filming. Almost all the films are touched upon and some including "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral", "Lonely Are The Brave", "Lust For Life" and Spartacus", have whole chapters devoted to them. The directors, other cast members,and Hollywood in general, do not get away scott free either.
   
   His writing is funny, poignant, inspirational and heartfelt. There are times when you may not even like the things he has done, and other times may get you thinking deeply or angered about life's circumstances. But you know that he's being about as honest as they come.
   
   There are also many personal photos included of his family, fellow actors, and the good-will trips he made for the United States.
   
   Closing the book after the last page, I was sad to be at the end. Kirk Douglas's words touched me as much as his work in film, and...made me feel not only proud, but lucky to be an American. I am looking foward to reading his other works as well.
   
   "The Ragman's Son" is highly recommended for fans of Kirk, aspiring actors and writers(this is a great example for writing memoirs), and for those who loved to be touched or inspired by a good book.
   
   Way To Go, Issur...Way To Go!
   Enjoy....Laurie



5. Kirk Douglas story of growing up one of the seven - children in an Amsterdam New York Jewish family, and of working and fighting his way to the top of his profession is in one sense a typical American rags to riches story. It is the triumph of ability and will and courage, and another startling example of how the American dream can be realized. It is also on a parallel track a story of assimilation in America, of denial of one's own identity.This is also often part of the American reality. In Douglas case however this was modified by his return to his Jewish religion and identity after having gone through a serious accident. This story has something of the energy and vibrancy of Douglas' screen personality. It is rich with anecdotes including many celebrity anecdotes as Douglas and his wife were long a part of Hollywood's social world. The question of his morality in relation to women , his many 'conquests' is a real one. But all in all he beside being one of the best American actors in the past half - decade has made a very positive contribution to his society.

5 comments about The Diana Chronicles (Random House Large Print (Cloth/Paper)).

1. I READ THIS BOOK BECAUSE I HAVE BEEN RECENTLY READING OTHER BOOKS ABOUT THE ROYAL FAMILY AS PART OF MY SUMMER FARE AND CHOSE THIS ONE FOR DELVING INTO CHARLES AND DIANA.
   MS BROWN DOES A GOOD JOB OF DESCRIBING WHAT A PITIFUL, PITIFUL PERSON DIANA WAS--- SOMEONE WHO LED A WRETCHED LIFE, FROM CRADLE TO GRAVE.
   "GENTLEMAN CHARLES'" TREATMENT OF HIS WIFE WAS DEPLORABLE.
   MY YARD MAN TREATS HIS WIFE WITH MORE KINDNESS, DECENCY AND RESPECT THAN CHARLES EVER SEEMS TO HAVE TREATED DIANA.
   IT IS PRETTY CLEAR THAT NONE OF THE ROYAL FAMILY ARE VERY NICE PEOPLE. THEY ARE, MERELY, RICH AND FAMOUS PEOPLE---NOT UNLIKE MADONNA OR MICK JAGGER. THEY JUST HAVE A DIFFERENT FACADE.



2. I hesitated to read this book. Even once I bought it, I put if off for months. I mean, I love Diana SO MUCH it kind of hurts to read about her. Let her rest in peace. And besides, what could this book possibly have to tell me about my beloved heroine that I didn't already know??? But once I opened the cover, I couldn't put it down. I was completely sucked into and enveloped by Diana's luxurious, heart-wrenching, rule-breaking world of love and tragedy. I didn't want the book to end. I really, truly didn't think it was possible, but when I finished the book, I loved and admired this golden Princess EVEN MORE. The book was filled with new insights, info and titbits that every other book and magazine article is lacking. Tina Brown has filled in the missing pieces of Diana's tangled, bittersweet story and made sense of it all - and most of all, she gave us a better grasp of Diana's radiant humanity that has always lurked beneath the royal façade. A must read.



3. This book is written from the hand of someone who not only knew Diana, but also knew her world. Tina Brown gives the reader a thorough insight into the life of Diana as a young girl and the strange, inverted life of a young woman born to priviledge working as a cleaning woman and nanny. Such was the life Diana lived as a young woman. This book is not gossipy or coy, but seems truthful, factual and very straight forward.
   If you are a Diana fan, and were held spellbound by the courtship, marriage, and celebrity of the most famous woman in the world - and don't be ashamed if you are - this book is a must read. I give it five stars for the very good writing mechanics, for the thououghness of Ms Brown's research, and the empathy she has for her subject.



4. This book contains everything, but everything, that you've always wanted to know about Charles and Diana but couldn't be bothered to read at the time. Tina Brown has laid out the whole sad story in all its lurid detail - and what a great read it makes.



5. This is a well written and compulsively readable book, which captures the essence of Diana better than any other biography I've read - and I've read many. Most books about Diana seem fall into one of two camps: either they are overly gushing and sympathetic (eg Andrew Morton, Paul Burrell) or they are critical in the extreme (eg Lady Colin Campbell, Patrick Jephson). Tina Brown is neither. She calls Diana out on her untruths (it's highly unlikely that Diana deliberately threw herself down the stairs) but also points out where her paranoia was justified (yes, the Squidgeygate tapes were deliberately released).
   
   There's not a lot of new material here (what was there left to find out?), but it's a very comprehensive look at Diana's life that pulls together all the various things that are known about her in such a way that you feel that you are viewing the truest and most complete picture yet. It also gave me a strong sense of what life behind the Palace walls is actually like and why Diana felt so isolated and uncomfortable there.
   
   Tina Brown is particularly good at getting inside Charles and Diana's heads: explaining Charles's misgivings at the time of the engagement or Diana's thoughts when she agreed to the divorce. At one point she refers to Diana being a tactician rather than a strategist (always going for the short term win rather than thinking of the long game), which I thought was a very astute observation. She discusses the Charles/Diana/Camilla triangle at great length, and ultimately concludes that quite possibly the marriage could have worked had Camilla not been ever-present (Camilla doesn't come across very well at all).
   
   This is a long book which starts a little slowly, but from the time that Diana meets Charles it races along. It's entertaining, it's insightful and it leaves you wistful for what could have been.

5 comments about Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of Memories with Recipes (Random House Large Print (Paper)).

1. None comes better. The recipes are honest and measure up to the quality of the author! Props to Sister Angelou !



2. A wonderful mix of story and recipe.
   As I try these wonderful southern dishes I recall her stories and I can sense the history of the dish.
   the caramel cake is worth 10x the price of the book alone.



3. I love this cookbook. I have already tried some recipes from it. Almost three weeks passed, however, before I received it. I am very satisfied with it.



4. My daughter reproduced the same Caramel Cake that Maya made as a guest on Martha Stewart's show, for my birthday last fall...oh my gosh, it was so good!
   
   So good that I gave her Hallelujah! The Welcome Table, for Christmas.
   
   It is a warm and wonderful book, chock full of memories and yummy recipes...including the Caramel Cake.



5. The book is great, I also bought the cd which is great and expected recipes to be read on it and there were none except for a few on recipe cards. Good that I bought the book because I was really looking for the recipes.

5 comments about Let's Face It: 90 Years of Living, Loving, and Learning (Thorndike Press Large Print Biography Series).

1. This is a surprisingly well written biography by an actor whom we thought was only a pretty face. He tells us some inside facts of his thoughts, his life and marriage and how he has grown and changed. The tittle says it all and then he fleshes it out. I'm giving this book to a lifelong friend who was a huge fan of Kirk Douglas 50-60 years ago.



2. I could not put the book down ,I had to read it from cover to cover . He is a one of a kind person It shows how you will always go back to your roots



3. I have read past books by Kirk Douglas which were much better, mainly because they told a story, and this book is mostly ramblings. It is okay to pick up and read a bit from time to time but not a book you will be engrossed in.



4. Kurt does it again. At ninety he is still feisty and funny. And his life- story which he has told in two previous books is only enriched by another retelling. He opens with the story of his ninetieth birthday party, a gala family event in which he laughs and is laughed at as well as celebrated and appreciated. The little kid from Amsterdam did not do so bad. He may have started out as a poor hungry kid robbing eggs from the neighbor's chicken coop but he with a lot of moxie and ability made it to the top of the American entertainment world. In this book which comes across as a series of small essays or talks he wanders all over the place but always interestingly. He in his long career knew a lot of remarkable people and he tells about many of his old buddies. He also in the course of this speaks about how much he misses many of them, one of the sad consequences of a very long life. He also speaks about the tragic death of his youngest son, whose grave he visits twice a week.
   Kurt did not make it the easy way. A heart attack, a helicopter crash which set him back a lot, a stroke which took his speech from him. The stroke however did not take away his will and through great effort much help he fought back to speak and think clearly again. Part of his wake- up process was a decision to explore Judaism which he had sort of forgotten about in his prime acting years ( Except for his yearly Yom Kippur synagogue visits, and the movies made in Israel which he is a staunch supporter of) His strong desire to help young people to educate them to moral dignity and lives of contributing to making a better world is also expressed here. Also he tells the story of his fifty- three year and running marriage to his second wife,Ann, and how this has been the great love story of his life.
   Kurt has guts and heart .He is a tough, caring person, who will always of course be most known for some of his remarkable performances on the screen ( Lonely Are the Brave, The Champion, Spartacus, The Clown, Lust or Life) but his works as a writer also have great entertainment and educational value.
   A wonderfully enjoyable little book by a great human being.



5. 
   You have to be tough to face your own mortality and Kirk Douglas faces it feisty, reflective, and sometimes furious. In addition to great stories from his life that he hasn't told before, this book tells of the things that, 90 years on, move his heart and his soul. I was surprised, delighted and stirred all the way through.

5 comments about The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir (Random House Large Print (Cloth/Paper)).

1. As always, Bryson is informative (the Thunderbolt Kid is really an excellent history of the 1950s and '60s in the U.S.) and wonderfully amusing (as in laugh out loud).
   
   He's also an excellent narrator of this audio book.
   
   Just one caveat. While the book is funny and interesting throughout, from my vantage point, at least, little about Bryson as a teenager was appealing: he essentially opted out of high school life, chose to spend minimal time with his family, was a petty thief, and starting at age 14 smoked like a chimney and drank a lot of alcohol. If you can't tolerate hearing about a kid like that, don't get this book.



2. Bill Bryson's story of growing up in Iowa is a terrific book. I bought it in large print for my mother, who can read only large print, and who has difficulty hearing too, so this is the only way she could enjoy the book. She too adores Bill Bryson. We love his facility with language, and his many ways of making us laugh. He's a marvelous storyteller.



3. This was a wonderful book, which also deviates here and there into politics and general history.
   
   I really came to enjoy Bryson's observations about how "the good old days" were also fraught with some significant downsides, which we've gratefully grown beyond.
   
   One carp: Bryson himself reads the audio edition, and he's not the most gifted reader I've ever heard. He's so laconic that the material really has to carry itself.
   
   H'mmm - maybe that's not such a bad thing after all...anyway, you'll enjoy this book in any form.
   
   PS - if you like this, you'll love the writings of Jean Shepard, too.



4. Bill Bryson is by far the funniest, most insightful, travel writer today.
   Here his travels are temporal, instead of spacial as he takes us back to his childhood - and what a childhood it was. His writing is so personal and open that you can't help but feel that this book was written specifically for you.
   
   
   It is both a very middle class North American tale, set in the fifties and a Calvin archetype (as in Calvin and Hobbes) visioneering a rich and adventurous landscape, that none of the adults could see.
   
   May The Thunderbolt Kid ride again.
   
   David Cale



5. I am a big fan of Bill Bryson but was a little disappointed with the Thunderbolt Kid. Some of the eating habits were outright gross. Many of the stunts and shenanigans were not what I'd expect out of Bryson. Much of his wit was missing in this book. I had few if any laugh out loud moments through this book.

5 comments about Marie Antoinette: The Journey.

1. I have read many books on the Dauphine over the years and this is one of the best.
   It covers in detail all of the daily life of a queen and the sacrifice she made by becoming a queen.
   It seems that the paparazzi today are angels compared to what the people of France and all of Europe did to their monarchs.
   The book is well researched, and well done and like all good books on her, this one doesnt speculate but clarifies the life of this often misunderstood young woman.
   I recommend it highly.
   But be warned - it is very detailed and there are tons of people to keep track of,
   Even so, it reads well and you never get bored with it.



2. Hard to get into. The movie is better except the movie leaves out one of the children and I am sure alot more. Maybe onday I will be able to get into it.



3. I really liked this book and finished it in record time--even though I knew how MA's story would end, it was fascinating to see that she was not entirely the arrogant and unapproachable Queen of lore. Yes, she made some mistakes and was extravagant at times, but certainly no more extravagant than previous Queens of France. Minimally any reader will say after reading this book that it is sad she was a Queen who did not pay more attention outside the walls of Versailles so that she might be less oblivious--but even then, I'm not sure she could have escaped her doomed fate.
   
   The treatment of the family during their captivity and particularly the treatment of their children is startling (not to mention the legendary treatment of the Princesse de Lamballe). In the end, I'm not sure what was worse--the royal family or the revolutionaries.



4. Over halfway through in a just a few days. I love this book! I'm definitely looking into purchasing others by the author.



5. If you are looking for a good histoical book on Marie Antoinette, this is it! It is well written and provides plenty of historical facts. Fraser also manages to paint a rather sympathetic portrait of Marie Antoinette as a human rather than a royal, without blurring the lines of history vs. folklore.

5 comments about A Different Drummer LP: Thirty Years with Ronald Reagan.

1. Long-time Reagan aide Michael Deaver has written a very good book on his thirty years with the man who changed the world. Deaver tells of meeting Reagan in the mid-60's when Deaver was an junior political operative and Reagan was considering a gubernatorial run. Deaver then took a ring-side seat for the greatest political run of our time, from Sacramento to Washington, including near-fatal encounters with John Hinckley Jr. and Matthew Ridgeway in Bitburg.
   
   Deaver also tells the story of the end-game, his last two meetings with the Gipper. By 1995, the President did not know him, and by 1998, the President had lost his social skills and grace. Fortunately Ron had Nancy, and she took care of him for better or worse. Deaver played a key role in the Reagan administrations as Nancy-handler and became a key allie and friend of the Fist Lady.
   
   Deaver makes this book light-reading, it is reminiscences of his boss and friend. He leaves the unpleasant stuff to others. There is a brief mention of Iran-Contra; it is explained away as what happened when the Californians were not there. Also Deaver leaves out most of the story of his indictment, although he deals at length with the demons of his alcoholism.



2. People close to great men for a long time--aides, valets, advisors--tend either to write hagiographys or they turn on their former employer with a "tell all" intended to cut the great man down to size. This book, refreshingly, is neither. Michael Deaver, in addition to being Ronald Reagan's longtime political advisor, was also Reagan's friend. And a friend tells it like it is, which is what Deaver has done.
   
   Deaver lets us know of Reagan's mistakes and shortcomings--he had a volcanic temper (despite others' testimony that he didn't), he had a hard time apologizing even when he knew he was in the wrong, he trusted people to a fault. At the same time, Deaver credibly tells us where the media and political pundits went wrong in their assessments of Reagan. Most of the book, however, is a thematic presentation of Reagan's character. It was a joy to read, and I highly recommend it.



3. It is wonderful for history that Michael Deaver has put together this collection of his thoughts and recollections of Ronald Reagan. As you read about Reagan, one theme keeps coming through; he was nearly impossible to know well or truly understand. The President that so many strangers felt like they knew proved to be much more of a puzzle to those who were close to him. For this reason, it is great that Michael Deaver, one of Reagan's closest advisers, has shared his insights on Reagan with anyone who wants to understand the man better.
   
   What he has given us is a deeply personal tribute to his friend and his hero, but also a lens through which we can view Reagan that helps us to understand what kind of man he is.
   
   So who was Reagan? I highly recommend you read this book to find out, but in the end Deaver introduces you to a principled optimist and a very shy man. I was deeply touched by the obviousness of Deaver's affection for Reagan and for the role Nancy Reagan played in the President's life.
   
   I highly recommend this book for anyone trying to get a full perspective of who Ronald Reagan was and what made him the President he was. Excellent book by that can truly add something unique to anyone's study of Ronald Reagan.



4. I liked how this was a personal story of the Reagans. You got to understand where they were coming from, and why they acted the way they did. Not being a huge political freak, I wanted to know about the man, and this book gave good insight into the Reagans. There were a couple of really good quotes that I will always remember.



5. In "A Different Drummer", Michael Deaver follows the theme of other authors, including Dinesh D'Souza, who hold that Ronald Reagan had sufficient confidence in his own beliefs to allow him to follow his own instincts regardless of the opinions of others.
   
   Deaver has the unique perspective of thirty years of intimate association with Ronald Reagan. Through the first campaign in California to the second term in the White House, Deaver advanced from campaign staffer to the office adjacent to the Oval Office.
   
   Deaver introduces the reader to the private Reagan. We see Reagan as he lives with Nancy, works with his staff and deals with his adversaries. Deaver portrays Reagan as knowing his core values and adhering to them. Even in controversy, such as the Bitburg decision, Reagan's loyalty to his friends remained unshaken.
   
   A self identified member of the family, Deaver provides an insight into Nancy's role in protecting and leading Reagan through his life.
   
   In the story of his own return to the Reagans after Deaver's downfall, Deaver presents a loyal, concerned Reagan, unlike some others who portray Reagan as dumping cohorts who are no longer useful to him. Finally, through Michael Deaver, we see the declining Reagan in the early stages of Alzheimer's.
   
   "A Different Drummer" is a sympathetic portrayal of a confident, steady leader by one of his closest associates. It is a valuable tool with which to uncover the real Ronald Reagan.

5 comments about The Last Tsar: The Life and Death of Nicholas II (G K Hall Large Print Book Series).

1. A man is sitting at a book-covered table in the Central State Archive of the October (1917) Revolution in Moscow. The surviving diaries of the last imperial family of Russia are there, unclassified at last. Reading them, his thoughts carrying him back and forth in time, the man is moved when he finds pressed flowers in the journals of the tsar's daughters: "Souvenirs of a destroyed life".
   
   Edvard Radzinsky is that haunted man, sitting at a table strewn with memories of a broken dynasty. "The Last Tsar" is the product of his research and his sadness. A playwright, Raszinsky is well-qualified to explore the human depths of the lives of Tsar Nicholas II, his family, and the others who were part of their doomed world.
   
   The book gained a great deal of publicity when it was first released here for its sensational assertion that two of the family may have escaped execution on that terrible night in 1918. And this work of popular history merits the attention. This book is likely to become the definitive work on the last years of Tsar Nicholas II and his family.
   
   Rarely is a work of history so beautifully written, so thoroughly researched, and so permeated with emotion and insight. A great debt is owed to the translator for her lyrical and poetic voice while retaining a sense of historical authority.
   
   Radzinsky's attitudes and feelings are juxtaposed with those of the two main characters of the story-- Tsar Nicholas and his queen, Alexandra. The inclusion of the author's feelings is unorthodox in a historical work however, in this case, it's a success and it offers a perspective that is both personal and realistic.
   
   The tone of the book is conversational rather than scholarly. It is not difficult to imagine Radzinsky weeping as he sits at the table covered with diaries, though he does not say he did. Certainly, the depth and honesty of his feelings are so evident that we find it difficult to hold back tears ourselves as the tragedy of the Romanov family unfolds.
   
   Radzinsky has a deep respect for the dead Tsar and his wife, but he clearly loves those children. They are the classic innocence, doomed by the destruction of their grand and insulated world.
   
   In the early 90s, exhumation of what is assumed to be the family's grave revealed only nine skeletons. Although the accepted number of victims has always been put at eleven. Even more recently, two bodies were found nearby to the execution site and burial site that some experts believe to be the missing bodies.
   
   The book and the forensic examination raise again the persistant belief that not only the Princess Anastasia, but also the Tsar Evitch Alexi, heir to the Russian throne may have survived the execution. However, these most recent exhumations near the main burial pit appear to show that neither Alexi nor Anastasia survived.
   
   One of the participants in the execution later wrote that Alexi and his four sisters remained alive after the shooting had stopped.
   
   "This had amazed the Commandant", he wrote, "since we had aimed straight for the heart. It was also surprising that the bullets from the revolvers bounced off for some reason and ricocheted, jumping around the room like hail."
   
   That night, the children were wearing clothing into which the family diamonds had been sewn. Seeing that the bullets had not done its jobs, the killers decided to finish off the children with bayonets. A strong, although essentially circumstantial case, is presented that Alexi and Anastasia may, in fact, have survived.
   
   This conclusion appears to have been recently overturned by the finding of the two bodies near the main burial site.
   
   "The Last Tsar" was written as the Soviet Union, the author's homeland itself, was collapsing. The two Russian Revolutions, those of 1917 and 1989, are often intertwined in the book. In the lonely archives and libraries of a dying country, Radzinsky fell into a no-man's land of historical whirlwinds where huge and incomprehensible became understandable. He offers insights into the character of Russian history where, ". . . great and terrible events. . . are usually due to someone's stupidity or laziness," and to the apparently cyclical nature of history.
   
   "Oh, our bitter, bitter revolution," he writes.
   
   This is a book about processes. The tragedy of a family, the drama of a world turned upside down and the mechanics of research and writing are among the subjects.
   
   Radzinsky's superb use of diaries and letters, his simple straightforward arguments and his penetrating thought-provoking style combined to make a very entertaining and convincing book.



2. I absolutely loved this book. Once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down. This was the first biography about Tsar Nicholas II that I had ever read. It gives excellent background information about the country, its history and the politics, so even if you're not at all familiar with Russian history/politics, you can still follow. Excellent purchase!!



3. The history is all there in detail. Very interesting, particuarly if you are into tzar history like I am. However, the book is really hard to read. It usually takes me no longer than a week to read a book, but this one actually took me almost 2 months.



4. With Radzinsky the art comes before the history and that's why this is my favourite addition to the "Romanov canon". This is not to overlook how thrilling in terms of new material "The Last Tsar" was when it was first translated and published (the "Yurovsky Note" comes to mind), and all those lovely until then unknown archive sources. These opened up new avenues of thought and allowed Radzinsky to theorise in a way I found compelling. Except, how much of it could be trusted?
   
   This is the problem with this subject in total. It's an epoch in recent history in the process of being re-constructed, after 70 years of communism in effect shut Russian imperial history down. A detailed picture of imperial Russia at the end of empire is in the process of being written. But in Radzinsky's account I caught the flavour of the times and that's more important to me than measuring his facts, weighing his sources. Most serious readers on this subject know enough in 2006 to discount the more imaginative flights in this book, and for everyone else it's a glorious, rackety, heart-rending read.



5. This was a great book written during the time that the Romanov bones had been uncovered. It gives an interesting portrayl of Nicholas and Alexandra. Most interesting of all is the love story between Nicholas and his former mistress, Mathilde Kschessinka, who years later would meet a woman claiming to be the daughter of the Tsar (Anna Anderson) and she would recognize her as his daughter because of the 'Emperor's look'.
   
   It is somewhat dated however. Since this book has been published, Russian and American scientists have argued passionately amonst themselves as to whether the remains of Grand Duchess Marie or Anastasia are missing. Then the bones were tested for DNA and proved a match and then they were compared with the tissue of Anna Anderson 'proving' she was not a Romanov. However, these tests are not as valid today as they were then. For more on that, visit my website: http://www.geocities.com/anastasiagrandduchess/
   In 1998, the bones were interred in the Cathedral of Saint Paul, although the Russian Orthodox Church rejected the authenticity of the remains.

5 comments about Rocket Boys (The Coalwood Series #1).

1. Was purchased due to a requirement by my childs school. He has informed me it is a good book.



2. Homer Hickam grew up in a rural isolated mountain town but went on to win the National Science Fair.
   
   This book is his story and how he was successful.
   
   I bought 24 copies of this book to inspire my advanced 6th grade Reading class. They loved the book. In our discussions they mentioned never giving up. Homer and his friends kept trying until they had success.
   
   Thank you for sharing your life with us, Mr. Hickam.



3. ... "On June 4, 1960, the Big Creek Missile Agency, fresh from its medal winning performance at the National Science Fair, is sponsoring a day of rocket launches at its Cape Coalwood range. Everyone reading these words is invited..." This quote can be found on page 356-357 of a book called Rocket Boys; this statement showed me that the success of the main characters was a result of personal hard work and teamwork.
   
   "Rocket Boys" by Homer H. Hickam, Jr. is a nonfiction account of a group of friends from Coalwood, West Virginia in the early 1960's who have a fetish for making rockets. Homer and his friends have a dream to shoot a rocket up into the clouds. This story gives the reader a message that dreams really can come true.
   
   Rocket Boys is one of the strongest books I have ever read. The author accomplished his goals to tell people that team work is one of the most important things to know in your life. This book is recommended for people that like space and rockets and who want a hopeful book to read. Reading Rocket Boys really gets you thinking about team work and how far you can get with it.



4. I was a little disappointed by the ending and the fact that Homer Hickam gave John Kennedy the idea to go to the Moon but other than that I couldn't help but root for the band of misfits.



5. I bought this book and the audio tapes and my son and I listened and read this amazing book together. Our plan was to read for 30 minutes a night...however it was sooooooo good we listened and read for 5 hours!
   
   We are now going to rent the movie that was made from the film! All systems go....we enjoyed the adventure!