4 comments about Thomas Jefferson: A Strange Case of Mistaken Identity.

1. I found it rather difficult to finish this rather long book. (422 pages not including endnotes and index). Length, however, was not what made it difficult. For some reason Alf J. Mapp believes it necessary to use difficult language at nearly every turn when such language is not necessary. I consider myself an above average reader and I must say that I struggled all the way through. The book would have been far more enjoyable had Mapp conversed in a style more acceptable to those of us who aren't quite up to his education level.
   
   His use of language, quite frankly, makes his biography quite boring. Unless you're a collector of Jefferson books as I am, I would recommend getting your biography elsewhere.



2. This volume is the first of Mapp's two volume biography of Jefferson. It concludes at the time of Jefferson's first election as President of the United States. The author has done extensive research on the events of Jefferson's life and the circumstances of the days during which he lived. He benefited from access to materials at the College of William and Mary, Jefferson's and Mapp's alma mater.
   
   The writing style is academic in nature. This is not a book written to be widely purchased by the book-buying public. Many will find the writing style to be burdensome. But, the depth of detail on Jefferson is enough to satisfy the most ardent Jefferson-phile.
   
   The last chapter of this volume is a discussion of whether Jefferson is a liberal or a conservative. Mapp has written a very enjoyable and enlightening discussion that highlights the contradictions of Jefferson's life. For example, slavery versus "all men are created equal" or his purchase of the Louisiana Territory without Congressional approval versus his antipathy for a monarchial President and his leanings toward very limited government action. All of this forms the framework for a discussion that is on point with political ideologies of the current times. The suggestion by Mapp that Jefferson's contradictions are born of his great intelligence and the ability to see every side of every issue is a very intriguing notion. If you were to read no other chapter of the book, this last chapter would be worth the time and may even stir the reader to start at the beginning and read the whole book.



3. This is a decent book. I was truly excited about reading it. I was particularly fascinated by the author's use of the paradoxes of Jefferson's words and deeds.

   However, I found it hard to read due to the author's needlessly pretentious word choice. My appetence for consummating the reading of this tome was stymied by a repetitious exigence to avail myself of a dictionary due to polysyllabic profundity. ;-)




4. Alf J. Mapp, Jr.'s biography of Thomas Jefferson, A Strange Case of Mistaken Identity, successfully conveys the unique personality qualities that resided in one of our most influential and least understood Founding Fathers.

   Rereading this biography on the heels of the Clinton Presidency one is struck by the similarities and differences between these two politicians. While Jefferson's intellect and accomplishments will never be equalled by William Jefferson Clinton, the outgoing incumbent shares certain characteristics with his namesake which the Mapp biography lucidly described five years before Clinton ran for office. The major difference between these two men may be that Thomas Jefferson did not hunger after the public's love the way a modern politician must in order to succeed. It is also highly doubtful that the American Public today would ever vote for an intellectual of such obviously of artistic temperment and intellect as the 3rd President. The "Elvis Presley" folksy charm of Bill Clinton is probably why he succeeded in his quest while Al Gore fell short in the Electoral College. Mapp's book succeeds in bringing forth what eluded many biographers before him, and that is the intensity of the passion and animosity that Thomas Jefferson stimulated in his politican adversaries. In this he clearly brings our outgoing current President to mind.

   There are other parallels between the Jefferson legacy and the Clinton White House, the commitment to internationalism for one, and an egalitarian commitment to popular access to higher education for another. But the times and the men are ultimately different, and understanding this basic fact is made most palbable by Mapp's major contribution to a considerable trove of already existing Jefferson literature.

1 comments about Hazel: A Life of Lady Lavery, 1880-1935.

1. Ms. McCoole does a wonderful job in accurately portraying the life of Hazel Lavery. She has gone to great lengths to uncover the truth about her relationships with historical figures, one being the Irish icon Michael Collins. What many people may not realize is that Hazel was a painter herself before she met her famous husband, John Lavery. Hazel's story from the suburbs of Chicago to the face on the Irish pound note is a truly enjoyable read.

2 comments about True Men and Traitors: My Life in the CIA.

1. This is a factual, no nonsense account of what it is really like to work for the CIA. There are no embellishments, no twisting of the truth for entertainment value. This is a true story of one of the "true men", who lived by the rules and who has a rich inventory of experiences from which to draw. This is a perceptive recounting of a life well-lived and the policies and actions - both good and bad - which have shaped our nation's premier intelligence agency.



2. This was a very disappointing book. The author may have been a fine CIA Operative, but an interesting author he is not. He was not into sharing much detail of "spook" type work. This was more a descriptive political analysis of the countries in which he was assigned and a moralistic soapbox against those agents (rightfully so) that turned into traitors. The book itself was almost void of any specific operations and their analysis.

2 comments about MARGARET THATCHER: IRON LADY VOL 2.

1. The mid-90's pop band Spice Girls called the ultimate Girl Power as Margaret Thatcher. The British singers were on the money because Thatcher was a revolutionary Prime Minister. She kept her own counsel and could not be manipulated by the popularity polls. This account of her political career is the ultimate study in what Henry Kissinger once said "power is the ultimate aphrodisiac". Churchill and Thatcher proved that Britain produced two formidable leaders who survived Machiavellian daggers over and over again and got their way before being ousted.



2. While she was still Leader of the Opposition, Margaret Thatcher paid a visit to Yugoslavia, where she had a meeting with President Tito. The conversation turned to China, where Chairman Mao's widow had recently been stirring up trouble for the leadership. Tito remarked that he disapproved of women interfering in politics. "I don't interfere in politics, " declared his guest, eyes ablazing, "I AM politics."
   
   Therein can be found both the secret of Margaret Thatcher's success and the seeds of her downfall. Her supreme confidence helped overcome widespread doubts that a woman could lead her party and her country, but in the end her arrogance alienated the very people she needed to retain power.
   
   Thatcher's story presents a unique challenge to political biographers, largely because her overpowering personality and strident views make a fair assessment difficult to achieve. The writer has to tread a fine line between hagiography and demolition job. Happily, John Campbell's book manages to avoid these pitfalls, and his account of Thatcher's life and times is even-handed, thorough and highly readable. The first volume
   of Campbell's biography - The Grocer's Daughter - covered Thatcher's early life and career, concluding with her arrival on the threshold of Number Ten. This second volume concentrates on her entire eleven-and-a-half years as mistress of Downing Street, as well as the aftermath of her removal from power.
   
   The first thing to say is that it's a huge read - over 800 pages. But this is no more than the subject deserves, given Thatcher's dominance, not only in her role as Prime Minister, but also as an inveterate meddler in the work of her ministers. From health and education to local government finance and foreign affairs, there was barely an aspect of policy which Margaret Thatcher did not seek to influence.
   
   All the important events of her premiership are there - the three election victories, the Falkands, Westland, the miners' strike, the Poll Tax, and her dramatic departure at the hands of her own party. But the book goes beyond the big stories to put her premiership in a wider context. Take housing: Campbell shows that Thatcher's policy of encouraging council tenants to buy their own homes, while prohibiting local authorities from building new houses with the proceeds, led to a massive shortage of affordable housing, and by extension to the high
   numbers of homeless people still seen on British streets today.
   
   Campbell's thorough research shines brilliantly throughout the book, but U.S. readers may find this depth of detail just too much information to take in. During some passages, even my eyes started to glaze over at so many references to obscure events and personalities from Britain's political past.
   
   Of greater interest may be the sections covering Thatcher's dealings with Ronald Reagan. Thatcher apologists often claim that Britain's standing in the world grew taller as a result of her strong support for the U.S. President. But Campbell makes good use of Reagan's archival papers to reveal the true relationship of these political soulmates.
   
   While they undoubtedly got on well, the President rarely let their friendship get in the way of his policy objectives. Thatcher believed they were working as partners to save the world from tyranny, but Reagan failed to consult her even on such important matters as the invasion of Grenada (a British Commonwealth territory) or his suggestion to Mikhail Gorbachev at the Reykjavik summit that the US and USSR should abolish
   all nuclear weapons. Even so, Thatcher never lost an opportunity to catch the presidential ear. Campbell recounts Reagan breaking off from one of her many telephone rants to observe: "Isn't she marvellous!"
   
   One of the most enjoyable sections of the book focuses on the burnishing of the Thatcher image, especially in the later years of her premiership. Campbell documents the change from the clothing of a "middle-class mimsy" to the power-shoulders of a leading lady, and her increasingly imperial airs. The regal touch was most memorably on show when she emerged from Number 10 to announce "We have become a grandmother." But
   the author also offers a reminder of her qualities as a consummate actress. In 1990 she delivered a conference speech in which she compared the new bird of freedom logo for the Liberal Democratic Party to the dead parrot from the Monty Python sketch. She had never seen the routine, but delivered it with perfect timing to laughter and cheers from her audience. The following month, she was an ex-Prime Minister.
   
   Margaret Thatcher's fall from power was pure political theatre, and those of us who watched it unfold on our television screens will never forget those dramatic days. The big question in my mind was: could Campbell's account rise to the occasion? The answer: a resounding yes. Every twist and turn of the spectacle is followed, without recourse to melodrama or purple prose, and what could easily have been a disappointing damp squib of a section turns out to be a fine account of a political career in meltdown.
   
   For me, the most intriguing part of the book describes Thatcher's life after leaving Number 10. Politically-speaking, she was dead in the water - there is no role in the British constitution for an unemployed prime minister. But Campbell is astute enough to highlight the human aspects of her new situation. Only days earlier, she was being feted by
   President Mitterrand at Versailles. Now, shorn of the Downing Street machine, she had difficulty even using the telephone to find a plumber. Thatcher's refusal to adapt to her new situation caused her successor much grief, and the book relates the despair which John Major felt at her off-stage sniping , especially when he was trying to rebuild bridges
   to Britain's European partners.
   
   Having already documented the lives of two former Prime Ministers - Lloyd George and Edward Heath - Campbell is able to view the Thatcher years with a historical perspective. The conclusion of this book, however, is disappointing. A work of this magnitude deserves a resounding finale, but instead it runs into the sand, offering little more than a couple of pages to sum up Thatcher's impact. It's not a bad ending, but I feel that the author could have done justice to the rest
   of the book by bringing together more effectively the various strands of Thatcher's life.
   
   That said, the book is a masterpiece of political biography,
   meticulously researched and written in that enviable style which both informs and entertains. It may be too soon to call it the definitive biography of Britain's first woman prime minister, but the next time an author sets out to write Margaret Thatcher's premiership, this is the first book they should turn to.

5 comments about Seventh Child: A Family Memoir of Malcolm X.

1. 
   Malcolm X was more than just a prominent civil rights activist. Amongst many things, he was a family man, a charismatic Muslim preacher, a spokesman for the Nation of Islam, a black nationalist, and the founder of the Muslim Mosque Inc. and the Organization of Afro-American Unity. He was controversial, influential, and often times misunderstood.
   
   It is unfortunate that many people today regard him negatively, as a racist, an apostate, a criminal, an extremist, or all of the above. But who is this Malcolm X? What did this man stand for? What were his intentions? And what did he accomplish? In this book, Rodnell P. Collins, Malcolm X's own nephew, addresses these questions.
   
   But this book is not solely focused on Malcolm X. Although he is the central figure in this book, Collins also writes about Malcolm's internal and external family members, and explains the impact they had on him, and vise-versa. Collins tells us about Malcolm's family background, including a little bit about himself. Personally, I found the story of the Little family very fascinating. I think readers will be pleased with the information Collins provides, such as the revelation of Malcolm X's first American ancestor, who was kidnapped from Africa and sold as a slave to the Little family. You'll get somewhat of a brief history lesson on the slave trade in America, here.
   
   Writing from an eye-witness account, Collins touches base on many important subjects regarding Malcolm's life; family, religion, politics, ambitions, etc. Collins also explains why Malcolm X rejected his Christian religion and instead accepted the teachings of "prophet" Elijah Muhammad by joining the Nation of Islam. Other topics include; racism in America, corruption of the NOI, Malcolm's Assassination, Spike Lee's movie, and much more.
   
   In the last pages of the book, you will find a few never-before-published letters from Malcolm and his family, as well as some disturbing letters from Christian extremists of the KKK.
   
   Although an excellent book, there's only one minor flaw in my opinion. And that is the author's tendency to sometimes over-exalt his uncle. For instance, he praises Malcolm for being an intelligent and open-minded individual who saw through the fatuity of black Christians and their faulty beliefs, which prompted Malcolm's conversion to Elijah Muhammad's distorted Muslim sect. But what about Malcolm's own fatuous belief that Elijah Muhammad was divine? Even after Malcolm X was well informed about Elijah's corruption and contradictions, he still had faith in him. I understand where the author is coming from, but I still find it a bit hypocritical, albeit it's nothing too serious and it certainly won't diminish the importance of this book.
   
   This may not be the most elaborate book on Malcolm X, but it's certainly a good one. I highly recommend it.



2. This was an excellent book which offered more insight into Malcolm's political believes and his work whith other countries which are hardly ever written about. It also made clearer why Malcolm left the Nation of Islam. The book helped to reinforce my belief that Malcolm X was the most sincerest leader in the African American Struggle.



3. This book gave me a greater appreciation of Malcom X as a world leader and a human being. I really enjoyed reading this book during a visit to the Middle East. If you are really into Malcom X and want to know more about him and who he was, do yourself a favor and read this book.



4. This is clearly one of the better Malcolm X books as it actually tells us something new and firsthand unlike so many other such books that glutted the market in the early 1990s. A bonus is the revelation of the name of Malcolm's actual African ancestor that he wanted to know about through most of his adult life (this was discovered by a family researcher. "Malcolmites" have much to enjoy and learn from here-buy it!



5. I JUST STARTED READING THE BOOK LAST WEEK AND CAN NOT PUT THE BOOK DOWN. I AM A HISTORY MAJOR AND READING THIS BOOK WITH ALL THIS INFORMATION ABOUT MALCOLM AND HIS OWN FAMILY HISTORY IS WONDERFUL.

   MR. COLLINS DID A WONDERFUL JOB!...

1 comments about Margaret Thatcher Volume One: The Grocer's Daughter.

1. This well-researched book covers the life of Margaret Thatcher from her birth and her childhood in Grantham to her election as Prime Minister in 1979. Her youth and education are dealt with in the chapters Dutiful Daughter, Serious Schoolgirl and Oxford Tory, whilst the chapter Young Conservative recounts the story of her first job, her marriage to Denis Thatcher and her first spirited election campaigns in safe Labour seats.
   
   The birth of her children, her life as a mother and housewife and her legal studies are discussed in chapter six: Superwoman. This chapter concludes with her stunning victory in the Finchley constituency in the 1959 election. The next two chapters describe her life as a backbencher and a junior minister. Between 1964 and 1970 with the Conservatives in opposition, Thatcher held many different portfolios: junior spokeswoman on pensions, housing and economic policy and member of the shadow cabinet for power, transport and finally education.
   
   After the Tory victory in 1970 she was education secretary for more than three years. The Conservatives were defeated in 1974 and the next year she was elected leader of the opposition, the role dealt with in the chapter of the same name. The exciting election campaign of 1979 is covered in the chapter Into Downing Street, which also deals with the beginning of her long and glorious reign as Prime Minister.
   
   The text is filled with quotes from newspapers and people who played a role in her life. The author has gone to great lengths to be as thorough and meticulous as possible; the research cannot be faulted. Furthermore, Campbell manages to capture the mood of the times very well in his analysis of British history and politics and succeeds in making the detail interesting. For example, the election results for Margaret's Finchley constituency are provided throughout the book, for every election.
   
   As a great admirer of Thatcher, I do not agree with his every conclusion or every single point of opinion, but his work is exhaustive and impressive. It is also quite readable although the avalanche of facts, figures and analysis do sometimes reach overload.
   
   Of the book's 33 black and white photographs, my favourites include a picture of Margaret aged 4 with her sister, the proud mother with twins in 1953 and the future Prime Minister holding a calf in the 1979 election campaign. The book includes 41 pages of notes and references, a vast bibliography and an index.
   
   Along with volume 2: Margaret Thatcher, Volume II : The Iron Lady, this excellent book will surely stand the test of time as the most authoritative biography of this remarkable woman. I also recommend Thatcher's book Statecraft: Strategies for a Changing World, a highly readable and insightful look at world politics at the beginning of the 21st century.

No comments about Comrades and Partners: The Shared Lives of Grace Hutchins and Anna Rochester.

1 comments about Mao for Beginners (A Writers & Readers Beginners Documentary Comic Book).

1. This book is a pretty good introduction to Mao and the history of modern China. It actually seems to focus more on the history of modern China than Mao. Unlike other volumes in this series, the graphics in this book do not make fun of their subject, but neither do they help to remember the subject any more than just the text does. Overall, I'd say if you have an interest in how China got to be the way it is today, than this book would be a good one to pick up.

No comments about Government for the People: Reflections of a White House Counsel to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson.

No comments about Restless: The Memoirs of Labor and Consumer Activist Esther Peterson.