5 comments about In Search of Fatima: A Palestinian Story.

1. I just finished Ghada Karmi's captivating autobiography. She is honest, poignant, funny and reflective. She takes you back to pivotal moments in history, while at the same time drawing you into her and her family's personal struggles. Many readers who have also grown up with traditional parents, whether they be Catholic, Muslim or Jewish, will be able to relate!
   
   But more importantly, she offers an insightful view of a much misunderstood dilemma. For anyone who has wondered, "Why don't the Palestinians just stop fighting?", you owe it to yourself to read this book!
   
   I admit to fact checking Karmi because I assumed since she was Palestinian, that some of the information she gave could have been exaggerated. She mentions the massacre at Deir Yassin, the bombing of the King David Hotel, and the booby trapping of the dead body of a British soldier. I was shocked to learn that armed Jewish groups did indeed carry out these and other acts of violence before 1948. What we are usually taught is that Israel always respects human rights, but the Arabs do not. Karmi gives another point of view.
   
   Yet she does not paint all Jewish people with the same brush. She differentiates between her Jewish friends she holds dear, the Jewish faith she respects, and the state of Israel which has robbed her of her homeland.
   
   This book is well worth your time!



2. In Search of Fatima is a beautifully written story, a true story, written by a woman with a real gift for writing. The whole experience of the Palestinian Catastrophe, know as the Nakba, comes alive in this book on a very personal level. The fear of the Palestinians as the events unfold during the years leading up to 1948 are so vividly expressed that you feel that you are there too, sharing the feelings of foreboding and horror.
   The second section of the book describes the difficulties in settling in a new country, with totally different customs, language, weather, everything. Her mother, incapable of adapting to a new life, makes a truly pitiable figure.
   
   Although this is the story of one person,the experience of the 1948 Nakba was shared by three quarters of a million others, yet we rarely hear about the terrible suffering inflicted on so many. This book fills a huge void.



3. This is truly an outstanding work. The search and confusion of identity is made even more difficult when one is a Palestinian refugee. Add to this the issue of gender and Ghada Karmi assertion of herself and her rights and you get a fascinating indeed thrilling mix. The first third of the book deals with the exodus from Jerusalem ..it is very moving and sad to see the events rushing to make little Ghada and her family refugees. In the next part we see Ghada the British emerging and finally with all the contradiction between home, school (with mostly Jewish friends) and the society at large especially with backdrop of the 1956 Suez war. The third and final part is the return and the contradictions of identities and the battle to assert herself as a single woman working for the cause. Ghada's move from the completely apolitical to the activist as part of her search of identity is very well nuanced and gives us a great insight into the meaning of being a Palestinian refugee.
   
   Ghada Karmi is a gifted writer. This work is fascinating enough even if it was given as bullet points in a PowerPoint presentation, but this is hardly the case. Karmi has a facility with prose and is able to get into great detail to transform the readers into her life; this was very much the case in the fist part of the book, the exodus from Jerusalem. You can almost picture Ghada abandoned dog as their car sped away from the house never to return.
   
   This is a thrilling work on par with Leila Ahmad Border Passage. Leila Ahmad an Egyptian American was not a refugee but here Tri-cultural experience in Egypt, England and America and her search of identity and issues of gender are very interesting and highly developed. Another highly recommended work of a Palestinian American is Nadia Captive of Hope, deals with exodus and gender issues and less so of identity.



4. This book is like a narrative of two different lives: the end of one and the beginning of another. Two lives that are not independent of each other though, as remnants of the one may not be overpowering to the point of eliminating the other, but are certainly powerful enough to haunt it, shape it, give it its final form.
   
   Although in essence totally overwhelmed by emotions, Karmi manages to almost detach and distance herself from her own being, leave her body and float above everything and everyone. That way she describes people, situations and feelings in a detailed and factual fashion, devoid of the empathy that would crush the reader, immerse him in a whirlwind of unfulfilled expectations and unrelieved tension, and ultimately leave him feeling nothing short of miserable and exhausted.
   
   Throughout the entire book, there's a marked emphasis on Karmi's relationships with other Jews, the friendships she formed and her refusal to see them in any other way than as individuals with traits that were or were not compatible, likable or acceptable to her. She almost goes out of her way to make clear that Jewishness never hindered her from befriending someone and not only that, but in an unfamiliar environment such as London was in the aftermath of the second World War, Palestinians and Jews that found themselves stranded there were entities that shared the misfortune of exile, and as such could indeed relate to one another. Moreover, the fact that Judaism was as much a respected as a familiar religion for Muslims, much more so than Christianity, played a role. As did the writer's initial stance, adopted by her parents and passed onto her from an early age, that it wasn't so much the Jews that were responsible for the Palestinians' fate and the violent takeover of their country, as ultimately the British, who as custodians of Palestine had the obligation to protect and safeguard the interests of the indigenous population. Instead, they forsook and betrayed them, and disposed of the Palestinian land -that was never theirs to dispose of in the first place- as served their purposes at the time.
   
   Karmi experiences an internal conflict, wavering between her British identity and her Arab origins, desperately longing to be accepted by and fit in either society. She often describes the war that rages inside of her, the opposite forces pushing and pulling, on the one hand the need to put everything behind her and lead as normal a life as possible, and on the other the need to seek out her roots and fight with all her might the injustice that was meted out to her.
   
   This book is so much more that a simple memoir, as it goes deep inside the mind of people who experience exile and dislocation, and gives a picture of the psychological turmoil they find themselves in and the void they will probably never be able to fill.



5. This is a wonderful book that shows the humnan tragedy of becoming a refugee. In this case, the book talks about a refugee of the 1948 war for Palestine. While the book explains how the creation of the state of Israel have shattered the lives of three quarter million palestnians, it tells the story of one of them. The story of personal conflicts that face any palestnian refugee now, then and in the future:
   - Can I return to Palestine and where is it now?
   - How can I stay palestnian and at the same time contribute to my current non-palestnian community?
   - Do I have the capacity to forgive israelies for what they did to my family and country?
   
   While Ghada's responses to these questions were positive, and she insisted to find an answer to these questions, it is the role of each palestnian to find his/her own answers. Also, it is the role of non-palestnians to understand the palestnian refugee before addressing their plight. Therefore I highly recommend this book.

4 comments about Forgotten Founding Father: The Heroic Legacy of George Whitefield (Leaders in Action Series).

1. Mansfield does a good job at researching and narrating the life of George Whitefield. Although the book succeeds as a autobiographic-inspirational, I somehow found the book somewhat short on facts and Whitefield's exact impact on people or the culture. Surely there must be more known of this great Puritan-like man, perhaps the greatest trans-Atlantic preacher of all time?



2. This is a nice introduction to George Whitefield, and its short chapters, strong narrative and straightforward vocabulary makes it a good choice, perhaps, for middle- and high-school students.
   
   It is most refreshing to read a book about a famous Christian written by a Christian, in which the Christian life is understoond, and a given.
   
   However, this book has some sloppy history. The author makes statements that he does not back up, and some of his assertions are incorrect. For instance, he says that bear-baiting and public executions were products of the eighteenth century, and holds them up as departures from England's Christian past, when in fact they had been around for a lot longer than that. There are, unfortunately, a number of examples like this, throughout the book.
   
   Also, his analysis of Whitefield's character is wanting. His goal is clear in the title of the book -- to highlight Whitefield's "heroic legacy." And that's a great goal -- historians often do emphasize the failings of the famous, and neglect their successes. But Mansfield but does not draw very deep or satisfying conclusions from the failings of this complex, inspirational man.
   
   That being said, I did enjoy this book -- though it annoyed me at times -- and I found it inspirational.



3. Forgotten Founding Father: The Heroic Legacy of George Whitefield is a outstanding biography of a man who had a great influence on young Benjamin Franklin. This epic follows Whitefield from childhood to his ministry in the colony of Georgia. A must read for any one who wish to study early American history. Steven Mansfield doses a splendid job at writing Whitefield's life story.



4. With movies like Patriot reviving an interest in our Colonial roots, our heritage of faith is also reviving. One of the stories that has not been told well enough is how our American Revolution grew out of a revival of Christian faith called the Great Awakening. The leader of this movement was an amazing man named George Whitefield. Few know that name today, but our Founding Fathers new it well and honored it as a force in the founding of our nation

   Stephen Mansfield has written an accessible, moving, skillfully told story of the man who is indeed our "Forgotten Founding Father." If you love this book as I do, then don't miss Mansfield's other biographies, like Never Give In on Winston Churchill and Then Darkness Fled on Booker T. Washington. Each of these marvelous books restores a heritage largely lost to our generation.

5 comments about Crisis, Pursued by Disaster, Followed Closely by Catastrophe: A Memoir of Life on the Run.

1. As an inhabitant of a house filled with those for whom the lessons of history matter more than the scramble of today's news, I was pulled into the story of Mike O'Connor's life and family more forcefully than anything I've read in recent years. (In my home, the mere mention of J Edgar is enough to spark a rampage of argument and rage for a few hours. Add in that era's anti-Red crowd in Boston and throughout the U.S., and you pretty much need to cancel the rest of your appointments for the day.) O'Connor's straightforward rendering of his family's life in the ominous period of anti-communist America reminds us of how close history is to our lives today.
   
   But this is not a political screed. Nor is it weighed down with pages of historical facts. "Crisis, Pursued by Disaster ..." is about what happens when the peculiarities of families and individuals are absorbed and amplified by the world they live in.
   
   Most important, be aware that O'Connor not only can knock out a fine line of text, he can tell a complete story. His remembrances may make you cringe at times, but his skillful mix of humor, irony and frank reporting about the preposterous situations he and his family encountered (and often created) is too magnetic to pass up. I was left fulfilled by the literature but worried about lingering effects on him and his family -- and concerned for all of us about the lessons of history being ignored. When you read this book, be prepared to think about your own life and family as deeply as O'Connor has considered his own.



2. The roads they traveled - through Italy, England, Canada, Mexico, Texas, Boston, California, Maine, Afghanistan - chart a fascinating multi-generational journey. While the fabric of this family is not unlike many other American families: immigrants and soldiers, bootstraps and traditions, expectations and disappointments, the paths they took together and individually toward, and mostly away from, their hopes and dreams are nothing short of bizarre.
   
   Told from a boy's desire to make sense of his chaotic world, this is a story of a mother torn between her love for a man with big plans and a hidden past, and for their children, who at first blindly accept, then secretly question, and finally uncover the truth of their lives on the run. This forced dynamic lays the groundwork for the narrator's journalism career and his discovery of the real and imagined forces that propelled them into perpetually unknown territory. However, the non-stop fear it imposed on their lives is a frustrating and eye-opening American tragedy.
   
   That a church was a false sanctuary, a crib became an arrest warrant, or a family pet could potentially cause children to be torn from their parents - the unimaginable real threats they faced blurred their perception of innocent events so that the slightest trigger would send this family packing. The lengths to which over-zealous authorities and unforgiving traditionalists would go to keep these people in line with their dogma are mind-boggling.
   
   If we were to just take a step back - when faced with political or family crises - and imagine for a moment the effects of unbending adherence to one perspective, we may find ourselves with far less societal and family dysfunction.
   
   The Road (Oprah's Book Club)
   [[ASIN:B000GFR9OE Conversation in the Cathedral]
   The Known World
   The Kite Runner (Riverhead Essential Editions)
   The Lives They Left Behind: Suitcases from a State Hospital Attic
   The Lobotomist: A Maverick Medical Genius and His Tragic Quest to Rid the World of Mental Illness
   Looking for History: Dispatches from Latin America
   Fall of Baghdad, The
   Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq
   Merchant of Death: Money, Guns, Planes, and the Man Who Makes War Possible



3. A great read. This is a riveting story - with a very unlikely ending. I recommend it highly.



4. A former PBS reporter investigates "family secrets". Seemingly innocuous events trigger havoc in otherwise loving and caring parents. The mysterious Auntie from Boston visits from time to time. A war time romance gives a hint? Take this book to the beach this summer and pass it around.



5. This is a wonderful book about a family, a boy, and precarious times in the not too distant past that carry an uncomfortable resonance today. It is a tense, often scary read that's hard to put down. The motivations for all the secrets in this story are both uniquely personal and powerfully relevant. Even as the forces behind the fear and running are revealed, the experiences of a boy trying to cope with the palpable tension that clings to his family remain the unforgettable heart of this story.

1 comments about The Harold Nicolson Diaries 1907-1963.

1. A very rewarding book containing some letters and many diary entries of a well-positioned and thoughtful English political and literary figure of the first half of the last century.
   
   A good purchase for those desiring background information on an important stretch of years in England and Europe; it encompasses first hand takes on the likes of Winston Churchill and events such as the Paris Peace Conference. Those with a special interest in the poet and wife of Mr. Nicolson, Vita Sackville-West, will also enjoy reading this book.
   
   Nicely edited by the diarist's son.

5 comments about The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy's Dossier on Hillary Clinton.

1. In an effort to objectively write a key chapter in my book,America, You Will Be Destroyed !: Thus Saith The Lord - and Other Amazing Prophecies I read Ms. Carpenter's book as a part of my research. While many other Hillary books focused on her and husband Bill's scandals, Carpenter's book tried to capture the psyche and inner workings of the former First Lady as well.
   
   The paperclips and dog-ears seemed a little contrived at first, but I realize that it did give the appearance of a dossier that had been compiled against an enemy agent! I felt that the little, seemingly insignificant or trivial details of her life and childhood helped me to paint a better mental picure of the driving forces in Hillary's life. As a former national and state licensed therapist, the little details helped me to create a case study snapshot. The influences of the feminist movement, her continued pursuit and espousal of radicalism and socialism, her upbringing under a driven father, the upheaval of the 60's, the me-generation of the 70's, the self-consciousness towards her own body (specifically her legs), the disdain and reproachful way Bill treated her... Whew, her issues of being driven, loathing of men in general, thirst for power/dominance and control, all make sense. as another reviewer said, "When peeling back the layers, we need to know this stuff to get at what makes Hillary tick."
   
   Looking at all the background and biographical details makes me realize (and hopefully others) that in her machinations we see clearly that she has not become more conservative or even centrist. She is a radical socialist to the core, and the most frightening thng in this revelation is that she seems to truly believe that she alone is right, that she alone is the people's champion and this sense of righteous indignation fuels her passionately to apire to the pinnacle of power at all costs.
   
   Like a true socialist, Hillary will do anything and everything to obtain power. She will reinvent herself over and over to do so. This book shows clearly that pragmatism is all a pose to make her attractive to the broad electorate. For her, the end (her obtaining power) will justify any means.
   
   What was most noteworthy to me, was the exposure of two significant points. One, Hillary really despises conservative Christianity and the traditional family structure; and two, when she feels threatened or makes a mistake etc, she will lash out and attack anyone, someone to take the heat off herself. I believe that much of her angst towards conservative, traditional culture is based on her indoctrination by her radical youth minister that had espoused the hard-core anarchist philosophy of Saul Alinsky.
   
   The raw data and files and documents provided in "Dossier" were helpful in evaluating the depth and extent of Hillary (and Bill's) corruption.



2. Those who'd like to explore the history of women running for President might want to read two collections of speeches by the first woman to run for the White House--Victoria Woodhull in 1872. She's a fascinating person. Even today, her ideas about sexuality and social programs make Hillary Clinton look like a cranky, hide-bound reactionary.
   
   Free Lover: Sex, Marriage And Eugenics in the Early Speeches of Victoria Woodhull
   
   Lady Eugenist: Feminist Eugenics in the Speeches And Writings of Victoria Woodhull



3. This book is a road map for Hillary Clinton's defeat. I just hope the Republicans read it and get their heads out of the sand.
   Carol Ann Wilson
   Houston TX



4. This was an interesting CD to listen to because it gave a history of what Senator Clinton has been up to since she left the White House. It is some what of a rehash of other stories but it has new information too. I thought it was enticing the way the Clintons are doing the one, two punch for campaign contributions. Bill goes out and exploits the fact that he was President to his financial gain. Then he can give the money to his wife for his political gain no matter where he got it from because they are married. It's a pretty sweet scam.
   
   The CD also tells about the policies that she intends to implement and that most of it is for financial gain and power and not to help the people. I like the part where with all her pork barrel project her state was one of the few that was going down economically while the rest of the country was moving up.
   
   So all in all it was just funny stuff to hear and pretty tongue in cheek. If you're a die-hard Hillary fan I don't think you'll hate it, just say it's all lies and laugh it off.



5. The dossier is more frightening than I expected, and from what I knew before reading it, that's saying something. How is it possible that this woman could become the next President? Are people really so easily manipulated by media and marketing consultants that they'd buy into her agenda? Do we deserve her? Maybe so. Ignorance is rampant. And in this, as in most cases, ignorance is NOT bliss.

2 comments about Why Women Should Rule the World LP: A Memoir.

1. 
   I loved this book; anyone against war and for communication among
   law makers and world leaders, as well as fiscal responsibility will want to see what real change could do.



2. 
   We women are often afraid of our own power. Afraid to be thought of as pushy or bitchy if we assert ourselves willfully with the force of our passion. But wise women wield power wisely and the planet is in desperate need of our wisdom. The time couldn't be more crucial.
   
   Thank you, Dee Dee Meyers for your insights, as well as for being such an inspiring role model. You are right! I agree completely. Women SHOULD rule the world!
   
   Now is the time for all women to acknowledge and explore our stature and our strength. It is high time to exert our influence and the power of our moral convictions and authority. We have held back long enough. Starting here, starting now, we must claim our rightful duties as powerful leaders. We have the whole world in our hands.
   
   Hell may have no fury like a woman scorned, but women standing together side by side, autonomous, proud, and empowered can create heaven on earth.
   
   There will be no heaven unless we make it.
   -Florence Nightingale

5 comments about Stolen Lives: Twenty Years in a Desert Jail (Oprah's Book Club).

1. This story definitely will keep you reading on and on into the night. I was turning the pages trying to find out what would happen in the end.
   The first of the book is bittersweet, but has many moments of joy. The second half, however, is a terrible account of incarceration in some of the worst conditions possible.
   I really liked this book because the story telling kept my interest. The main character of the novel is my only complaint. I know this is her story, but sometimes she seemed like she was telling a story of how she saved her family almost totally by herself. This part seemed a bit contrived since there was eight of them in jail. I think another reviewer said they would have liked to hear more about the siblings and their contributions. I think this is what I might have wanted as well, but seeing this was Malika's telling of the story, I assume she was answering for herself and what she was thinking.
   Aside from the fact, I found the story very Malika centered at times although there were eight in jail, I can definitely recommend it.



2. I read this books some years ago and still can't get it out of my head because of how incredible the real life events were. For a Westerner, the tale is imazing. As a woman, I was dumb-founded by the sentence given to an entire family by the Moroccan Royalty for a crime that none of them committed. The book really opened my eyes about the differences between democratic societies and those ruled by royalty dictators. This is a book I always recommends to others to read.



3. This book was just amazing. The story she tells keeps you on the edge of your seat. Truly spine tingling. It's a book that provokes alot of soul-searching.What's life really about? How do people survive such things as those described in this book? A good book.



4. I thoroughly enjoyed Stolen Lives. The ordeal Malika Oufkir and her family suffered is astonishing. It really pained me to read through her true accounts of riches to less-than-rags. The Oufkirs were fortunate and strong to have survived through it all.
   
   I felt that the writing was fine. Even if it was not, the story was so powerful, I would have enjoyed it anyway. There are many books out there that are fluffy, shallow, and very well written. I prefer to read works that are deep, educational, and so powerful that they leave a lasting impression - like this book!



5. Incredible story. I just recently returned from Morocco, and while there wondered how many such prisoners are still lingering in the country's prisons. The people of Morocco and kind and friendly, as a whole friendlier than in most countries I have visited. Not once did I hear an unkind word or saw a grumpy face on people I encountered. Absolutely lovely. With that in mind, in the story of her 20 years of imprisonment and the subsequent "Freedom" describing the return to life outside a prison system, the kindness and forgiveness she expresses are much easier to understand.

5 comments about Hugo Chavez: Oil, Politics, and the Challenge to the U.S..

1. Provides an alternative view of Chavez from that of our government and the corporate media. Chavez was elected and re-elected democratically by the Venezuelan people with strong majorities. If you believe in democracy--which some on the right claim to do--that should also season your opinion of Chavez. Nobody says that you have to like Chavez, but try being a little more accurate in your use of terms like "dictator."
   
   I found the book to be fairly informative. The author's adulation of Chavez was a little disconcerting at times. There is some degree of hagiography at work here. Also, the author does make some asides in his writing that really could be left out. The defeated conservative candidate for the Bolivian presidency is characterized as wearing a "red polo shirt." This is opposed to the native dress of the successful leftist candidate, who wears a more native costume. Some of these remarks could have been easily left out.
   
   Still, I agree with the author that globalization and US economic dominance of Latin America are not good things. The push for more regional autonomy for Latin America on the part of Chavez and other South American leadership makes a lot of sense in the long run. He who lives by Wall Street, quite literally, can die by Wall Street. "Fair trade" and justice for all. I also agree with the author that Chavez's attempts to alleviate the conditions of the Venezuelan poor are most admirable. His populist, "middle road" approach seems to me to make a great deal of sense.
   
   However, I would criticize the author for his seeming support of Chavez's position on supporting the growing of coca. If the coca were to be only used locally in Bolivia, Ecuador, etc. that is one thing. But this is the essential part of the multi-billion dollar cocaine trade out of Latin America. No US administration could fail to take actions against this trade. White liberal guilt should neither excuse or enable this trade. The production and promotion of cocaine is both criminal and morally bankrupt. I agree there need to be alternatives. But no one can sell me the line that this is the only activity that the poor of the Andes are capable of. If we cannot agree across political boundaries that hard drugs are not acceptable, I don't know what we can agree upon.



2. If mainstream news leaves you with more questions than answers, read this book. It's accurate and informative. Latin America is not full of crazy, misguided people as many of us here believe. If your a fan of right wing radio, you will no doubt hate this book, but anyone with a desire to learn will appreciate it.



3. This book is one of the worst books I have read in recent years.
   
   Nikolas Kozloff, a self-proclaimed anarchist, analyzes the history of Chavez through an inaccurate and self-important lense. Not only does this book contain numerous inaccuracies as to the Venezuela experience, some of the information presented is pure fabrication. The book reaches unsupported and absurd conclusions in an unabashed effort to glorify Chavez and undermine the United States and international organizations. Mr. Kozloff's propensity to use falacious logic is present throughout the entire book.
   
   I highly recommend against purchasing this book unless you want to understand the absolute garbage spewing forth from many quarters in an effort to promote totalitarian and abusive governments. While there are many valid arguments in today's world against the United States foreign policy, the IMF, the WTO, NAFTA, the FTAA, and other bodies and viewpoints, Mr. Kozloff's book does not contain any of them. Instead, this book chooses to set up an absurd straw man and to riddle its body with made up arguments.
   
   If you are looking for discussions of globalization in general, I refer you to such books as The World Is Flat and Runaway World: How Globalisation Is Reshaping Our Lives. If you are looking for books framed around Chavez, I would recommend looking as far from this book as possible.



4. Hugo Chavez, Oil Politics and the Challenge to the U.S. by Nikolas Kozloff lacks focus, is confusing and ultimately is not worth the time or effort to read. Kozloff is a senior research fellow for the Council on Hemispheric Affairs in Washington, D.C. who holds a Ph.D. in Latin American History from Oxford University and writes regularly on Venezuela. With these credentials I was expecting a solid, fact based, informative biography about the man who presides over Venezuela, but this book did not deliver on any account.
   
   The author freely expresses his leftist views throughout the book, which in turn skews him from providing any reader a real analytical view of Chavez and the programs and policies that he is implementing within Venezuela. More often than not Kozloff uses Chavez and his policies to discredit and attack the Bush Administration, while using unsupported claims, "the state owned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela Sociedad Anonima (PdVSA) entered into a joint venture with Science Applications International Corporation, (SAIC) to use SAIC contacts within the CIA to conduct sabotage and espionage in Venezuela," and plenty of leftist bias to make his points. For example, in chapter 4 Kozloff details his personnel involvement in organizing protest against the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund, his association with London based anarchist and how he returned to Oxford and joined in the anti-capitalist May Day protests in London. Kozloff continually interjected his own experiences in Latin Amercia throughout the book which were irrelevant to Chavez, and contributed nothing but reinforcement of his leftist credentials.
   
   Kozloff does try to tackle the subject of how Chavez uses oil to leverage influence and as a weapon throughout Latin and North America. Kozloff would have done well to focus the book on this topic and how Chavez intends to use oil both domestically and internationally to achieve his stated goals.
   
   Kozloff fails to mention or discuss the repressive nature of Chavez or the effects of Chavez's stances against multinational corporations. Kozloff does spend a good deal of time outlining Chavez's policies towards indigenous peoples of the Andes region, but again he fails to make the case that what Chavez is doing is in the best interest of these people. Kozloff points out how Chavez is assisting the indigenous people of the Andes, but it is usually in the context of using them against the right leaning government of Columbia or against the U.S.
   
   Hugo Chavez, Oil, Politics and the Challenge to the U.S. offers the reader nothing with regards to Chavez and his domestic or international policies. I was looking for an expert biography about the man and his policies but, clearly this was not the book that would provide me with that insight. Do not read the book it is not worth the time or expense.



5. This book is an incredible piece of investigative work. Nikolas Kozloff delves deeper into critical issues than most other authors do by presenting vast background information on key players in historic events. Sometimes, however, he takes this a step too far and begins including little anecdotes from his personal experiences in Venezuela that resemble a memoir more so than an informative book. Also, he makes no attempt to hide his hatred for U.S. policies and often times his writing becomes rather noneducational and ridden with personal opinion. Some of the information included in the book at times comes from questionable sources that he seems to take at face value and presents as fact, such as information from Chavez's mouth itself. I personally feel that the book adds to the literature written on this subject by foreigners who enjoy the freedoms, civil liberties, and comforts of 1st world nations and who happen to find themselves in line with and interested in President Chavez's socialist experiment as long as they aren't the ones living under and being subjected to his policies. Nonetheless, the book is incredibly informative and with some filtering does give an excellent account the Venezuelan revolution and U.S. policy.

4 comments about The Petticoat Affair: Manners, Mutiny, and Sex in Andrew Jackson's White House.

1. My students, who detest reading with a passion, invariably enjoy reading this book. Full of "good guys" and "bad guys" it forces them to choose a side, which makes it great for essay assignments.



2. Though it's not the worst book I've ever read, I had the hardest time getting past the third chapter. With promises that this book was interesting I was quite disappointed. The book reads like you are reading a geneology chart instead of a book of scandals. It throws in a name, and then EVERY person they are related to, who they are related to and so on. The story is interesting...if you can get past all the [crud]. If you're looking for an interesting book with history you've come to the wrong place. If you are looking for a history book with a few interesting high spots...you'll love it.



3. This book is well-written and difficult to put down. The author did his research well. It is a good explanation of the Margaret Eaton Affair and of the social mores that women were expected to live by in the 1820s and 1830s. It is also a classic example of the theory that "men get their identity by what they do; women, by their family." Margaret Eaton could not escape that she was the daughter of a "tavern-keeper" and many of the slanders against her were merely based on the prejudices of the time concerning the stereotypical behavior of the daughters of tavern-keepers.



4. This book is first a description of a political scandal in the 1820s and 1830s in which a President threw his administration into turmoil over a woman. Secondly, there is a fine treatment of the role women were expected to play in the 1800s and the reasons Margaret Eaton and Rachel

   Jackson did not fit in. It's a fine well written

   story, very worthwhile.

5 comments about Politicking: How to Get Elected, Take Action, and Make an Impact in Your Community.

1. Even if you're not "into" politics, there's much in POLITICKING by Bill Rauch that can be enjoyed . . . he's a former advance man for Ed Koch who is now mayor of Beaufort, South Carolina.
   
   He provides much practical advice on what is needed to get elected at any level, but in doing so, he also gives you insight on how to run a meeting, work a room, deal with negative press
   coverage, how to look good on camera, etc. . . . I know that I took lots of notes and plan to use some of them in my teaching . . . also, I've already shared many of the ideas with friends (both politicians and those in the business world).
   
   For example, there's this useful technique for generating applause when speaking:
   
   Here's a Lee Atwater trick that's worth trying if you've got an energized group of core supporters and election day's approaching. Nothing looks better on TV than you with 150 Kiwanians standing and cheering you. But how do you get them out of their seats?
   First, write a speech that builds up to and then ends with your announcing something that's news and that the community wants, say a new football stadium for the high school or a new parking facility downtown. You don't have to say you've got the money, just that you favor the new project and you'll work to make it happen. Practice the speech until you know it's good. Then make sure the TV camera crews are in the back of the room. Tell them there'll be news in your speech that they won't want to miss, but don't tell them what it is or they may not come to find out. Get as many of your people into the room as you can, but-this is the
   Atwater part-position ten or twelve of your most reliable supporters throughout the room as if you're the batter and they're the fielders in a baseball game, with a "pitcher" at front row center. Cue your team, especially the pitcher, to the applause line at the end of the speech,
   telling them, "When I get to the applause line, get up and start clapping hard as soon as the pitcher gets up." It will amaze you to see all the other Kiwanians rising with them. And the footage of the crowd standing and clapping as you humbly sit down after concluding your remarks will be irresistible to the editors back at the TV stations' cutting rooms.
   
   There were several other valuable tidbits of information; among them:
   The next step--and here's one of the many places organizational ability, hard work, and people skills pay off--is to either call or preferably go see each of these people. Most people find it vastly easier to say no to a voice on the phone than to a person sitting in their living room. So whenever possible, go see your prospective committee members in their homes. When you get there, don't be shy. Pitch the wife. Pitch the kids. Pitch the mother-in-law. Tell the son that you're running and how important his father's support is to your candidacy. Watch the movie Primary Colors and learn from the Bill Clinton character. The ability to make an ordinary person feel extraordinary is a high political art. If you weren't born with this
   talent, seek to acquire it. An ordinary ego can be intoxicated by flattery, and an intoxicated ego will pledge things that defy rationality. In this way you can build something from nothing.
   
   In the six weeks before election day, candidates in local races should spend the hour or so they are allocated in public forums talking about how they will improve the lives of their constituents. They may also spend a few minutes speaking of what good they've already done, and briefly outlining any other personal qualifications that might get them some votes. Under no circumstances should a candidate in a local race disparage one of his or her opponents at a forum or in a debate. Likewise, badmouthing opponents to reporters should be avoided. No matter how delicately it can be done, bad- mouthing comes off a nasty.
   
   In my six years as a city council-member, I was careful t be nonpartisan. I avoided party functions, which saved a lot of time too. Where I made campaign contributions or appearances, I tried to support candidates form both parties. My line was: "I know al these people. I work with them. I support people on the basis of whether they're good for Beaufort. I
   don't care whether they're Democrats or Republicans, so long as they're good for Beaufort."



2. The recent reviewer of this book, a Mr. John McCommas, either did not read it completely or missed its point entirely. Far from being a party waffler, Bill Rauch goes out of his way to explain and illustrate that party partisanship and ideology has little efficacy in solving local issues. He is quite clear in stating that, while on the State and National level, party and partisan loyalty may be the source of power, "at the local level the opposite is true, the non-partisan is able to work with everyone" (p. 37). Independence, he suggests, is a path to resolution.
   
   Rauch takes a refreshingly practical look at how local issues arise and how one goes about solving them in the most satisfactory and effective way that serves the needs of the community in question. Drawing on a wide range of personal experiences, both as a small town mayor and as an aide to New York City's Mayor Ed Koch, Rauch illustrates how problems are solved, crises averted, and elections run. His blow by blow descriptions of the thought processes behind specific situations is revelatory and a must read for anyone who wants to understand the logic of political presentation and resolution. His anecdotal style is refreshing and he makes the tackling of daily community problems read like a detective story.
   
   Perhaps more than anything, however, Rauch not only explains how average people can enter politics, but why. He points out that the multimillion dollar media campaigns of ideological sound bites is not where real politics takes place, but rather it is closer to home in issues that affect our daily lives. This book is in many ways a call to service and Rauch appeals to everyone's sense of democratic responsibility for the locale in which they have invested their lives.



3. Bill Rauch is a Jim Jeffords clone. He is waiting to switch parties for maximum effect.
   
   I don't know about you, but I really am really annoyed by these itchy-scratchy infections in the Republican Party that can do nothing but tell people what terrible monsters us real Republicans are.
   
   If you want to leave dude, than just go. No one cares what you think about an election that was done and over 4 years ago. McCain lost. Get over it and "move on" as you Klinton-apologists libs like to say.
   
   This book offers nothing that is new.



4. This book is really a very handy resource for those interested in running for and holding a political office. Rauch gives excellent pointers, followed by personal examples or experiences, and then goes back to the pointer he was initially attempting to make.

   Examples of such pointers include:

   "To win a seat in your local government it is helpful to have distinguished youself by doing something that is a significant sector of the electorate wanted to see done." (p.3)

   "It is never good in public life to become angry, especially when you are about to address hundreds to people. While it is sometimes beneficial to appear to be shocked or outraged, it is a big mistake to let actual anger, which is self-indulgent, overwhelm your tactical saavy." (p.14)

   "You cannot win alone. And the friends you choose to help you win will be yours for a long time, so choose them carefully." (p. 37)

   "There is no such thing as noncontroversial money in politics. If you use your own, you may later be criticized for "buying" the election. If you use someone else's, you may later be criticized for having been "bought" by your contributor. Yet it is also said with considerable justification that "money is the mother's milk of politics."" (p. 47)

   "Local government is the government that is closest to the people. Local government officials, then, have the opportunity to make changes that are felt immediately by the people." (p. 57)

   "Campaigns test this quality - grace under pressure - as well." (p. 60)

   "This is not to say, however, that the little known unfortunate things there are about your opponent should be concealed from the electorate. Just the opposite. The more of her dirty laundry that can be hung out, the better it is for you. It is just that none of it should be hung by you." (p. 64)

   "In the end, all you can do is be yourself, and in the end that's all your constituents want you to be. They can smell a phony a mile away. And phonies don't get elected." (p. 111)

   Those are just a few of the many tips Rauch has shared in the book. It is an extremely good read and quite resourceful. I recommend it for anyone interested in getting involved in the political process of running for office.




5. Bill Rauch had a pretty impressive tutor before he ran for mayor of Beaufort, South Carolina...New York City mayor Ed Koch. Rauch served as advance man and press secretary to Koch and it appears he learned his lessons well. Rauch distills his knowledge into Politicking : How to Get Elected, Take Action, and Make an Impact in Your Community, sometimes folksy, other times Machiavalian.

   Rather than a dry manual, Rauch employs a humorous style to illustrate his points. Admonishments and advice are seamlessly woven in with anecdotes from his days in New York and Beaufort. Some of his advice is obvious even to those with no political experience -- make sure to be available to the people you want to represent and avoid waffling -- while other tidbits would seem counterintuitive to readers. For example, aspiring politicians -- contrary to popular perception about elected representatives -- shouldn't talk too much. It's a good way avoid saying something stupid and it allows the voters to speak their minds.

   Though at times Politicking occasionally comes across as a one-sided testament to Rauch's apparent ability to always occupy the moral high ground, he never seems to have been on the wrong side of an issue, overall it is a fine guide for aspiring politicians. Even those not brave -- or foolhardy -- enough to throw their hats in the ring will find Politicking an entertaining look into how and why decisions are made that effect them.