5 comments about Odin: The Diary of a CIA Assassin.

1. ODIN is pure, unadulterated satire. Some readers have failed to recognize this fact. Even ODIN's back-cover blurb is written in tongue-in-cheek style, and inside, the book's pages brim with subtle deadpan humor.
   
   (As an aside, this is my first review. I was prompted to commit my opinion to the record because of certain misrepresentations of ODIN, a book that I thoroughly enjoyed.)
   
   Some readers have also charged that ODIN's prose is adolescent. To the contrary, the book's writing is eloquent, and its style is sophisticated. In fact, sophisticated writing is requisite for such effective satire. I cracked open my copy of ODIN and selected (from chapter two, pages 13 and 14) the following excerpt as representative of the book's style:
   
   "Passion sometimes bleeds into rage, which dances
   around the margins of madness.
   
   "Had my fervor crossed the line into delirium? Or
   did I remain lucid, still capable of reason and sound
   judgment? At that moment, sitting in my office, evidence
   bag in hand, God speaking in my ear (which
   alone can rupture a flawed soul), I was no longer sure
   about my sanity-or about anything else.
   
   "For years I'd stifled my fiery criticisms of the CIA.
   I'd seen too many bootlickers rewarded, too many
   righteous missions abandoned, too many essential
   duties neglected. Now my best friend was a victim of
   this ineptitude, this corruption, this apathy...."
   
   Also, you can read ODIN's entire first chapter on-line at Amazon.com and judge for yourself.
   
   Some readers may also charge that an author or one of his friends might pose as multiple persons and post unrealistically positive reviews of a book, in a juvenile attempt to manipulate the Amazon rating system. Not true in ODIN's case. My research on this sales site produced the following data:
   
   --One reviewer was a female from San Francisco;
   
   --One reviewer was a male from Arlington, VA;
   
   --A reviewer, a male from Salt Lake City;
   
   --Another reviewer was a female from Winter Park, Florida;
   
   --A final reviewer, a male, indicated that he was from "Jackosn" (sic), Michigan.
   
   I found NO connections between any of these reviewers; each was discrete from the others. These reviewers registered separate purchases from Amazon of non-fiction books on the US military and self-defense, and of novels in the mystery category.
   
   As for any questions about the credentials of ODIN's primary author, Hank Anlaf, I contacted an old family friend who served with the CIA for more than 30 years, and who still works for them as a part-time annuitant. After checking with several of his former colleagues, this family friend confirmed that Hank Anlaf is a registered pseudonym of a CIA operations officer who served for 10 years before resigning due to an unspecified dispute with his senior supervisor(s). During his decade of service, Anlaf had three overseas assignments. After his resignation, in accordance with still-binding CIA regulations, Anlaf submitted ODIN to the CIA's Publication Review Board as a work of "espionage satire." The PRB required at least two minor changes to ODIN's text before approving the book for commercial publication.
   
   One last word: ODIN should not be compared to other "assassination novels" such as those in Ludlum's Bourne series. ODIN uses the detestable vocation of killing only as a vehicle for his satire. This extremist behavior allows Anlaf's protagonist-anti-hero, more accurately-to draw out and illuminate the arcane and insidious nature of secret bureaucracies like the CIA, and simultaneously to parody some of the more ham-fisted espionage fiction that crowds the shelves of today's bookstores.
   
   In short, this book is NOT for everyone. It will probably not appeal to consumers of standard spy fiction. But it will find a big fan in anyone who's looking for a literary adventure with a razor-edge satirical subtext.



2. I've read many books but I've never felt compelled to write a review until now. I don't want anybody else to waste their money. The book is laughable(and not in a good way). Although the reviewing guideline says not to mention other reviews, I think it's worth noting that all four previous excellent reviews were by the same person. The book is presented as non-fiction, it's clear from early on that it's complete fiction. Which is fine if that's what the author is selling, but from reading the editorial review and the about the author section it's implied that the book is a true story. The author may have worked for the CIA(I have my doubts) but the book seems to have been written by a teenager. If you're looking for a good assassin novel(and make no mistake, Odin is a novel) try The Bourne Identity, The Day of the Jackal, or Hit Man. You can thank me later.



3. A fast read, compelling for the author's breadth of knowledge of faraway places as well as ways to assassinate the purveyors of evil. Especially notable for Hank's loyalty to his fallen comrade, Stan Bauer, and a rescued gypsy girl. Also notable is the fact that the book has no editorial errors!



4. There is never a dull moment in this book - I read it non-stop from cover to cover. This book has all the action of The Bourne Identity (the movie) with the cutting criticisms of the CIA's bureaucracy and incompetent leadership of Bob Baer's See No Evil. A must read for anyone looking for insights into one of the U.S. Government's most secretive organizations.



5. Anlaf and Sannar are masters of deadpan satire. The dark humor in Odin brims with bureaucratic and social criticism. Good riddane to the superhero main character so prevalent in today's thriller fiction. And a warm welcome to its evil twin: Hank Anlaf.

5 comments about Cities in the Wilderness: A New Vision of Land Use in America.

1. Bruce Babbitt continues to labor under the self deception that he know best in determining the future of the "common people" his ideas always consume like serfs found to be useless in the feifdom. Read it for the future it suggests of an end to private property and a beginning of the sort of Stalinism and federal tyranny that Babbitt favors. Don't think it was written by any true westerner who "grew up on a ranch." It was written by a political lackey and opportunist who was kicked off his grandfather's spread in Arizona and has always yearned for power--especially power over what he calls the "agricultural apparatchiks."



2. Babbitt begins by telling us that relentless building of highways have spearheaded landscape destruction as land speculators and developers follow. Local governments generally have neither the political will, expertise, nor financial resources to stand up to well-financed developers and their political contributions. Babbitt then goes on to make the case for federal leadership in making land use regulation more effective, and uses examples from his experience involving the Everglades, Southern California, and the Chesapeake Bay to make the point.
   
   The shrinking Everglades problem was caused by farms, canals, dikes, housing developments; its solution began during the early '90s, and moved forward despite Congress' tilting towards reduced spending. The first step occurred when then Interior Secretary Babbitt met with the Army Corps of Engineers, and reached agreement with them to develop a study and proposal on changing the drainage system. There was also a problem with excess fertilizer draining from sugar plantations into the Everglades - causing cattails to displace natural saw grass. They agreed to cut their fertilizer applications in half (were using too much - at the chemical companies behest), and to plant cattails at the draining end of their fields to soak up the rest of the excess. (Babbitt points out that the "ideal" solution would have been to simply end expensive sugar subsidies, allow foreign sugar into the U.S. at much lower price, and allow the sugar plantations to revert to the Everglades.) Another requirement was buying out landowners "suckered" into buying swampland that were clamoring for more levees so they could use their land. The happy outcome was a proposal backed by all sides that was enacted by Congress in 2000. (Side Note: Everglade bog land used for sugar growing has a limited life anyway - it had already dried out, was blowing away, and sunk 12 feet, and had not much further to sink before reaching limestone.)
   
   Babbitt learned in other efforts that it was much simpler to work on a project limited to a single state, and the importance of using sound science in administering the Endangered Species Act.
   
   Babbitt points out that the federal government has always been involved in land-use planning - improving river navigability, surveying, staking out, and subsidizing transcontinental railroad routes, flood control projects, dams, interstate highways. While these efforts were all aimed at land development, he believes that it now time to also boost land conservation as well.



3. I use "realistic" in scare quotes as an alternative to "idealistic" environmentalism without commenting on the moral value or desirability of either approach.
   
   Babbitt, Clinton's sole Secretary of the Interior, and governor of Arizona before that, is a career politician with a non-extractive industries Westerner's love of nature of his native land.
   
   Those two come together in his thoughts for how the Endangered Species Act and the 1906 Antiquities Act, used in new ways, can be two of the cornerstones of a 21st century environmentalism, primarily in the West, but indeed nationally.
   
   The other cornerstones are state lead-taking in land-use planning, in conjunction with federal support, and a new day in federal-state environmental cooperation in general.
   
   More obvious observations about the anti-environmentalism of people like President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Congressman Richard Pombo aside, Babbitt offers a moderate amount, but not a great deal, of prescriptive specifics on how to do this.
   
   His own success as Interior Secretary was constrained by the change of administrations.
   
   Babbitt pushed Clinton into "new-style" national monuments remaining outside National Park Service control, such as Grand Staircase-Escalante NM in Utah and Giant Sequoia NM in California (not to be confused with Sequoia NP). The idea was that the landholding federal agency of record (the Bureau of Land Management in Utah and the National Forest Service in California) would develop a better conservationist ethic through being committed to national monument management of a monument that retained multi-use characteristics.
   
   While this might be true to some degree of the BLM, it certainly isn't of the Forest Service, and likely won't be unless that agency sees a MAJOR shake-up. (My prescription: Move the Forest Service out of Agriculture and into Interior.)
   
   That, and the book's relative slimness, keep it from a better rating, as it barely hits 4 stars.



4. Cities in the Wilderness
   By Bruce Babbitt
   
   Book Review
   By Dan Warren
   
   In today's republican political arena with the Bush administrations compelling interest in land expansion the outlook for Environmental causes let along protection would appear to have a dark and gloomy cloud atop any progress. However, Bruce Babbitt the author of Cities in the Wilderness has some new innovative ideas about land use in America. As the U.S. Secretary of the Interior from 1993 to 2001, governor of Arizona from 1978 to 1987 and as Arizona's Attorney General for three years he brings with him experience and a most impressive track record of success in an effort that is largely opposed and unsuccessful; Environmental land preservation efforts and even restoration.
   Within the pages of his book Babbitt gives illustrations of success and of failure. He provides detailed rational in each instance drawing on history, public opinion, media, legal requirements, county state and federal involvements, as well as a plethora of other mitigation factors that explain the success or failure. From these Babbitt pieces together an extraordinary working illustration of how we can be better stewards of our land in America.
   Furthermore, whether directly or indirectly Babbitt addresses the political climate and gives examples of how to over come the counter movements that oppose his unique vision of land use. Within the confines of his five short easy to read straight forward chapters Babbitt is clear, concise, and well structured in order to piece his ideology together followed by appropriate explanation. His thesis is essentially a parallel, contrary to much of his opposition's belief, as will be detailed later in this review, that our country has historically viewed land development not as a local, county, or even State matter, but as a Federal matter. As such Babbitt will contend that we need to continue to have a Federal interest in land use and development while making a joining effort with more localities but still governed by Federal legislation and direction.
   As a native Floridian the everglades are a state treasure. Anyone who has ever driven route one through this magnificent area will feel immersed in nature. For anyone who has not experienced this, all you have to do is watch CBS's hit show CSI: Miami and in most of the episodes as well as in the shows introduction can get a glimpse of what the everglades are from viewing it across their television sets. However, this schema that will be created by this in no way gives justice to the real thing. While either which way will introduce you to the Florida Everglades, it will not reveal its unique history.
   In Babbitt's first chapter he uses his experience with the preservation of the Everglades as an introduction to his idea. The devastation caused by hurricane Andrew in the early 1990's also included the destruction of Homestead Air force base in Florida. In the aftermath the government came to the decision to not to rebuild this base, but rather to sell the property commercially for redevelopment. The proposed plan was initially to make the property into a jet port thus generating jobs and commerce. While at first glance this idea makes serves to help the many who became jobless with the closure of the Air force base, it was highly controversial because the proposed site was only miles from the entrance to the everglades.
   The balancing of these two conflicting interests: land preservation and development for the sake of commerce is the first conflict that Babbitt faces. It is within these conflicts that are the heart of his book and subsequently in looking at each of these that the most benefit for policy and future decision can be justified on. In this particular issue Babbitt allied with the Army Core of Engineers, a most unexpected partnership. The Army Core who wants to build and Babbitt whose interests are to protect creates a uniquely original idea; the two can actually achieve preservation by essentially constructing preservation.
   As pointed out by Babbitt, in earlier years it was the Army Core of Engineers who by direct engineering was in-directly causing devastating affects to the Everglades. As such the remedy was to undo that which was previously done by the efforts of the Army Core of Engineers. While this sounds simple in concept it was very costly and took great effort before it would be later approved for its application. So what exactly would this "undoing" so to speak entail? It would set a new precedent, we would actually spend money not to development but essentially to UN-develop already developed land and for what cause, to preserve the Everglades. This is essentially a step in a new direction in favor of environmental preservation. However, this did not come easily or without coincidence. It was a project that took over eight years, had an eight billion dollar price tag, and according to Babbitt, "the everglades success was an aberration, a case of being in the right place when in came to make a down payment on a presidential election" .
   So what is there to be learned from this experience and success in the Everglades? Babbitt goes on to say,
   "is there an urgent lesson to be derived from the Florida Everglades, it is that we must invent new federal-state partnerships for managing and restoring our lands, partnerships that have sufficient charisma and public support to withstand destructive efforts by later administrations. Which leads us back to the central question posed: could the Everglades effort mark the beginning of a national commitment to large-scale restoration of degraded ecosystems" ?
   The answer to Babbitt's question is two fold. In law when a case is decided the decision is called stare decisis which essentially equates to a precedent that other cases can be decided upon. In the same this narrowly tailored example does in its most simplistic form create a sort of precedent that may act as a catalyst or at least a reference to which other matters related to land conservation can be decided upon.
   As Babbitt moves on in his book he provides another success story in California however this is contrasted with a failure Mississippi. In a later chapter Babbitt faces a new conflict of interests. The issue at essence here is a legal one, it involves the interpretation of what constitutes an endangered species and how exactly the Endangered Species Act is used in conjuncture with the rights of landowners. The discussion centers on an endangered bird. What is truly interesting in this example drawn from Babbitt's personal experience is that it utilized a scientific research study in order to investigate the natural habitat of the endangered species so as to have an information base to which decisions can be based off rather then guestimating. Again Babbitt's efforts were successful; however he cited that this is due to good press and public support.
   The Endangered Species Act was the legal key to success according to the author. It provided the legal authority to act and to protect in this case. What seems difficult about this is the actually application of the act itself. From the text it does not appear that there is a guideline as to how to implement the acts authority and for the most part serves as a guideline that is to be implemented on the local level and the only Federal participation is to create the act itself but does not provide any governing agency to enforce the act. Rather it relies on its compliance at the local level who it seems in most instances are the ones opposing the act as it in most cases reduces expansion and thus tax revenues for that city, county, or even state.
   An interesting remark made by the author is that when it comes to The Endangered Species Act, it is not proactive in protecting but rather reactive in that it does not take affect until after the damage is done. What is gained from this is the ideology that perhaps we need to be proactive with our environment, land use, and species conservation. As with youth we try to teach intervention programs that seek to solve the problem of juvenile delinquency before it starts, in the same we need to solve environmental concerns before they start. Again with this parallel prevention programs cost far less and have much less damage when successful with juveniles as this applies to our environment. We spent 8 billion to undo land development that we had already paid to have developed. Here if we add the research and science base before we make a decision we can avoid these types of environmental concerns before they even exist.
   In subsequent chapters Babbitt applies the concepts thus far discussed to the Midwest in regional restoration. He does a great job of finding money in already current budgets to use towards restoration efforts. For instance he mentions a fifteen million dollar account used for a farm program account. Babbitt also explains that all that needs to occur for this to work is to make it into the farmer's best interests to embrace this program and with the requirements of the global economy they will be more then willing.
   One molecule of oxygen and two of hydrogen create the world's universal solvent and the substance that sustains life on earth: water. The tragedy is that we are wasting it. Again returning to the argument that we need not leave matters to a localized government, but rather we must make them a federal concern, water with all of its importance needs be a chief central concern. As brought up by Buttell, one avenue in promoting environmentalism is a global view point. Babbitt does a good job emphasizing the importance of making water a Federal matter in the U.S. (as his book's title contains the phrase "Land use in America", I feel that on a matter as internationally important as water it only makes sense to start at the top being Federally regulated and then enforced on each level. Again how we Federally regulate it is just as important but I think we can take this a step further and Internationally regulate water as it is more important then any petroleum based resource, everyone globally needs it to survive and I think more emphasis should be given to this concern, not specifically to this text as again it seeks to speak out about U.S. policy, but rather in other avenues.
   While Babbitt's text has a feel good syntax to it, his conclusion brings reality back into play. He finishes up by giving an impressive history and emphasizes the importance of our land. He goes so far as to call it an "American Treasure". Despite this he ends his text with
   "Today, however, our public land institutions are under unprecedented attack from both the president and the Congress. This is a season for all Americans to take renewed interest in defending their heritage- the freedom and glory of wide open public spaces."
   This call to action that he ends with is a powerful one. However, I am doubtful that with the low voting rates of my generation and the ignorance we as a country have towards our Environment I am weary of our future. Will we use the powerful tools that Babbitt has empowered us with; will we be proactive and preventative rather then responsive after the fact before we have done irreversible harm to our Continent? These questions are serious and meaningful and will affect later generations of Americans.



5. I enjoyed reading about bruce Babbit's interpretation of where land use should focus in the years to come. He also laid the groundwork for the development process for several urban areas and national parks. I found it to be a very worthwhile read and I would recommend it to othere.

5 comments about A President in the Family: Thomas Jefferson, Sally Hemings, and Thomas Woodson.

1. If you've followed the Jefferson-Hemings controversy, you know that the DNA tests have shown that Jefferson was almost certainly the father of Sally Hemings' children. This conclusion is supported by virtually all historians and informed observers, with the only holdouts being the Old Virginia types (as exemplified by some of the reviewers here) who simply refuse to accept that their hero, Thomas Jefferson, had an affair with his African-American slave.
   
   But if you've followed the Hemings controversy you also know that the DNA tests indicated that the Woodson family, the branch with the most robust oral history of their descent from the President, are apparently not related to Thomas Jefferson at all. And that while their oral history is emphatic that their ancestor, Thomas Woodson, was Jefferson's son -- in fact the "Black Tom" alluded to in Callender's contemporary attack on the President -- this young person cannot even be definitively placed on the Monticello plantation.
   
   It's a genuine mystery. It's mysterious because the Woodson family's oral history is so strong -- and in fact so accurate about many things, such as Sally Hemings' personal ancestry. It was the Woodson family's research that uncovered much of the trail that finally linked the Hemings descendants together.
   
   So who was Thomas Woodson? Who was he really? Who was his father?
   
   This book, written by a direct Woodson descendant, is an account of the family's search for the truth behind their oral history. As such it is a compelling and enlightening read. Despite the lack of DNA match and the ultimate question mark as to Thomas Woodson's real parentage, it is absurd to say that the book is not "true." It is a true account of the family lore preserved by the Woodson family, of what they found when they began to search the records, and of how they ultimately pieced the puzzle together with the other descendants of Sally Hemings (those whose genetic connection to Jefferson has been demonstrated by DNA tests).
   
   The book is also a two-century history of the Woodson family itself, a highly accomplished African-American clan that has had an important impact on this country. Even without the putative Jefferson connection, their multi-generation saga is fascinating.
   
   Highly recommended.



2. Many of the reviewers harping on whether the Woodsons were actually descendants of TJ are completely missing the significance of this book.
   
   So we're not related to TJ (I'm the son of the author). Our historical and genealogical research is accurate (we have found over 1700 living relatives) minus one speculation. For the record, as a member of the Woodson family I grew up knowing that I am related to Thomas Woodson, but thinking I might be related to Thomas Jefferson.
   
   So the Woodson's aren't related to TJ . . .So why read the book? Because it's a darn good book.
   
   I was even surprised at how well-written it is. This book aspires to be an honest account of how history is lived and made through the lives of real people as part of a family, and how history is both written and mis-written. The most ground-breaking and under-appreciated aspect of this book is that it tracks the stroy of at least seven generations of successful African Americans!
   
   This multi-generational family-centered view shows the triumphs, plights, hopes, beliefs and one mistake of generations of a family (we're not related to TJ's cousin:) and the dishonesty of historians (DNA proved TJ is related to the descendants of at least one of Sally's children, much to the chagrin of historians; and that historians physically altered national landmarks [Monticello and Jefferson's farm book] to erase evidence of the close relationship between TJ and Sally).



3. This is a well-written and fascinating story that has been passionately believed by generations of descendants of Thomas Woodson (allegedly the "Black Tom" who was the central piece of "evidence" in scandalmolnger James Thomson Callender's 1802 charge that Thomas Jefferson had a sexual relationship with Sally Hemings). But SIX different DNA tests of male-line descendants of three of Thomas Woodson's sons have proven beyond any serious doubt that the story is fiction. Serious scholars are still divided over whether Sally Hemings was more than one of his house slaves to Thomas Jefferson. A year-long study by more than a dozen senior scholars released in 2001 concluded the story was probably false with but a single mild dissent, but some scholars continue to embrace the story. But no serious scholar still contends that Thomas Woodson was the son of Thomas Jefferson. (It is not known whether he was the child of Sally Hemings.) When pressed to reconcile his claim with the DNA scientific proof that has repeatedly shown it to be false, Byron Woodson noted that there is no known sample of Thomas Jefferson's DNA (the 1998 tests used DNA from descendants of his cousins -- which should have carried the same y chromosome as the president) and reasoned that perhaps Jefferson was illegitimate. Woodson seems like a nice fellow, and it is understandable why he might hold on to his belief despite such powerful scientific proof that it is untrue. But the issue has been clearly resolved by reliable scientific testing, and this volume should now be moved to the FICTION section -- where many readers may well find it a most interesting read.



4. The existence of 'Black Tom' is highly questionable, though Woodson is quite right about the erasure in Jefferson's records, I've seen it too in a holograph edition of his Farm Book.
   Unfortunately for Mr. Woodson's thesis 'Tom's' name should certainly have appeared more than once. His 'mother' and 'brothers and sister' are listed not only on Jefferson's Slave Census but in distributions of rations and clothing as well. 'Black Tom' supposedly lived at Monticello till 1802, his name most certainly should have appeared in those records just as the rest of the Hemmings family's names did.
   However the even if the existence of 'Black Tom' were proven it would do the Woodsons no good. The famous DNA tests that proved the Eston Jeffersons are indeed descended from *A* Jefferson male, (possibly Thomas but his brother or nephew is equally probable) also proved that though Thomas Woodson was undoubtedly sired by a white man that man was *not* a Jefferson.
   The Woodson family has chosen to ignore this incontrovertable scientific evidence and cling to their family myth. Frankly I find it pitiable that this extraordinarily accomplished and successful family should be so fixated on a fictitious illegitimate descent from a Founding Father. The achievements of generations of Woodsons, against unbelievable odds, is in itself a heritage to be proud of, they don't need Jefferson's blood to validate their role in American history.



5. This is pretty sad really. I started out as a believer in the Woodson story and Woodson has obviously done a lot of research on his family history. Certainly, there are many distinguished people in Woodson's family...sadly, Thomas Jefferson has been pretty definitely proven by DNA (no match after testing 6 Woodson lines!) not to be one of them! Since Woodson was the Hemings child with the strongest "oral history"/family lore--the fact that there was no link to Jefferson really calls into question the whole story since obviously Sally got pregnant by somebody else in Paris. And the allegations started about a "Black Tom"....Still and all, with irrefutable evidence that someone in Woodson's family lied to create a link that science has proven doesn't exist, Woodson still can't give it up, claiming the 'no match" was the result of illegitimacy later in the line...which Woodson still doesn't seem to get would still mean he is not related to the Great Man. Bottom line: Don't waste your money.

2 comments about A Family Place: A Hudson Valley Farm, Three Centuries, Five Wars, One Family.

1. Philip will not let us have what we are expecting - a rose-tinted reminiscence of home and place, with the occaisional failure thrown in for good measure. Instead, we get a "widening gyre" of tales, passing spirally through history, through the process of discovering history, the way in which Philip records this history, and ultimately, the way in which we read it. The book is about her home, and yet it is not. It is about personal loss, and yet it is not. It is about the balance between artifacts and memories, and yet -

   Read the book, but know that its success lies in that it does not simply end with the last page, but recycles back to its own beginning, and to the readers'.




2. Having my own family roots in a neighboring county, I found "A Family Place" a most enjoyable and delightful read. In her love for family as well as curisoity for her roots, Ms. Philip takes us with her as she searches through boxes and closets for pieces of her past. I have known those boxes and closets too! And I know the feel of barefeet on lawns and skipping around cow patties.... I highly reccomend this book to anyone who has or wishes they had a special family. It may even inspire you to do some personal sleuthing yourself. Enjoy!

5 comments about The Sage of Monticello (Jefferson and His Time).

1. When I recently finally finished the 6th and final volume of this set, I realized that I knew more about Thomas Jefferson than I do about some of my friends. There is an incredible amount of information here. Although the Sally Hemings story is barely mentioned in these books because so much information has come out since the books were written, everything else is covered in great detail.
   
   I reviewed the first 3 books as a whole under the third volume, and I'll do the same here on the final 3. I believed that the two hardest books to read were the volumes on Jefferson's presidency. Malone covered eight years in about 1,000 pages, and he went into such detail that it was actually hard to follow at times. By the time I finished reading about the Embargo Act, there was no way I could summarize it; he had written about it so much, and it was spread out throughout the volume. The same can be said, to some extent, with the Burr conspiracy.
   
   The final book was better, even though he exhaustingly covered the establishment of the University of Virginia, probably more than necessary. I would have preferred more on the correspondence with John Adams. And while Malone gets into Jefferson's family relationships here, he was, as a writer, a better presenter of facts than he is a story teller. Nothing about this series is "narrative."
   
   I would recommend the books to a very serious lover of history, and I suggest the audio book as a way of speeding up what will otherwise be a very slow read. But to one with casual interest in history who admires Jefferson, I'd suggest one of the many one-volume biographies.



2. This book is the sixth and final volume in Dumas Malone's six volume biography called "Jefferson and His Time" covering the period from the end of Jefferson's presidency to his death (1809-1826)
   
   Mr. Malone truly saved the best for last in this series resulting in the best of the six volumes, quite an achievement considering he completed this volume when he was 89 years old. This volume successfuly covers in thorough detail the most important parts of Jefferson's late life including the founding of the University of Virginia, his friendship with John Adams, his thoughts on the political issues after his presidency, and his personal and family life including his increasingly difficult situation regarding his debts. While maintaining the scholarly level of detail in the previous volumes, Malone's writing style is his most enjoyable yet.
   
   In conclusion, this volume has my highest recommendation and is perfectly suited to be read as a stand alone volume, even without reading the the rest of the series.



3. Despite his clear sympathy for the late 'sage', Dumas Malone did a better job on this book, when compared to his efforts on "Jefferson and the Rights of Man".
   This book, ("The Sage of Monticello"), centered on the ex-president's life after retiring to his grand plantation. It is a well-written account, although that I disagreed with the author on certain issues.
   Yes, I may seem stubborn, but I will always like to be conscientious: I refuse to agree that a man who was a slave-holder was at the same time, the champion who fought for the rights of men. It is simply contradictory!



4. What can be said about this monument to Jefferson scholarship? I am sure that somewhere in universities around the United States there are "scholar squirrels who want to put down this invaluable resource in Jefferson studies. It is always the way that mice attempt to gnaw at lions. This is not a perfect work (and my remarks refer to all of the books in the series as a whole), there are somethings, namely Sally Hemmings references which are wrong and will not sit well with American 21st century mores. There is the issue of slavery which was handled much differently 50 years ago than it is now.
   Jefferson is not worthy of our interest because of Sally Hemmings and because he kept slaves. Jefferson is great because of the Declaration of Independence and his fight for the rights of man. While it may have been hypocritical to preach liberty and keep slaves, it is doubtful that slavery ever would have been abolished if Jefferson had never gained the prominence that he did. This book and the others that follow show why we should continue to honor the public man even though his private side may have been wanting.



5. Jefferson and His Time: The Sage of Monticello is the crowning jewel of this sixth out of six volume set. This Pulitzer Prize winning series about Thomas Jefferson took the author (Dumas Malone) a lifetime to write, as he started it in 1943 and finished it in 1981.

   This volume takes us from the end of Jefferson's second term as President to his death. But these times are Jefferson's best in terms of his satisfaction with his immediate family, even though at times were a bit rocky, Jefferson longed of retirement from public life. Long ago friendship of John Adams was rekindled with frequent correspondence... James Madison not living too far away from Jefferson was a frequent correspondent.

   Jefferson's talent wasn't wasted as he worked on the establishment and founding of the University of Virginia. He proved himself as one of the preeminent force for public education. But, Jefferson's personal debt played a role in Jefferson's energy and dreams.

   We really get to see Jefferson as a man in this volume and his works for the public good emerge here. Also, we see Jefferson's health deminish and his battle for life play a part. This volume is masterfully engaging and well written. Impeccable scholarship and a life long dedication are very apparent.

   If you like to read history and biographical history in particular and want to read about Thomas Jefferson, this series has to be on your short list.

   I highly recommend reading this series. It has been an honor reading about one of America's most extraordinary men.

4 comments about Heist: Superlobbyist Jack Abramoff, His Republican Allies, and the Buying of Washington.

1. Peter Stone's first-rate investigative reporting -- done over several years -- is a deftly handled take by an experienced Washington reporter on Jack Abramoff's scandalous activities. The thing that makes this book stand out is the incredible amount of original reporting that went into it. The tale is also well-written and not overly hyped. It doesn't have to be. It is told in delicious, understated detail that could easily be turned into a movie script.



2. This book didnt go far enough of this neo-conman's connection to Dubja "00's" decade of greed; similar to the gopper "80's" greed. I wonder if the government will take back Casino Jack money he stole from the Indians and return it? or will the government let Casino Jack keep the Indian's money when they get out of Club-Fed, like Michael Milken and Ivan Bolsky.



3. What a story! A classic tale of corruption in Washington, DC. I was both entertained and educated by the author's summary of this complicated series of events. He introduces the characters, the situation, and describes the "action" in a respectable narrative style.
   
   Sometimes I pay almost no attention to the Federal Government. The unveiling of Abramoff, DeLay, Ralph Reed, and the other villains is this drama passed me by. This book has filled me in admirably. Stone's choice of level of detail seemed just right.
   
   I take off one star for the few places where one wishes the editor had made the author clean up unnecessary repetition, and for the general lack of color. The style is that of a journalist, not a novelist.
   
   A fine job of reducing a complicated story to a brisk, informative read.



4. This was a highly entertaining and readable account of the Abramoff scandal. Before I started reading it, I had a pretty vague understanding of the whole affair. I had obviously followed the story in the newspapers but tended to get lost in all the details of the intricate plot. Stone does a good job of explaining Abramoff's activities in a clear way that renders the affair understandable even to those with no prior knowledge. For the most part, Stone's voice is fairly unbiased. He presents the facts and lets them speak for themselves. He mostly refrains from making moral judgments of Abramoff and his collaborators until the last chapter, in which he situates the scandal within the larger topic of corruption in Washington. If I had to make a criticism, it might be that the author is sometimes repetitive, as he had a habit of citing certain facts and making certain arguments multiple times. Overall, however, I would recommend this book to anybody looking to gain a better understanding of the Abramoff affair. It makes for a pretty entertaining read at points, mainly just because the affair itself is so interesting and populated by such a colorful cast of characters. As far as I know, this is the only book-length treatment of the Abramoff scandal.

3 comments about Within the Whirlwind.

1. Eugenia Ginzburg was the first Russian Communist to write extensively about being caught in the "meatgrinder" of Stalin's purges. It took her a long time to figure it out: "We were creatures of our times, of the epoch of magnificent illusions."
   
   "Within the Whirlwind" is the second volume of her memoirs. I have not read the first, but the editors say she pulled her punches then, hoping for publication at home (which didn`t happen). She avers that this volume is only the truth. Not the whole truth, she admits, but nothing but truth.
   
   This seems credible.
   
   At least, her memoir is readable. I forced myself to go 100 pages in Solzhenitsyn's "GULAG Archipelago," but it was unreadable. Ginzburg's memoir is windy but readable, basically a series of vignettes of encounters during 18 years of exile/imprisonment in the Soviet Far East.
   
   Her pen portraits of fellow zeks (political prisoners), free workers, apparatchiks, common criminals and commandants are deft, though there is no way to be sure how realistic they are. Each story has a point, often about little expressions of humanity or courage breaking out in what was otherwise a hellhole.
   
   Like all memoirs of the great slave societies of the 20th century, Ginzberg's is shaped by survivor bias.
   
   Although she spent some time in the more brutal camps -- felling trees where the temperature came to 40 below, on little food -- her background (teacher of literature, musician) got her easier posts most of the time, where she ate somewhat better and had some shelter. Also, she was never beaten or tortured.
   
   The same survivor bias shows in memoirs of prisoners of the Germans and Japanese. The ones who did not get jobs in kitchens or offices seldom survived to write memoirs. (A.J.P. Taylor accepts that 2 million died building the White Sea Canal; they left no memoirs.)
   
   The capsule story is that Ginzburg had two sons. One died of starvation in Leningrad. She adopts a foundling daughter and falls in love with a German doctor. After her final release, she stays in the east because Anton, her new husband, has not yet finished his endless sentences.
   
   Later, when they are allowed to go back to European Russia, where Ginzburg's first, undivorced husband turns out to have survived both the Germans and the Russians, she skips over whatever arrangements were worked out.
   
   Among many interesting tales, there are some broader generalities that come through that might surprise American readers.
   
   One is that not everybody in the GULAG was an innocent zek. There were huge numbers of what Ginzburg calls common criminals, a not unexpected residue of tsarism and civil war. The zeks were terrorized by the criminals, in some ways even more so than by the Party.
   
   During the war, the zeks were wild to fight the Germans. The notion, promoted today by some neocons, that the Russians would have revolted against Stalin if given the chance is not supported here.
   
   In the end, Ginzburg takes a lenient view of her persecutors, viewing the common run of them as misguided, weak, ignorant. Her hatred is reserved for the few actors at the top.
   
   Thus she excuses herself from a great earlier crime. She and her first husband were stalwart Communists until the knock on the door in 1937. In an epilogue, Ginzburg says she did not know much about what had been done to the kulaks.
   
   In one sense, this may be believable. She was teaching literature in college far away in Kazan. In another, it is not. The drumbeat of hatred against the kulaks and wreckers was part of her daily life. It required a determined failure of imagination to avoid drawing conclusions.
   
   Even after her first 10 year sentence, she was still failing to imagine. And that, to me, is the heart of the book -- a failure to imagine.



2. This book shocked, sickened, and inspired me. I never realized how terrible Stalin's purges were until I read Ginzburg's historically accurate and emotionally compelling memoir. Unforgettable characters, disturbing mental images, and harrowing brutality made up the Soviet Gulag and Ginzburg's book showcases them beautifully! Outstanding memoir!!



3. Eugenia Ginsburg was sentenced to ten years imprisonment in 1937 on a false charge of terrorism at the height of the Stalin purges. In her first book 'Into the whirlwind' she describes her arrest, her interrogation, her mockery of a trial and two years in solitary confinement in prison. She was then transported to Magadan in the far East of Russia to a labour camp, and the first volume ends as she is beginning to cope with the undescribably harsh conditions in the camp.

   'Within the whirlwind' describes the next fifteen years until her return and rehabilitation. She describes how her life was saved by gaining work as a nurse in the camp hospital where she met her second husband.

   This book leaves the reader astonished how Evgenia could describe her life with such humour and at the same time with such human understanding. All the time, however, the reader is reminded of the inhumanity, lying and deception of the Stalin regime.

   At one stage, the vice president of the USA, Henry Wallace, visits the camps, and the prisoners are removed and the guards temporarily take their place and manage to convince the gullible American that the camps are manned by well fed and enthusiastic pioneers.

   Eugenia returns to Moscow, her life destroyed, having lost one of her sons. She ends on a note of optimism, that the truth will be told in her native land. She died however in 1977 and never saw her books published in her native land nor the destruction of the communist regime.

   This book is now out of print, which is a pity. Everybody interested in Russia should try to get hold of a copy and read it and ponder on the demons that helped produce the country as it is today.

3 comments about Charles W. Colson: A Life Redeemed.

1. Whatever your opinion of Chuck Colson, you can't deny his powerful impact on American society, as a groundbreaking political strategist in his first life and as a leading evangelical leader in his second life.
   
   Evangelical biographies aren't always thorough and honest. Unlike the Bible itself, they often gloss over the weaknesses of their subjects. But Jonathan Aitken's look at Chuck Colson escapes that trap and delivers a complete look at a man who has made a significant imprint on American life and culture.
   
   Rarely has a person impacted the world with two separate lives like Chuck Colson has. His days as a Nixon hatchetman are legendary, but Aitken fills in some of the blanks for the post-Watergate generation. Clearly Colson was a win-at-all costs political tactician who engineered many victories, most importantly the election of Richard Nixon. His actual involvment in Watergate is sketchy at best and it is likely he went to jail for a trumped up charge, handed down in the hysteria of Watergate.
   
   However, rather than spending a life embittered by political losses and an unfair jail sentence, Colson found a relationship with Jesus Christ and thus his life was turned around. The drive to succeed was channeled into ground-breaking prison ministry, which included reform, one-on-one evangelism, and a variety of think tanks and worldview programs. Now Prison Fellowship is one of the largest and most successful evangelical organizations in the world.
   
   Many evangelicals, including myself, have one beef with Colson, namely his work to disregard the wide theological chasm that exists between Catholics and Evangelicals in his attempt to bring the two together. Martin Luther and other reformers would find this naive at best and appalling at worst.
   
   Still, no one can dismiss the remarkable influence of the political hatchet man whose life was dramatically turned around by the grace of God. Many prisoners will be in the Kingdom because of Colson's life.
   
   Aitken's biography is spot-on, thorough, and brutally honest. I recommend it whole-heartedly.



2. Notorious as Richard Nixon's hatchet man, Charles (Chuck) Colson's involvement in the Watergate scandal sent him from the White House to "the big house." Today, this former felon is a respected Christian leader. He is the founder of the far-reaching Prison Fellowship, which is one of the most respected and productive Christian parachurch organizations in America, powerfully reflecting the resurrection and redeeming grace of Jesus Christ.
   
   Colson truly stands as a modern-day Paul, whose life was radically changed after an encounter with the Lord. This book is well documented and well written. On the one hand, it presents Colson as a man who has had a very positive impact on American culture and religion; yet, on the other hand, it does not downplay the bad choices he made earlier in his life that led him to prison. There is a brutal honesty in the presentation of Colson's political ambitions, his drive for power, and his insensitivity to people who got in his way. However, this makes the story of his redemption all the more astounding.
   
   Noted British researcher and author Jonathan Aitken was given full access to Colson's personal papers and private archives. Additionally, he did extensive interviews with Colson's wife, children, co-workers, and friends. The result is an intriguing study of this Hyde-turns-Jekyll individual. This book will be of interest not only to Christians but also to anyone interested in the machinations of politics or the events of American history. - Leilani Joy Wells, Christian Book Previews.com



3. Nixon apologist and ex-con Jonathan Aitken serves up this loving tribute to his fellow ex-con Chuck Colson. Aitken serves on the board of Colson's prison ministry, so any expectation of objectivity flies out of the cell door. In Aitken's long-ago, forgotten biography of his hero Richard Nixon, he similarly soft-peddled Nixon's crimes. At least this time out the former Tory MP, who just got out of a British prison himself a couple of years ago, forgoes the ludicrous conspiracy theories that made his Tricky Dick biography such a joke. Unlike the unfortunate convicts unmercifully hounded and courted by Colson's ministry, Colson was preaching to the choir with Aitken, who returns the favors to Colson, with this way-too-thick inspirational sop.

3 comments about Hideyoshi (Harvard East Asian Monographs).

1. At first when I picked up a copy of this book, I didn't really knew what to think of it. As it didn't had a cover of the book on Amazon then, it was really a shot into the dark. I'm real glad I made that shot.
   
   This book centers around Hideyoshi Toyotomo and his predecessor Oda Nobunaga. These two legendary Japanese warlords can't be mentioned without each other, as they are very much interrelated with each other. Nobunaga conquered a third of Japan featuring Hideyoshi as one of his generals. Then, after the murder of Nobunaga, Hideyoshi took charge and conquered Japan through conquest and diplomacy.
   
   This book takes you on the journey though these eras. Political as well as social circumstances are covered in detail. Berry has put together a vast and comprehensive history not just only about Hideyoshi, but about 16th century Japan.
   
   Then why four stars? The book does not cover in-depth detail about Nobunaga or any of the battles. Also, when you're not that familiar with Japan or its customs, pictures are lacking as well. I really hope there will be a reprint one day featuring these things. Then it will deserve the five stars without any doubt.



2. "Hideyoshi" is an incredible biography of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who more than anyone else is responsible for transforming Japan from a crazy-quilt of fiefs and feudal lords engaged in civil war to a centralized state at peace. It is one of history's ironies that a child born to a subsistence farmer could end his life as the most powerful man in the country. If you share my admiration of Japan and fascination with its history, don't pass this book up!



3. This book provides an excellent portrait of arguably the most important single individual in Japanese history. Berry's scholarship is abundantly informative without being heavy-handed. This account of Hideyoshi's life reads like a narrative and is rich with references from diverse resources. More important than that, however, is the respect Berry shows for the subject matter. She really captures the grand sweep of Hideyoshi's life, which was inseparable from the fate of Japan at the time. This is a must read for anyone interested in Japanese history or anyone wishing to deepen their appreciation of Japanese samurai movies that depict this period of time (the late 1500s).

3 comments about The Fords: An American Epic.

1. 'The Fords: An American Epic' by David Horowitz & Peter Collier
   
   Horowitz & Collier deliver yet another superb narrative of one of America's historic, controversial and complex families. They have this genre down to a science.
   
   This is, without doubt, the best book on the Ford family I have read, and I've read a few. For an unbiased look at Henry's early tinkering in the garage to the perfection of the production line to his controversial stances on important world events, this book has no comparison. The strange inter-family relationships are broken down in detail and explained with clarity. The book focuses on family & business, which was no easy feat: Henry & Edsel's relationship; Lee Iacocca's influence on the Ford Motors; the return of "Hank the Deuce"; to Bill Ford's generation and more recent family activity.
   
   A wonderfully enjoyable read that is as detail laden as it is fast paced. An easy call for 5 stars!
   
   - JC



2. The uniqueness of this book is that it focuses on the personalities of Henry Ford, his son Edsel and his granson, Henry II. The history of Ford Motor Company is presented as an outgrowth of these porsonalities. As a career Ford employee, it is my opinion that Ford Motor Co. has always reflected the personalities of those in charge to a somewhat greater extent than other large corporations. So the author's approach is particularly appropriate. And it works well. This is an absorbing book for anyone with an interest in the Ford family in relation to the growth and decline of Ford Motor Company and, motre widely, the business in the twentieth century.



3. This book recounts the origins and life of the Ford family from the rise of Henry Ford, the founding the great automotive company, its ebbs and flows, through the reign of Henry Ford II. It reads very well and has a great deal of interesting information.
   
   One of the difficulties in writing a book like this is how to balance the personal details with the epic story of the global corporation. I believe Collier and Horowitz pull off the balance quite well. However, when this book came out there was a great deal of discussion about the womanizing that the family worked hard to keep out of the public eye. Some condemned this book because of these intimate details. Some claimed they were fabricated. Nowadays, given what we know about public versus private lives, it probably would not raise many eyebrows.
   
   The life of Henry the Great is fascinating because of his genius and his limitations. His son Edsel has a story that is as tragic as any you might read in fiction. Henry II was given the task of saving the family company and with the team he built around himself he did an admirable job. The battles with Lee Iacocca may be slipping into ancient history, but it is still a very interesting story in the history of corporate governance. The recounting of Henry II's divorces and such may be fairly petty and is certainly not as important as his missing the real threat of the Japanese car companies.
   
   The book is now almost twenty years old, but it still has its merits.