1 comments about Citizen: Jane Addams and the Struggle for Democracy.

1. This is a book about a woman who made a difference. It is also the story of a woman's triumph over Victorian ideas about a woman's place and over personal uncrtainties. Jane Addams became a leading humanitarian and spokesperson for women but she also led struggles which enhanced the notion of democracy in this country and the world. Ms. Addams did not see democracy as neoconservatives see it today. She was not a fighter for capitalism or Republican values but rather for participation and inclusion. She was also a crusader for world peace.
   
   Jane Addams and her colleagues were not like 21st century Americans. She was practically humorless and was moved by moral imperatives almost unknown to us. However, she, aside from being the "real thing", was famous for her kindness to immigrants and children.
   
   This book deals with her early life and her humanitarian efforts in the United States. It discusses the founding of Hull House, one of the first settlement houses in this country, and relates the operation of Hull House to the awakening of Addams' interest in many important causes.
   
   The book is a good read for those who are interested in women's history or in the history of reform and, indeed, radicalism in this country (for she was a radical). It is well researched and written and does not try to turn Addams into a midwestern Mother Teresa.

5 comments about My Name Is Iran: A Memoir.

1. This autobiography is incandescent with the luminous spirit of the author.
   
   She is articulate and honest about the experiences and uncertainties she encountered in the journey of her own life to date. Look at the photographs in the book: she radiates intelligence, light, and compassion--and so do her words.
   
   The details of her Persian cultural legacy are fascinating, as are the dynamics of her supportive, closely knit family. The latter provides an example of how the values of immigrants can enrich the fabric of American society.
   
   If you are attuned to pick up the more subtle energies (so to speak) of spirit, this book will be quite rewarding for you.



2. Iran has a story to tell, story of a young woman coming to understand who she is and within that context I appreciated the book. I did not care for her need to name drop on so much of the book to establish her identity. At some point in the book Iran feels the need to mention that the grand father of the neighbor of her niece was someone important in US Navy and somehow unsuccessfully she tries to establish a link from there to her present partner. Some of these kinds of name dropping and her need to mention them seem completely out of place and takes away from her story. Over all it is an average book.



3. From an American perspective, Iran is a far-off desert land filled with oil fields and industry. Iran's rich history dates back thousands of years nearly to the beginning of civilization. Yet, we know so little about Iranian lifestyles, cultures and religions. To many, their people and their lives are a mystery to us. Interested in learning more about the country once known as Persia? Let me suggest an excellent place to start.
   
   Born in the United States to Iranian parents, Davar Ardalan is the perfect tour guide to this part of the world. Her fascinating biography, `My Name is Iran' has both literal and figurative meaning. Her proper first name actually is `Iran.' What a fine ambassador she would make for either country.
   
   Davar's book chronicles her quest seeking a true and self-satisfying identity. Her complicated and tumultuous life has seen her morph between a modern American woman and a subservient Iranian willingly locked into an arranged marriage. Her book follows her long search for a place to comfortably rest her soul. Although the perspective is from a personal point of view, Davan's biography also serves as an authoritarian primer about life in Iran.
   
   She has adopted many, many places as her home. A very complicated and diverse life she has led. Davan comes from an enormous family that was very influential in the establishment of modern society in Iran. Several family members of her generation migrated to The United States in search of a richer life. All have experimented with lifestyles both traditional and modern. Some chose one; others chose both. Davan could not decide.
   
   As you read, you will understand how her deep heritage in the Middle East has altered the direction of her life. She seems nearly taunted by both sides of her fence. During most of her young adult years, Davan could not resolve where to go or how to ultimately live. You feel her struggle. Her understanding of both her cultures is so full. If she could only embrace one to call her own!
   
   'My Name Is Iran' is filled with many studious footnotes further explaining the history and the stories behind the many people mentioned in her tales. The book is a masterwork. Not only is Davan a great student of her family's legacy and homeland, she shows sensitivity to her readers with in-depth explanations providing all the background you may need to understand her life in whole. Her tireless work has created a gem which may open her ancestral world to an audience otherwise blind to all of Iran's cultural wealth. It is an unusual and interesting read.
   
   This is not a dry and dusty history book. The tone is personal and passionate. Much is to be read about Davan's personal life: her two marriages (one to a second cousin,) her children, the beloved members of her family and all the things that bubble and cook in her pot of life. What a cast of characters are to be found in all her relatives! Follow her life as she matures from a young girl to a woman immersed in American culture. Later, she returns with conviction to a harshly structured lifestyle. In the end, she becomes a producer and correspondent for National Public Radio working with renowned journalists like Jacki Lyden and Daniel Zwerdling. Quite an amazing life!
   
   Invest some time and read this book. You will begin to understand the spirit within the souls of Davan's people. She'll take you to the site of Solomon's Mosque, the Alborz Mountains and the lands once ruled by Cyrus the Great. Learn about her father's renowned architectural blending of styles both old and new. Feel the excitement in a place half way around the world. Will she ever find balance between the two distinct cultures of America and Iran? Davan offers much to discover. Her pages combine into a journey you won't forget. Salam!



4. I know that a journalist is suppose to write only about facts when describing an event; However, I do expect more from a memoir, especially if it is written by a journalist. I cannot believe that one can go through life without coming with an insight of who she is, and what she stands for. From the book she appears as if she has no control over her destiny, she just follow the flow with no question of who she is. For her last page she justify herself through her boy-friend who tells her that he loves her, not through a realization of who she is, or what her name Iran means to her.
   Bette Davis, with only high school level education, came much more genuine in her book, than Ms Ardalan. She was shallow, and she did not try to pretend to be anything more than than. While Ms. Ardalan is shallow but pretend to have depth.



5. This book is poorly edited, and not very effective. The author's story is not that fantastic that it can stand on it's own, and as a producer for NPR, she's just not that interesting. She spends so much time tip toeing around anything that might cast her family in a bad light, that the book feels half baked.
   Yes, she went back and forth from Iran a couple of times and had a couple of bad marriages, but so what? She should have written the book about any single one of her ancestors, each of which had a more interesting life than she did.

5 comments about Baby Doe Tabor: The Madwoman in the Cabin.

1. This is by far the most honest, and readable account of the thoughts and fears of this legendary woman I have ever read. Some accounts of her life are so fictionalized, that it's hard to recognize her for what she was: a warm, lonely, and frightened girl, who thought, at least twice, that she had found the man who would be 'the one'. Her loyalty to Tabor, proving to the world that her interest in him was not purely materialistic, was never understood, or appreciated, until she was gone. Her undying, perhaps unhealthy love for her daughters will wrench your heart. Mostly, this is a rare look into the deteriorating mind of a woman who only wanted to be happy. Like we all do. Read this book, you won't be sorry.



2. Scholars, historians, and general readers have long awaited this book, the first full-length work on the life and times of Elizabeth "Baby Doe" Tabor and her two daughters, Lily and Silver Dollar. Based on over a decade of meticulous, in-depth research and analysis of primary documents--documents long ignored and overlooked by writers and historians--Judy Nolte Temple has brought to light one of the most fascinating real-life stories of the American West. She offers a much-needed corrective to the popular legend of Baby Doe from film, opera, and dinner theater, helping to displace the caricature that has obscured the remarkable woman who now emerges from these pages. Temple uses Tabor's own words, letters, and dreams to show us the real "Lizzie" Tabor: daughter, sister, lover, wife, and--most significantly--strong mother of two willful, intelligent daughters. The legend of Baby Doe has little to do with the real-life story of Elizabeth Bonduel McCourt Tabor, but it tells us volumes about how we mythologize and marginalize female historical figures. Elizabeth Tabor was a prodigious writer, a woman who left behind a voluminous amount of writing she carefully compiled for over 50 years. My only lament is that so much of her work has been lost since her death in 1935, primarily to "treasure hunters" who ransacked her Leadville cabin and the deliberate destruction of her writings, dreams, and drawings by early archivists and historians who claimed to be well-meaning. Nonetheless, there is an almost overwhelming amount of material that remains, and Professor Temple has done a masterful job of organizing and analyzing one of the most compelling archives of a woman's voice and experience in American history and literature. Temple also provides the reader a glimpse into the life of Horace Tabor and his first wife Augusta, as well as an absorbing look at the history and culture of Colorado and the West from the 1870s to the 1930s. Photographs and reproductions from Elizabeth Tabor's scrapbooks and artifacts accompany the text.
   
   A deeply insightful and authoritative text on a fascinating and important American figure, this book is an essential read for anyone interested in women's writings and diaries, women's history, and the history of the American West.



3. The life story of the Silver Queen of the West who lost everything. If you loved the television show Deadwood, you must read this book.



4. Author Judy Nolte Temple is a sharp woman wasting her mind. In "Baby Doe Tabor: The Madwoman in the Cabin," she spends over 200 painstakingly-researched pages trying to solve the biographical riddle of a pathetic subject. In the process, she gives the impression of ceaselessly pounding away at square pegs of data and trying to force them into the round holes of her pat, but often uncertain conclusions. She acknowledges the difficulty, but persists nonetheless, writing a hyperanalytical text that can hardly be considered accessible to the inquisitive general public. Her target audience is obviously a scholarly one whom she invites to consider and share her overzealous theorizing about the once-notorious Baby Doe Tabor. Too much ado about the life of an unfortunate woman with wandering eyes and a foundering mind. Why lavish full orchestral accompaniment on the life of a woman who obviously spent so much of it whistling in the wind? Not recommended to any but the infinitely indulgent.



5. In this excellent study, the author argues that the dreams and visions as well as the life and mythology of Elizabeth (Lizzie) "Baby Doe" Tabor can best be appreciated and understood by means of the detailed textual and contextual analysis provided here. I fully agree. This important and timely work appeals to a wide readership, including scholars and readers interested in studying the complicated lives of women who lived and wrote in the American West during the past 150 years.
   
   Legends and popular biographies have painted distorted and incomplete portraits of Elizabeth Tabor, and Professor Temple's book-length study makes a significant and much-needed contribution to the fields of literature, women's studies, western American history, and popular culture. I am especially appreciative because the book presents a number of new concepts that help both scholars as well as a general readership understand the complex life and the convoluted writings ("Dreams and Visions") of this historical figure.
   
   Most important, the scholarship underlying this work is sound. Dr. Temple has an impressive record of twenty or more years of significant scholarship in the fields listed above. Her scholarly work is well-known and well-respected by scholars who have worked in these fields for decades as well as by newer scholars just beginning their research and scholarly production. Dr. Temple's work has been particularly meaningful to me because both of us have long theorized and published in the area of autobiography, specifically, women's varied forms of autobiographical writings, including diaries and journals. I have followed her work on Lizzie Tabor closely and with great interest, and Judy Nolte Temple's high quality of scholarship is evident in this book.
   
   This book is significant because a comparable book on this subject does not exist. Judy Nolte Temple's book sets the record straight (as much as is possible) concerning the actual life of Elizabeth Tabor--not by repeating nor accepting conventional (and hackneyed) mythologized accounts. Moreover, this book is especially helpful because it makes the very first comprehensive attempt to analyze, decode, and assess the "dreams and visions" of Lizzie Tabor.

5 comments about Jewels: 50 Phenomenal Black Women Over 50.

1. What's not to love about 50 beautiful black women over the age of 50? I was sold on the cover alone. Ruby Dee is one the most beautiful women of all time and she does not get the recognition that she so richly deserves.
   The book is my coffee table, do I need to say anything else?



2. It was so wonderful to see so many strong African American women who are in so many fields. I gave it as a gift to a family member for Christmas and it was passed around so much, everyone wants a copy! Kudos to the photographer for capturing the personalities of these remarkable women.



3. I'm not sure what the above poster was thinking. M. Cunningham is one of the best photographers around (he did the photos in Crowns) and the photos in this book are beautiful. Don't pay attention to the cover on this page, its a bad reproduction of a great photo of actress Ruby Dee. I found the womens essays open and heart-warming. This book is the perfect Christmas gift for a mother or grandmother or any woman in your life if you want to put a smile on her face.



4. Book was damaged at delivery, so I returned it; but what I saw was disappointing, very dull drab pictures, not an attracting looking book at all. Did not look interesting or inviting. Was sorry I ordered it in the first place.



5. this Book truly showcases Black women in full detail. this Book captures Black Women over and 50 and Beyond with there words,Wisdom and uplift. Connie Briscoe does a fantastic job at interviewing. all 50 women. Michael Cunningham does a Great Job here as well. you hear stories of overcoming so many obstacles and maintaining a level of still striving for more. you learn that a strong upbringing and Love along with family made these Women strive for more than what was said or expected. Ruby Dee looks fantastic and is timeless as are the other African-American Women Profiled in this Book. very enlightening and detailed.

1 comments about The Presidential Companion: Readings on the First Ladies.

1. Collaboratively compiled and edited by Robert P. Watson (Editor of "White House Studies, a journal of scholarship and commentary on the politics and history of the White House) and Anthony J. Eksterowicz (Professor of Political Science at James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia), The Presidential Companion: Readings On The First Ladies is an impressive and informative collection of insightful and revealing essays by a variety of authors concerning the political impact of American presidential wives throughout history upon their husbands, their husbands policy making/implementing colleagues, and the general public. From Martha Washington's selection of furnishings to Hillary Rodham Clinton's leadership of the President's Task Force on National Health Care Reform, The Presidential Companion is unique in its close study. Of particular note is the debunking of the commonly held myth that only Eleanor Roosevelt and the First Ladies after her made significant political contributions to America itself. The Presidential Companion is a scholarly and very highly recommended contribution to American Political Science and Women's Studies reading lists.

5 comments about Nothing to Fall Back On: The Life and Times of a Perpetual Optimist.

1. At first , I almost put this book down , because the first chapter did not grab me. Im glad i read this though because it is an excellent account of makiing it in the business while failing in the buisiness at the same time, confronting internal politics, office nemises, and personal crises. A good book and especially relevant to anyine who works int eh publishing industry.



2. Betsy Carter's autobiography is truly interesting and a joy to read. You'll laugh and sometimes you'll cry, but you will never be bored. If you want to know what it's like to live and work the high-paced New York life in a unique and personal way, this book will give you the feeling.
   
   Betsy shows us what it was like to grow up in the 50s and 60s, from New York to Miami and then on to being "a journalist in New York." She blithely details the trials and tribulations she's been through without wallowing in them, showing her true optimism and connectedness to life.
   
   I fell in love with Betsy's sister, Miriam, and Betsy's amazing mother. Don't miss Betsy's mother's comment upon learning Betsy had been secretly going to Bible school. Even with tough times, Betsy Carter is a truly blessed person.
   
   The book is extremely well written and edited, in fact, this may be the best edited book of its type I've ever read. She manages to convey whole chapters of converesation with just a line or two of dialog.
   
   I will immediately, if not sooner, pick up the two fiction books Betsy has written since this autobiography. She's just that good a writer
   
   Rading this book made me feel like I was reading something written by a good friend. Highly recommended, especially to women.



3. I didn't realize that this was an autobiography. It reads like fiction. I know very little about the magazine world, but I have a distinct feeling that Carter really showed us an inside peek into it. I had a little trouble keeping up with all the friends, colleagues, loves, etc., so I just concentrated & listened beyond that. I really enjoyed reading Carter's upbeat attitude on life. Yes, she's definitely an optimist and no, that doesn't automatically classify you as silly or stupid. All the curves that life has thrown this woman, it'd be easy to let them all blanket her in despair. Yet, Carter only gained strength & wisdom at each point.
   A few people have mentioned they had a hard time following b/c of the way she moves from past to present so frequently. If you can relax & really immerse yourself in the book, you won't even notice that. Obviously, she did that for affect & wanted readers to get the "full circle" feel of her story.
   I liked the book very much. A real slice of life. I love the way she has handled everything. I wish Ms. Carter much happiness & hope readers pick this book up & are inspired by her as I've been.



4. I haven't finished this book yet, but I am very hesitant in doing so. I'm about a quarter of the way into it and am totally bored. I saw the ad in a magazine and it sounded interesting. The details she gives in some parts are just not needed as someone else stated. I hope it gets more interesting. She definitely makes me want to write a book about my life because it is way more interesting than hers. I figure if she can publish an autobiography than I definitely could get a deal in a second. Sorry I just find this book not worth reading anymore.



5. While her resume sparkles, Betsy Carter does not live up to the promise of her editorial credits. The facts of her story are certainly interesting, but Carter's observations of her own fate are removed and somewhat clinical, rather than compelling and empathetic. Her story weaves back and forth between her childhood, young adulthood and careerhood in a poorly structured manner that is confusing to the reader and does the story no favors. My hopes were so high for this book and I was sorely disappointed. Readers are tired of the "woman overcoming adversity story." This one could have stood out with more emotion and less antisepticism.

3 comments about Listening to Olivia: Violence, Poverty, and Prostitution (The Northeastern Series on Gender, Crime, and Law).

1. Listening to Olivia is the book that many anti-prostitution activists wish they had written. Ms. Raphael has the ability to interweave Olivia's true story with the extensive research documenting various aspects of the reality of prostitution. The book is a terrific resource for anyone researching in this area. If you care about women, you MUST read this.



2. Listening to Olivia is a tremendously important and compelling book written on the subject of prostitution. Ms. Raphael tells Olivia's story in a raw, forthright manner, flawlessly interweaving testimony and research. Olivia is courageous as she shares her story in the hopes of helping other young women avoid her path. This book is a must read for providers working with women and girls, policy makers whose work impacts this vulnerable population, and parents who hope to raise daughters who stay safe from The Life. For those of us who work in prostitution prevention and intervention, this book will be seen as a key resource for years to come.



3. The newest addition to "The Northeastern Series on Gender, Crime and Law", Listening To Olivia: Violence, Poverty, And Prostitution by Jody Raphael (Senior Research Fellow, DePaul University College of Law's Schiller, DuCanto and Fleck Family Law Center) is the personal story of Olivia, a woman who spent nineteen years of her life as a stripper, a prostitute, and a heroine addict. She left a troubled home at 16 and became involved in Chicago's subculture of prostitution, drug addiction, and abusive men. A resourceful woman of color, Olivia was able to eventually break with "the life" and now works to support drug-dependent women. Especially commended to the attention of students of Urban Sociology and Women's Studies, Listening To Olivia is a compelling, informative, and gripping autobiography that uniquely illuminates the life led by low-income, non-white, young women in commercial prostitution today.

No comments about Madame Prosecutor: Confrontations with Humanity's Worst Criminals and the Culture of Impunity.

2 comments about A Life of Her Own: A Countrywoman in Twentieth-Century France.

1. I read this book quite a few years ago and it remains fresh in my memory. There was nothing about it I did not totally love, especially Emilie. I was sad to see that there was only one other review of this excellent book. Everyone should read it, it is absolutely beautiful.



2. This is a book about endemic people, who, like plants, are rooted to a certain time and place with a specificity that is hard for a lot of us alive today to know. Emilie's tale of her tough life in the rugged mountains near Italy is told with such a wonderful conversational and error-laden english - completely engaging and romantic, with photos of people in the story she is telling. I read it while at my best friends house in Grenoble, and then we drove to the very town in the alps that Emilie grew up in. It was like a time capsule except for the cross country ski inns that have popped up and started a commercialization process. But the story she tells is of people who are like certain french cheeses made in a certain valley, that if you went over the mountain and into the next valley, that cheese could not be replicated. This is a great story and you will fall in love with it if you are someone who is nostalgic for a time and place when harsh weather, rugged mountains, and lots of work to do at home made a journey of 20 miles felt like it took you to another planet.

4 comments about Learning to Walk Again: How Guillain Barre Taught Me to Walk a Different Path.

1. I became engrossed with the book 'Learning to Walk Again' as soon as I began reading it. I read it in one sitting. I learned about the difficulty of getting a correct diagonosis when dealing with various doctors and hospitals.And how you have to be persistant. It was a nightmare for Ann because of the pain she felt, until a diagonosis was found.Patients must not be seduced in believing that they just need therapy, and that it's all in their head! This book is on the cutting edge when it comes to information about Guillain Barre disease. Ann's first hand experience with the disease will help patients and families struggling with similar issues. It will act like a road map for them. It will help them to push and ask questions of their doctors. The book is well-researched about this little-known disease.
   In addition to the excellent information this book shares, it also delves into the important relationship between family members and how supportive and helpful they were to each other. Caregivers carry a heavy burden, and this book discusses the give and take that is necessary between partners and other family members.
   I also liked the writing style. Although the topic was difficult, the writing style was easy and conversational and even touched on humor. I visualized many of the scenes, a great indication of a good book, which this certainly was.
   I recommend this book to anyone who has a family member or friend suffering with this disease or other challening body problems.



2. Ann's personal story is an an amazing meld of
   knowledge of Guillain Barre and the painful (and
   humorous)process of her Recovery. A good read
   for anyone seeking hope and progress through a
   chronic illness, whether patient or caregiver.



3. As a fellow GBS survivor, I was eager to read Ms. Brandt's account of her experience. This disease does not discriminate when it strikes, and every person has a different journey. I suppose when you've been struck with such a life-altering experience, from out of nowhere, you seek connection and explanation.

   The book touches upon the elementary aspects of GBS, and poses some important questions. Like Ms. Brandt, I spent a good deal of time while in my recovery stage trying to prevent what had happened to me from happening to others. She reaches out to others who are in the acute phase of the disease through patient visitation, to other survivors through meetings and symposiums, and to the medical community through this book.

   Why had we been promised that we'd "get it all back"? Why isn't post-rehabilitation fatigue addressed as a separate phase of the syndrome?

   This book asks some important questions, and I hope that its publication will serve as a catalyst to get them answered.




4. I am going through recovery from GBS. Reading this book has been a great experience for me; once a received it, I couldn't put it down until I finished it. Ann's experience is very similar to mine and her book helped me in a therapeutic way; I re-lived many emotions, situations, funny moments, etc., and learned a little bit more about this syndrome. I recommend this book for people who are going through recovery as well as for those caregivers around them.