5 comments about Martin Luther King, Jr., on Leadership: Inspiration and Wisdom for Challenging Times.

1. Donald T. Phillips does an exceptional job at narrating the life of the late great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He does an incredible job in tying in the aspects of Dr. King's life as a man, and activist together with the principals of Leadership.

   He breaks down the book into 4 sections, that each details the start and end of the American Civil Rights movement. Phillips does an amazing job at chronicling the events that most shaped the philosophy of Dr. King.

   I truly enjoyed this book because it helped me realize that it is possible for me to achieve my goals using the same techniques that Dr. King used. The book does a great job at outlining how a normal person can create change the way Dr. King did. Whether you live in turbulent times like those in which the Civil Rights took place or not.

   I recommend this book to anyone in a leadership position to those who aspire to be leaders, but mostly to those with a goal to succeed. The knowledge you will acquire with this book is invaluable to future successes.

   The book targets all, but I think it specifically aims to inspire African- Americans especially those who wish to be in leadership positions. The book in general is a great read for businesses and for groups in general. It informs the audience about the dynamics of groups and how to work through the problems that groups face.

   It helps inform leaders as to the advantages and disadvantages of being a leader. Overall the book is a great read. And you will truly enjoy it.




2. Donald Phillips did a wonderful job of telling the story of Martin Luther King Jr. from his childhood to his death, and connecting it all to a marvelous leadership style. Being a student of leadership studies and a fan of Martin Luther King Jr., I chose this book as a study of both subjects. Having read it, I have to say I learned more about leadership from this book than any other I have read. However, I am no longer a fan of MLK......... he is now a hero of mine.

   As Donald Phillips points out, for every major turning point in American history, creative leaders - right for the times and uniquely suited to the task - assume the mantle of leadership. Donald Phillips not only describes how MLK ended up at the mantle, but how and why he was the right person for the job.

   MLK's movement is not the same civil rights movement being pushed by the self-serving, so-called, activists today. Read this book, you will learn about a true leader and what a true leader is. It is easy reading and inspiring. Highly recommended.




3. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech was voted the most electrifying public address of the twentieth century. It takes some kind of a leader to give that kind of a speech. Donald T. Phillips presents the ideals of leadership that Martin Luther King Jr. followed in an overview of the history of the civil rights struggle. Phillips describes the techniques King used at various stages of the civil rights battle. He also shares King's comments on leadership. Many of the principles will be quite familiar: listen to learn, lead by being led, awaken direct action, encourage creativity and involve the people. However, the book is especially interesting when it demonstrates how King put these principles into practice. This well-organized, well-written book is clear, direct, and easy to read. While it is written for the general public (especially for African-Americans and those interested in civil rights), we [...] find this book interesting for all managers and executives, particularly those who like to learn the lessons of history.



4. I am a student and a teacher of leadership skills, and I have found no better example than Martin Luther King Jr. This book combines the history of King's movement, but also chronicles the qualities which made King great. The text is easy to read, and fascinating. Martin Luther King, Jr. On Leadership should be required reading for anyone who hopes to impact their world. The famed Harvard psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg, who studied moral development, named King as one of the greatest moral thinkers in history. Read this book, and you will understand why.



5. I picked up this book simply thinking it would be a great story about leadership, but the underlying history of Martin Luther King is riveting as well. The leadership stories translate well to business and personal leadership--they speak to (all) people wanting to be part of a higher, unifying mission. If you like to "mark-up" the margins with thoughts keep a pen handy for this one. Its a book I talked about with colleagues and family more than any other I've read.

5 comments about Kinky Gazpacho: Life, Love & Spain.

1. I must admit that I vacillated between sorrow and anger for Lori. She seemed to have such a hard time identifying with her Blackness and I didn't realize young Black people struggled with this identity crisis while coming of age in the '80's. Having lived through the turmoil of the '50's and '60's, I assumed that people of African descent living in America were Black and Proud.
   
   I'm happy that Lori is finally appreciating the blessing of being born Black, one manifestation of the Source of all of us.
   
   Now she will be able to impart to her children and others that on a spiritual plane, all of us share the same Source even though the multitude fails to realize that the breath of life, the air that sustains us all is the same. Many will go through life not realizing this simple fact and will continue to erect barriers/walls to separate us.
   
   Her memoir is a gratifying read and many will enjoy her awakening.



2. This memoir by Lori Tharps, who also the co-authored of Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America, was a nice, easy, lightweight coming-of-age story. The book got a little whiny at times as the author tried to reconcile the differences between the Spain of her imaginations and the real Spain especially as it related to the treatment, ideas and attitudes of Black people. But I was completely on-board as she struggled to figure out her identity as a Black person. She grew up in an area that was predominantly White and was never really confident in her Blackness especially when dealing with other Black people. As a first generation Nigerian born and raised in the states, that has been something I too have struggled with. If you speak English properly, enjoy reading and the Opera, well, then, you are not really Black. We know that's not true but I think it's something that many young, upwardly mobile, intelligent Black people face. What does it mean to be truly Black? Ms. Tharps story is inspirational in that she finds her own way to be authentically Black. I felt like she glossed over some things (like her children's birth and her practice of the Ba'hai faith) but these, I suppose, were not the focus of her book. She is, however, refreshingly honest about herself and her feelings/emotions in her page-turning memoir. I think it's that candor that makes you want to continue reading because there is nothing overly exciting going on in the book. It's her story. And it's just life. The ups. The downs. And the in-betweens.
   
   Great summer reading.



3. Tharps' story about her love-hate relationship with Spain was high on my list of must reads for this summer - and it turned out to be time well-spent. Tharps chronicles her youth in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she was the only Black girl in her predominately white classes, to her undergrad days at Smith college, where she is one of the few Black women on campus. Tharps struggles to find herself and determine where she fits in. As a youth, she develops a strong love for Spain and vows to see this country that she has fallen so deeply for. Tharps takes her readers to Salamanca and we watch as her adoration for this country slowly turns to something else when she encounters its citizens and learns its hidden truths. This is simply a love story - and in the end, I think Tharps eventually learns to love the thing that is most important - herself.



4. I could not put down Kinky Gazpacho!!! Lori's delivery of her story was heartfelt and warm, as well as insightful and educational. It has made me even more determined to broaden my life experiences by travelling to other countries (including Spain!!), and immersing myself in different cultures. Kinky Gazpacho leaves the reader hopeful, inspired, and ready to engage life fully.



5. Lori Tharps describes herself on " My American Meltingpot ":
   
   * Gender: Female
   * Occupation: Writer/Teacher/Mom
   * Location: Mount Airy : USA
   
   Black-American Female. Wife of Spanish Male. Mother to 2 SpaNegro boys. Writer. Author. Teacher. Chameleon. People Person. Aspiring Icon.
   
   Kinky Gazpacho expands that information in a factually interesting, emotionally interesting way. She grew up in a white suburb of Milwaukee Wisconsin. For a reason she doesn't really explain, at an early age she decided her destiny lay in Spain. She didn't know anyone there, had never visited the country and barely spoke Spanish. (She equally unrevealing later in the book about why she joined the the Baha'i faith.)
   
   Part of her reason may for seeking an identity may lie in this passage about International Day from her grade school days:
   
   "The activities started at lunchtime. Our usual family-style meal was a smorgasbord of international flavors. We had bratwurst and apple turnovers, Swedish meatballs and some sort of Chinese stir-fry with crunchy noodles. No snails, though. After lunch we headed to the gym and were met with a riot of color and noise and information. We went around as a class first, visiting the different booths. Each booth represented a different country and was manned by volunteer parents in costumes. And then we were free to roam around, playing games, sampling sweets, and reading about distant lands. As I meandered around the gym, I completely forgot about my lack of heritage and just enjoyed all the activities with my friends. And then it was time for the parade of costumes, and I moved to the edge of the floor. I wasn't the only one without a costume, though. Other kids had forgotten or couldn't find anything to wear. I tried to act like I belonged with them.
   
   "By the time International Day was over, I felt like I had been holding my breath and I could finally let it go. All day long I had been praying nobody would ask me where I came from and why I wasn't wearing a costume. The fact that they didn't ask made me realize that they all probably knew and didn't want to make me feel bad. Everybody knew that Black people came from nothing."
   
   Tharps attended Smith College and spent a year studying in Spain. Her "innocent dreams of a place where race doesn't matter are shattered." She learned that southern Spain is a very racist area, with a long and complex history of Black slaves from Western Africa. Her researches indicated that the history of slavery is suppressed by the Spanish Government and forgotten by the Spanish public.
   
   On the personal side, she is chased down the street by kids and pointed at by adults. She learns that chocolate covered peanuts are packaged in "little plastic statues of a naked Pygmy with oversized red lips, bulging eyes and and a spear in his little hand" called " Conguitos ". [Google the word; it's almost shocking how the image leaps off the computer screen.] A Spanish mother struggling with her child, points to Tharps and says: "If you don't behave, I'll give you to that." An article in a Sunday paper discusses "the Black woman's hypersexuality through their intrinsically savage nature."
   
   Despite the culture shock, Tharps stays in Spain and eventually meets Manuel. One of the most moving passages describes how Manuel introduces Lori to his family. His grandmother spies on her; his grandfather is warm in his welcome, but tells her many racist jokes. Lori is careful to collect her hair in the bathroom after washing and drying it.
   
   Thaps's hair provides important insights. In an interview with "Ebony", Tharps says "I had just finished writing my first book, Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America, and it seemed everything about the Black experience in America could be traced back to our hair. I was joking with my husband that my next book would be the story of how we met and fell in love and that it should be called Kinky Gazpacho -- the Kinky referring to me and my kinky hair and the Gazpacho being the traditional tomato soup from Spain that my husband could not live without."
   
   This wonderful book is a memoir, a travelogue and most of all a love story. It taught me a great deal about the Black experience in the US, about slavery and racism in Spain, and about the human heart.

No comments about Woman of Rome: A Life of Elsa Morante.

5 comments about Lucky Child: A Daughter of Cambodia Reunites with the Sister She Left Behind (P.S.).

1. This is an outstanding book. Loung Ung is an excellent writer. I was educated by her first book: First they Killed my Father. This second book shows that she is truly a good author. I look forward to books she will write in the future. God truly is using you and your tragic experiences Loung. Thank you for sharing the struggles of your life. Loung, you are truly inspiring.



2. I just bought the first book on-line finally after reading the Lucky Child last year. I admired the courage and strength of the writer. It must took more than guts to write this book. Reading Loung's book as if I'm reading a book about myself. I'm too from Cambodian; I was too only 5 y.o. when war and genocide happened. My father was executed and murdered during this sadist era. I could truly relate myself to the author's life. Few years ago, I saw The Killing Field only briefly because I could not bring myself to watch it. But reading Lucky Child brought me back so much memories and nightmares. Before reading this book I always wondered what life was like for people back in Cambodia and how people lived day by day,this book answered some of my questions. Bravdo to Loung Ung and many thanks for being the voice of Cambodians. Those 2 Millions innocent people did not deserve to die and definitely NOT to die that way: brutiality and in unhuman ways. I am not a weepy person but reading this book, I cried the whole time. I cried for Loung and her family,for the 2 millions, and for all the survivors.
   I absoultely and highly recommend this book to anyone. Lucky Child should be the reading book in every school.



3. I could not put this book down. Her second book was just as wonderful as her first. It was very well written. I was amazed at her writing skills. Great read!



4. I read Loung's first book and liked it, but something about it subtly bothered me. Reading this book, I realized that it was the anger that underlay the whole thing. She's certainly more than entitled to the anger, but it doesn't always make for the best writing or reading.
   
   This book has been written by a more mature and settled Loung, and it shows. There's more reflection and a lot more humanity, bringing depth to the portraits of family members who were shown more one-dimensionally in the first book: an inevitable byproduct of the book being told straight from a child's point of view, and that of a child focused intensely on survival. I especially liked in this book how the "scary" brother Khouy was given added nuances of character; the moment when he said, hearing of his small sister's death, that "she was so small" brought a lump to my throat. The characters of the brothers and sisters are fleshed out here in a way that's really delightful and much more interesting to read than in the previous book.
   
   What's best about this, I think, is how we're given a look at the love between the siblings and the incredibly resilience of the family members who stay in Cambodia. It's also a good portrait of how some people in Cambodia are moving on with their lives: in our minds, so much of Cambodia remains the war and the killing fields. We need to know that people are surviving and living their lives despite the shadows of this past: it makes the nation real to us instead of a symbol.
   
   A gripping story that kept me up too late to read through it in one sitting. Some reviewers have said the sections on Chou were not as good as those on Loung, but I didn't find that at all -- I could actually have read a lot more from her point of view.
   
   One quibble: the book needed slightly better proof-reading. There were a few spelling mistakes that spell-check missed, and an astounding miss on a picture caption, where one of the Angkor Wat temples was labelled "Wat BYRON" instead of "Wat Bayon." Otherwise, an excellent read.



5. Loung Ung's fascinating second book, Lucky Child, picks up the story that began with her first memoir, First They Killed My Father, and with both books I found it impossible to put them down once I'd begun reading. Lucky Child contrasts life for Loung as a refugee in America, with her sister Chou's life in rural Cambodia, and it's a revealing and moving comparison. Loung, with lasting feelings of guilt for those she'd left behind, found it difficult to fit in, whilst Chou, resigned to her fate, displayed the resilience and inner strength that is apparent in so many of her fellow countrymen and women.
   
   I found two parts of this remarkable book particularly poignant, the heart-rending death of three-year-old Kung and the reunion between Chou and her brother Meng after a separation of eleven years. These passages were hard to read. Whilst the eventual meeting of Loung and Chou is an awkward affair, the tale of their brother Kim's escape from Cambodia to France is enthralling. The book tells a tale that underscores the importance of the bond between family members, the sheer strength of the human spirit and will to endure and most of all, it's a story of two sisters who have survived and flourished against all odds. Loung Ung has a special talent at storytelling. I recommend this book without hesitation.

5 comments about Appetite for Life.

1. Julia Child was a lovely person with an interesting life but this book as written is unreadable. Poor sentence structure and continual,unecessary use of parenthesis. Try My Life in France. Much better!



2. Someone with such a zest for living deserves a much better biography written about her! Julia Child's life as seen through the words of this author lacks a lot of spice. You trudge through this book rather than read it. It's filled with random asides that distract and detract from the text and really reads more like an obituary than a biography.



3. I'm only on page 30 of this biography, and I've already found a number of small, but annoying errors--annoying to me because I live within five miles of Pasadena, California, where Julia Child grew up. For example: Fitch writes of the "snow-capped San Gabriel Mountains." They are almost never capped with snow. She misspells Fremont Street as Freemont. She says that Neighborhood Church no longer exists. It does. All that leads me to believe that I will surely find other mistakes that reflect a lack of thorough research. Also, Fitch's style is somewhat disjointed, with a certain lack of cohesiveness. I will, nevertheless, probably read the book to the end because Julia Child somehow manages to shine through the sometimes sloppy writing.



4. Julia Child's recent death prompted me to read this biography of her written in 1997. I'm glad I did but it took a monumental effort to get through it.
   
   Noel Riley Fitch has given us as comprehensive a look into the life of the wonderful Julia Child as an author ever could with a subject. The reader knows more about the interaction of the cadre of people that filled Julia Child's life than one could ever imagine. Therein, however, lies the problem. This book is more an expanded diary than it is a readable and useful offering.
   One can't possibly keep up with the dozens of names bandied about and the end result is an olio of confusion. What bothers me most about this biography is that it reflects not much warmth of Julia Child, herself. There are some funny paragraphs (especially those describing what her voice sounds like) but this book is as dry as a Thanksgiving turkey without the gravy. I do, however give Ms. Fitch credit on one important account....she wonderfully relates the marriage of Paul and Julia Child.... a marriage of partnership and deep love. I only wish that the rest of the book could have been written so lovingly.



5. As a great American icon, Julia Child deserves a great biography, but if this book is any indication, she may have to write her own. Although the book provides a lot of interesting detail, the author often fails to thread them into any cohesive fashion, and page after page is factoid upon factoid with no apparent organizing principle. Also far too much time is spent tediously detailing the guest lists for dozens of Child dinner parties, making much of the book sound like one of those dreadful society columns filled with the names of party goers and their various social and educational connections. This is what happens when an author, working off of the papers of her subject, is unable to rise above the reportage level to separate the wheat from the chaff.

   I'll give the author credit for doing a lot of research and providing an intimate glimpse at the Child marriage and the interesting figure of Paul Child himself. It also does a good job of taking us through the painstaking 9-year process of writing and rewriting "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". But as for a well-organized transcendant portrait of Julia herself, this one is missing the touch of a master.

1 comments about Slightly Bad Girls of the Bible Workbook: Flawed Women Loved by a Flawless God.

1. Great book. I have read her other books and this one is just as good. We
   use it for a Bible study group.

5 comments about Angela Davis: An Autobiography.

1. An exceptional book told only as Angela Davis can tell it. Reading her powerful statements about that time in history makes what she says even more important. My daughter attends UCSC and I suggested that she take a course from Dr. Davis or at least attend her guest lectures on the campus. We need to learn from the lessons she teaches us ....tolerance...yeah some folks pay lip service to that concept...read this book with your heart and mind.



2. This book is a must read book, not only for the woman of color but for any American. The book is an in depth biography of how Angela Davis struggled and won against an establishment that oppressed her because of her political thoughts and beliefs. The one thing that this book does lack is a greater coverage of her personal life. It is mainly a book about her political life.



3. TRUE revolution is God's gift to the process and pundits of progressive spiritual evolution. If such a creation as heaven on Earth could truly exist, what illusions about our religions, societies, and even selves [i.e. covert cultural contaminations (for effectively deflecting proper perception, and God-inspired spiritual evaluation)] would we all have to eventually unlearn? The evolution of TRUE revolution will eventually lead humanity forward into its' Creator [Father, Son (Christ Jesus or Yeshua), and Holy Spirit for myself]; where the knowledge of self (I and I) will be embraced by the knowledge of self (I and I). TRUE revolution as TRUE knowledge of self can only be granted by the expansively implosive subtleties that many of us refer to as God (Allah, etc.). The TRUE question is, "What in this world was designed deliberately for the purpose of diverting our collective attention away from the supplementals of those supreme subtleties?
   
   I would love to meet Ms. Angela Davis (as I'm sure you would, or even have) simply to sit, listen, learn, and say "Thank You!" Thank you for making your stand in the evolution of TRUE revolution. TRUE revolutionary sacrifice of oneself comes from the God-source within oneself, extending unto the God-potential about everyone else, only to rediscover (through connecting with the God-potential about everyone else) a further extention of the God-source within oneself (i.e., I and I). The Autobiography of Angela Davis I highly recommend. 20th Century Masters: Millennium Collection ANDFrom the Browder File: 22 Essays on the African American Experience (From the Browder File Series) (From the Browder File Series) AND young skin/Wise Mind/OLD SOUL AND Select Secrets and Psychological Soliloquies: The Therapy Sessions: Volume One of the Poetic Short-Shorts Series



4. The political autobiography was published in 1974 by Random House and reissued in 1988 and 2004.
   
   The book is built around Davis evading police, but finally being captured in New York City and being charged with three capital offenses due to her alleged participation in an escape attempt at the Marin County Hall of Justice.
   
   Davis then weaves her story through her 16 months in jail while awaiting trial, a world-wide campaign calling for her release and her acquittal of all charges in 1972.
   
   It is a treasure of information from one of the most high-profile members of the revolutionary movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Davis was shaped by her travels to Cuba and concluded democracy and socialism are more compatible for freedom of the working class than democracy and capitalism.
   
   The book does not include new material. I would be very interested in an additional chapter on when Davis and others broke from the Communist Party USA during a tumultuous meeting in Cleveland, OH, in the early 1990s.
   
   Only the most rabid revisionist of 1960s-1970s political turmoil would not give her the place she rightfully deserves when discussing that era.
   
   The book remains an unrepentant statement against government-backed repression, and the work by one person to bring these issues to the forefront of the consciousness of all people.



5. I've met Angela Y. Davis since I currently attend UCSC where she is a professor of History of Consciousness. While I do applaud her for being an intelligent, sophisticated, and strong woman I must say this book tends to rub me the wrong way at times. What appears to be my reasoning towards being critical is how there are moments when it is obvious that Ms. Davis gets prejudicial towards people that "wronged" her. This is not to say that they are entirely innocent but some people who read this autobiography do interpret it as prejudicial towards one race. I am not here to say that all white people are goody two shoes but there are plenty of those from European descent that are nurturing and loving people. Certainly Ms. Davis would not appreciate it if someone called her a racial slur or categorized all African Americans or Marxists as radical and violent. This is why I just cannot rank this book of hers 5 out of 5 stars. She is a wonderful storyteller and very engaging in her speeches but, with all people, she does need to strive for improvement in some areas.

5 comments about The Life of Emily Dickinson.

1. If you are looking to buy just one biography of this great poet, this is the one to buy. Extremely detailed with a lot of period photographs of Emily and her family and friends. The appendixes are full of source documents, including excerpts from personal correspondence. Not easy reading, but well worth the effort. If you really want to know Emily Dickinson, get this book.



2. I have just read this book and enjoyed it thoroughly. However, the title is somewhat misleading, as this is not a conventional biography. Other than a few chapters on her childhood and early education, the book is arranged in "theme" chapters, each focussing on a particular person or aspect of her life, illustrated, and heavily annotated, with letters and poems related to that theme.
   
   I ended the book with more questions about her life than I had at the beginning. Many of them are barely addressed in the book, or just hinted at. Perhaps the book was intended for readers who are already very familiar with the biographical details.
   
   Just as one example, the author mentions several times the eye problem that led to one of Emily's rare trips away from her home for treatement in Boston. I kept thinking that sooner or later some further details about this eye problem would be revealed, but there was never more than a few widely scattered sentences about it. Perhaps there isn't enough evidence to be able to conjecture as to the nature of the problem, but the author doesn't even seem to think it's an important enough detail to require a weighing of the evidence.
   
   Likewise her mother's long illness, which played a role in Emily's withdrawal from the world, is mentioned but its nature is not discussed, other than a mention that she was paralyzed near the end of her life. Did she suffer a stroke? Was she lucid? Since Emily was her primary caregiver, it would seem that these details might bear on her own emotional state during the years of this illness and would warrant at least some speculation.
   
   Even Emily's own final illness remains a mystery. We learn that her sister blamed it on the ill treatment received from her sister-in-law, and that her doctor attributed it to "nerves". However, from other hints, it seems to be a progessively debilitating illness. There is never as much as a paragraph in the entire book which speculates on the nature of this fatal illness or how much she might have been incapacitated between the first attack in June 1884 and her death in May 1885. "Nerves" seems to me to be an insufficient explanation for the death of the poet after an illness of eleven months. Are we sure the fainting spell was related to the final illness? Was she ill for the entire eleven months? For how long was she bedridden? The author doesn't even pose these questions.
   
   In a book of 821 pages, there is no index entry for "illness". "Death [of ED]" has 7 widely scattered and brief entries, one of which is a footnote, one of which is a 13-sentence entry on how her death affected her brother, one of which is the text of her obituary and three of which describe her funeral(on pages 273, 575 and 667, to show how scattered they are). The seventh entry refers to her obituary, but seems to be a mistake, as I find no mention of her death or obituary on the page cited.
   
   The book is especially good on the life of her brother Austin, and is also good on her father. Her mother and sister remain mysterious, probably because they were not much more exposed to public scrutiny than Emily herself was. It is obvious that her sister was nearly as much of a recluse as Emily, or at least was perceived as such by their neighbors.
   
   In such a scattered book, there is inevitably a good deal of repetition of details. The three mentions of Emily's funeral cited above, for example, are mostly identical. Poems are also quoted in part or in their entirety multiple times.
   
   There is an index of the poems and the pages on which they are discussed, which is useful for understanding the context of some of these, although the author acknowledges that the dating of the poems presents many problems.
   
   There is a chronology at the beginning of the book, which really is the closest there is to a temporal ordering of the poet's life. I would suggest photocopying it and using it as a bookmark, because there is little chronological ordering, even within chapters at times. I found myself asking such things as, "Was this before her brother's marriage or after? Was her father still alive when this happened?" As a matter of fact, because I didn't have the chronology in front of me, I was surprised to realize, when I had almost finished the book, that Emily's father was still alive during the period of her most intense literary activity. After the early chapter devoted to her father's life, he is not often mentioned again, and I had somehow remained with the impression that he had died much earlier in her life.
   
   Much as I enjoyed this book, I am left wanting another book to fill in the gaps. However, I learned enough about the partisanal nature of her biographers to be wary of choosing one.



3. Somewhere among the 800 pages of this tome is a great 250-page biography. Mr. Sewall has assembled a massively detailed account of ED's life. I know presenting myriad detail of a subject's life is the biographer's method for removing themselves from the reader's relationship and experience of the subject, but I find this current trend of unleashing 800 to 1200 page biographies very taxing on the general reader. Although I wasn't completely disappointed in Mr. Sewall's biography, I was hoping for a tighter depiction of ED's life. I'm a general reader, not an academician. I was simply looking for an account of ED's life that would help me better understand her sublime poetry. This book delivered too much matter and not enough essence for me. However, the final chapter of the book entitled "The Poet" was very enlightening and poignantly written. This last chapter deserves 5 stars, the rest of the book 2.



4. Emily Dickinson is easily my favorite poet (also see my review on "Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson", which every poetry lover should own). I took a college course that focused on Emily Dickinson and these were the two books used for that course (there were optional books, which I also read, but nowhere near as good as these). The author's analysis of some poems can be questioned (whose cannot?), but the wealth of material presented is incredible. This is THE reference book about her life. So, if you want details about the woman behind the beautiful words, then get this book. Also consider visiting her house in Amherst (MA), which still has tours during the warmer months. All three things will give you a very good look into her writing.



5. Richard Sewall skillfully amasses a large shuffling pile of letters promising insight into the true Emily Dickinson. Starting the book left me hopeful for great things to come. He methodically, almost puritanically, reviews the lives surrounding and including the Dickinson family piling the letters upon each other. Yet, in the end, what possibly made Emily Dickinson withdraw into her room and from the world? Forced to abandon suitors by her Father, rejection by Sue after a brief gay encounter, agoraphobia? Any and all possibilities are buried under the letters and placed in obscure footnotes at best. Emily Dickinson is possibly the greatest poet from North America, and probably was a Gandhi-like reincarntion for the feminist movement in the United States; yet "The Life of Emily Dickinson" doesn't deliver through Richard Sewall's storm of letters.

5 comments about My Father's Secret War: A Memoir.

1. At first I did not like Ms Franks or her book. I was not sure why she was writing if she disliked her father so much. But as I read on you could see she was trying, not very well at first, to understand her father and what made him tick. It took a lot and several times I wanted to slap her for some of the things she said but in the end she found the father she had wanted all along and really had right there with her but she had to get tear down the wall he had built so he could servive with what he had seen during the war and her mother after the war.



2. This seems to be a book with the best of intentions.
   I liked Thomas Franks, and clearly Lucinda Franks is an accomplished journalist.
   But the story itself is all over the place. Too many quick episodes and incidents about too many irrelevant characters. All I really wanted to know was what happened to the author's father during the war.
   I didn't appreciate Lucinda Franks's decision to take us on her arduous journey of finding the truth about her father, either. "Did you do this, Dad?" "Did you do that?" "Were you serving here, Dad?" "Were you serving there?" All answered with a "Well, perhaps," or "Let's not talk about that now." A sentence or two along the lines of, "It took me years to get the most basic information out of my father, but finally I did: here is his story," would have made for much more compelling reading.



3. This book was absolutely amazing. I was drawn to it especially because my father, and the father written about in the book, were both at the Ordruf Concentration camp and liberated it at the same time.
   I loved how the author wrote so sensitively about her father's health and the issues that certainly changed him after his time in the war.
   Eileen Hale



4. While many readers have criticized the author for pursuing her inquiry to the point that, as they see it, it inflicted on her father unnecessary pain, I see two positive outcomes. One is that she unveils for us all one of the most unusual military careers of all times and prepares for the father the recognition and the dignified military farewell accorded to him at the end of his life. The other is that by relentless personal and professional persistence she proves to him that she is not only his worthy offspring but also that she is maturing by leaving behing her youthful ideological adventures and moving closer to him by appreciating his outstanding skills and sacrifices for the country. They both get rewarded by her actions.
   As to the psychological and clinical interpretations of the story, I believe that talking of posttraumatic stress is an unproductive if fashionable analysis, that trivializes the uniqueness of this case. Instead, the man's withdrawal seems to be a case of disruption of the relationships the hero had formed with his larger than life assignments, the exceptional feats of skill and daring, the national and world significance of his services. Importantly, these successes had been part of his personal growth away from the stifling family environment and had helped him conquer the limitations of his introverted disposition. When he returned to the unpleasantness of his job and the confines of a home and a distasteful marriage, he simply withdrew. Where he could keep his accomplishments reasonably alive, i.e., in the company of Pat Rosenfield, he opened up, talked rather freely about them and found just about all the joy of which he was capable. Likewise, the alienation from the author/daughter during her youth paralleled her acting the role of a "commy," i.e. a proxy for the things he had fought against. Fortunately it resolved when she slowly grasped and accepted his "secret war."
   Better than with the current PTSD theories, we could perhaps understand Tom Franks' story in the light psychoanalytic concepts of "adaptation" to certain object relationships that anchor our adjustment and self image and whose withdrawal engenders conflict and neurosis.
   The only exception would be the episode of the concentration camp, a trauma unredeemed by the excitement of a task accomplished and by the satisfaction of a duty absolved. In fact, when the memory of it was stirred in the restaurant encounter, he reacted violently, more in keeping with the majority of the PTSD cases and clearly out of character with regards to his typical aloofness. This could be the exception that confirms the rule.



5. I found it hard to stick with the book while waiting for the author to tie the whole thing together. She decided early-on that her father was a spy although the physical evidence she found was weak, at best. She then directed all of her energies towards supporting her theory at any cost through the use of leading and relentless questioning. Furthermore, given her father's testimony fifty years after the fact compounded by possible onset of dementia, the author's conclusions were tenuous at best.

5 comments about Why I Wore Lipstick: To My Mastectomy.

1. I loved this book. I am a breast cancer survivor, and I can relate to everything she is saying. It is also so hilarious! I gave this book to my mom and my best friend to help them understand my world. It really helped.



2. I had to have a bi-laterial mastectomy last year and this book was recommended to me by my oncologist. I found it very inspirational and have decided to pass it on to anyone that I know that has battled breast cancer. It was funny at times and sad at times, just like my own experience with this devastating disease that affects so many women.



3. I agree wholeheartedly with most of the positive reviews here. This lady faced her dark hours with a sense of humor about herself as well as those around her who couldn't know what it exactly felt like to be in her shoes. The path of cancer or any serious condition is fraught with faux pas of medical staff as well as loved ones and acquaintances. There is no set script for anyone to follow. The author meets these issues and her illness with a fighting spirit. Well-written,funny and a stark view of cancer victim reality with a empowering edge.



4. please see, "Goddesses Don't Buy Green Bananas" THis is a photographic story about more than one person with cancer... read about their bravery and courage and fear.



5. Geralyn Lucas was 27 years old when doctors diagnosed her with breast cancer. Her career was in high gear. Her marriage to a young physician was solid. Her hopes of one day having a baby were ever-present. The last thing she expected to hear was that she had a diagnosis that she equated with only older women--breast cancer.
   
   The 27 year old was a graduate from Columbia University School of Journalism and had secured a position as the editorial producer for ABC News' popular 20/20 show. She hadn't bargained for breast cancer to threaten her career, her hopes of becoming a mother, or her life. But that is exactly what happened.
   
   In her poignant and refreshingly honest book, Lucas shares her emotional rollercoaster, her physical ups and downs and her walk through the treatment phases of her disease. Complete with the issues of chemotherapy side effects, reconstructive surgery, and marital strains, this book is gut-wrenchingly honest in its portrayal of a life turned upside down and inside out at the pronouncement of a life-threatening disease. It is also a totally life-affirming reflection on how one woman faced down the monster that is called breast cancer.
   
   From 'victim' to 'survivor' to 'advocate' Geralyn Lucas walks us through the maze of a woman who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. While her focus is on the younger population with this diagnosis, this book is a healthy and honest glimpse into the real world of any woman who is dealing with the disease--and for anyone who is helping her deal with it--at any stage. Newly diagnosed women will be inspired, those going through treatment will nod in agreement, those who are disease free will applaud her work with survivors' groups, and family members will thank her for allowing them to peek into what might be going on inside their own loved one's head during the whole process. Geralyn voices for all women what most women do not dare to admit--their own fear, their vulnerability, their ambivilence.
   
   Readers will cheer when she defiantly yet confidently swipes her lips with lipstick as she prepares to enter the operating room. They will continue to cheer as she returns time and time again to her source of feminine power and courage--her lipstick--to remind her of the hope and promise she carries deep within.
   
   This is a must read for anyone whose life has been touched by breast cancer. Having read many books on the topic, I can honestly say that this is by far, one of the most candid and uplifting. Geralyn has become my heroine for she is a champion of the feminine powers in all of us!
   
   After seven years as the editorial producer for 20/20, Geralyn became the director of original programming for Lifetime Television. She is a member of Lifetime's Stop Breast Cancer for Life initiative. She, her husband Tyler and daughter Skye (born after her cancer treatments) live in New York City. She is said to never leave home without her lipstick.
   
   As if the wonderfully inspiring story is not reason enough to go out and purchase the book for yourself or someone you love, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the book are donated to the Young Survival Coalition.
   
   by Lee Ambrose
   for Story Circle Book Reviews
   reviewing books by, for, and about women