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Nigel Nicolson has been many things to many people, but throughout his life he has managed to remain his own man. The son of Harold Nicolson and the notorious Vita Sackville-West, Nicolson apparently inherited his parents' gift for writing; his autobiography, Long Life, is an illuminating chronicle of a life that spans eight decades. For aficionados of the Bloomsbury group, Nicolson obligingly offers up details of his parents' marriage, his mother's relationships with Violet Trefusis and Virginia Woolf, and his father's own indiscretion with a fellow (male) guest at a house party. Those interested in Nicolson's publishing career will find plenty of food for thought in his account of the house he founded with partner George Weidenfeld and the books they championed--most notably, Vladimir Nabokov's scandalous Lolita. Finally, readers who know Nicolson primarily as a war historian are rewarded with his reminiscences of his time as a soldier in North Africa and Italy during World War II--experiences that became the foundation of his excellent biography of Field Marshal Earl Alexander.

Love, war, and literature--could you ask for any more from one man? In the case of Nigel Nicolson, yes. Throw in politics--Nicolson was a member of Parliament in the 1950s--family, and famous friends, all charmingly depicted, and you have an extraordinary life encapsulated between the covers of one book. Readers of Long Life will be wishing the same to Nicolson and hoping for another installment. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

well lived life
I bought this book because I long ago read and admired Mr Nicolson's articles in The Spectator, in a column named Long Life.I enjoyed this book very much, not only because Mr Nicolson is a fine writer, but also because he has led such an interesting and well-balanced life.He has been an author, a publisher, a soldier and a politician. This book is important also because it relates events about people like Virginia Woolf and Nabokov which one will not find in scholarly tomes about them.Mr Nicolson has been in the thick of some of the more famous controversies of 20th century cultural history, such as the publication in Britain of the novel Lolita and the letters of Mrs Woolf.
Wonderful read.

Engaging and first-rate
Much of Long Life will be familiar to regular readers of The Spectator, but Nicolson's book is delightful nonetheless.From his father he inherited the ability to write well, and utterly without pretension; fromhis mother he learned how to make words and phrases sing.Nicolson doesnot shed his English reserve, but we learn just enough of him and his lifeto want to know much more.Somehow it is reassuring to think of himsitting in the gazebo at Sissinghurst, gazing out over the flower-ringedmoat in the summertime.To Nigel: an even longer life!

Pretentious
Very pretentious. Nicolson comes from the upper middle class in England and writes as if the reader should be familiar with the mores and values of his class. His continuous name-dropping (2/3 of whom I have never heard of), the occasional French phrase and references to places, ideas and times in an idiom that puzzles the reader who does not mix in the same circles shows that Nicolson has written his book for the insider. NOT RECOMMENDED. ... Read more

Book Description

When Laura Joplin stumbled on a bundle of old letters from her famous big sister, she discovered an innocent, eager-to-please side of Janis that no one had suspected. Intrigued, Laura interviewed Janis's friends and associates to get a true picture of her sister's life. In 1992, she published Love, Janis -- hailed by Kirkus Reviews as "more detailed and evenhanded" than the previous major Joplin biography, Buried Alive, published two decades earlier. Now reissued in trade paperback, Love, Janis is an intimate, full- blooded portrait that shows both the public and the private Janis, a woman struggling to perfect her art, searching for the balance between love and stardom, and battling her addictions to alcohol and heroin. At the heart of the book are Janis's own letters home, which movingly convey her thoughts and feelings during her wild ride to rock stardom. ... Read more

Reviews (15)

This book is an inside look at the life of a legend!
I was born long after the days of Janis Joplin and her brand of hippie rock and drugs. But her music, once I discovered it, moved me in ways previously unimaginable. I found this book, written by her sister, to be touching and real. Janis was an extraordinary person, this book proves that. It also brings you behind the scenes, to her secert life that caused her so much pain.This book made Janis real to me. Laura Joplin did a fantastic job of educating the world about the one of a kind Janis Joplin and her turblent life. Her talent, like this book, will never be forgotten!

Get it while you can!
Thank you, Laura Joplin, for this honest account of the life of one of the World's most talented blues and rock singers. For so many people, hippie or not, Janis was "it". With all the fictional and half-factual accounts of Janis' hard-lived life, loves, music and death, it was cathartic to read "Love, Janis." for the closure it gave me. So many Janis Joplin fans already feel as if they actually knew her... a fact that can be attributed to the heart and soul she put into every note she sang. Thanks to Laura's careful, detailed account, the reader will feel even more emotionally attatched to Janis, much like that of a sibling. From Janis' childhood, you seem to almost "grow up" with her, sharing in her learning experiences, anguishes, laughter and tears, loves and hates. Finally, the truth from someone who knows... and who better to write a factual account than someone who shared a bond only sisters can share. However...Janis Joplin fans- Beware! Open your mind before you read this book to guard yourself against becoming disillusioned... Janis Joplin was larger than life in many respects, but was still a living breathing, cursing, mistake-making human being. This is the TRUTH... no glossing over. Warts and all, this is the Janis Joplin who actually WAS, not the Janis created by the media. I found myself happy for Janis when the going was good, and grieving for her when I knew the end was near; wishing I could warn her of what was to come... A wonderful book, and a must read for fans who think they really know Janis... you don't yet, but you will! Yes, Laura, your beloved sister is remembered - Thanks again for caring so much about the preservation of her legacy.

Great Bio
This an excellent biography about the ENTIRE life of Janis Joplin. It is probably the first Janis Joplin book you should read if you want to learn more about her. It is told from a family member's point of view...in other words, the truth is told. I would think that this book would be the most reliable out of the 4 or 5 janis books that are out. Enjoy this book! it is well worth it.

a very interesting read
This book allowed the reader to see Janis as a family member. It showed her innocence and dedication through the eyes of her younger sister. I finally began to understand how her family saw her and how Janis portrayed herself to them. This insite opened my eyes, and as a die hard fan, I see Janis as more of a person now not just an icon.

Short (too short) and very sweet
These letters from Janis to her family are warm, poignant and heartbreaking. They chronicle how quickly she moved, from folk-singing "beatnik" to counter-culture icon, and how even this lightening pace wasn't fast enough for her. And they reveal a longing for acceptance that we all sensed from her stage persona and her music. Hearing the dates on the letters as we move with her from Texas to SF to the world, I shuddered, thinking "So little time left, dear, and you don't even know it." Of course, none of us knows what life has in store for us, and that makes Janis' story in her own words all the more moving. That Laura loved her sister and wished she knew her better comes through in these pages. The story is unique to the Joplins, yet universal to all, and I recommend it. I subtracted one star for the reading by Debra Winger. At times I thought she was an inspired choice. Her smoky voice is so reminiscent of Janis'. But at other times I was exasperated, when Ms. Winger stumbled and gave me the impression she was reading these words for the first time. ... Read more

Book Description

One of our most inspiring Americans comes to life in this complete and unabridged reading. Written as a letter to his son, which was never finished, Franklin's account of his life from his childhood in Boston to his years in Philadelphia ends in 1757 with his first mission to England. It includes his "Top 13" moral virtues. Fredd Wayne has toured worldwide for over 20 years with his performance as Ben Franklin. Named to the 1997 Publishers Weekly list of Best Audios. 4 cassettes. ... Read more

Reviews (40)

Franklin's informal account of his remarkable life
In many ways, this is, to someone coming to it for the first time, a very surprising book. For one thing, it is amazingly incomplete. Franklin is, of course, one of the most famous Americans who ever lived, and his accomplishments in a wide array of endeavors are a part of American lore and popular history. A great deal of this lore and many of his accomplishments are missing from this account of his life. He never finished the autobiography, earlier in his life because he was too busy with what he terms public "employments," and later in life because the opium he was taking for kidney stones left him unable to concentrate sufficiently. Had Franklin been able to write about every period of his life and all of his achievements, his AUTOBIOGRAPHY would have been one of the most remarkable documents every produced. It is amazingly compelling in its incomplete state.

As a serious reader, I was delighted in the way that Franklin is obsessed with the reading habits of other people. Over and over in the course of his memoir, he remarks that such and such a person was fond of reading, or owned a large number of books, or was a poet or author. Clearly, it is one of the qualities he most admires in others, and one of the qualities in a person that makes him want to know a person. He finds other readers to be kindred souls.

If one is familiar with the Pragmatists, one finds many pragmatist tendencies in Franklin's thought. He is concerned less with ideals than with ideas that work and are functional. For instance, at one point he implies that while his own beliefs lean more towards the deistical, he sees formal religion as playing an important role in life and society, and he goes out of his way to never criticize the faith of another person. His pragmatism comes out also in list of the virtues, which is one of the more famous and striking parts of his book. As is well known, he compiled a list of 13 virtues, which he felt summed up all the virtues taught by all philosophers and religions. But they are practical, not abstract virtues. He states that he wanted to articulate virtues that possessed simple and not complex ideas. Why? The simpler the idea, the easier to apply. And in formulating his list of virtues, he is more concerned with the manner in which these virtues can be actualized in one's life. Franklin has utterly no interest in abstract morality.

One of Franklin's virtues is humility, and his humility comes out in the form of his book. His narrative is exceedingly informal, not merely in the first part, which was ostensibly addressed to his son, but in the later sections (the autobiography was composed upon four separate occasions). The informal nature of the book displays Franklin's intended humility, and for Franklin, seeming to be so is nearly as important as actually being so. For part of the function of the virtues in an individual is not merely to make that particular person virtuous, but to function as an example to others. This notion of his being an example to other people is one of the major themes in his book. His life, he believes, is an exemplary one. And he believes that by sharing the details of his own life, he can serves as a template for other lives.

One striking aspect of his book is what one could almost call Secular Puritanism. Although Franklin was hardly a prude, he was nonetheless very much a child of the Puritans. This is not displayed merely in his promotion of the virtues, but in his abstaining from excessiveness in eating, drinking, conversation, or whatever. Franklin is intensely concerned with self-governance.

I think anyone not having read this before will be surprised at how readable and enjoyable this is. I think also one can only regret that Franklin was not able to write about the entirety of his life. He was a remarkable man with a remarkable story to tell.

You will be richer from reading this book
Benjamin Franklin's autobiography is the story of one man's efforts to integrate certain principles and habits - integrity, humility, fidelity, temperance, courage, justice, patience, industry, simplicity, modesty - into his life and to embed them deep within his nature. Franklin was a scientist, philosopher, statesman, inventor, educator, diplomat, politician, humorist and man of letters who led a very full life. He was also a moralist and humanitarian who was happy to be considered unconventional by doing things the way he thought they should be done. His was a life well lived and a model from which we can learn much. In the introduction we are told: "Himself a master of the motives of human conduct, Franklin did not set out to reveal himself in his autobiography. Rather, he intended to tell us (insofar as we, the nation, are the 'posterity' to whom he addressed himself) how life was to be lived, good done, and happiness achieved - how the ball was to be danced."

Franklin did not have an easy life as the tenth son of a candle maker whose education ended at the age of ten. But by hard work and careful planning he was able to retire from business at the age of forty-two and devote his time to science and politics. He was sent to England in 1764 to petition the King to end the proprietary government of the colony. Soon after the Revolution began he was sent to France to negotiate an alliance with Louis XVI. He was a member of the committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence. It is difficult to image anyone not coming away richer from reading this book.

A Book Of Firsts
Said to be the first work of American literature, by America's first citizen: Ben Franklin's autobiography has certainly drawn a lot of praise.

Written in several pieces, it takes his life just past his electrical experiments, ending with his ambassadorial trip to London in 1757 on behalf of the Pennsylvania Assembly to argue that the Proprietors (the descendants of William Penn) should accept a tax to fund the raising of a militia.

Ben's early life story is familiar to all, coming penniless from Boston to Philadelphia, etc. particularly these days when new Franklin biographies seem to appear almost monthly. It is an interesting book, particularly because it was written by Franklin himself. But the breathless praise that is everywhere showered upon it seems a bit over done. First of all, it's incomplete, and secondly, it's not nearly as witty as Poor Richard.

An Unfinished Autobiography of the Consumate American Life
Franklin wrote this autobiography as a letter of instruction in the ways of the world to his youthful and illegitimate son of 40. It only covers the first half or so of his incredible life, so the things that really made him well-known are not covered, but there is plenty here anyway.

Franklin recounts his family's modest life in England and the circumstances that brought them to Boston. He was among the youngest of a very large family, ultimately finding his way to Philadelphia to find work as a printer when an apprenticeship with an older brother turned sour.

We always think of Franklin as being a slightly older statesman among the Founding Fathers, when in fact he was a full generation older than Washington or Jefferson. Unlike popular perception, he was an athletic and vibrant youth, who rescued a drowning Dutch companion and taught swimming to children of London's elite.

Philadelphia in the 1720's and 1730's was a small town, never sure if it would really take off as a settlement. Franklin quickly befriended key politicians who felt Philadelphia had grown sufficiently to have a world-class print shop. He played a key role in the town's development, leading civic groups in establishing libraries, fire companies, meeting halls, and street cleaning services. Of course, he was also the consummate politician, serving in office, and networking his way to his first fortune by publishing government documents and printing the first paper currency. He also had a knack for working with the several important religious sects of that time and place, especially the pacifist Quakers, even though Franklin was a deist.

Franklin was a clever businessman. In today's lexicon, he effectively franchised across the colonies his concept of the publisher/printer who would provide both the content and the ink on paper. By age 30, he had set up his business affairs so that his printing businesses in several colonies were operated by partners and he received a share of the profits, allowing him to pursue other interests.

The autobiography is unfinished, so we don't hear his account of his pursuits of electricity, which made him as famous and well-known as Bill Gates is today, nor his thought on the Revolution. Franklin did play a key role in establishing logistical support to the British during their fight with the French in the New World. At that time and during his years in Europe, he was generally perceived as a Tory supporter.

Read this book to learn how Franklin devoted himself to self-improvement by establishing clubs, lending libraries, a sober lifestyle allowing time for study, and his methods for measuring his personal performance against metrics he had established for a proper lifestyle. One will also gather a new appreciation for the fullness, utility, and richness of the English language when put on paper by a master.

Read as a companion to Isaacson
Ten years ago, I purchased the paperback and could not get past the first few chapters. Five years ago, I bought the cassette version and could not get much further. After finishing and enjoying Walter Isaacson's Franklin bio immediately prior to this third attempt, I was finally able to enjoy "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin". Fredd Wayne brings Franklin to life with what seems like a perfect portrayal. He *performs* rather than narrates.

Without the insight from Issacson, or, I suspect, from any decent biography of Franklin, the autobiography is disjointed, as he wrote different sections at different times of his life, and some time periods are eliminated completely. And it seems to have multiple personalities, struggling between the subjects of self-help, biography, history and simple meanderings and ruminations of an old man.

As a companion book - 5 stars; as a standalone - 2-3 stars ... Read more

Book Description

Frederick Douglass (1817?-1895) was born into slavery by a slave mother and an unknown father. At the age of 8, he started to educate himself with the help of his master's wife. In 1838, he fled Baltimore for the North. There he soon became a noted author and speaker on slavery.

Douglass wrote three autobiographies, "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" (1845), "My Bondage and My Freedom" (1855) and "Life and Times of Frederick Douglass" (1881). Quiet Vision publishes all three plus the "Selected Works of Frederick Douglass", a collection of short works and speeches.

A man ahead of his time, in the 1840's he had to be dragged from the railroad cars reserved for whites. He also protested the dual standard of certain churches in having separate worship. ... Read more

Reviews (60)

A damning Tale of Evil in America
This is a difficult book to read because the evil that slavery entails. The oppression of anyone is an evil that must be overcome. Frederick Douglass displayed a remarkable courage in learning to read and write to finally overcome the horror of slavery. I appreciate his observation on the religious hypocrisy of the South. It was telling that religious slave owners were always the worst. Of course since religion helped breed slavery in America this really should not come as any surprise. I have great admiration for the founders of this country but I also feel that the evil and hypocrisy of slavery should be exposed. It is an ugly passage in American history that must be addressed. This book should be read by high school kids in every high school in America--make that every American period. Frederick Douglass deserves to be recognized as a great American and this book is essential reading for any American.

Revealing
A prime subject of debate before the Civil War seems to have been the nature of slavery in the South. Northern abolitionists would shoot rhetorical darts concerning the ineffable cruelties done to slaves at the hands of Southern slaveholders; Southern Confederates would fire their own salvos in return, telling stories to show that the abuses did not outweigh the general decency of the system. In this autobiography, Frederick Douglass weighs in heavily with the abolitionists, laying bare the barbarity and brutality of his experiences with slaveholders in the South. Tracking his life from the ignorance of childhood, to his growing awareness and education, to his final escape, Douglass makes his opinion plain: It is not only the South's particular form of slavery which is savagely corrupt - the system itself is despicable at its core.

My college assigned me this book to read, suggesting I watch for two things: the relationship of Christian faith to his life and to that of his masters, and the role of education in his journey toward freedom. In regard to the first, Douglass actually says surprisingly little about how his faith sustained him throughout his captivity. A few brief mentions are made here and there about how Christianity strengthened him during his trials, but the vast majority of his remarks on Christianity addressed the viciousness it seemed to inspire in his masters. In his experience, pious slaveholders were more cruel and malicious than unbelievers. Indeed, one of his worst masters was reverend of a local church. Douglass explains that while religion is well and good in its proper state, the corruption of the Southern version of Christianity was unpardonable, a religion where piety begot brutality, and faith sanctioned savagery.

In my reading of this narrative, Douglass' primary hope was not in Christianity, but in education. Throughout the book, he explains the various devices slaveholders used to keep their slaves from getting religion, or getting reading and writing, or getting knowledge of current events. He shows that the Southerners knew exactly what they were keeping from their slaves - the very tool by which they could gain liberty, humanity, and freedom. Douglass traces his tortuous trials in learning to read and write, and then shows the invaluable benefits he received from these. A good education is one of the greatest and most liberating things a person can get, and Douglass' narrative drives this point home hard and clear.

This book is a worthwhile read. Engaging and well-written, this narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass fascinates and informs. It illustrates the cruel treatment he, and by extension many other slaves, received at the hand of Southern slaveholders. It shows how a barbaric form of Christianity inspired some of these cruelties. And it shows how education delivered Douglass from the hands of his oppressors. Read it as a history. Read it as a story. But by all means, read it.

Very Good
I had to read this for a freshman history class. I dreaded it before because I usually hate historical nonfiction biographies, but I was quite surprised. Anytime somebody says that Affirmative Action is necessary because of past wrongs, I direct them to read this book. This man had the drive to learn to read in secret (at the age of 8) and ultimately escape to the free North to become an author. And his conditions were FAR worse than anybody's today! It's a very inspirational novel. It details the horrors of the slaves having to be split from their families and the hardships they had to endure. It also gave some insight to the mindsets of the slave owners. This is not a long book and is well worth an afternoon.

Frederick Douglass review
I enjoyed "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass", but would not necessicarily recommend it to a person or class. I appreciate the perspective that I gained from encountering his life story, but I was never really entertained or enlightened. The story was more depressing than happy, and large parts of the story were left out for his safety reasons. Allow I respect that, it does have an effect on his account of the escape. I would say that overall this book is pretty good, but just doesn't connect for me.

JAMIN BIO!
Wow! This has got to be one of the best autobiographies I have ever read. Douglass gives one a great idea of the struggles he went through while he was a slave and trying to runaway. If you want to know more about slavery then this is the book to read. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (8)

I would give all of his books more than 5 stars if I could!
If you want a book that will take you back to the country life and its people with all their foibles and admirable qualities and love animals then his books will be pure enjoyment! I love the way he tells his stories. In his stories, he doesn't ever claim to be the best veterinarian around (I think he underrated himself), but you know he is a wonderful, kind, animal and people loving person. The way he speaks about the people and animals he comes in contact with, come to life and you feel you are right there with him. You will laugh, maybe cry, and cheer him on as you read. If you have animals, or raise them, you will love his books, although you don't have to own any to appreciate them.

A Gem!
My first experience with the late James Herriot's inspirational books took place in a bookstore in Singapore, in the 80's. I was barely 14 & had not heard of this writer/vet. But as soon as I started reading All Things Wise and Wonderful - my very first JH book, I knew I had to get the rest of the series.
Through his poignant, funny, sensitive and Yorkshire-accented writing, I relived his world as a practising vet. His was a world where decent, civic minded people lived with much love & respect for their pets and farm animals. A world where I wanted/want to be in.
It is true how one book reviewer put it: every chapter will have you either laughing out loud or shedding a quiet tear. To this day, I still remember some of his stories that touched my heart. The courtship years when a young JH was trying to impress Helen (who eventually became his very supportive wife); the timid little black stray cat, who with her last breath, would placed her one surviving kitten into the hands of a caring family; the endearing 'beggar' dog; the bored, pampered & misunderstood pet dog of a wealthy spinster...I could almost touch and see JH's characters through his vivid writing. I even felt his pride when his daughter also became a vet, & his son a doctor.
I am sorry that there were not more of his wonderful tales.

The Unabridged Audio Set Is Wonderful!
The reading on the audio cassettes is done by Christopher Timothy, the actor who plays James Herriot on the BBC series "All Creatures Great And Small". He does a magnificent job of Sigfried, Tristan and all the dales farmers. It is truly a delight to listen to this series of tapes - it takes you into another world.

(Note: there appears to be an error above, listing Edmund Stoiber as the reader.)

In this set, James has joined the RAF to support the war effort, though fate has other plans for him. We follow his attempts to get in shape and become a pilot, as events and people remind him of his many experiences back in his vet practice.

Perhaps because of the War Years, some of these stories are slightly more edgy, such as a rash of dog-poisonings and an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease that is uncomfortably reminiscent of recent events. But overall there is that sweetness of tone that pervades all of Herriot's work.

I think my favorite story was the old farmer fetching two gallons of the local pub's best beer in a milk bucket in order to warm a mother pig to her new family. Of course he saved a "drop" for himself and his mates. The amazing thing about these books is that there is never a repeated story throughout the whole series.

Another favorite
James Harriot has that amazing ability to transport you into his world, take you into his confidence, and offer you his friendship.....all through a series of heartwarming stories taken from his life as a Yorkshire vet. It's so refreshing to read books that are not strewn with violence and sex...yet which captivate your attention. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants some good wholesome entertainment and an occasional chuckle.

A wonderful end to a fabulous series of books!
I have read each of James Herriot's books many times (including this one) and still enjoy them every time I read them! This book is one of my favorite books of the series, and is highly recommended by me. If you have read the other books you will love this one just as much if not more! If you have not read any of the other books, this book would also be a good one to start off with. After reading it I can assure you that you will want to read all the others. NOTE: I also have all five of these books on audio tape (by Christopher Timothy) and would recommend these as well! It is great to listen to them while you do hobbies since you can actually do two things at the same time, and Christopher Timothy (who played James Herriot in the BBC series) really brings the characters to life, using different voices and accents. ... Read more

Book Description

A funny, dark, and very American success story about the man who has influenced comedians from Lenny Bruce to Jim Carrey. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Superior Study of Lewis
I have read several books about Jerry Lewis but I believe that Shawn Levy has produced the most in-depth work about Lewis. He is able to provide a fluid explanation to many unanswered questions about the career of Jerry Lewis.

He provides a detailed structured background into the creation, rise and fall of Martin and Lewis, which allows the reader to grasp why the act ruptured at the height of its success. Levy is the first writer to really provide concrete answers about the breakup, since both Martin and Lewis have always talked around the issue.

Levy also provides a back stage look at the solo career of Jerry Lewis allowing the reader to see why Lewis was never able to build an enduring successful career in the movies.

Actually, the best summary of the comedy of Jerry Lewis is on page 270, when Levy lifts quotes from a 1960s article written by comic writer, Al Capp. Capp's remarks totally sumed up why Lewis was brilliant with Dean Martin and such a flop in solo comedy roles. If you choose not to read the book, read page 270.

Though, I do not like the comedy of Jerry Lewis, I have always been impressed by personal interviews where it becomes apparent that Lewis is a gracious person, who has always credited Martin for the success of their act, whether he totally believes it or not.

Jerry Lewis has always been more impressive to me when he performed or acted as an adult rather than a child. Personally, Lewis did his best work in the movie "King of Comedy" and the "Wise Guy" television series, which were dramatic roles.

The Lives of Buddy Love
We all grew up watching Martin & Lewis movies and Jerry's solo projects, but there were those National Enquirer stories in the 1970's about Jerry being nasty to old people. Then a good friend of mine told me about when he worked at the Vegas Aladdin and saw Jerry Lewis completely lose his mind on a group of little children who'd talked their way backstage during a telethon to give him a donation. Jerry screamed every type of profanity at them. (A humiliated Chad Everrett hustled the kids to his limo for a ride home and my friend said he trembled in rage to keep from throttling Jerry).
When I saw Jerry on stage in the 1990's, I was stunned by the amount of swearing he did--even as I've seen him in interviews swear he never cusses on stage!
Obviously, any honest account of Jerry Lewis will have to try to reconcile the sweet, clumsy "nine-year-old" clown and the rampaging, egocentric monster. Shawn Levy has done that and I admire his book for not going too far one way or the other. I picked up the book to read about the unseen film, THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED, and for any insight into the Martin & Lewis split (I'd also read Nick Tosches' DINO), and I'm glad I did.

For the people (including Jerry himself) who would dismiss this book as a "hatchet job," you only have to look at Jerry's behavior and quotes himself to see both sides of him: Jerry not only disowned one of his sons for talking to the Enquirer, he completely wrote him out of every biography of him ("Love hard, hate hard"); Jerry's dismissal of all women comics as "unfunny" and "predominately here to have children"; his recent interview with Bill O'Reilly where he declares that JFK never had an affair with Marilyn Monroe--because Jerry did! (Even O'Reilly, a man not known to be caught unawares, blinked, speechless).

Jerry's wretched behavior, whether drug-induced or simply chosen, can't diminish his contribution to entertainment, only diminish one's opinion of him as a human being. And I don't think Jerry cares what you think about him.
I can just see him as Buddy Love (a creation mistaken for Dean when it was really Jerry), lighting up a smoke and saying, "I've done it all, baby."

Compulsively readable, very detailed and fair
Whether you love Jerry Lewis or hate him, you won't be able to stop reading this definative biography that corrects years and years of misinformation and paints a brutally honest picture of the entertainer. It's certainly a warts-and-all bio, filled with unflattering information, but its leveled with a real appreciation for Lewis's work as a comedian, actor and director. This biography gets beneath the skin and gives you a real insight to Lewis. He's not a monster but he's also not someone you'd want to spend a lot of time with off the pages of this excellent biography.

Yes and no
On the one hand, this was immensely readable. On the other hand, the negative things Levy has to say turn out to be for personal reasons. You have to wait for the afterword at the back of the book to find out that he and Lewis didn't see eye to eye and Levy felt hurt by this. Hence, the dirt. It's the Mommie Dearest Syndrome. Christina Crawford, we learn when we read that book, actually had made up with and was very close to her mother at the time of Joan Crawford's death. Then, inexplicably, Crawford left Christina out of her will. Hence, the dirt. So if Levy had (a) just skipped the afterword altogether, (b) put it up front as a preface so we could go into the book knowing the motivation, or (c) eased up on some of the vitriol, it would have been a better book. I'll read more books on Lewis, but I won't be reading anything else by Levy.

The King is a very lonely man.
I have recently finished reading this book and it is quite a chore. Not only are the chapters rather long, but they contain so much information that they take a while to read.

This book paints an acid portrait of Jerry Lewis. On the one hand, his childhood was not a happy one and I felt sorry for him. On the other hand, Jerry seems to feel that the world owes him a living. The book is rife with (what I believe to be) direct quotes from Jerry, and these quotes can be very nasty very often. If you LOVE Jerry Lewis, you may want to avoid this book because it depicts him as a very difficult & argumentative individual; this book may make you lose respect for him. On a gossipy Hollywood Babylon-type level, the book succeeds brilliantly. ... Read more

Book Description

An illuminating portrait of Anne Morrow Lindbergh--loyal wife, devoted mother, pioneering aviator, and critically acclaimed author of the bestselling Gift from the Sea.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh has been one of the most admired women and most popular writers of our time. Her Gift from the Sea is a perennial favorite. But the woman behind the public person has remained largely unknown. Drawing on five years of exclusive interviews with Anne Morrow Lindbergh as well as countless diaries, letters, and other documents, Susan Hertog now gives us the woman whose triumphs, struggles and elegant perseverance riveted the public for much of the twentieth century.

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Reviews (23)

A Fascinating autionary Biography Of Anne Morrow Lindbergh!
This book is a wonderful reminder of just how remarkable a woman the long-suffering Anne Morrow Lindbergh was in her own right, and of the difficult time she had emerging from the extremely dark shadows of husband Charles Lindbergh life of accomplishment, aggravation, and pathetic self-absorption. In this literate and quite readable biography by Susan Hertog, a portrait of this singular woman comes soaring to the heights despite of life of incredible personal hardship and sorrow. It is also a sad reminder that into each life rain must fall, regardless of how affluent, famous, or privileged.

It is a common place by this point in our history that Anne Morrow Lindbergh was a victim of colossal proportions, not only in terms of the controversial and shocking kidnapping and death of her infant son in the early 1930s, but also by her domination for decades by "Lucky Lindy", and she was trapped by convention and circumstance into an incredibly difficult life with this brilliant but strangely detached human being she was married to. From the moment they met her life was destined to trail in the shadow of his, both by virtue of tradition and her own desire to have a predominantly private life. Yet, curiously, she ironically married the man most singularly unable to give her all that she wanted and needed. Their life together is a somber and complicated modern American tragedy on the scale of "Death of a Salesman".

Yet Anne Morrow Lindbergh rose above her situation and their personal life of tragedy and disappointment. Lindbergh was a peripatetic traveler, and while she often accompanied him (indeed, he insisted in order to keep her primary focus exclusively on him rather than on their children or anything else), in their later years they came to live increasingly more separate and distinct lives, even while together. To say Lindbergh was a bizarre man and a strange soul is to be kind to a man described in pitiless terms by his widow herself and his adult child. It is easy for younger readers ignorant of how difficult and scandalous divorce or separation would have been for her, it may seem difficult to understand why she stayed with him despite his cruelty, indifference, and prejudices all those years. But for older readers more familiar with the older and more common character virtues people of Mrs. Lindbergh's generation, social background, and time subscribed to, it is a tragic set of circumstances that only she can understand in all its tragic overtones.

This is a close up portrait of a woman tragically trapped by fame, marriage, and social convention into a life of limitless advantages but cruelly wasted opportunities. That she was as successful as an author, humanitarian, social activist and early feminist later in her life is a tribute to a remarkable woman, and yet a bittersweet reminder of how much more she might have been had she never met her future husband. This is a interesting, well written, and captivating study of a woman and her times, and is one I recommend to people interested in a most fascinating yet offbeat biography. Enjoy!

Her Extraordinary Life
I just finished this book. Anne Morrow Lindbergh was an amazing and inspiring lady and this book gives the reader a detailed account of her life. My tastes in reading material usually are geared more towards contemporary fiction but I picked up this book on a recomendation from a friend. And if you are like me, you probably have a stack of books on your bedside table that you are systematically reading. Well, Anne Morrow Lindbergh: Her Life, came to the top of that pile and dutifully I started reading. I was so pleasantly surprised at how much I liked this book (seeing as how the 'biography' has not been my first choice in reading material). The content (AML's life) is just so interesting that it is better then most of the fiction I have read as of late. Anne Morrow Lindbergh is just such a remarkable lady and the author has gone to great length to "know" her subject. You will find the depth of the research Ms. Hertog did on AML to be nothing short of phenomanal. The chapters on the Lindbergh Baby kidknapping literally took my breath away and kept me up until three o'clock in the morning. The writing was that fresh and intense, I felt as if I was experiencing it all first hand.

Susan Hertog's Incomplete Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Susan Hertog takes full advantage of ten audiences with her subject, Anne Morrow Lindbergh. She manages to capture the complexities of Mrs. Lindbergh's character and the contradictions of her marriage to an American icon, Charles Lindbergh. The fact that the Lindbergh family has largely disavowed the book doesn't detract from Ms. Hertog's insights.

Unfortunately, the lengthy book, published almost 20 years after Charles Lindbergh died in 1974, virtually ends with his death...when Anne Morrow Lindbergh was 68 years old (she lived on until 2002). Almost nothing of Mrs. Lindbergh's life in widowhood is mentioned, which gives the unintended impression that in the final analysis, she was simply Charles Lindbergh's wife, not an accomplished woman deserving of her own biography.

In fact, the middle-aged Anne Morrow Lindbergh became a role model for working women, albeit she was always too self-effacing to occupy a leadership position in the gender wars.

A crashing disappointment
Having read Anne Morrow Lindbergh's diaries, her daughter Reeve's first memoir, Berg's biography of Charles, and Gift from the Sea, I was truly looking forward to this biography. Knowing that the author had interviewed Mrs. Lindbergh, I was expecting new insights into someone who, I believe, was one of the 20th century's most remarkable women. What I found instead was a rehash of all the material I had previously read linked together with lame "psychological insights" and platitudes.

Another thing that bothered me was her considerable reliance on the published diaries without taking into account that they were edited for publication, and by Charles at that, who saw them as a way to refurbish his public image, using his wife's popularity following the publication of Gift from the Sea.

In short, there is no depth to this book at all.

A LIFE GUIDEBOOK
I loved this book. We used it in book club and it became the foundation for an incredible discussion. I am adding this to my best friend's wedding shower gift and I'm getting a copy for my mother-in-law who is going through the "I'm getting older - what now?" phase. It's one of those books people should read at every new life stage: marriage, kids, empty nest... It's truly a guide book, or a "logical reinforcement" book that tells you what you already know - that people need private time to nourish their soul. This is NOT new agey - it is more a woman revealing intimate discoveries. Coming from a H.S. English teacher, this one is meaty. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Thrilling and exciting, though not true alltogether
Stuart Lake describes Wyatt Earp as a perfect man with no faults, a real hero, a real angel. Though I live in Sweden, far away from Wyatt's hunting grounds, I have an opinion, and Ido not believe anyone could be that perfect. I think we all know that Stuart Lake did not stick to the truth all the time, that he made Wyatt better than he ever was. But, to be honest, so what? We want Wyatt Earp to be the kind of person Stuart Lakes says he was, don't we? We want him to be the best af all the county sheriffs and all the US marshalls, don't we? Read the book! It's entertaining and very well written. Sincerely Magnus Ekstrand, Sweden

Legend of the Old West
I have always been facinated with the old west and its heroes. This book by Stuart Lake was very well written and exceptionally entertaining. I am in the middle of reading it for the second time. Especially interesting are the quotes from Wyatt Earp himself. The legends own words bring a sense of realism and authenticity to the writers story. I would recomend this book to anyone and hope the publisher puts it back in print.

Essentially an Autobiography
I just finished this most interesting biography of Wyatt Earp and I found myself both fascinated and a bit skeptical. I was fascinated by the life of Wyatt Earp as it was written by a man who interviewed him over a period of time. I was impressed with the research that the author, Stuart Lake, appeared to have put into his project. He had interviewed a number of surviving witnesses to the life of Earp. He also had a number of newspaper accounts and appears to have located a number of valuable documents in the course of his research. The book wasted little time in getting to Wyatt's career in law enforcement in the American West. The bulk, and I mean just about ALL, of the book is spent on his career in Wichta and Dodge City, Kansas as well as Tombstone, Arizona. The many famous (and not so famous) outlaws and lawmen of the Old West move in and out of the story on a regular basis. Stuart lists an almost endless number of feats of daring by Wyatt Earp in the process of making his case for Earp as the greatest of all men of the American West. Many of the events are depicted in great and compelling detail. Many of the parties are quoted, presumeably, from the memory of Earp himself. There is never a dull moment in the life of our hero, especially considering that all this action took place over a relatively short period of time. The book, at times, reads like a well-researched dime novel. For a chance to re-live the wild, wild West, it has little competition.

As for my skepticism, I came away wondering first of all; did all this really happen? Perhaps it did but our hero (and I am not trying to be facetious, Wyatt Earp truly is a hero) does it all seemingly with one hand tied behind his back. My other reservation has to do with the politics of the times and places. There are only good guys and bad guys and no exploration as to the motivations of either side except for good and evil. I found myself wondering if I were the only source of information about the events of my time and I had to relate to the world in 50 years or so the events I had witnessed. Take the Invasion of Iraq, the presidential election of 2000, or the impeachment of President Clinton. I certainly could make a claim as to who was the "bad guy" and who was the "good guy" while somneone else of a different political persuasion could make the opposite claim. There is no one to speak for the opposing view in this book. The author quotes frequently from the Tombstone "Nugget" but always prefacing the unreliability of the source. I found myself wondering if there might not have been something of another side to the events in Tombstone. The labor strife in mining communities of those days was very significant; just study the history of Butte, MT. Is it possible that Earp supported the powers that be and the miners looked for support from wherever they could get it? Maybe not, but it would have been helpful if the author tried to give a bit of an impartial look at the motives of the opposing side in Tombstone. That said, and realizing that this is about Wyatt Earp, not the miners, this is a book well worth the time of any fan of the American West.

INTERESTING LITTLE KNOWN BACKGROUND ON THIS BOOK

Reviewer: Glenn G. Boyer from Tucson, Arizona United States
Professional writer, Stuart Lake, once a publicity man for Teddy Roosevelt, a wounded veteran of World War I and former newsman from New York City, was interested in the life story of Wyatt Earp by contact with an old friend of Wyatt's then in New York City as a sportswriter, Bat Masterson. Masterson had been sheriff of Ford County, KS, when Wyatt was a lawman there at Dodge City, (1876-79, during the cattle shipping seasons).

Although, as the years passed, Lake's acquaintance with Wyatt miraculously expanded to several years and his publisher billed him as "the man who knew Wyatt best" the relationship actually dated from an initial letter from Lake dated Christmas 1928, until Wyatt's death on January 13, 1929. Lake, from their letters in the Huntington Library, first met Wyatt personally in June 1929. He took over an abortive autobiography that Wyatt had paid indifferent attention to, done with an amanuensis, John Henry Flood, Jr. (Later Lake claimed he had never seen this ms., probably because his relations with Flood were abrasive, but his letters with the Earps, which can be found in Lake's files, belie this.) This ms. was the starting point for his first effort. The Flood Ms. was the object of searches by historians for years, since it seemed all copies had been lost, but letters between Earp and Western film star, Wm. S. Hart verified there had been such a Ms. since Hart attempted to help Wyatt and Flood get it published, and apparently planned at one time to make a movie based on it. I finally stumbled across two copies in the possession of Wyatt's widow's grand niece, Peggy Greenburg, and after unsuccessfully attempting to have a historical repository buy them, ended up buying them myself. (This may cause some confusion, since one copy was pirated by an impostor. People have asked why I didn't sue. My attorneys advised that this would be a risky undertaking, since such people, projecting a [misleading] image [of] ignorance, often gain the sympathy of juries, in addition to which there would be no satisfactory monetary return, under the so-called "turnip rule" which is well-known to the legal profession. I.E. You can't get blood out of a turnip.)

I published the Flood Ms. in a limited edition of 99, leather bound and linen cased in 1981.

Lake indicated in his letters to the Earps that he had substantially completed his book shortly before Wyatt's death. However, upon Wyatt's death it is obvious that he saw an opportunity to "punch up" his story for greater sales appeal. Wyatt died in January 1929 and Lake's final product wasn't published until Oct. 1931, and the record shows that Lake was traveling Wyatt's back trail researching during the intervening years. In time his activities brought him into conflict with Wyatt's widow, who wasn't too successful in curbing him, managing at least to get the title changed from "Wyatt Earp, Gunfighter" to the now well-known "Wyatt Earp, Frontier Marshal." This was a fortunate change since the catchy title was sales gold. The book eventually was the basis of several movies from which Wyatt's widow profited, as well as from a series of articles in Saturday Evening Post. However, her sour pronouncement was that the book was more "blood and thunder than a biography." It is a blend of both.

Wyatt and later his widow, Josephine, managed to conceal from Lake unsavory, or at the least embarrassing episodes in his past, some of which have only recently been made public, such as his obvious career in Illinois in the early 1870's as a brothel operator, pimp and all around "whoremaster." There was also a horse stealing episode shortly after he left Lamar, MO where he'd held his first law position as constable. There his first wife, Urilla Sutherland, had died and their first child died with her. Most damning of all was desertion of his second wife, who later committed suicide.

Lake was unaware of [most] of this, and if his editors had been [aware of it], we would not have the fabled lawman, whom I refer to as St. Wyatt the Just, a true Boy Scout. One wonders if Lake would have been above concealing these facts, if he'd been aware of them.

All of this aside. Lake's book is well-researched and has the main facts correct. The book, and Lake, do not deserve the blanket criticisms made of it. If it had been the matter-of-fact story John Flood had written it would never have been published. (One editor called Flood's work "stilted and florid and diffuse.")

So Lake punched up his story, and shares laurels with writer Walter Noble Burns as a master myth maker. I suspect from accounts I have had from those who knew Wyatt personally, largely members of his own family, that no one would have been more surprised to find himself a Folk Hero than publicity-shy Wyatt himself.

Among the fabrications that Lake used to dramatize his work are invented encounters of Wyatt with famous Mountain Man, Jim Bridger, at Ft. Bridger in 1864 when the record shows that Bridger was scouting for the army on the Bozeman Trail, the arrest of bad man Ben Thompson in Ellsworth, KS in 1873, and a highly dramatized encounter with Wm. Raynor, a Texas blowhard badman, in El Paso, etc. The record is clear that none of these events took place. Many wish to believe that Wyatt arrested ace gunman, Ben Thompson, but lack of mention in the Flood Ms. indicates that Wyatt never made that claim, and local newspapers do not report his involvement.

However, I do not fault Lake for any of this. He was complying with editorial ethics of his day (and our own, unfortunately) and simply doing what was necessary to feed a wife and child in the tough early Depression years. I suggest that his critics read Lake's Collection, and more thoroughly research other sources.

[THIS IS A MUST RESEARCH BOOK AND A GOOD READ FOR ANYONE.]

Great historical account
A tremendous amount of research went into this book and it shows. Very well done. ... Read more

Book Description

At once a love story, a portrait of a marriage, and an answer to a riddle, Véra explores a remarkable literary partnership - that of a woman who devoted her life to her husband's art and a man who dedicated his works to his wife. Open a volume of Nabokov's and there is Véra on the dedication page. But search for her elsewhere, and his wife of fifty-two years, the woman who literally plucked Lolita from the flames, fades from view.

Véra's story, never told, never really known at all before - is based on new material, including Vladimir's diaries and letters, and family correspondence.

Reviews (20)

PERFECT THREE-WAY UNION: HUSBAND, WIFE, AUTHOR.
In a vein not unsimilar to Brenda Maddox's biography of Nora Joyce a decade ago, Stacy Schiff compassionately and vividly weaves together the beautiful tapestry of Vladimir and Vera Nabokov. For those who thought the master's works can speak for themselves, they may want to think again. This lucid, brilliant book brings together the complex author's life, marriage, loves, ideals, frustrations, and, ultimately, genius as biographies rarely do. At the same time, Vera is no shrinking violet either and one wonders about what would have become of the author had she not been a tad forward about meeting him in the first place; certainly the history of 20th century literature would have suffered by it. My wish is that Ms Schiff continue in this vein...perhaps a different view of Frieda Lawrence or the long-suffering Mrs Dickens? Like this book, they will most likely be indispensable.

The Ultimate Woman Behind the Man
"Vera was a pale blonde when I met her, but it didn't take me long to turn her hair white."

The above was taken from one of Nabokov's own journal entries and, although it may seem humorous, it is no doubt true. Pulitzer-Prize winner, Stacy Schiff, suggests, even in the title of her book, that Véra Nabokov was a woman who was only capable of being known as Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov. Her relationship with her famed husband, no matter what its course, was the defining factor of her life. And Véra would have it no other way.

Véra Nabokov has been described as Vladimir Nabokov's "disciple, bodyguard, secretary-protector, handmaiden, buffer, quotation-finder, groupie, advance man, nursemaid and courtier." She is, not unjustly, celebrated as being the ultimate Woman Behind the Man.

Véra graduated from the Sorbonne as a master of modern languages, but, sadly, she did not keep copies of her own work as she did her husband's. In fact, she probably would have denied that her own work was worth keeping, although everything leads us to believe otherwise.

In addition to transcribing, typing and smoothing Valdimir's prose while it was still "warm and wet," Véra cut book pages, played chauffeur, translated, negotiated contracts and did the many practical things her famous husband disdained. This remarkable woman even made sure that the butterflies he collected died with the least amount of suffering.

A precocious child who read her first newspaper at the age of three, Véra was born into a middle-class Jewish family at the beginning of the twentieth-century in Czarist St. Petersburg. In 1921, with the advance of communism, her family settled in Berlin. It was there that she met the dapper and non-Jewish Vladimir. Their marriage would last fifty-two years and be described as an intensely symbiotic coupling.

Although Vladimir traveled and conducted several affairs, Véra supported him throughout, struggling to raise their son amidst the Nazism that was beginning to fester in Berlin. Blaming herself for her husband's infidelity, Véra managed to rejuvenate her marriage and the couple moved again--this time to New York City--where Véra typed Valdimir's manuscripts in bed while recovering from pneumonia. Forever believing in her husband's creative instincts, Véra stood by his art even when debt threatened to overtake them. It was she who intervened on the several occasions when Vladimir attempted to burn his manuscript of Lolita.

Véra Nabokov's tombstone bears the epithet, "Wife, Muse and Agent," and Nabokov knew the immensity of the debt he owed her. Late in life, he even refused to capture a rare butterfly he encountered in a mountain park for the sole reason that Véra was no longer at his side. Like her husband, Véra had highly developed aesthetic tastes and the two enjoyed a "tender telepathy." Often described as "synesthetes," the couple would have debates about "the color of Monday, the taste of E-flat." It is certainly without exaggeration that Nabokov wrote to Véra, "I need you, my fairy tale. For you are the only person I can talk to--about the hue of a cloud, about the singing of a thought, and about the fact that when I went out to work today and looked at each sunflower in the face, they all smiled back at me with their seeds."

Although many feel the Véra should have been encouraged to develop her own considerable talents, it can be argued that she did, and that her greatest talent was that of wife and helpmate. It is certainly one she choose freely and without rancor. The fact that her husband was fortunate, indeed, cannot be denied.

Véra is a book rich in detail, analysis and affection. Like all couples and all marriages, the Nabokovs were unique and they were special. To know one, was to glimpse the other, for with the passing of years, neither was wholly himself or herself. There are those who might not have understood Véra Nabokov's choices and might not have agreed with them, but they are the ones who have never known the ecstasy of a truly close relationship. Véra Nabokov was a most fascinating woman, one that made her own choices in life and lived them most happily. We can only admire her greatly.

yes, but....
it was a very good biography, but if you read the Boyd bio of her husband first you may be left wondering if he had already snatched up all the good quotes.

The talented woman in the background
Although I would advise a Nabokov fan to read "Speak Memory" and Brian Boyd's biography first, I definitely recommend this biography of the devoted Véra. She was an extremely strong-willed and talented woman. The fact that she didn't try to become an author in her own right and even downplayed her contributions to Vladimir's work will baffle some readers. These same readers (especially females), many of whom believe the secret to happiness is in "self-expression," will decide that Véra paid an exorbitant price for her very happy marriage.

A quibble: most of this book is about Véra and Vladimir after 1940. One of the many interesting things about Nabokov was that he had been a leading Russian émigré writer years before he arrived in America (with Véra's help, of course). And this part of the story is not developed as fully as the years after the Nabokovs arrived in America. Perhaps this book, and the many Nabokov biographies, will have be re-written some day by an author who moves as easily through the Russian and English languages as Nabokov did himself.

A stunning look into the intricacies of marriage
Even without the Pulitzer Prize, which this book won for Biography, Schiff's scrupulously written paean to marriage--well, to one complex marriage in particular--would stand out as an extraordinary achievement. Including vivid writing that reminds one of the best fiction, and strong research that follows the trajectory of two strong-willed "characters," Vera and Vladimir, this is a work of Richard Ellmann-like quality, and it will be remembered. ... Read more

Book Description

A unique and compelling eyewitness account of Germany between the wars.

A huge bestseller in Germany, Defying Hitler is a memoir about the rise of Nazism in Germany and the lives of ordinary German citizens between the wars. This fresh and astute account offers a unique perspective on this era of twentieth-century history.

Covering the years from 1907 to 1933, Haffner's personal memories form the basis for questioning, analyzing, and interpreting much of Germany's history. His eyewitness account of groups such as the First Free Corps -- the right-wing voluntary military force set up to suppress communism during the revolution of 1918 -- which would provide training for many of the later Nazi storm troopers; the Hitler Youth movement, which swept the nation; the apocalyptic year of 1923 when inflation crippled the country; the peaceful Stresemann years; and Hitler's coming to power all contribute to the portrait of a country in a constant state of flux. Sebastian Haffner elucidates how the educated average German grappled with a rapidly changing society, while chronicling day-to-day changes in attitudes, beliefs, politics, and prejudices.

Available for the first time in English, this highly illuminating work is a unique portrait of a time, a place, and a people.
... Read more

Reviews (8)

a deep,personal insight,and a lesson in style...
Haffner spares nobody,least himself.The story encompasses the years 1907-1933,and in all fairness,I have to state,that I read the complete story,in a German edition,so I know what happened afterwards.
the author explains,taking himself and the people about him as living examples,how Hitler and his gang could seize power,and,subsequently,sink the German ship as deeply,as it sunk,morally,ethically,politically.
Most explanatory is the phase of 1933,when haffner describes how he,his decent friends,his father,tried to retire to small niches,to live some sort of biedermeier,and were uprooted by the nazi machinery,washed out of their holes of seeming innocence,
deprived of all means and space for inner emigration.
I don't want to spoil the exquisite joy,that reading Haffner's account provides,so in conclusion,let me say that Haffner is a journalist of a kind not found anymore,short,concise,to the point,in the original at least,of a unique style,that does not require a thousand words to draw a pandemonium of unheard of proportions.
Be sure to read the book,all books,by Haffner,if they do not enlighten you to their subjects,they will do your style a world of good.

Haffner's Rosetta Stone
Sebastian Haffner's "Defying Hitler" is a rare gem that explains what is was about those in Germany between 1918 and 1933 that found a hearth in Hitler's promise of a glorious Fascist future.

1933 is the story's kernel when, as Haffner says, the dual begins. Hitler comes to power. It's the state versus the individual; the struggle for one's soul. It's the ordinary person (Haffner) up against Big Brother, Nazi style, with fangs exposed, talons sharpened, ready to strike.

Haffner probes the riddle of motivation and explains how for some Hitler was the hero for the hour to restore German's stature among the leading rank of nations. For others, it was join the cause or to yield to the alternative temptation of rejection or resistance. For Haffner himself the Nazis are a deadly pestilence that overturns the individual's capacity to live, to love, and enjoy life as one wants. For Haffner, this foot soldier for nondescript humanity, what does he do?

This is the real tease. Haffner later becomes a celebrated German writer and commentator. Written in 1939, he never actually completes this early work which his son Oliver only discovers after his father's death in 1999. Thankfully Oliver fills in the blanks and we are not going to spoil the story by revealing the outcome here.

Despite the abrupt end, it's not hard to see why this book became a best seller in Germany. Haffner writes with a beautiful cynical wit and has a grasp for history and the human condition. Champollion's Rosetta Stone provided a key to unlocking the secrets of Egyptian hieroglyphs. In its own way Haffner's "Defying Hitler" is the Rosetta Stone for Nazi Germany. It's a carriage for meaning and insight into not just a dark chapter of German history, but perhaps our own.

Honest account by an angry young man
Especially relevant with today's political world climate, this interesting autobiographical account of a young man's exposure to the rise of the Nazi party. A small book with a heavy message, altho' I feel it could have benefiited from some editing by or because of the translation into English.

a life in Germany from 1914 to the 1930s
This is an elegant book, written in 1939 but not published till after its author's death in 1999. It throws light on the endlessly absorbing question: How could Hitler take over the country so completely as he did. I found absorbing the account of the child growing up during the first World War, living thru the inflation of 1923, attaining manhood in the 1920s, and then all at once the ridiculous Nazis are in power and the nightmare begins. This is a well-told account, and of great insight.

Moving Personal Story
I found this to be an absorbing and moving account of one fairly ordinary person's experience in Germany of the 1920's and 30's. From a historical vantage point, it provides one valuable perspective of the rise of Hitler and why it was allowed to happen --- I'm reminding of the quote from Edmund Burke about evil triumphing because good people do nothing. Several times, Haffner apologizes for providing so much of his personal opinions and stories, but for me, the story of him and his friends was the most rewarding part of the book.

This memoir ends fairly abruptly, in late 1933, so we are left hanging, though the author's son, who translated the book into English, includes an afterward with details of the Haffner's life after 1933. Unfortunately, the abrupt ending leaves us in the dark about the fate of my favorite of Haffner's friends, his Carnival girlfriend Charlie, who was Jewish. I was very moved by the brief glimpses of their short romance and her devotion to her family. ... Read more

Book Description

Tracing Lincoln's early development Wilson sleuths out truths that have long lain unexposed, revealing a more human Lincoln than we've ever known. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

A compelling detective story of the young Lincoln
This book is an excellent look at the formative years of Lincoln's life and a great example of how to do historical research using primary sources. Many of the events of Lincoln's early years are controversial, owing mainly to the lack of contemporary evidence. However, by looking at sources others have never used, and by applying a systematic approach to determining what account is most likely to be accurate, Wilson is able to clear up many of the mysteries surrounding Lincoln's early years.

The book deals with several main topics, Lincoln's education, his search for a job, breaking into politics, his relations with women, and his developing honor. The majority of the book deals with his first experiences with politics and his various problems with women during this time. The emphasis on his relations with women, and with Mary Todd (Lincoln) specifically, is important because this is one of the most controversial and least understood aspects of those years. After weighing all the evidence Wilson comes to the conclusion that Lincoln married Mary Todd because he felt honor bound to do so, and not because he truly loved her. In coming to this conclusion he falls under what Jean Baker has termed "the anyone but Mary" group, but one cannot argue with his evidence.
Throughout the book the main theme is how Lincoln's sense of honor develops over time, and how it was in fact a trait that needed developing, as evidenced by Lincoln's part in the Sampson's Ghost and Lost Township editorials. By the 1840s that honor has developed and become Lincoln's most defining trait.

A Good Guide to Conflicting Evidence
Teachers in criminal justice classes, I am told, often stage mock crimes in their classrooms. In the middle of a lecture, for example, a bandit will barge in, threaten the students, and make off with the professor's wallet. The students, at first shocked but then relieved when told that it was a staged event, are then asked to describe the event. What did the suspect look like? How tall was he? What color hair did he have? What was he wearing? What did he say? Invariably, there are multiple answers to those questions. People saw different things. No one version of what occurred is totally accurate.

Wilson's book confronts that perennial problem of human perception. Though his 'transformation of Lincoln' plows familiar ground - how one solitary, unschooled backwoods man transformed himself into a national, albeit polarizing figure, through willpower, endurance, ambition, guts, and brains - his careful forensic method, as judge and jury of a multitude of competing facts and interpretations, makes this book a compelling tale, as much about how history is written as it is about how Lincoln evolved.

And this is why I disagree with the reviews that describe this book as long-winded, tough-sledding and over-detailed. In Honor's Voice, Wilson provides a valuable glimpse into the historian's bag of tricks. Wilson takes each of the iconic moments of Lincoln's life - his storied wresting match with Jack Armstrong, his self-education, his disastrous romance with Ann Rutledge - and peels apart the layers, examining the historical record as closely as possible, evaluating the claims of eyewitnesses and second-hand sources, and holding each up to scrutiny before making any assertions; and even then, he is admirably cautious. Wilson presents a lot of quotes, exactly as written, from contemporaries who witnessed, or claimed to have witnessed, crucial events in Lincoln's life, and asks: Is this the truth? Who could have benefit from enhancing the truth? Who was really there? What about the quote lends it authenticity, or falsity? Yes, the narrative covers the same event numerous times, but this is the price one pays of exactness. Like the criminal justice students who have competing recollections of a recent event, not one of Lincoln's contemporaries knows the whole truth. But taken together, one gets a more clear picture of what might have happened.

The risk, of course, is boredom and the frustration of dealing with multiple sources of the same event; but the reward is a new appreciation of Lincoln the man, as well as the historian's challenge of teasing out the facts in an era long since vanished.

Painfully detailed but a useful picture of Lincoln emerges.
The bad points first...

Being a Linoln buff myself, but certainly not a scholar on the subject, I found this book to be a worthwhile addition to my library but one that is seriously flawed. The first chapter goes into painstaking detail about Lincoln's wrestling match with Jack Armstrong in New Salem. I think a wrestling historian would find it more useful than someone interested in our 16th president. Endless second and third-hand accounts of the match are analyzed in detail. And for what? No reliable conclusions can be drawn from these contradictory accounts. The first chapter could have been summarized in two words...who knows? And I'm not really sure who cares either. I found this chapter to be a bit bizarre.

My other criticism of the book is that it is very poorly organized, in my opinion. In fact, only the first chapter sticks to the topic of it's title. The rest of the book seems to be organized into chapters only for the purpose of giving the reader a needed break from the tedium. Sure, you will find something about Lincoln's relationship with women in the chapter entitled, "Women," but you will find just as much about this subject in just about any other chapter. And you will learn about his politics in the chapter about women, etc. It almost seems as if Mr. Wilson just pinned a title to the top of a page now and then without regard to what followed. This lack of structure also results in a great deal of repetition. The same quotes are repeated again and again and again which would not have been necessary if each chapter stuck with it's title subject. One hopes that this lack of organization is not a reflection of Mr. Wilson's research skills.

On the plus side, if you can wade through the book, which is tedious to the extreme at times, you may end up with a more textured view of Lincoln the man. The book can help one to fill in the blanks of Lincoln's life but it is almost entirely based on educated guesses and conclusions on Mr. Wilson's part. In a sense, the book is reminiscent of Gore Vidal's Lincoln. But such conjecture can be useful, of course if we are searching for that "ring of truth" to fill in the blanks.

All in all, I consider this to be a useful addition to my fairly extensive Lincoln library but I certainly would not recommend it as a first book about Lincoln by any means and I think Mr. Wilson would agree with that assessment. The author writes that the book is not intended for scholars, but I find it difficult to see why the person with a more casual interest in Lincoln would be interested in these endless details which really never reach a conclusion. The book is, however, instructive as to how incorrect information is passed on and accepted as fact by generations of historians.

This book asks more questions than it answers but, ironically, the overall result is a much better picture of Lincoln. I would recommend this book only to the serious Lincoln student.

Tough Sledding
Wilson opens "Honor's Voice" with an overly long introduction to his methodology, which, in brief, is to sort through all the bits and tales and legends about Abraham Lincoln from age 22 to 33, and weighing the stories for credibility and accuracy, reach the truest picture of the young man. Because there is no shortage of material, Wilson has focused on ten themes, including how he educated himself, how he entered politics, his relations with women, and particularly with Mary Todd, etc.

The problem is that it's not clear for whom Wilson is writing. Wilson himself declares that the book is not for academics, but who else would be interested in a work that is less about Lincoln than about stories about Lincoln? Few of the legion Lincoln fans, save scholars, would have the interest or the patience for a tedious hi