Book Description

Powerful testimonies of Evangelicals who became Catholic These eleven personal conversion accounts are unlike any you've ever read. They're packed with biblical, theological, and historical proofs for Catholicism. Each year thousands of atheists, Evangelicals, Mormons, Fundamentalists, and Pentecostals are being surprised by Catholic truth and these converts tell you why.In his foreword Scott Hahn described his reaction to "Surprised by Truth":

"While reading each of these incredible journeys I laughed, cried, grunted affirmations, and basically relived my own journey into the Catholic Church. I heard echoes of my own struggles in their words. I relived the anguish I experienced on that lonely and sometimes frightening path of conversion, and I relived the deep, abiding joy of coming home. But enough, Read these stories. They're prayerful, heavy-on-doctrine, evangelical, scriptural witnesses of people who discovered that what they had once thought was the most 'unbiblical' church is really the Church of the Bible." ... Read more

Reviews (68)

Surprised by What?
The Churches are filling up with former Roman Catholics as the sheep leave for green pastures - the Bible-oriented "Protestant" churches. How are we to stop this rupture in membership asks the Roman Church? Realizing that personal testimony has been the vehicle through which many became Christians in the first place, we have in this book the carefully written testimonies of eleven converts to Roman Catholicism - all supposedly from evangelical denominations.

In the endeavor to convince the reader to either convert or to stay in "the Church Christ founded", Catholic apologists must convince people that the Bible is not sufficient but must be supplemented by other teachings and the interpretation by the Magisterium must be superimposed upon it. Thus, you have a litany of Roman Church apologetics defenses dispersed in with these testimonies in defense of the "one true faith".

A common denominator to these testimonies is the constant repetition of the same tired out arguments for Roman supremacy with the main focus being a denial of the sufficiency of Scripture, the "fractured" nature of Protestantism in light of the alleged unity of Rome, and the alleged unanimous consent of the early church fathers regarding the teachings of Roman Church's tradition.

Much of the Scriptural support from these eleven converts is either out of context or based upon very bad exegetics of key passages of Scriptures. For instance, all believed that the Church as established by Christ, was build upon apostolic succession from St. Peter. However, any good church historian would reveal that none of the early church fathers subscribed to apostolic succession based upon St. Peter. Available at Amazon.com is the book "The Matthew 16 Controversy - Peter and the Rock" by Webster that should convince anyone who really wants to know the historical facts regarding apostolic succession. I would recommend this book before buying into that religious-political theory as provided by the Roman Church.

At the center of focus for these converts is the participation in the Eucharist deemed necessary for salvation. All of them believing that the bread and wine becomes the actual body and blood of Christ and all of them believing that the Roman Mass has the support of all the early church fathers in that doctrinal viewpoint. The fact is that the early fathers did not support much that is modern Roman Catholicism. St Augustine, for instance, did not buy into transubstantiation at all; neither did many of the other church fathers.

Roman Catholic apologists tend to use history in very selective ways to support their distinctive doctrinal views, attempting to take advantage of the fact that many non-Catholics simply do not know history well enough provide counter evidence. Former Roman Catholic William Webster has written several highly documented books on Church history that clearly brings into doubt many of the historical claims for Roman Church doctrines. I recommend strongly that one purchase a copy of "The Church of Rome at the Bar of History" (also available through Amazon.com) to be able to really see that much in modern Protestantism was not invented in the 16th century as these converts content. We can easily see that early church history presents not just the Roman Church view, but most of the views we find today; "There is the literal view of transubstantiation which could be that expressed by Chrysostom; the Lutheran view of consubstantiation, which could be taught by Irenaeus or Justin Martyr; the spiritual view of Calvin, which is closely aligned with St. Augustine; and the strictly symbolic view of Zwingli, which is similar to that expressed by Eusebius" (see Webster, page 122). To the symbolic view, Webster adds Theodoret, Serapion, Jerome, Athanasius, Ambrosiaster, Macarius of Egypt, and Eustathius of Antioch. According to some apologists, "Church history is fascinating and has value, but it is a house of cards for anyone trying to construct infallible dogmas or biblical doctrines." Webster goes on to state that "even Pope Gelasius I (c. 496 A.D.) denied transubstantiation." And Pope Adrian IV rejected papal infallibility. All of the converts to Roman Catholicism make an issue of the alleged disunity of Protestantism with the claim that God has promised to keep His church together. But the truth of the gospel is the real cornerstone and foundation to the whole issue of unity. A close look at Roman Catholicism will reveal much disunity in their ranks as most Roman Catholics are really "Cafeteria Catholics" - carefully selecting what they will accept or reject from the Roman Church hierarchy. Unity, I believe, will be achievable eventually as we see in the book of Revelation, a church headed by the anti-Christ with all opposition brutally crushed. These eleven converts try hard to point out that the Roman Church is a church united and has always been united in its doctrinal beliefs but hopefully someday they will truly be "surprised by the Truth".

This book convinced me to convert to Catholicism!
These well-written conversion stories answer the questions: Which church was founded by Jesus Christ? Who has the authority to interpret Scripture? The answer is clear: the one and only Catholic church. The converts come from diverse backgrounds: some were Presbyterian ministers, one was Jewish. This book is so interesting and powerful, I finished it in one day. Then I decided to convert to Catholicism. Surprised by Truth is a powerful tool for evangelizing Jews, Protestants, and fallen-away Catholics.

Surprised by Truth
This book is an easy read that I couldn't put down until I finished.The eleven converts that tell their stories are easy to relate to and interesting. This book started me on a path of Catholic Apologetics that I am still on today. I have bought several and I cannot keep them in hand since once I lend them out they end up in the hands of friends and relatives of those who borrowed the book. I found the book enlightening and now I can say why I choose to be a Catholic.

soup kitchen
Entering the Catholic Church in my early teens, I remember our youth group volunteering at the soup kitchen, collecting baby supplies for the local crisis pregnancy center, and raking leaves for the elderly. I never waived my hands in the air at a church service, attended a conference or listed to an audio tract-nothing wrong with that, I guess. When I got to college, some students informed me that I needed to find Jesus in my life. One student even accused me of praying to dead saints, and worshiping statues. Super! I hear that she is now home schooling. Those kids should be great.

Well, thanks to this book, if some co-ed accuses me of leaving Jesus nailed to the cross, I can now answer them at their own high level, and I guess that there is something earthly appealing about that. Honestly, though, I learned a lot about the Catholic faith from books like this-things that I probably should have known. But, in the larger picture, I think that I was way ahead in my faith journey back when I was a silly kid in youth group, then at any period during my time spent studying apologetics.

EXCELLENT TITLE FOR AN EXCELLENT BOOK!
This book is EXCELLENT! I'm so thankful there's a book out there that explains everything that I've known and felt, but could not put into words to defend. So many good 'bible christian Protestants' think that their way is the true way, but how can one honestly believe this when so many Protestant religions totally disagree on scripture passages?How can one think it acceptable to interpret the bible however they want to??! Gee, what an awesome thing if it were actually true that we could do anything we wanted on earth, commit any sin we like, and that when we die, we'll just automatically go to heaven! It's sad that so many people are deceived by this (by the devil, no doubt...the Master of Deception!) Boy, are they in for a surprise on Judgement Day! If one would just be open and pray for GUIDANCE, one would most definitely come Home to the One, True Church...the church Jesus HIMSELF started...The Catholic Church...not some church started by a human in the 1500s!!!! ... Read more

Book Description

At age ten, Tatum O'Neal became the youngest Oscar winner in history for her performance in the film classic Paper Moon. She was hailed as a new kind of child star -- sassy and precocious -- for a hip, cynical age. As the sidekick to her father, the flamboyant star and man-about-town Ryan O'Neal, she became a fixture at the most glamorous Hollywood parties and counted celebrities ranging from Cher to Stanley Kubrick among her childhood friends.

But behind the glittering facade of Tatum's life lay heartbreak: abandonment, abuse, and neglect. Her alcoholic mother, the actress Joanna Moore, drifted in and out of her life. Her father, saddled with both Tatum and her brother Griffin, grew increasingly punishing and distant, especially after moving in with his longtime love, Farrah Fawcett. By her late teens, Tatum -- though a working actress with ten movies to her credit -- had begun a perilous slide into self-destruction.

Then, just before her twenty-first birthday, Tatum met the man who would become her husband: the explosive tennis great John McEnroe. They had three children, Kevin, Sean, and Emily, in quick succession, followed by one of the messiest high-profile divorces on record. With the collapse of her marriage and no real family to turn to, Tatum succumbed to the demons of her past, which would nearly kill her.

Now she has emerged clean and sober, rediscovering herself as an actress, mother, and wonderfully vibrant woman in what she considers the prime of her life.

A Paper Life is a story of strength and courage: unflinchingly honest, yet poignant, often funny, and unfailingly uplifting. It is a tale of triumph steeped in Hollywood lore -- and an inspiring testament to the healing power of love.

Book Description

Who is Pope Benedict XVI?

"After the great John Paul II, the cardinals elected me, a simple, humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord."

With those gentle words, Pope Benedict XVI greeted the faithful of Rome and the world as the Church’s 265th pope.

In selecting Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger to lead the Church, the cardinals chose a man they had known well for many years, but one who remains relatively unknown to most of the world’s Catholics.

Now, noted Catholic author and historian Mathew E. Bunson, D.Min., provides a detailed portrait of Benedict XVI, introducing Catholics to a man of powerful intellect and confident faith who now must lead the Church as it confronts some of the most challenging issues facing modern men and women. Bunson examines

• What made him the man he is today • What you are not being told about him by the secular media• What lies ahead for Catholics worldwide

Twenty-six years ago, when Karol Wojtyla was chosen to be the successor to Peter, some of the most difficult challenges to the Church's mission came from the East. Twenty-six years later, the most difficult challenges to the Church's mission come from the West. There is a man now very well prepared who understands Western society and the history of the world. — Cardinal Francis George, Archbishop of Chicago

Pope Benedict XVI, like many people including myself, is very uncomfortable with some of the trends that came after the Second Vatican Council, which ended up in destroying large segments of religious life, undermining vocations, undermining Catholic theology and moral teaching. When people say that he’s a conservative, they’re saying that he wants to restore those vital parts of the Catholic Christian life. I’m one hundred percent in agreement with him. — Father Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R.

[Pope Benedict’s] acceptance of the humanly crushing burden of the See of Peter tells us something important about the man: Like John Paul II, this is a Christian radical who long ago handed his life over to the will of God, manifest through the call of the Church. — George Weigel ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Reliable Guide
Bunson has written an orthodox and thus reliable guide to the great events of April 2005. He also provides analysis of the challenges facing the Church and the likely course of the new papacy, with appropriate humility. In contrast to the wildly inaccuarate prognostications of the secular media and liberal Catholics, Bunson is able to put his finger on what was really going on in the conclave: a move to challenge the relativism that threatens the truth. The best part of the book is Bunson's detailed biographical information on our new Pope. The book even includes a list of books by former Cardinal Ratzinger that are available in English. Read Bunson's book first and then begin the intellectual and faith adventure of reading the treasures that have come from the pen of our new Pope.

A Benedict XVI Primer
Bunson's book went to press in early May during the first weeks of Benedict's new pontificate and serves the general reader as a "Benedict Primer".There is information on the last days of Pope John Paul II, the unforgettable funeral Mass, the conclave, and the many accomplishments of the priest/theologian/cardinal who became Benedict XVI.Bunson also includes an eighty-year timeline that shows the intersection of various cultural milestones with events in Benedict's life.

Included are lengthy excerpts from key speeches and homilies and coverage of the high points of then-Cardinal Ratzinger's tenure as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the arm of the Church responsible for protecting truths that come to us ultimately from Christ and the Apostles.

Kudos to Mr. Bunson; having such a well-written book on our new Pope available so soon is a major feat.It likely will serve as a reference for future writers wanting a description of the historic events that surrounded Easter 2005.

Get to Know Pope Benedict XVI
Great primer on who the new pope really is...plus an excellent overview of what has transpired in the last month at the Vatican.The book begins with an overview of what led up to the election of Benedict, his first addresses and an overview of his life. I found the issues facing the papacy both in the section entitled "The Vacant See" and at the end of the book where the author Matt Bunson details how the Pope is likely to handle these issues fascinating.

The book also includes a list of popes dating back to St. Peter, as well as a very helpful glossary. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

In his explosive New York Times bestseller, top CIA operative Robert Baer paints a chilling picture of how terrorism works on the inside and provides startling evidence of how Washington politics sabotaged the CIA’s efforts to root out the world’s deadliest terrorists, allowing for the rise of Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda and the continued entrenchment of Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

A veteran case officer in the CIA’s Directorate of Operations in the Middle East, Baer witnessed the rise of terrorism first hand and the CIA’s inadequate response to it, leading to the attacks of September 11, 2001. This riveting book is both an indictment of an agency that lost its way and an unprecedented look at the roots of modern terrorism, and includes a new afterword in which Baer speaks out about the American war on terrorism and its profound implications throughout the Middle East.

“Robert Baer was considered perhaps the best on-the-ground field
officer in the Middle East.”
–Seymour M. Hersh, The New Yorker

From The Preface
This book is a memoir of one foot soldier’s career in the other cold war, the one against terrorist networks. It’s a story about places most Americans will never travel to, about people many Americans would prefer to think we don’t need to do business with.

This memoir, I hope, will show the reader how spying is supposed to work, where the CIA lost its way, and how we can bring it back again. But I hope this book will accomplish one more purpose as well: I hope it will show why I am angry about what happened to the CIA. And I want to show why every American and everyone who cares about the preservation of this country should be angry and alarmed, too.

The CIA was systematically destroyed by political correctness, by petty Beltway wars, by careerism, and much more. At a time when terrorist threats were compounding globally, the agency that should have been monitoring them was being scrubbed clean instead. Americans were making too much money to bother. Life was good. The White House and the National Security Council became cathedrals of commerce where the interests of big business outweighed the interests of protecting American citizens at home and abroad. Defanged and dispirited, the CIA went along for the ride. And then on September 11, 2001, the reckoning for such vast carelessness was presented for all the world to see.
... Read more

Reviews (124)

Everything you need to know about the CIA in the 90's
Baer began as a CIA agent in the 80's. His book sputters through his life in the CIA. It reads like a book written by an amateur and barely roped in by his editor. But his experiences are fascinating. He spent most of his time overseas in the spy trenches with the people who matter today. His ability to use names, dates and locations is amazing. It's not dry at all. It's not James Bond but it is real life. There are lots of names you see on TV today and lots of research regarding terrorism. The last part of the book is a stinging slap to the face of the Washington DC political Babylon. He effectively demonstrates the power of money and big oil in the US capital. The focus on money in the 90's left us vunerable on 9/11. Baer shows you how it was done.
This is a must read for everyone concerned with terrorism.

A great treatise on what's gone wrong with intelligence
Robert Baer does an excellent job of drawing the reader into the shadowy world of the covert world of intelligence. His elaboration (as much as he can divulge) of the training and operations of case officers is both fascinating and worrysome. Fascinating, because it allows laymen get a glimpse of what "could have been" if they too had pursued the life of being a "spy" (come on...admit it, we all have that fantasy), and worrysome because he outlines the CIA and intelligence community's not so slow drift toward reliance on technical means to get intelligence, rather than the days-old practices of the human side of the world's second oldest profession. His elaboration on names that are all too familiar now to those of us who study the mid-east weaves an incredibly complex and captivating web. Immediately after finishing Baer's book, I started on American Jihad, and the web just grows more tangled. Truly a great read, though, and is highly recommended for anyone who wants the "down and dirty" side of espionage. It is all the more important now that we are trying to rebuild it.

Gripping account of the CIA of from the 70's and 80's
Reading this book is like sitting down with a colorful crusty old man who schelped for the CIA for most of his career. Great metaphors, Baer goes into how he was recruited and his hunt for the creeps that murdered over 200 U.S. Marines during the 1980's in Bierut. If you like that kinda "counter-intelligence" thing then this book is a fascinating read.

See No Evil
This book succeeds equally well on two levels. On the primary level it is a fascinating and action packed memoir of a CIA operative who served in some of the most dangerous and inhospitable places imaginable. Its author, Robert Baer, writes from first hand experience and is not shy about sharing his opinions. His writing style is clear and easy flowing. The stories he has to tell are as relevant as today's headlines. For example, in one section of the book titled "You're on Your Own", Baer tells an appalling tale of his adventures in Northern Iraq leading a team in what turned out to be a rather half-hearted effort of the Clinton administration to depose Saddam Hussein. In this activity he even crossed paths with the Iraqi Shi'a Ahmad Chalabi who then as now was adept at fabricating stories of dubious plausibility. In sum any general reader would find this book both a good read and highly thought provoking.

On a second level, Baer's book should be read by any one interested in the subject of the U.S. Intelligence process and its reform. Baer was a practicing intelligence officer for almost 20 years and became a terrorist expert the hard way by dealing directly with such terrorist associations as the Muslim Brotherhood and Hizballah on a daily basis. In this account of his intelligence operations, Baer provides a good deal of evidence that Iran, at least in the 1990's, was a state sponsor of terrorism and that Shi'a and Sunni terrorist groups were at willing to make a common cause against the U.S. and Israel. If you read between the lines of this book, it is obvious that Baer has developed a pretty significant target knowledge base on Middle Eastern terrorism which is still relevant today. Yet, no where in this book does anybody talk about intelligence requirements, collection plans, the venerated intelligence cycle or any of the other jargon so dear to most writers on intelligence issues. Instead what we read is how Baer and his fellow operatives used their own initiative to exploit opportunities as they presented themselves and applied such qualities as common sense and target knowledge to decide what to exploit and what to leave alone. Unfortunately many of the opportunities Baer and his fellow operatives wished to pursue were vetoed by his managers at CIA's Directorate of Operations (DO) who were becoming increasingly risk adverse especially after 1990. As a former field operative, Baer provides the reader with what I think is an accurate, but depressing account of the decline of initiative and competence within the DO in the years prior to the 9/11 tragedy. Would be intelligence reformers should take note.

PRESCIENT
If you have any interest in why Iraq has turned into a quagmire, you MUST read this book. I proudly voted for GWB in 2000....but find it both interesting and sad that Mr Baer knew right away that Ahmad Chalabi was a fraud and fake, while someone in the the Bush administration or Pentagon fed Chalabi sensitive info that made it back to Iran.

Baer's book is two sides of the same coin: on the one hand, it makes one sad that the CIA is so fouled up (or at least was while he worked there and likely has not markedly improved). On the other hand, knowing that there are patriots like Baer bright enough to recognize this and patriotic enough to want to make a difference, better days could yet be ahead for the CIA. ... Read more

Book Description

Poisoner, besotted mother, despot, necromancer, engineer of a massacre: the stain on the name of Catherine de Medici is centuries old. In this critically hailed biography, Leonie Frieda reclaims the story of this unjustly maligned queen of France to reveal a skilled ruler battling against extraordinary political and personal odds.

Orphaned in infancy, imprisoned in childhood, heiress to an ancient name and vast fortune, Catherine de Medici was brought up in Florence, a city dominated by her ruling family. At age fourteen, the Italian-born young woman became a French princess in a magnificent alliance arranged by her uncle the pope to Henry, son of King Francis I of France. She suffered cruelly as her new husband became bewitched by the superbly elegant Diane de Poitiers. Henry's influential and lifelong mistress wisely sent her lover to sleep with Catherine, and after an agonizingly childless decade when she saw popular resentment build against her, she conceived the first of ten children. Slowly Catherine made the court her own: she transformed the cultural life of France, importing much of what we now think of as typically French -- cuisine, art, music, fashion -- from Italy, cradle of the Renaissance.

In a freak jousting accident in 1559, a wooden splinter fatally pierced Henry's eye. Hitherto sidelined, Catherine found herself suddenly thrust into the maelstrom of French power politics, for which she soon discovered she had inherited a natural gift.

A contemporary and sometime ally of Elizabeth I of England, Catherine learned to become both a superb strategist and ruthless conspirator. During the rise of Protestantism, her attempts at religious tolerance were constantly foiled, and France was riven by endemic civil wars. Although history has always laid the blame for the infamous St. Bartholomew's Day massacre by a Catholic mob of thousands of French Protestants at Catherine's door, Leonie Frieda presents a powerful case for Catherine's defense.

This courageous queen's fatal flaw was a blind devotion to her sickly and corrupt children, three of whom would become kings of France. Despite their weaknesses, Catherine's indomitable fight to protect the throne and their birthright ensured the survival of the French monarchy for a further two hundred years after her death, until it was swept away by the French Revolution.

Leonie Frieda has returned to original sources and reread the thousands of letters left by Catherine, and she has reinvested this protean figure with humanity. The first biography of Catherine in decades, it reveals her to be one of the most influential women ever to wear a crown.

Book Description

The life of Harry S. Truman is one of the greatest of American stories, filled with vivid characters -- Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, Eleanor Roosevelt, Bess Wallace Truman, George Marshall, Joe McCarthy, and Dean Acheson -- and dramatic events. In this riveting biography, acclaimed historian David McCullough not only captures the man -- a more complex, informed, and determined man than ever before imagined -- but also the turbulent times in which he rose, boldly, to meet unprecedented challenges. The last president to serve as a living link between the nineteenth and the twentieth centuries, Truman's story spans the raw world of the Missouri frontier, World War I, the powerful Pendergast machine of Kansas City, the legendary Whistle-Stop Campaign of 1948, and the decisions to drop the atomic bomb, confront Stalin at Potsdam, send troops to Korea, and fire General MacArthur. Drawing on newly discovered archival material and extensive interviews with Truman's own family, friends, and Washington colleagues, McCullough tells the deeply moving story of the seemingly ordinary "man from Missouri" who was perhaps the most courageous president in our history. ... Read more

Reviews (172)

Truman
Truman by David McCullough is a biography of one of our most extraordinary Presidents, Ol' Give 'Em Hell Harry, the man who said, " the buck stops here." Harry S. Truman, who's humble start in rule Missouri, with hard work, determination, and circumstance landed in the Oval Office of the White House.

This is a tale of a man, told warmly with feeling. A story of a man who walked in the shadow of Franklin D. Roosevelt, a man who had to make a choice to use the Atomic Bomb, a man who proved himself, a man of uncommon vitality and strength of character. Reading this book, one gets to know Harry Truman, you feel emotion and see insight as the author sets the story and writes a telling tale.

Harry Truman a man who married later in life because he didn't have the money. His work on the farm gave him strength and dogged optimism in the face of defeat, but much more was to come for Harry. Facing responsibilities such as had weighed on no man ever before and setting American politics and diplomacy, Harry Truman was treading a new age.

The author has mastered Truman in this book, as no other has to date, and it shows throughout this book. This is the life of Harry Truman complete with all of the supporting characters as well... Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin, Eleanor Roosevelt, his wife Bess Wallace Truman, General George Marshall, Joseph McCarthy and Dean Acheson. Harry Truman was responsible for the Truman Doctrine, NATO, the Berlin Airlift and the Marshall Plan, but fired General Douglas MacArthur. "Truman," shows Harry Truman to be complex, thoughtful, peppery when he needed to be and plainspoken.

I really enjoyed reading this biography... like a grandfather telling a story that happened in his lifetime... with understanding and thoughtfulness.

A model biography of an almost model man
David McCullough delivers! Truman is a model biography - in both McCullough's craft and his subject of the epic life of Harry S Truman. McCullough truly creates another universe - a reality that would have existed only in the past, but now fits in your hands in these 1000 some pages. The reader will find him/herself immersed in the history and lives of amazing figures of another age whose actions for which we - citizens of the world are greatly indebted. The reader will both know Harry S Truman and his historical significance - his heroic and at the time highly controversial Presidency.

Truman is both an epic of a man's life and homage to the triumph of American democracy. Truman is a man of humble origins who achieves incredible feats. I urge anyone who stumbled onto this page to "get to know" Truman by reading this book. This book is a joy to read - it flows like a novel. You will not be disappointed.

"I never did give anybody hell. I just told the truth and they thought it was hell."
-Harry S Truman

Buy It and Read It ASAP!!
I first read this book in 1992 when it was released. I've read it over several times since and each time I enjoy it just as much as the first. What a great person and what a remarkable life! This is one book that I can't possibly say enough about. IT'S OUTSTANDING!! Mr. McCullough obviously admires his subject, but he is objective and shows Mr. Truman warts and all. He had very few warts however. BUY IT and READ IT as soon as you can. You won't regret the time spent.

Talks about the right aspect of Truman's career
I admired the book for talking about Truman's friendship with Eddie Jacobson. He and Eddie were business partners in the 1920's and Eddie (a Jewish man) later influenced Truman to help found the modern state of Israel. I am still disappointd as I am also searching for talk about (probably) Truman's other mostly unsung achievement-the firing of Churchill and the birth of modern India and Pakistan. Sadly the book offers nothing about that aspect of Truman's career.

My First Biography
I decided to read this book for two reasons. First, I was/am an avid supporter of Howard Dean, and he often cites Truman as his favorite president, and knowing so little about Truman, I was curious why. Second, practically the only thing I did know about Truman was that he made the decision to use the Bomb, and I was extremely interested in what sort of man it takes to make such a decision.

The book is 992 pages long - daunting to someone whose only other 500+ page read had been Lord of the Rings.

But I found each page interesting and riveting. Never did I find it slow or dull. I had no idea how much impact the Truman administration had on the country and the world. Not only the Bomb, but the start of the Cold War, the Korean War, the first push by a President for universal health care, the first push by a President for equal civil rights. Truman, an ordinary farmer from western Missouri, is the absolute example of the American dream.

The book also answered both of my questions. The similarities in Truman's approach to politics and his agenda with Howard Dean's campaign for the presidential nomination are uncanny. And, to my surprise, Truman was not at all the sort of man I imagined making the decision to obliterate Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

I feel like I've learned more from this one book than I learned in 17 years of schooling. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Chronicles of the post-presidential years of America's chief executives aren't generally scintillating reads. With a few exceptions--Jimmy Carter and Herbert Hoover come to mind--the period after presidents vacate the White House tends to be abbreviated, idle, and a little sad. Patricia O'Toole's absorbing account of Theodore Roosevelt's final decade carries some of this pathos, but she also vividly captures the spark and sometimes reckless vigor of the most vibrant of presidents. Possessed of an irrepressible self-confidence and insatiable appetite for power, Roosevelt made an unconvincing show of stepping out of the spotlight when he declined to seek reelection in 1909, bequeathing the presidency to loyal foot soldier William Howard Taft. Over the course of Taft's one rather lackluster term, Roosevelt embarked on an extended African safari (where the trailblazing conservationist slaughtered hundreds of animals), but upon his return he became embroiled in a battle with Taft for the heart of the Republican Party. When he lost that struggle, he turned to the budding Progressive Party. Under their banner, Roosevelt bested Taft in the 1912 election, but Woodrow Wilson, of course, beat them both. Roosevelt's bursting-at-the-seams life has been thoroughly chronicled, but O'Toole wisely focuses on a period when the never-retiring giant of American politics was wounded (both figuratively and literally--he was shot while campaigning and insisted on giving a speech before going to a hospital), but wouldn't, or couldn't, give up the fight. --Steven Stolder ... Read more

Reviews (3)

An essential book for those who really want to know the man
The formerly powerful face a difficult readjustment when they leave their offices. Their individual characters dictate exactly how complicated this transition will be, and we learn a lot about such people by studying how they cope. In WHEN TRUMPETS CALL, Patricia O'Toole examines the last years of the life of Theodore Roosevelt.

Writer, explorer, naturalist, devoted family man, human dynamo, and twenty-sixth president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt was only fifty years old when he completed his two terms of office and had ten years of his life left to fill. He went out on a high note, sure that his personally chosen successor, William Howard Taft, would continue the progressive agenda Roosevelt's two Republican administrations had put in place.

Hoping to avoid the appearance of dictating policy to the new president, Roosevelt distanced himself as far from Washington as he possibly could. He spent his first year out of office on safari in Africa with his son, Kermit. One of the real pleasures of WHEN TRUMPETS CALL is that, because so much of it is drawn from the correspondence of Roosevelt's family and friends, we get vivid portraits of all his intimates, including his sons, who had real challenges in keeping up with their father.

Returning to the United States, it was apparent that Taft would not uphold Roosevelt's progressive work. Remembered as one of our most mediocre presidents, the Taft administration served the interests of big business whenever it could, foiling Roosevelt's legacy. Roosevelt claimed to act out of a sense of duty. He felt responsible that he had chosen an unworthy successor and saw no other way to rectify the situation than to regain the presidency himself. Although his sense of duty was one of the best and strongest elements of Roosevelt's character, he also found the redemption of his lost power to be irresistible.

He formed the Bull Moose Party and split the Republican vote, allowing Democrat Woodrow Wilson to win the presidency. In Roosevelt's criticism of Taft and Wilson, we see the small side of a big man. In print and public speeches, he carped about every decision they made, from Taft's lazy corporate coddling to Wilson's procrastination about entering World War I. Roosevelt's petulance lost him his audience, and by the time the United States had entered World War I, Wilson saw no reason to include Roosevelt in the war effort.

For a man who took such well-deserved pride in his usefulness, sidelining was a painful insult. Unfortunately, World War I had other blows in store for him. First, he watched his sons go off to war and participate as he could not. Then, his youngest son, Quentin, was shot out of the sky and killed. The Roosevelt philosophy of strenuous service turned back on itself, and Roosevelt never seemed to recover from his loss.

Patricia O'Toole has written a sensitive, sophisticated study of a great man at a vulnerable time. Although there are many books on Theodore Roosevelt, WHEN TRUMPETS CALL is an essential volume for those who really want to know the man.

--- Reviewed by Colleen Quinn

Bully!
Woodrow Wilson once said, " A man who makes no mistakes usually makes nothing at all." Wilson in no way intended this statement to be used in praise of his fierce rival Theodore Roosevelt but I can think of no better description of the life of this Bull Moose of American politics. Roosevelt was a man of action and sometimes a loose cannon and Patricia O 'Toole has written a wonderful book which shows very clearly why this quotation so aptly fits TR.

O 'Toole's book covers the last ten years of Roosevelt's life, a time of retirement for a man who was not yet ready to retire. She follows Roosevelt on his African safari, his triumphant tour of Europe, the split with President Taft, the 1912 campaign, the Brazilian expedition, World War I and his preparations to run for President again in 1920. It is a fascinating and enjoyable journey that one undertakes in reading this book and I am glad that this author has given me the chance to follow Roosevelt's journey in print for I doubt that I could have kept up with him in real life.

The main thesis of this book is that Roosevelt had an overwhelming need for power and enjoyed conflict to the point that both of these weaknesses often clouded his judgment. The author makes her point very clearly and backs up her argument with hard evidence, giving the reader very little reason to doubt her argument. She is a little harsh on TR occasionally, especially when it comes to Roosevelt's split with Taft, but for the most part she is very fair and even handed. In the case of Roosevelt's support for the efforts of the government to suppress free speech during World War I and his backing of silly initiatives to ban all things German she is probably too soft on the old lion.

Theodore Roosevelt is one of the icons of American history and it would be difficult for any author to make any part of this man's story dull. It is quite another thing however for an author to get inside the soul of Mr. Roosevelt and I believe that O 'Toole has done just that. From TR's habit of dismissing those who disagreed with him as unmanly or cowardly to the deep grief and guilt he felt when his son Quentin was killed in the war, this book will lead the reader to the depths of Roosevelt's soul. Although it only covers Roosevelt's post White House years this is the best biography of the old Rough Rider that I have yet to come across. Far superior in it's readability and energy to the Edmund Morris books.

A Political Lion in Winter
Patricia O'Toole has written a lively account of the decade left to Theodore Roosevelt once he left the White House. He was a man adrift, without a goal or purpose for the first time in his life.

Once you have achieved your career goal (for him, the Presidency at age 42), what do you do for an encore? According to Ms. O'Toole, TR tried to repeat himself with a failed, but close, run for the White House in 1912 and was comtemplating another bid in 1920 when he died in his sleep from an embolism in 1919.

The research is good, though I disagree with some of her conclusions, especially her view of TR needing power and doing anything to achieve it. Her difficulty lies in writing the concluding chapter of TR's life without having written of his first fifty years.

In some 1600 pages, Edmund Morris has written an epic biography of TR's life in a trilogy : the pre-White House period ("The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" which won the Pulitzer Prize) and the White House years ("Theodore Rex"). The concluding volume covering the post-White House years has yet to be published. For now, Ms. O'Toole's book will have to do.As an aside, Sylvia Morris (married to Edmund Morris) has written her own biography of Roosevelt's wife, "Edith Kermit Roosevelt." ... Read more

Amazon.com

It's one thing to review a book by pounding out a few hundred words of criticism but it's quite another to review a book by writing an entirely new book. That's what Dick Morris, former advisor to President Bill Clinton, has done in Rewriting History, an energetic response to Hillary Clinton's Living History. Mrs. Clinton, Morris warns, is on a direct path to the White House due to a lack of Democratic alternatives and a leftward trend in the nation; therefore America must evaluate who she really is and not just what her memoir says. Morris's book is actually remarkably similar to the slew of attack books published about recent presidents but with the crucial difference that Hillary is at the very least four years away from the Oval Office. So Morris's criticisms of her, though backed up by a 20-year relationship with the Clintons, are rarely more than speculative, worrying about what she might do and asking ominous questions that are inherently unanswerable. Hillary Clinton, in Morris's view, is a much more insecure, disingenuous, and calculating creature than "Hillary," the palatable political product that won election to the Senate in 2000 and she's also an inferior politician to her husband. But as a political operative who has worked for both conservatives and liberals, Morris's indictments of Clinton evolve into a grudging respect as he demonstrates her considerable political resolve. All the same, he refutes many passages in her book with his own accounts of what transpired and indicts her integrity and behavior dating back to Bill Clinton's early career in Arkansas. Going forward, he says, she must decide whether to rely on her behind-the-scenes political acumen or embrace actual convictions. Often, Morris puts Clinton in no-win situations. For instance, while First Lady, she decides to get a dog, a decision that Morris infers is entirely politically motivated despite Clinton saying that it was because daughter Chelsea had moved out. Thus, if she had "admitted" her motivation was political, it would be an admission of cynicism and manipulation, but if she protests that her motives were simpler, Morris would have us believe that she's just lying. Nowhere is it allowed that the woman may have just wanted a dog. Rewriting History, co-written by Morris's wife Eileen McGann, offers a pleasing blend of Washington (and some Little Rock) gossip along with its political strategizing and is more valuable as insider scoop than presidential road map. Fans of Hillary Clinton will find little to alter their view and those who oppose her will find plenty of talking points for all the years of future debates that Hillary Clinton will surely inspire. --John Moe ... Read more

Reviews (109)

Revealing Book About Hillary Clinton
As a long time political manager for the Clintons, Dick Morris has come to know Hillary Clinton very well. According to Morris, "All public figures use makeup to cover a blemish or two. But only Hillary wears a mask of so many layers, one that hides her true face altogether."

According to Morris, Hillary Clinton is an even more accomplished liar than her husband is. One such lie is the claim she made on the Today Show that daughter Chelsea was in harms way at the World Trade Center. Hillary is an extremely materialisic woman who is extremely greedy. As such, there is a strong likelihood that Hillary will one day become embroiled in a politically suicidal financial scandal.

According to Morris, Hillary has a strong propensity to use private eyes and skullduggery for political purposes. If Hillary were to become elected in 2008, it would be like Richard Nixon all over again.

Essentially, Morris's argument is that Hillary Clinton is a fraud who lusts for supreme political power and who, if she should ever attain it, will be the biggest threat to democracy in America since the days of the Nixon presidency.

Objective look at Hillary Clinton
Dick Morris' political and personal affiliation with the Clintons provides the background for this book; since it provides honest, relevant, and numerous examples of Hillary "rewriting history," the book succeeds in proving its thesis. I was surprised and impressed with the depth of information he provided, as well as with the objectivity, and even compassion, with which Dick Morris laid out his story. It is not a Hillary bashing book, but a probing look into the woman herself, her own words and actions bringing to life the book's premise. Dick Morris gives examples of lies Hillary herself writes in her own autobiography and refutes them. Mr. Morris provides a balanced view of Hillary, pointing out her strengths and gifts, as well as her weaknesses. His analyses are based on sound thinking and experience and enhanced by revelations of his own deep humanity. This book is not a book necessarily of wide range or scope but succeeds in what it attempts to do. It is well written, and not encumbered by
rhetoric or extraneous facts, but concisely and interestingly makes its point.

As an Insider Book This Is not A buy
One prior reviewer wants to know if he should buy the book. The bottom line is no, the book is a bit of a dud and my review has nothing to do with the Clintons or politics. The book is marginal - 3 stars. Here is why.

I briefly read the book and did not read every word - I could not it simply was not compelling. I reviewed the book after hearing a lengthy radio interview with Dick Morris. The point is that he was an insider and we would expect a much better effort. The book is very short 250 pages, and even worse it is large font - always a bad sign - and contains nothing new that is not already public knowledge and mostly well know.

Let us go over some of his insights. He has a couple of comments on Mrs. Clinton's reaction to Lewinsky but again that is mostly public. All politicians follow the polls, Bill was famous for that, and anyone living within 1000 miles of New York State knows that Hillary lobbied for the Puerto Ricans to be pardoned, and Orthodox Jews and others, and supported both the Yankees and the Mets simultaneously and anyone else that would give her a vote. We need another book to tell us that or to repeat some of that? I think not. Morris makes list of the gifts that they received and has other lists of transgressions in the book. He mentions Gennifer Flowers and has a chapter called "Stonewalling" on the White Water investigation. All of that is public information, we have heard it before many times, and it is not new.

Many sections are very brief and although accurate they tell us little whether you like the Clintons or not. So why buy a short large font book with nothing new?

Unless you just returned from a place where there were no papers or TV , skip this.

Three stars.

Jack in Toronto

Good insight into the Clintons
The book is mostly about Hillary Clinton, and shows how in her own book, Living History, that she has actually rewritten her own history. There is a lot of insight into Hillary's mindset here. Mr. Morris writes about how she manipulates and lies. From reading the book I get the idea that she is an inveterate liar. It also explains how her and Bill targeted different groups just to get their vote. The latest of these type deals was to win Hillary the vote in New York in the senate race. The Clinton's pardoned a number of criminals just before he left office. One group in particular was the 14 members of the Puerto Rican FALN terrorist group that were in prison, who had committed several murders, in order for Hillary to pick up the Puerto Rican vote in New York city, which in previous elections had been going to the Republicans.
This confirms my belief that the politicians with their special interest groups are destroying America. Some others were pardoned to help Hillary get campaign money. The politicians are more interested in groups that can put them over the top, to be elected, regardless of what the majority of our citizens want.
This book will open your eyes into the Clintons, as well as what is the strategy used today to get the vote to be elected. I'm sure glad my son bought me this book

Good Read.
I just finished this book and it is well written. From a man who has known the Clinton's for over 25 years, has good reason to write such a book. Anyone who cannot see Hillarys' web must read this book and find out her true self. ... Read more

Book Description

"One of the most gripping stories to come out of the shooting at Columbine High School"

She Said Yes is an "intense and fascinating memoir" (Publishers Weekly) of an ordinary teenager growing up in suburban Colorado, and faced -- as all teenagers are -- with difficult choices and pressures. It is only now, when the world knows Cassie Bernall as one of the Columbine High students killed by two rampaging schoolmates, that the choices she made offer a profound relevance for us all. Once a rage-filled young woman who walked a path similar to that of her killers, Cassie found a way out of her personal snares and, through her faith and a family's love, chose to embrace life with courage and conviction.

Told with unflinching honesty by her mother, Misty Bernall, Cassie's story is "a profoundly human story that should be read by every parent and every teenager" (New York Post). ... Read more

Reviews (349)

Uplifting, Moving and Enlightening Story
I, personally, do not care whther or not Cassie actually said "Yes." First off, I don't think that that's the purpose for these reviews, and secondly, if you've read the book, it's obviously about so much more than the fact that Cassie said Yes when asked if she believed in God.

Misty Bernall and her family have been through so much, and I admire her for being so willing to share her and Cassie's story with us. This book has touched me as it has many others. It's just mean and cruel to suggest that Misty was trying to capitalize on her daughter's death. I don't think any mother could do that.

Misty tells of Cassie's early years, and then explains to readers how Cassie got involved with the "wrong crowd", dabbling in witchcraft, obsessing over death, and exchanging obscene and frightening letters with her friends, which Cassie's parents found in her bedroom. Fearing "losing" Cassie, her parents clamped down on her, and struggled with the anger and depression of the daughter they dearly loved. Then Misty tells of Cassie's "About face", how she met a friend at Private school who turned her life around through YOuth Group and just simple, plain companionship.

We all know what happened to Cassie. But it's not ABOUT what happened at Columbine. It's about the touching story of someone who was living completely for God during a time in her life when it extremely hard to do it. And Cassie tryed to keep a positive attitude even though she was struggling with adolescence, and she was touchingly unselfish.

Cassie's story isn't about whther or not she said Yes. Misty even says so (to an extent) in the last chapters of her book. Cassie's story is about a teenager who found herself and how from a dark, oppresed teen who wrote about murdering her parents emerged a changed person who, by a horrible tragedy, became an example for us all.

And I don't think Cassie or Misty or the Bernalls want celebrity status. Still, this book has been an extremely uplifting one, and I am motivated to be more like Cassie was.

I think everyone should read this book, because it will both make smile and make you cry..it tugs on your heartstrings. A truly touching story...worth the time to read.

a stolen life
This book is very different and unique experience to indulge into. The tales of a young girls' struggle to fight for her freedom, peace, and happiness ironically loses it after an amazing turning point. The overall theme being a parents love for a child that was destined for an untimely road. This book gave detailed accounts of this seventeen-year-old girls life and how it was so brutally taken away for her, months before graduation. Overall, the book makes the reader get physically in touch with his/her feelings and have a greater appreciation for the people involved in ones life and how little time you have to enjoy it.
I was interested in the book mainly because of the title, catchy. And to seemingly curious minds it some how makes you want to find out what she said "yes" to. This book is an excellent book to read if there are questions in ones mind on "why should I live?" mainly seeking to find the troubled suicidal teens. This book is captivating because it makes you feel a world of emotions such as: sorrow, pain, joy and lastly...love. Love stands out as the main theme in this book because through love uncontrollable minds are controlled, the untamed spirit, tamed and finally the ferocious teen within is the gentle, hearty, wholesome person you raised to be your own.
Reading this book not only made me realize all the things I should be thankful for, but it allowed me to see myself for who I really am and the possible traits I can change to be a better person for my family and friends. Reading this book also gave me a greater appreciation for life and how I should be grateful for gaining another day.

She Said Yes
She Said yes is a interesting book. It's about a girl named Cassie Bernall and she went to school one day and little did she know, she was about to be a muder victim. Her mother, Misty Bernall, tell about how Cassie's Life was and the things she did. You HAVE you read this to learn more!

Face Facts
After reading this book from beginning to end, I have only one word to describe it: trash.
First, no one is positive if Eric Harris or Dylan Klebold asked Cassie Bernall if she believed in God, as with Rachel Scott. They could have asked her anything, it doesn't matter, they were determined to shoot her. If they had asked her her favorite color, her mother would have titled the book "She said red."
Secondly, a few years before the shootings, Cassie was involved in such sinister activities that her parents made her switch schools to Columbine, sealing her fate. She was into the same music (Marilyn Manson and Rammstein), movies (bloody and gory), and sinister activites (witchcraft and satansim) that Harris and Klebold were later. This goes to prove these things have nothing to do to make you shoot your classmates.
This book has scarce information about 4/20. Instead, it is a memoir of Bernall's life, from birth to death, seen in her parent's eyes. The only reason I even give this book one star is because the first chapter gives an account of April 20th in Cassie's parents eyes. It made me stop to think what it would be like to loose your child to a senseless tragedy, where you think they are safe the most- at their school.

a stolen life
nicole, a mayfair high school senior, June 1, 2004,
a stolen life
This book was a very different and unique experience to indulge into. The tales of a young girls struggle to fight for her freedom, peace, and happiness ironically loses it after an amazing turning point. The overall theme being a parents love for a child that was destined for an untimely road. This book gave detailed accounts of this 17 year old girls life and how it was so brutally taken away from her, months before graduation. Overall, the book makes the reader get physically in touch with his/her feelings and have a greater appreciation for the people involved in ones life and how little time you have to enjoy it. ... Read more

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

In retrospect, it seems as if the American Revolution was inevitable. But was it? In Founding Brothers, Joseph J. Ellis reveals that many of those truths we hold to be self-evident were actually fiercely contested in the early days of the republic.

Ellis focuses on six crucial moments in the life of the new nation, including a secret dinner at which the seat of the nation's capital was determined--in exchange for support of Hamilton's financial plan; Washington's precedent-setting Farewell Address; and the Hamilton and Burr duel. Most interesting, perhaps, is the debate (still dividing scholars today) over the meaning of the Revolution. In a fascinating chapter on the renewed friendship between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson at the end of their lives, Ellis points out the fundamental differences between the Republicans, who saw the Revolution as a liberating act and hold the Declaration of Independence most sacred, and the Federalists, who saw the revolution as a step in the building of American nationhood and hold the Constitution most dear. Throughout the text, Ellis explains the personal, face-to-face nature of early American politics--and notes that the members of the revolutionary generation were conscious of the fact that they were establishing precedents on which future generations would rely.

In Founding Brothers, Ellis (whose American Sphinx won the National Book Award for nonfiction in 1997) has written an elegant and engaging narrative, sure to become a classic. Highly recommended. --Sunny Delaney ... Read more

Reviews (281)

A Look at the One of the Most Important Decades - 1790's
Joseph J. Ellis' richly (and deservedly) rewarded book, Founding Brothers (The Revolutionary Generation), looks at six important events that helped form the stable government of the United States after the war for independence and the intellectual wars over the creation of the constitution had ended and before a new generation took up the mantle of state. The period was primarily the 1790's, one of the richest decades in American history from which to mine and the author does a great job of finding and presenting some prime historical nuggets. It is fascinating to see this band of brothers who fought a war divide themselves slowly into ideological camps that then transformed over the decade into parties while still preserving the precarious union that they all created without the shedding of blood, the Burr-Hamilton duel notwithstanding. Adams comes out the best and Jefferson the worst in the narrative as many historians are swinging that direction lately but this will change again, showing that the debates raging in the 1790's are still raging in the history books today. The reconciliation of these two friends is the most touching and noble section of the the book. This is a lively and enlightening read.

Founding fathers & political rivals in newborn Republic
This book is the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for good reason. Author Joseph J. Ellis offers intimate portraits of our nation's founding fathers and also a vivid view of the political rivals in our newborn Republic. Ellis is a terrific writer. History comes alive in this stirring narrative...the action starts in the opening pages with the most famous duel in American history and ends in the final chapter with a glowing review of the fued/friendship between Thomas Jefferson and John Adams.

John Adams, Aaron Burr, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington are examined in great detail by Ellis. Adams "enlightened diplomacy" negotiated a critical peace treaty with France. Burr is an opportunist and manipulator who was never forgiven for killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel. Franklin, (who is not given the same attention as others) is a scientific genius who uses the press to attack political enemies, particularly those who were advocates of slavery.

Hamilton restored public credit but also nurtured power for the commercial elite at the expense of the large landowners. Jefferson is the brilliant author of the Declaration of Independance. Madison's nickname in Congress is "Big Knive" for his ability to cut up opposition to legislation he sponsors. And Washington is the "American Untouchable," a great horseman and pragmatic military man who is clearly not as well read as other leaders of his generation but becomes by far the greatest legend among the people. The combined talents of the founding fathers provided the intellectual energy that allowed our nation to survive.

Ellis is a talented writer, impressive researcher and a towering patriot. Highly recommended.

Bert Ruiz

A hash job
Ellis makes it clear from the start where his sympathies lie with the Revolutionary generation and he ambushes us with Abigail Adams for good measure. Of the six stories, only The Silence is revealing for Ellis' feeble attempt to portray the slavery debate as a South-against-South issue. He lavishes attention on a hillbilly from Georgia simply to whitewash a Virginian like Jefferson, who in fact held the same, if not worse, attitudes about his slaves (all conveniently ignored by Ellis). Hamilton was the closest as any of these founding brothers came to believing that blacks and whites were equal and his financial system doomed slavery in a way Adams and his fine rhetoric could never hope to, but he barely rates a mention.

I just had to put this in.
I've been reading reviews for this book and I notice that they are all 5 stars. Fine. I like stars. But. No one has mentioned (at least no one that I can see) how totally and utterly boring this book is. Now, this might be because I have to read it for Honors English, but I don't think it is.

Unless you are a major history buff and can handle gems like this: It goes without saying that Alexander Hamilton's understanding of the issues raised by his fiscal program, and the Virginia-writ-large squadrons that were mobilizing south of the Potomac to oppose it, was blissfully free of all the Madisonian ambiguities." And that was the first sentence I opened to.

Just be warned, while this book might be good, it's boring.

Get inside the heads of the Founding Brothers
Joseph J. Ellis knew that he wanted to write a book that wouldn't crush you to death if you fell asleep under it. Library shelves are full of large ponderous historical volumes that, let's face it, hardly anyone reads. Ellis has turned his historical microscope on a handful of key individuals and moments and the result is a very satisfying read.

This book made me understand what was going on in the minds of the individuals involved better than any history I'd previous read.

The book begins with the fatal duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr, often a simple paragraph in many history books. In Ellis' work we get a sense of not only actually being present during the duel itself, but also inside the minds of both men in the months leading up to the event. It seems incredible today to think that the Vice President of the United States killed the Secretary of the Treasury in a duel, but Ellis brings the event back to life in a way more vivid than any I'd previously experienced.

With a similarly knowing eye, the book looks at a landmark dinner held by Thomas Jefferson in which the decision to move the nation's capital to the Potomac was made in exchange for support for Alexander Hamilton's financial plan. A most enlightening chapter looks at the first significant debate after the Constitutional Convention on the subject of the future of Slavery, precipitated by the leader of the Pennsylvania Assembly - Benjamin Franklin. We get to see the context of George Washington's Farewell Address. John Adams is featured frequently in the book. There is a chapter detailing the long and mutually supportive relationship between John and Abigail Adams, then the final chapter describes the rekindling of the friendship between Adams and Jefferson four decades after the Revolution. This chapter contrasts essentially the two views that have existed ever since about the *meaning* of the Revolution and of the Founding of the United States.

Although they were miles apart, both geographically and idealogically, Adams and Jefferson kept alive a friendship and mutual respect that would serve as a wonderful model for politicians ever since. ... Read more

Book Description

The child of a Jewish father and a lapsed Southern Baptist mother, Lauren F. Winner chose to become an Orthodox Jew. But even as she was observing Sabbath rituals and studying Jewish law, Lauren was increasingly drawn to Christianity. Courageously leaving what she loved, she eventually converted. In Girl Meets God, this appealing woman takes us through a year in her Christian life as she attempts to reconcile both sides of her religious identity.
Here readers will find a new literary voice: a spiritual seeker who is both an unconventional thinker and a devoted Christian. The twists and turns of Winner’s journey make her the perfect guide to exploring true faith in today’s complicated world.

Lauren F. Winner, the former book editor for Beliefnet, has appeared on PBS’s Religion & Ethics Newsweekly and has written for The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post Book World, Publishers Weekly, and Christianity Today. Her essays have been included in The Best Christian Writing 2000 and The Best Christian Writing 2002. Winner has degrees from Columbia and Cambridge universities and is currently at work on her doc-torate in the history of American religion. She lives in Charlottesville, Virginia. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

Winner's Thoughtful Book is a Captivating Read
How does a woman passionate about the Jewish faith suddenly find Jesus? "I have spent my whole life...seeking God," writes Lauren Winner, and here, a 20-something, self-confessed "boy crazy, pointy-headed academic" shares the quirky path of her spiritual journey from Judaism to Christianity in this compelling book. As she unfolds her spiritual pilgrimage, she acknowledges "A literature scholar would say there are too many 'ruptures' in the 'narrative.' But she might also say that ruptures are the most interesting part of any text, that in the ruptures we learn something new." Her story, with all its "ruptures," makes for absorbing reading.

As the child of a Reform Jewish father and a lapsed Southern Baptist mother, Winner grew up with both a Christmas tree and a menorah. Her parents raised her in the Jewish faith, and she details how she embraced Orthodox Judaism in college. "But, gradually my Judaism broke," she writes.

Although Winner is a scholar, with degrees from Columbia and Cambridge universities, she found the spark for her conversion to Christianity in a surprising book: After reading AT HOME IN MITFORD by Jan Karon, "I thought, 'I want what they have,' " she admits somewhat abashedly. She found herself "courted by a very determined carpenter from Nazareth," one who haunted her dreams.

This conversion, just several years after her former wholehearted conversion to Orthodox Judaism, caused some acquaintances to be skeptical that Christianity would stick: they wondered aloud if she would convert again to something else. And indeed Winner, like most honest Christians, finds that as much as she is at home now in her new faith, she is still plagued by doubt: "Sometimes, lately, I feel a sort of sinking staleness...this isn't working, I don't believe this Christian thing anymore, this is just some crazy fix I've been on...." But she also realizes about her Christianity that "How to fall in love is not, now, what I need to learn. What I need to learn, maybe what God wants me to learn, is the long grind after you've landed."

It is in the "long grind" that Winner finds she cannot divorce Judaism, hard as she tries: giving away and selling her Jewish library, eating forbidden foods, trading in her Hebrew prayer book for the Episcopal BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER. When you convert, Winner writes, you lose all sorts of things: your vocabulary, your prayers, and many special relationships. As Winner tries to adapt to the Christian liturgical calendar, she finds her life still flowing in the rhythms of the Jewish holidays. Even as she gives away the trappings of her Jewish life, she finds she has not given up the way she sees the world, or the Jewish words she knew for God.

With resolve, it seems, to master every aspect of her new faith, Winner grapples with all of its accoutrements: confession, giving up reading for Lent, finding a church, taking the Eucharist, trying to be chaste. She puzzles over the idea of "speaking in tongues"; struggles with prayer ("I have a hard time praying. It feels, usually, like a waste of time"). Most compelling are her clear-eyed observations of her own shortcomings as she grows in her Christianity and her willingness to be vulnerable with the reader. She refuses to sugarcoat her experiences; rather, she offers frank and perceptive commentary on how real faith --- Jewish or Christian --- looks, with all its bumps and bruises. As she plumbs the rituals and disciplines of both faiths, there is the unspoken invitation to Christians to examine the Jewish roots of their beliefs.

Her rebuilding of her Jewish library metaphorically shows her burgeoning realization that she can welcome her Jewishness as it shapes how she sees Christianity, how she reads the Bible, how she thinks about Jesus --- and that this is the way forward.

Winner's thoughtful book, full of the longing, doubt, humor and poignancy that can accompany a search for God, is a captivating read and builds bridges for dialogue for all readers, no matter what their faith.

--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby

Many things, but not a teen book
Girl Meets God is difficult to categorize because it is several books in one. It is a personal memoir, a devotional book, a study of the sad tension between Judaism and Christianity, a commentary on Scripture, a reflection on sacrament and liturgy, a look at the often slow process of conversion, and a celebration of reading (the author being a confirmed bookaholic).

An unlikely book to pick up-you're likely to find it wrongly placed in the Teen section of your bookstore-yet hard to put down. Winner's first effort (a second, Mudhouse Sabbath, is about Jewish traditions) offers brilliant spiritual insight throughout. A sign of a good book is when you keep thinking about it after you put it down. If the adage that readers make good writers is true, it applies here. Winner is a gifted wordsmith and wise beyond her youth. The pace is happily fragmented, not always chronological, spiritual, and down-to-earth at the same time.

Winner is a free-thinker, so her writing departs from the typical style of devotional books. Her story reinforces the truism that believers are works-in-progress, and God's steady inward grace is on display as she shares her faults, struggles, and lessons learned on her journey. "My life is like a disciple's nap in Gethsemene." She lives with a distinctly Hebraic-tinged grace: "I hadn't given up the shape in which I saw the world, or the words I knew for God, and those shapes and words were mostly Jewish."

The daughter of a Jewish father and a Christian mother, and raised Jewish, Winner learned that she had to formally convert to Judaism, which she did...but gradually she is drawn to Jesus and another conversion. Winner wasn't entirely embraced by the Jewish community (yet I wonder if those who rejected her knew as much about Judaism), which perhaps was a factor that led her to Jesus, although she makes it clear that her faith came not by one influence or event but rather by many factors.

Another amazon.com reviewer calls Lauren Winner the perfect dinner guest. She is without question someone who would provide a substantive discussion of life, books, faith, and struggle. Trained at Columbia and Cambridge universities, and a contributing editor for Christianity Today, she is now pursuing her Doctorate. The title and cover may be mistaken for a teen devotional, but this is a book for serious Christian disciples and devout Jews who may want to consider Winner's love affair with both Orthodox Judaism and Christianity.

Winsome
Lauren Winner strikes me as the kind of person who could be the ultimate dinner guest. She's young and energetic, interested and interesting, together and a mess, mature and girlish, saint and sinner. For such a young lady she is incredibly well read and knows all kinds of things about all kinds of topics. If her writing style is any indication she has an abundance of charm, and she is opinionated enough to be provocative and self-effacing enough to be humble.

This book is her tale of walking into Orthodox Judaism, out of it to Christianity, and her attempts to synthesize some elements of her Jewish background with her newfound faith in Christ.

The story is valuable to Christians simply for the insight it gives into Judaism. Lauren was a convert to Judaism, she wasn't born in an orthodox Jewish household. Thus, she became an orthodox Jew by conviction, and through much study. She didn't merely adopt the ways of the Jewish faith in an unthinking manner, she studied it in depth and adopted it throughout the process of a long intellectual and spiritual struggle.

A similar thing happened with her conversion to Christ. Through a period of study and a series of events she felt Christ calling her. As, little by little, she came to believe that Christ was real and that He had truly come in the flesh, she found herself irresistably drawn to Christ.

None of us can ever escape our own biases when reading something and I can't escape mine in reading this account. Lauren came into the branch of Christianity known as the Episcopal Church. As one who is from the Reformed tradition, I would wish that in her journey to Christianity she had continued all the way to Geneva, and not stopped in London. I recoil at her use of icons in worship. She seems to me to rely too