Reviews (7)

The Wild Muir
This book is a total bore. The flowery description is beautiful for the first three sentences, but then it becomes a tranparent cover-up for a book with no plot! Even I could write a more interesting book, and I failed high school english! Muir was a great person, but he sould have stayed where he was better aquianted: the woods! Anyone who enjoys this book obviously has never seen a tree before. A whole book dedicated to them is ironic and lame.

Muir is crazy!
This book tells of several adventures that John Muir had in his life. It confirms that the guy was a bit of a lunatic, but it makes for enjoyable reading. Some of the stories are better than others, but at least they are short and easy to read.

Adventuresome and just plain fun
This is a delightful book and will be enjoyed by adults as well as children. John Muir was a remarkable man and I was surprised that he was also a truly gifted writer. Muir writes in a fun, infectious style similar to Mark Twain. He infuses all of his tales with vivid descriptive words and a dose of humor. It's a pure joy to read and shows what an incredibly courageous, physically fit man he was. I decided to buy this book because for years I have hiked larged sections of the famous John Muir Trail in California. The scenic beauty is so overwhelming that it stimulated my interest in the man for whom the trail was named. All I knew was that Muir was a Scottish-born enviromentalist who had lost his sight and then miraculously regained it. But there is so much more to his story than this.

This book will fill you in on many of the adventures Muir experienced. It's amazing that he was able to forge trails and do the things he did in an era when convenience was unheard of. He mapped out the wilderness with nothing more than a compass, a hard set of leg muscles, basic clothing and no comforts. Muir didn't rely on sunglasses, sunscreen, maps, granola bars or cell phones, he was the "real deal" and my respect for him is endless. I can't recommend this book highly enough, it's a joy to read and to learn about this magnificent and underrated man.

Like being caught in a wind storm
There is one, though certainly not the only, thing that sets Muir apart from other naturalist writers in my mind... adjectives. You will not find minimalist prose in any of the condensed tales found in this beautifully bound book. However, you will find wonderfully descriptive passages that engage the senses and provoke imagination. The Wild Muir is a great introduction to Muir's exploits and beyond that to the creative non-fiction field in general. This book will provide a wonderful escape for adults and children alike.

Essential Muir!
This absolutely wonderful volume distills some of John Muir's more memorable wilderness adventures into an absorbing, thrilling read. Lee Stetson, who for years has brought the spirit of John Muir alive to audiences in Yosemite and elsewhere, has assembled some of Muir's most hair-raising stories of mountain exploits into this single volume. Fiona King provides delightful illustrations that effectively compliment the narrative.

John Muir was many remarkable things: Explorer, adventurer, environmentalist, inventor, and much, much, more. This volume shows off two of his most prodigious talents: His literally stunning writing ability (as fresh and delightful today as it was when it was written a century ago) and his penchant for daredevil adventures. Muir's boundless, heartwarming enthusiam for the wilderness and all its wonders somtimes led him into truly precarious situations, which will both amaze and fascinate the reader. Of course he escaped them all with nary a scratch, as if guided by a divine hand, and went on to proselytize his message of conservation to a waiting world. Muir's entire life is the stuff of legend, these true-life stories transform it into a mythic adventure.

I purchased this book from Lee Stetson himself, at his performance in Yosemite Valley. See him there if you can, but if you can't, buy his book here. I guaranteee that Muir's words will never disappoint. This book makes a fabulous gift for kids as well...but you'll be reading it as much as they do! ... Read more

Book Description

Russ Reiker was a seasoned street cop in Phoenix, Arizona for 21 years. Two months before his planned retirement he was traumatically injured while on duty. He should not have survived, but he did. Chronicling his career with many extraordinary and remarkable incidents, this story culminates with the intensely personal moments preceding and during his impending death - memories that have, until now, been shared with only a few very special people. Russ Reiker?s tragic story is closely mirrored throughout by the circumstances leading to the death of one of his closest friends, and fellow officer. During the worst shoot-out in the history of the Phoenix Police Department, he was killed on almost the same date and time of day Russ? career would end. Their close friendship is the subject of continual laughs, tears, anger, fear and, at times, outrage, but more often humility and pride. Forever changed by the funeral of his friend, Russ Reiker could never go back to being the cop he was. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Excellent story, poor execution
999 Officer Down transports the reader behind the scenes into the life of Phoenix cop Russ Reiker. Written by his wife, Catherine Marfino-Reiker, the narrative is heartfelt and poignant, describing great triumphs and losses in this man's life.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Reiker is not skilled in the craft of writing. She gets her story across, but without the help of a good editor. I frequently stumbled over mid-sentence tense or point-of-view changes. I was also left feeling unsatisfied at the end because she provided few details about the cause of Russ's accident.

For the story, this is great book. If you also read to enjoy creative language and vividly painted images, you're likely to be sorely disappointed.

Vivdly recounts the career of a dedicated policeman
999 Officer Down: The Russ Reiker Story is the true tale of Russ Reiker, an heroic street cop of Phoenix, Arizona who served for twenty-one years before suffering a life-threatening injury while on duty. Against all odds, he survived, but shortly thereafter one of his closest friends and fellow officers lost his life. 999 Officer Down vivdly recounts the career of this dedicated policeman and how his job was to change his life forever. Superbly written by Catherine Marfino-Reiker, 999 Officer Down is compelling and highly recommended reading.

A Powerful Story Charged With Human Emotion!
999 Oficer Down by talented writer Catherine Marfino-Reiker is a powerful story about triumph and tragedy-- The before and after account of the worse shoot-out in the history of the Phoenix Police Department-- A story charged with human emotion that will have the reader swiftly turning the pages of this 'Must Read' book!

Thought Provoking, Makes you think
I found this book to be very interesting, as it was my first experience reading of an Officers life. I found it intriguing the way the chain of command is initiated and followed through. There are rules and codes of procedures when even talking to your superiors. I thought that in itself had to be stressful for the officer, always having to know what to say and how you have to say it to your superiors, as not to ruffle any feathers. I find the officers are a close knit group, they look after their own, no matter what.I would recommend this book to all people in the field of law enforcement, their families and friends.

Eye opening,Riveting, Heart Wrenching,Truly a Must Read,
Never have I read a story which truly focuses in on the emotions and reality that an officer of the law must endure while in the line of duty. The corruption and crime on the streets never embraced me until I read this book. One can not imagine what it must feel like to be humiliated, harassed , and even hurt, while your main objective is to uphold the law and protect the people we live with. Think about the oath they take, the intense training, the Risk???? Always having to look over their shoulders. They all have families and lives just like you and I and yet their main objective is to protect the people, uphold the law no matter what it takes. Officer Reiker was a devoted Officer of the Law, a true inspiration to mankind, a leader. He not only enforced law and order, he took the time to educate children who were not as priviledged as some. Never did predujice play a part. In Officer Reikers career, he endured more than any average human could, and survived by only a miracle. Officer Reiker can be proud ,he can hold his head up high knowing in his heart that he always did the right thing, no matter what the risk. . Yes I highly reccomend this book to the people we live with, the people we talk to every day. Take a Walk in Officer Reikers shoes and see what it feels like. Hats Off to Officer Reiker........ ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Another Top-Notch Autobiographical Work by Ralph Moody
The 'Little Britches' series is every bit as exciting, historical, and fascinating as the 'Little House on the Prarie' series, and Moody has even outdone Laura Wilder in his characterization of great American values like hard work, independence, and respect.

Continuing on after the death of father in 'Little Britches', the second book in the series tells how the Moody family pulled together to survive in turn-of-the century Littleton, Colorado. From using stilts to become the best fruit pickers in town, to outsmarting the manager of the finest hotel in Denver, to trading free coal for a Christmas goose, Moody brings the reader right into this frontier family.

My children, ages 4 to 14, all sat in rapt attention as I read from this book, and every chapter was ended with cries of "just one more, Dad, please!&quot ... Read more

Book Description

For more than thirty years James Houston has been flying to Vancouver, then taking a little plane north and west to the airport at Sandspit on the Queen Charlotte Islands. After the ferry ride to Skidegate, he takes the single road running north on Graham Island and settles down in his small cottage by the bridge over the Tlell River. There he fishes, writes, draws, roams around, and rejoices that he and his wife, Alice, have found the perfect place.

People go misty-eyed when they recall the Queen Charlottes, those distant islands in the Pacific within sight of Alaska that are miraculously temperate and see little snow. The glaciers of the Ice Age passed the islands by, leaving a treasure trove for botanists and biologists. Today, the warming Japan current still protects its shores.

Among its many delights are spectacular wildlife of all kinds. On land are many deer, river otters, and the largest black bears in the world. Its waters shelter giant crabs, salmon, and killer whales. And the air is filled with remarkable birds, especially the ravens and bald eagles that are everywhere. Special landscapes include moss-hung rainforests that remind us that this is Emily Carr country, sheer cliffs that plunge straight into the Pacific, miles of empty beaches piled with sculptured driftwood, Guinness-black forest pools and thundering seascapes, and even a secret Haida mountain that provides the rare carving stone known as argillite.

These are the islands of Haida Gwaii, of course, and James Houston has always had an affinity for native people, whether with Ojibway friends in his Ontario boyhood or with Inuit in the North. His book tells the history of the Haida, the coming of the Eagle and the Raven clans, and the rich culture they developed in this land of plenty. Then came the bloody sea otter fur trade with sometimes ruthless sea captains two centuries ago and later the smallpox that wiped out 80 per cent of the Haida population, with social effects that have lasted to this day. Houston also tells us about totem poles and potlatches, two traditions that he has seen being revived. And while many old Haida legends adorn his book, there are also fine modern characters, including the old Haida visitor who sang a song to her river chez Houston, and the Houstons’ friend Teddy Bellis, who liked to offer their big-city guests a snack of “smoked dog.”

From a visit to the awesome power of the crumbling poles at the deserted village of Ninstints in the south all the way to the site of a crab fishing tragedy on North Beach, the book covers the range of the archipelago. But James Houston is a fanatical fly fisherman and his love of fishing on his doorstep – and dramatic tales of salmon or trout caught or lost by him, or Alice, or their friends – runs through the book. So, too, does their beloved Tlell River, which ebbs and flows with the tide a mere twenty feet from his window. As he and Alice arrive and open up the old green cottage, their excitement will affect everyone whose family has ever had a special summer place, a hideaway. Reading this book is almost as good as being there.
... Read more

Reviews (1)

Well written, informative, and entertaining
This book is well written and it satisfies one's craving for learning more about the Queen Charlottes. As a salmon fisherman, I felt the chapter titled "Old John" was worth the price of the book. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Alaska by an Alaskan
Many of the best-known books about Alaska, its people and wilderness, have been written from an outsider's perspective (John McPhee, for example, or Joe McGinniss), with an outsider's sense of detachment and strangeness, as though what they were commenting on were just slightly odd on some level.

Margaret Murie (known as "Mardy"), gives as Alaska from a true insider's perspective, as one who grew up with it, knows it in her bones, and loves it the way we love our closest family.

Born in 1902, Mardy moved to Fairbanks at age 9, where kids went to school in -50F temperatures and where the only way in or out of Alaska in winter was on the back of a mail sled propelled by sled dogs. One of the first grads of the University of Alaska at Fairbanks, she married the naturalist Olaus Murie and honeymooned in the Arctic. Over the years, fearless Mardy even took her infant children on expeditions into the wild.

The book is an indivisible combination of autobiography and nature writing. Murie has a remarkable eye; her descriptive powers rival McPhee's but her tone is more one of powerful affection rather than awe. My favorite story was of a young teenage Mardy, on her way to the Lower 48 to go to high school, catching the last mail sled out of town in the spring of 1918. This spring trip took many days; at each river crossing there was a possibility of not making it over the thinning ice.

What an adventure! Combined with that adventure is a powerful romance, the lifelong relationship between Olaus, a professional naturalist; Mardy, the fearless and intrepid companion; and Alaska herself.

Mardy Murie died only last year, at age 101. If you read this book, you will regret having just missed her; she deserves to be missed.

"My sense of wilderness is personal" - Margaret E. Murie
Mardy Murie is often referred to as "The Grandmother of American Conservation" and "The Grand Dame of the American Conservation movement, but somehow after reading her story, these titles barely seem adequate to describe such an incredible and personal woman. While we may liken Murie to women like Rachel Carson or Anna Botsford Comstock, Murie's journey is singular. We follow her from her childhood in Wyoming to graduation at the University of Alaska, through love, into the far reaches of the Alaskan North.
Murie successfully bridges the personal and the political, her own life and her life's work, her love for one man and her love for their work together. You will laugh with her, you will cry with her, feel scared for her, and come to love her. She will become your hero.
We must recognize Murie as an American treasure, but we must also recognize that Murie's inspiration is perhaps more important now than it ever was. The most obvious reason for this statement is the continuing struggle to preserve the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from growing oil interests. We must also recognize, however, that Murie could be the inspiration for the young generation of leaders in conservation-- a group of leaders that undoubtedly must include women. That there are very so few women leaders in conservation has caused the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women to recognize the struggle of women in their efforts to achieve leadership positions in the conservation movement. Other organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund, the Sierra Club, and the National Wildlife Federation have launched campaigns to attract more women into leadership roles. The lack of women in environmental leadership reflects America's view of rugged individualism in our collective imagination...nowhere has this myth been more prominent than in the discussion of America's last frontier-- a very personal discussion for Ms. Murie.
Not only is Margaret E. Murie a woman in the conservation movement, but she is an American treasure with a very personal and very political story to tell. Even as she approaches her 101st birthday in August, she continues to speak out for Alaska's lands, peoples, and wildlife. Her story is not one of fame, comfort, or glory, but it is her American story. Mardy Murie will become your hero, your inspiration and your friend. Take the journey with her.

"And I see them dancing....."
I, first, heard of Mardy Murie and her husband, Olaus, while watching John Denver's The Wildlife Concert. He wrote A Song For All Lovers for their deep and abiding love for each other and for the state of Alaska. The song's beauty gave rise to my curiousity. And, recently, while watching a documentary of Mardy's life, I became determined to read this book about her life.

This book is a must have. Mrs. Murie paints with words, a picture so vivid of Alaska's tundras and plains, that I felt as if I were part of it. The lifestyle was hard, but satisfying, and this woman's life was nothing short of fascinating. Mardy Murie is a living testament to the strength and beauty of women, and she leaves a shining example of what a woman can do. In her assistance in Olaus' work for the ANWR and other Alaskan Land Conservancies, to her carrying on of that work, she is a beacon to us all of what we can do.

Buy it...read it. You will fall in love with Alaska and with Mardy. ... Read more

Amazon.com

In the mid-1960s, as mechanization and the forests' depletion drove many loggers into the cities,Kim Barnes's parents turned to fundamentalism to sustain their increasingly difficult life. The author struggled to live by this religion's exacting tenets, but her chilling descriptions of the harsh punishments meted out for lapses make us understand why she ultimately had to leave it behind. Yet she conveys understanding and love for the rigid yet secure world of her youth in this haunting memoir of faith and loss in the Idaho woods. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Honest and True
The reviewer from Lewiston, Idaho, Kim Barnes' home town, wants to suggest that there are things in IN THE WILDERNESS that didn't happen. What I can't figure out is how anyone could know that. The book is a memoir. It is told from the point of view of the writer, and Barnes early on tells us that she understands the faultiness of memory. How did this person manage to get inside the author's head?

Answer: she/he didn't. Read the book and see. This is a book that bends over backwards to be fair and honest and true. The Lewiston reviewer's motives have more to do with something else--spite, maybe, or jealousy, who knows? IN THE WILDERNESS is a book that changes readers' lives. It's filled with the kind of grace we should all be envious of. It never, ever means to hurt, but to speak clearly and beautifully and, most of all, honestly. The same cannot be said of many books, nor of some reviews.

Little House on the Prairie meets Pilgrim at Tinker Creek
That Kim Barnes is a poet is clear from her prose: the sensory details of "In the Wilderness" transport the reader not just to Central Idaho in the 1960s and 70s, but inside the skin of a girl living there.

The book functions on several levels. It elaborates the beauty and danger of living in the wilderness. It documents the erosion of that wilderness, from the perspective of someone who originated there. It investigates the comfort and terror fundamentalist Christian theology can inspire. And it tells the story of girl finding her place within and without her family.

I haven't read Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little House" books in more than 20 years, but the first part of "In the Wilderness" brought back the sense of adventure I felt reading them as a child. "In the Wilderness", however, is written for adults. The last part of the book includes reflection on the significance of events in Barnes' childhood and the roles those events played in making her the woman she's become.

Like Annie Dillard, Barnes interweaves religion and nature. If you enjoyed "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek" you'll find something to like in this book--just don't expect "An American Childhood."

"In the Wilderness" has a lot to say about nature, family, and religion, but not at the expense of telling a story. I was surprised at some of the turns the story took because Barnes is careful to present each part of the story from the age perspective appropriate for who she was at that point in the narrative. I read the whole thing in less than two days.

wonderful book!
Incredibly moving and beautifully written.One of the best books I've read recently.

terrific
This book was heart-warming and enjoyable. I sent it to all my sisters. Thank-you to the author.

lyrical
I read this book as I hiked through the Sierras, and the effect was sublime. Barnes is a master story teller and wordsmith. The book plops the reader into the hardscrabble life of a girl growing up in logging camps amid colorful cast of characters. Her descriptions of nature - fish "fatter than a baby's leg" - and carefully plucked words are a joy to read. I can't believe no one else has reviewed this book! It soars above the current crop of mangy memoirs that fill books with words, but fail to get to the soul of the matter. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Love this one...
stories of these types of guys are fascinating. His first hour ever in Vegas and he blows 12,000 bucks, on marker. Proceeded to go right back to the airport and flew home to Pittsburg. But he fell in love with the place. He didnt go back as a gambler, but to get where the real money is, with intentions on becoming a casino owner. After more than 7 years(most of them in Australia - you'll have to read it) he had acguired a substantial grubstake and headed off to Vegas. He runs an ad in the paper looking investment opportunities. Although the ad did not directly produce investment results, it did provide him with some very important connections. He buys a vacant lot far off the strip, gets licensed, builds a casino, adds a hotel and self-promotes his ass off. To fill in the blanks and know the rest, you gotta read it yourself. He even had ties, loosely at best, to Anthony Spiltro, the real life mobster the Joe Pesci character was based on in Casino. I love this one.

The Stratosphere
Most interesting...biography of Bob Stupak. Easy read. If you wonder where did the idea of the Stratosphere come from... this has the answers. Bob Stupak is a fascinating gentleman, this tells his story. I just returned from a visit to Vegas and went to the top of Stratosphere, road the High Roller Roller Coaster and took the Big Shot...came across this book while in Vegas and couldn't put it down. Gives background of several casinos and the personalities involved with them... recommend it.

Dull Treatment of a Fascinating Subject
I almost bought this book but was fortunate enough to find a copy at my local public library. (I heartily recommend that alternative to buying the book if you have a choice.) I started reading it with great anticipation, but was disappointed off the bat by all the filler material on Bob Stupak's father, Chester. Yeah, sure, the old man was a great influence on his son, but two paragraphs would have sufficed! Next, I kept expecting to read interesting anecdotes about Vegas World, one of the funkiest gambling joints the world will ever know--the very epitome of cheesy. However, the stories just aren't there, and it is a major shortcoming. Finally, even the manner in which the author addresses the great plunge the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino took after it opened in 1996 makes that event--the repercussions of which are still felt today in Las Vegas--seem anticlimactic and irrelevant.

In short, the tower, which Stupak originally conceived as a cash cow, turned out to be his biggest folly and the instrument of his demise. That is the real story of Bob Stupak, but you won't get it in this jumbled, incoherent tome.

Fascinating
Great book. Being a regular Las Vegas visitor I have always been intrigued by the incredible Stratosphere Tower and Casino, and wanted to learn a bit more about Bob Stupak, the Stratosphere creator and infamous Vegas personality. What a fascinating life Stupak has had. Everything from his motorcycle racing days, to his early struggles of trying to succeed in the cutthroat Vegas gaming industry. Here is a man with an 8th grade education that overcame staggering odds to become one of the most successful independent operators in the city. He survived a heavy handed Nevada Gaming Control Board, as well as a motorcycle accident that nearly killed him. There is a lesson in this book for all of us. The key word is DETERMINATION! I hope one day my travels in Vegas will give me the opportunity to meet Mr. Stupak, who no matter what you think of him, has left a lasting impression on the Las Vegas skyline that will be a reminder of him for years to come.

In this book Smith wrote a much better story than the hatchet job he did on casino mogul Steve Wynn. Hey John how about a book on one of the true gentleman gaming legends in Vegas, none other than Jackie Gaughan? If written in the even handed manner of your Stupak book, I'll be the first buyer in line!!

Very good read for those interested in Las Vegas
Stupak is a figure who inspires strong (and usually negative) reactions in those interested in Las Vegas. Smith, however, delivers what seems to be an even-handed discussion of the man, and what he's done for Las Vegas, both good and bad. A quick and fascinating read. ... Read more

Book Description

In the summer of 1968 Peter Matthiessen met Cesar Chavez for the first time. They were the same age: forty-one. Matthiessen lived in New York City while Chavez lived in Sal Si Puedes, the San Jose barrio where his career as a union organizer took off. This book is Matthiessen's panoramic yet finely detailed account of the three years he spent traveling and working with Chavez. In it, Matthiessen provides a candid look into the many sides of this enigmatic and charismatic leader who lived by the laws of nonviolence.

More than thirty years later, Sal Si Puedes is less reportage than living history. A whole era comes alive in its pages: the Chicano, Black Power, and antiwar movements; the browning of the labor movement; Chavez's series of hunger strikes; the nationwide boycott of California grapes. When Chavez died in 1993, thousands gathered at his funeral. It was a clear sign of how beloved he was, how important his life had been.

A new postscript by the author brings the reader up to date as to the events that have unfolded since the writing of Sal Si Puedes. Ilan Stavans's insightful foreword considers the significance of Chavez's legacy for our time. As well as serving as an indispensable guide to the 1960s, this book rejuvenates the extraordinary vitality of Chavez's life and spirit, giving his message a renewed and much-needed urgency. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Do you really want to escape?
Sal Si Puedes, by Peter Matthiessen, is an excellent chronicle of the adult life of the farm workers' revolutionary, Cesar Chavez. This Biography written by Matthiessen is from the day he meets Chavez to the time he passed away in 1992. Chavez was a activist for the rights of all farm workers, and believed that union representation was not only a privilege, but a right of all workers. With the installment of the Bracero program, non American people brought into the united states were allowed to work in the fields, because Lobbyists in Washington were successfully able to determine that no American was willing to do the back breaking manual labor of picking and harvesting the fields in California. This book was simply put, is the best book that I have read in my young adult life.
One thing that I enjoyed in this biography is the use of language. I found the linguistics easy to understand. With the easy language and prose writing, this made the biography an easy read. Because I spent a short time of my later childhood in Delano, Where the book took place, I knew exactly where everything was, and with his descriptive, powerful words, I felt like I was back in Delano. Stepping out of my own skin and looking at the book from a non-Californian's perspective, the description and detail is awesome.
Another thing I liked about the book was the accuracy of the historical fact. Family members of mine lived in the time of the farm workers movement, and after having discussed the biography with them, they, too, agree that the accuracy and detail of events that took place are superior. The chronicling of not only the personal life, but also business life of Chavez was easily understood, and Matthiessen did an excellent job with this Biography.

Sal Si Puedes means Escape If You Can
Am forever indebted to my mentor Bea Brickey for getting me involved with the United Farm Worker union locally, and for instilling in me the importance of getting involved and living by Christ's motto that what you do to the least of them you do to Christ.

The book begins with a reminder form Cesar Chavez himself, who said in 1992 two years before his death that "The rich have money, the poor have time". The reader is reminded that patience was his tool of success.

The book is just shy of 400 pages and is a humbling as well as an energizing read. The title Sal Si Puedes is from the San Jose barrio where Chavez' farm workers union work was birthed. The book was begun with a three year stint the author had in the late 70's with Chavez with much appreciated postscript that brings the reader up to date with the events that incurred since the 60's and 70's.

Bea would spend hours passing on the wisdom that Chavez and the other UFW activists had taught her. How she and her husband were often taunted by San Joaquin farmers and called commies and pinkos and how Chavez and the other UFW workers who simply wanted decent working conditions and a living wage were taunted like this as well. How migrant workers were/are exposed to high pesticide levels and that in one breath the farmers denounce the "slave" labour workers for wanting decent housing and wages, while bemoaning the fact that they can't find American who will do the damn stoop labour for slave wages.

This is a book I am passing on to a lot of people, since I believe it is so important that we as citizens, stand up for what is right and that sometimes people have to have their comfort levels challenged. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (9)

Great fro Teaching
I taught this book as the last reading in an undergraduate course on Western suburban history. The students responded with tremendous enthusiasm. They recognized much that was familiar in Waldie's strange hometown (a strangeness common to suburbs all over the West). This book crystallized a feeling of loss for many students. Suburbs like Lakewood, or like the tract house developments going up today all over the region and nation, feel emptied of history for the children who grow up there. Their names (Lakewood?) like their green lawns are imposed, divorced from the land's human and natural history. Children feel this and they know something is missing. This book opened up the opportunity for students to express their own feelings and experiences of suburban life.

Note I also recommend you see the wonderful poetry of Kevin Hearle, _Each Thing We Know is Changed Because We Know It_ (1994)

Disappointing
After reading an excerpt of "Holy Land: A Suburban Memoir" in "Writing Los Angeles," I looked forward to reading the entire work much praised by Joan Didion a writer that I admire.
Unfortunately, I was disappointed by "Holy Land's" lack of focus and sprawling, often times out of control prose.
The concept is remarkable: writing a biography of a city (Lakewood, California) and detailing it's construction, it's history, the financial and social history of it's founders and the personal history of Waldie and his family.
But it just doesn't work. What it lacks is a fire, an inner life, and the guts that pull all the disparate facts, foibles and attitudes together. As it is, it mostly just rambles from one subject to another without the unifying spark of passion.

consecrating what seems beyond redemption
Mr. Waldie not only captures the subtle grace at work--and often obscured--in suburban lives and landscapes, he also confers grace upon the subjects of his sparse, elegant writing. This is a luminous and numinous work, a model of creative nonfiction.

Amazing & Important
A very unique memoir of place. It makes the mudane seems holy and paints a stunning portrait of an oft-dimissed landscape. A must read.

A unique and moving chronicle of Americana
Though subtitled "a suburban memoir", D.J. Waldie's Holy Land is a lot more than that. It is a history of the concept of suburbia, a portrait of a specific place, a chronicle of one man's relationship to that place. Formally, it is a collection of 316 prose poems, plus photographs. There is no other book like it.

You don't have to be a suburbanite or a suburban exile to appreciate Waldie's incisive and insightful writing, nor do you need to be particularly interested in the tale being told. Like most truly great books, Holy Land fuses itself to your mind regardless of what is already there. The tiny chapters accumulate, and once you have read a few, reverberations begin, harmonies and discords, and soon the whole becomes much greater than the single parts. It is a thrilling reading experience. ... Read more

Book Description

First published in 1992 and now available only from the University of New Mexico Press, this is a firsthand account of life at a famous archaeological ruin. Married to Richard Wetherill, the rancher and amateur archaeologist who ran a trading post in Chaco Canyon from 1896 until he was murdered by a Navajo in 1910, Marietta Wetherill got to know her Navajo neighbors as intimately as an Anglo could. While Richard was excavating at Pueblo Bonito, Marietta managed the trading post. She befriended a singer who adopted her into his clan and gave her a close-up view of Navajo medicine and religion. ... Read more

Book Description

In November of 2000, after the presidential election but before the results were handed down by the Supreme Court, John Daniel climbed into his pickup, drove to a cabin in the Red River Gorge, and quit civilization for a proscribed time. The strictures set up were severe: no two-way human communications, no radio, no music, no news, no clocks, and no calendars. He left his wife behind and moved into a cabin sure to be snowed-in just after his arrival, where he lived in complete isolation until spring, without even his cat as a companion.

He was intent on not hearing a human voice other than his own for the next six months. Thoreau's Journals were there, of course, for instruction and inspiration. In addition to the physical rigor of working in isolation, Daniel had assumed a hard spiritual task in deciding to live alone: to confront his now dead father. Rogue River Journal is the result, with writing as skilled as Jon Krakauer's—a remarkable memoir of both vivid present and past interwoven. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Humorous adventurous.
I found myself being able to visualize the desert, fell the heat of the region and Florida mountains that Skelton speaks of. His writing is extrememly visual and you can almost feel the breath of the bad guys on the back of your neck.

Skelton finds the humor and idiosyncrisies in human nature as we try to finagle our way through life. The characters that he has come in contact with through his law enforcement career, has got to make you think that humor is the best medicine. The one thing that will carry you through the day.

I would highly recommend Down on the Border to get a taste of life in the deserts of the South west. You will find that every chapter will make you laugh and wanting to read more.

The illustrations were fantastic and comical and added to the humurous nature of adventures. The introduction with J. Jackson was truely rewarding seeing, as it demostrates Cops helping cops. Their lives and tales parrallel no matter where they are.

They should be rewarded highly for their service. Thank you for making an insane world seem humorous. I enjoyed the laughs. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A dramatic pair of pictures opens this book: aerial shots of Fairview Gardens Farm, near Goleta, California, first in 1954, then in 1998. Once part of thousands of acres of farmland, Fairview Gardens is now entirely surrounded by tract homes, strip malls, and all the conveniences of modern suburban life. This 12.5-acre oasis exists only because Michael Ableman has steadfastly refused to let it be gobbled up by the relentless bulldozers. His story is funny, fierce, inspiring, and infuriating. His success, tempered by ample setbacks, will be of practical use to anybody seeking to preserve farmland from suburban sprawl. This powerful love story about a man and a place is especially moving because the land is not his: for most of the past 17 years, Ableman has been a tenant farmer at Fairview Gardens. Few people would put so much sweat and soul into borrowed land, yet to Ableman, ownership is irrelevant--it is the rich, beautiful land itself, and the sweet, slow food it produces for him, that matters. --Ann Lovejoy ... Read more

Reviews (5)

A darn good book!
I live in a desert climate, so farming is something that interests me in this desolate place I live in. I really enjoyed this book because of the success story and the farming aspect of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes farms.

One of my favorite books!
This book was an inspiration to read. It gives me hope that urban sprawl might be contained in some small parts of the world. It's also a good guide to organic farming and living, and getting past the "hippie" stereotype that organics still have. I'd highly recommend this book.

a very personal journey
Reading Michael Ableman's book was like stumbling upon his personal journal. I could imagine it's dirt-stained, hand-written pages - the miscellaneous seed or wind-blown earthen particles stuck deep in the creases of the binding. This book is filled with earnest, intimate tales - the everyday woes and triumphs of a gentle farmer, side-by-side with the battle stories of a true community activist. It is his journey that I found so fascinating, so inspiring. Ableman's story is compelling because he has been on the good path and done the good work for a long time - more than 17 years. From the early days of setting up the produce stand on weekends at a local farmer's market, to lamenting a killing winter frost, he draws the reader into the drama. Ableman's intensely close relationship with the land is his reward for paying close attention to its needs. His goals were clear - to grow healthy food for local people in a way that respected the land's ability to sustain itself. He learned by doing, followed his intuition, and made tough decisions based on what was right, or what he believed to be right at the moment. This book offers its readers as much "food for thought" about life, as it does about farming!

Enlightening, thought provoking.
I am not related to the author (like the previous reviewer). Loved this book. Couldn't put it down. I'm a long time organic gardener but I found this California farm story fascinating. As soon as I finished it my 18 year old daughter grabbed it and it doesn't look like I'll get it back soon. Two of her friends are in line to read it. Lovely photographs,too.

An unbiased review.
As one who has known the author since birth, I'm not surprised that he has conveyed the message of this work with such perfection, but I am surprised that he has turned it into such an enjoyable story. And what a beautifully bound volume - with some (but not enough) photography like his earlier, "From The Good Earth." This book not only exposes issues vital in our time - it's a great read. But then, I shouldn't be surprised - this guy writes like his father! ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Read It!
We own the Legacy Ranch high in the mountains of Northeastern Utah. For years we have loved the beauty of the unspoiled wilderness. Nursing newborn elk calves, watching Canadian Lynx outside their lairs, and many other adventures have cast us in the mold of lovers of the wilderness. To read the adventures of true cowboys, who started with nothing else but their "grit" and ended up with lives spent plumbing the depths of fun and hard work was one of the top literary experiences of our lives. This book, far better than the sequels, will be part o four Christmas giving this year.

Nothing To It!
Nothing to reading it, that is. This is one of the first nonfictions books I've read that I have ever liked. I got interested in it when I saw the TV show 'Nothing Too Good For A Cowboy' and had to read the books. This book made me laugh and almost made me cry. The characters are too funny and very heart-warming.

This is a book that has no comparison and no equal.
Outstanding! This book was an absolute, heart pounding thrill to read. An epic illustration of the unstopable drive of the human heart and the unyeilding will of man to print his own name across the pages of time. Men and women of a class that survives now, only in the memories or our lost heritage. People with unconquerable spirit and no notion of the impossible. If comparison were possible, this book would be the Bendigo Shafter of non-fiction but even the endless imagination of the great Louis L'Amour could not stand against the unforgiving truth of a land not tamed by man. The writing is clear and descriptive, showing the obvious education and experience of it's author, a man who chose ranching by choice rather than out of necessity. As the pages turn, the reader gets a look into the lives of these mountain men and without effort, we learn to understand each and every character, almost to the point of friendship. Quite an accomplishment in a fast-paced 250 page book. The pride, drive, knowledge, and respect of these men for the world they lived in is unparelleled. Though I was forced to perform certain daily activities, my mind never left the book until I could complete it's last inspiring page and sit breathlesly paralized in awe and admiration of this newly created dream world. This is the greatest book that I have ever been given the pleasure to read and I don't hesitate to say that the next two books I read will be the conclusion to it's sequence.

Hobson gives an excellent account of the way it really is.
This book debunks the cowboy myth and shows the life of a rancher the way it really is. Well written, with tragedy and humor on every page, this book also shows the relationship between man and horse the way it should be. If I hadn't already been there, I'd go looking for a cowboy job now.

Great Canadian History - Simple Elegant Writing
There was a time, that can be recalled by just a few who are still alive, when northern British Columbia Canada was much like the American West. This book describes the adventures involved in surviving and prospering in cattle country. When you are done with the book you will feel that you have learned enough to lead a winter cattle drive through unknown country. As Pan says in the book, "Nothin' to it, nothin at all. ... Read more

Book Description

This is the first comprehensive biography of Willie Brown,one ofCalifornia's most enduring and controversial politicians. Audacious,driven,talentedBrown has dominated California politics longer and morecompletely thanany other public figure. James Richardson, a senior writer for TheSacramentoBee, takes us from Brown's childhood, through his years as Speaker ofthe StateAssembly, to his election as San Francisco's mayor. Along the way we getariveting, behind-the-scenes account of three decades of Californiapolitics. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

A Great Political Biography
Willie Brown is a politician regarded as both a political reformer and a modern political boss, a sometime political progressive and sometime defender of corporate interests, and a man of humble background who flaunts a flashy lifestyle. The book, "Willie Brown", presents a study of a man's contrasts and complexities.
This biography neither glorifies nor lambastes its subject. The reader is allowed to thoroughly understand the gray areas between the good and evil which is the human nature of most public figures. We learn about Willie Brown and the events shaping his life and histroy.
We learn that Willie Brown sought being the center of attention from childhoold and how this trait was internalized through lifelong quests for leadership. Willie Brown emerged from a life of gambling and nightlife into a life or politics and nightlife.
Controversy has followed Willie Brown's life. Branded as both a radical liberal and a conservative coalition builder, Willie Brown has learned that power and personal feelings can change and that these changes can be used for advantage. Readers learn how Willie Brown, upon becoming Speaker of the California House of Representatives, was adept at maintaining power.
The author demonstrates that Willie Brown enjoyed political power games more for the sake of power than for setting policy. Willie Brown played the legislative power game very well for a long time. When he finally lost the power game, he exited the legislature by becoming a big city Mayor. This book presents a remarkable study of one of America's most resilient politicians.

The other slick Willie
I found this book to be very interesting and informative. Without a doubt it gave me a look into the life and times of Willie Brown and the state of California. From growing up under the repressive laws of Jim Crow and segregation to becoming one of the most powerful men in California,Willie Brown is a courageous and complex figure in California's history. In the tradition of "showmen politicians" like Adam Clayton Powell, Huey P. Long, and Lyndon Johnson, Brown is a part of a by-gone era. With term limits well in place, we will never see the likes of such a powerful and personable politician. President Clinton could not have said it better when he arrived in Sacramento and met Willie Brown in person for the first time. He stated, " now i have finally met the real slick Willie". Whether demon or devil, Willie Brown changed the face of legistlative politics in Califonia and paved the way for the state to expand in many other areas. After reading this book, you wonder how California can survive without Willie Brown.

left-leaning love letter to a fascinating political figure
Parts of the book are overly detailed, yet some parts are quite sparse. The portrait of Brown's hometown of Mineola, Texas is riveting yet there are few details of what Brown was like as a child -- readers wanting to find out what books, philosophers or anything that inspired Brown will be left wanting. We must settle for the unsupported statement that he was a voracious reader. Also, there seems to be a mismatch in focus -- over half of the book is devoted to Brown's career before becoming speaker when he really was a marginal figure. Perhaps a dozen pages are devoted to obscure delegate credentialling details about the '72 convention that could have been covered in a fraction of the space.

On the objective side, the book does call Brown to task for several ethical and race-baiting missteps, and he largely accepts the common view of Brown as a fixer extraordinare who made the trains run on time in the legislature at the expense of an agenda. The author also perceptively highlights why Brown succeeded tactically in holding his Speakership for so long, sometimes by pulling absolute political miracles. This is when the book is at its best, showing how Brown has become one of the most powerful, savvy figures in California political history.

On the minus side (for those who prefer their history unfiltered by the author's personal politics) references abound throughout the book to "ultra right conservatives", "hard right conservatives" and the like but there are no similiar references to figures on the left; Jesse Unruh and Ronald Reagan have "cronies" while Brown has friends.

While clearly critical on occasions, at other times the author blatantly bends over backwards to make Brown look good. When Brown made some vicious personal public remarks about then Governor Duekmajian (sp?) the author criticizes Brown yet excuses him by saying he was just doing so to satisfy the Democrat Assembly members who disliked the Duke, yet its impossible (for me at least) to believe Brown's Assembly delegation ever included people who demanded hateful comments from the Speaker. Throughout the book, Brown is portrayed as a consummate, off-the-cuff showman who's unmatched with his rapier-like comments, yet we're expected to believe this one was done calculatingly to satisfy people who insisted that Brown engage in brutal personal insults. This doesn't hold water.

The author also uncritically accepts Brown's assertion that he went to law school on a whim and says if he hadn't seized this seemingly random impulse, he never would have gone into politics. This seems a stretch to say the least, largely because the author paints a quite vivid picture of Brown the showman who lives for thie limelight -- it's virtually impossible to imagine this truly unique personality not in politics. That, and the fact that he was running for office by the time he was 28 indicate to me that like Bill Clinton, Willie Brown was intent on being a politician at an early age.

In the "give Willie the benefit of the doubt" category, outrageous remarks that can be fairly categorized as inciting violence are excused because Brown, according to the author, was so personally devastated by RFK's assissination a few weeks before. Yet the author provides nothing to support this strange assertion. It seems reasonable to conclude the author is going to extremes to excuse some of Brown's most inexcusable conduct.

At the end, the author drops all pretense of objectivity and discloses that he was a McGovern delegate at the '72 convention (which explains why, although doesn't justify, the excessive focus on that convention's minutae) and highlights Brown's greatest achievement as stymying the agendas of numerous Republican governors during his Assembly career.

The book was enjoyable largely because the subject is so fascinating. Parts of it are extremely well written, filled with strong analysis and the author undeniably did a tremendous job researching the book, but even more, in landing firsthand interviews with the major participants. Nonetheless, the book is unevenly focused, lavishing attention on Brown's flamboyance at the expense of personal insights. There is also a sometimes subtle but unmistakable bias from beginning to end in favor of Brown's leftist politics and Brown himself.

Plodding hagiography
Willie Brown may be an interesting figure, but you won't find much here about him that you didn't see in the newspapers over the years. Richardson goes over his impoverished youth in Texas, and his stunning rise in California, but doesn't go very far into how it occurred. For example, Brown was said to be an intellectual, a voracious reader in his youth. Richardson says virtually nothing about WHAT Brown read. We learn nothing of the thinkers or writers Brown admired. Nothing is said about his work habits, his passions, his view of history, the kind of society he would like to shape.

Over and over we are told of Brown's love of beautiful women, his "flamboyance", his expensive tastes. But who among us does not love beautiful women? And what, precisely, makes wearing an expensive suit flamboyant? If an expensive suit is flamboyant, then George Bush and Lloyd Bentsen must be flamboyant.

Is it not important to know what a politician thinks, in addition to what he wears and drives?

An insanely detailed overview of an amazing career
Richardson has overlooked no musty archive, no potential interviewee, and no pesty detail in his amazing book about Assemblyman, Speaker, Speaker Emeritus, and now Mayor Brown. An essential read to understand Northern California and California politics from the seventies to the present day. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Book does justice
Even an non-dog mushing fan from Anchorage can acknowledge the huge contributions Joe Reddington made for our great state. This biography by Lew Freedman does great justice to a great Alaskan, tracing his path from the lower 48 states up to Alaska and his family life, adventures and achievements while in Alaska. Reddington have been acknowledge founder of the famous Iditarod Race to Nome, one dog mushing race every Alaskan virtually follow even if he/she isn't a fan.

The book appears to be well written and the author was probably well supported by the family members of Joe Reddington in writing this book. This make the author very sympathic toward his subject. While that itself is no great crime, like all student of history, I would like to know Joe Reddington bit more readily then his public image. Like all human beings, Joe Reddington had his moments of greatness and his flaws. I would like to have read more on his failings as well as his accomplishments. But nevertheless, the book does justice to the man and his accomplishments.

(4.5) Honoring a true Alaskan hero.
Joe Redington, Sr., may not have been an Alaskan by birth, but any resident of the state would agree that he was, and remains, a symbol of the Alaskan spirit. Born and raised in Oklahoma, Redington always had a fascination with the rugged far-north, and read every book on Alaska he could get his hands on. In 1948, at the age of 31, he finally made the decision to pack up his family and move there. They homesteaded in Knik, off the Parks Highway, on the northwestern side of Knik Arm, and that's how Redington got involved with sled dogs. Mushing was an effective way to get from place to place, and Knik Kennels was born. By chance, the property opened directly onto the historic Iditarod trail, which by that time was in poor shape owing to disuse. Redington cleared a section of the trail for his own use, and soon became caught up in the route's historical significance. The famed 1925 "Serum Run" had followed that trail when there was no other means of rushing life-saving medication to diptheria-stricken Nome.

Redington decided it was high time the trail be restored and brought back into regular use, proposing a 1,000-mile dogsled race from Anchorage to Nome. Everyone thought he was nuts. But the first Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race was held in March of 1973, on a shoestring budget, but a resounding success nonetheless. The first few years of the race's existence were rocky at best, but this was Redington's baby, and he nursed it along with unwaivering confidence and energy. Today it is an internationally famous sporting event, with mushers arriving each spring from all over the globe to compete. Though Redington himself never won the race (he participated in it almost every year), not having time enough left to properly train his dogs after all the effort he expended in organization of the event, he did help many eventual Iditarod champions get their footing. Two such notable figures are five-time winner Rick Swenson and four-time winner Susan Butcher. In addition, Redington, along with Susan Butcher and Ray Genet, brought the first dog team to the peak of Mount McKinley in 1979. In 1993 he organized the first Iditarod Challenge, an opportunity to follow the trail for fun rather than competition, with Redington as guide. He also participated in a special dogsledding trial at the 1994 Olympics in Norway.

The title "Father of the Iditarod" has been applied to Joe Redington for years, and he has engraven himself upon the hearts of all Alaskans. I grew up in Anchorage and he was always a household name. He was an amazing man. Redington had unquenchable enthusiasm for everything he did, and never let age slow him down. He ran his last Iditarod in 1997, at the age of 80. When he was diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus in 1998, he fought it with the same determination and confidence that he had exhibited when fighting for the creation of the Iditarod, and he beat it. He even got back to mushing, though he would not compete again, and eventually the cancer returned and claimed his life in 1999.

This book does every possible justice to the pioneering man who revived dogsled mushing as a popular competitive sport. It is a delightful read, descriptive and engaging. Even a reader not familiar with Alaska or dog mushing will be able to capture the essence of it here. The book is also filled with great black-and-white photos of Redington, his family and fellow mushers, his dogs, and other images that bring the story to life. My one criticism would be a lack of sufficient editting. There are a few too many typos that should have been caught, and hence I don't feel quite right about giving an unconditional five-star rating. It also appears as if the very end of Chapter 18 may have been cut off, as it leaves off with what appears to be the beginning of a new sentence, but when the reader flips to the next page, it is the beginning of the next chapter. Other than this, however, the book flows very nicely and is easy to read. I would highly recommend it to just about anyone, Alaskan or not, and regardless of experience with dogs or mushing. A thoroughly delightful book!

Thank you Joe Redington!
I was so pleased with this book that I felt compelled to encourage more people to read it. It offers the history of the Iditarod Sled Dog Race which is interesting enough, but more than that, it is the story of one man who gave everything he had to Alaska and dog mushers everywhere. If you are looking for an inspirational read, this is it!

Father of the Iditarod: The Joe Redington story.
As I read through this account of the roots of "The great race" I was all the while planning my next trip to Alaska. To be included in this was an attempt to me "The Man" so convinced was I that Joe would not only pull through his illness he would live for ever. I am now sure Joe will live for ever, not only in the hearts of the Dog sledding fraternity but amongst all who possess a sense of adventure. Read this book and live the greatest adventure race on this planet.

Father of the Iditarod
This book was an intense view into the life and times of the creator of the Iditarod. It takes you back years into the past for a view of what it was like to live in a time when living in the wilderness was rough and tough. This book helps to preserve the memories of days old and commemorate the legend who devoted his life to his dream of "The Last Great Race" - "The Iditarod Sled Dog Race" ... Read more

Book Description

Mildred Clark Cusey was a prostitute, a madam, an entrepreneur, and above all, a survivor. The story of Silver City Millie, as she referred to herself, is the story of one woman’s personal tragedies and triumphs as an orphan, a Harvey Girl waitress on the Santa Fe railroad, a prostitute with innumerable paramours, and a highly successful bordello businesswoman. Millie broke the mold in so many ways, and yet her life’s story of survival was not unlike that of thousands of women who went West only to find that their most valuable assets were their physical beauty and their personality. Petite at five feet tall with piercing blue eyes, Millie captured men’s attention by her very essence and her unmistakable joie de vivre.

Born to Italian immigrant parents near Kansas City, she and her sister were orphaned early and separated from each other. Millie learned hard lessons on the streets, but she never gave up and she vowed to protect and support her ailing older sister. Caught in a domestic squabble in her foster home, Millie wound up in juvenile court with Harry Truman as her judge. This would be only the first of many brushes in her life with prominent politicians.

When physicians diagnosed her sister with tuberculosis and recommended she move West to a Catholic home in Deming, New Mexico, Millie moved with her. Expenses ran high and after a brief stint waiting tables as a Harvey Girl, Millie found that her meager tips could easily be augmented by turning tricks. Thus, out of financial need and devotion to her sister, Mildred Cusey turned to a life of prostitution and a career at which she soon excelled and became both rich and famous.

Madam Millie contains sordid details and frank language that will make many readers blush. It is unvarnished language, as recorded directly from Millie by Max Evans over a period of almost 20 years. It presents a complete picture of the business of prostitution as it was practiced in the West from the late 1920s to the mid 1970s, told by the most successful madam in the business. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Great story, poorly written
I met Millie once when I was a youngster, this book was of immense interest to me.
This is a very good story and it is hilarious at times.
Other times it is heart wrenching. Kind of like life.
My only criticism is that the biographer was weak in the delivery of the story.
Nevertheless, I express thanks to Mr. Evans his perseverance in writing this book. I am certain it was not an effortless undertaking.

This book is one that I will save as a gem between gems on my bookshelf.

Wild, Ribald, Funny, Great!
Absolutely great book if you want to read about one of th