Reviews (12)

An OLYMPIA 10 all the way across the board!!!!!
The lives of every person who reads this book will be enriched regardless of their age! The book is informative, interesting as well as entertaining! Great gift for anyone in your life! It flows as you read it and you won't want to put it down! Treat yourself to a wonderful experience!!!

Beautiful Bit of Work!!!!!
Reading this captivating book was a pleasure!!!!! I feel as though I personally know this wonderful man now. SUCH AN AUTHOR to capture him!!!!!

Fasinating reading..........
The book was bought for my son-in-law, but I couldn't resist reading it first. I am truly glad that I did as it is sure to improve my skills with dealing with people as it will yours when you read it!

Inspiring!!!!!
Miss DeLoach truly got into the head of a truly remarkable man! The book has everything, facts, figures, sad and happy times - all laced with humor. Couldn't put it down!

Truly banal
This book is a wildly self-indulgent extension of every cliche in other people's books. It's truly banal. I agree, however, with the reviewer who said it could be worthwhile "for those who do not read a lot." ... Read more

Book Description

In this book the author describes how a C student from a middle class background used his self-doubts to great advantage. ... Read more

Book Description

In the hallway, during a break in trial, the famed defense attorney spoke to the Postal Inspector.
"You're a helluva investigator."
And the Inspector said, "What do you mean?"
"That interview you did with Frank," the lawyer said.
Recalling the hours he had spent questioning the attorney's client, the Inspector asked, "What did I leave out?"
As he turned to enter the courtroom, to stand beside his client and face the judge, the lawyer sighed, "Absolutely nothing!"

In Moments in Time, Bill Phinazee and Larry Weaver tell what it's like to be a United States Postal Inspector. Some of their stories are uncomplicated, some are complex, and others are amusing, poignant or chilling. All are entertaining. They tell why a Postal Inspector is respected by his or her peers, feared by law breakers, and known by both as a "helluva investigator" whose investigations leave out absolutely nothing. ... Read more

Book Description

A Former United States Attorney provides a tour on the inside of the Court system and exposes corruption on a monumental scale ... Read more

Reviews (5)

An honest lawyer?
Are you one of the millions who think there is no such thing as an honest lawyer who cares more for righteousness, reason, and reality than for process, payoff, and power?You'd be wrong. Shelly Waxman was a made man, an insider who had only to protect the powerful and sacrifice the expendable to become a highly placed Federal lawyer, perhaps someday a judge.Instead he blew the whistle on prejudice, corruption, and even murder taking place behind the bar, for which act of justice he was thrown from the halls of power. Eschewing the paneled office, the Armani and the Rolex, and the favor of such luminaries as the paranoid J.Edgar Hoover, Shelly devoted himself to defending the truth.This book is not a tale of only one such courageous act, but of many such cases, some you will recognize from the front pages of the last thirty years of our history."In The Teeth Of The Wind" reads like pulp fiction, exciting and surprising, with a cast of quirky characters, but it is all true.If you care about the degeneration of the American system of justice, and you would like to know about one man's lifelong struggle to keep it the honorable institution it was created to be, then put this book in your shopping cart now.

Bizarre to historic accounts kept me reading
In a series of case-centered vignettes that range from bizarre to historic
(often both), establishment-turned-rebel lawyer Shelly Waxman intends
to expose massive and unfortunately routine corruption and unfairness
in the legal system and the threat these pose to our freedom.This he
does, in spades.However, the book is also a treasure trove of slices of
"unknown" history.Spooks, Chicago "plumbers" (in Latin America they'd
be called right-wing death squads, no?), Black Panthers, the Belanco
Religious Order, IRS hearings -- 'tis amazing what Waxman encountered
and became entangled in over the course of one career.At times I wished
Waxman had an editor.By book end, I only wanted more.Waxman's stranger
than fiction true stories and crunchy, biting, learned-the-hard-way
observations about power, corruption and freedom had me hooked.

In the Teeth of the Wind:A Study of Power and How to . . .
This book is interesting, informative and easy to read.

If you've ever had contact with what we are pleased to call the 'Justice System' in this country, you were probably not pleased with the results. Well, this book shows you that it is even worse than you thought. Written in shirt sleeve english, it is a series of short stories by a former insider, exposing the failures of the government and our justice system to provide justice. In a simple and interesting style, the book gives example after example of what happens to the little guy when people with access to the levers of power want a particular result from the 'Justice System.' Contains some thoughtful insights on our personal freedom or whats left of it, reforming our laws, and how we will do business with each other in the future. I enjoyed it and I think you will too.

JUSTICE, NOT JUST US
"In the Teeth of the Wind' should be of interest to the estimated 70 million Americans who have been termed "tax protestors" at one time or another, and to the more than 110 million Americans who are disaffected, and in all other ways turned off, by the Government and its process.

Waxman's insightful, insider tales of woe reveal that "ethics in action" has become ethic's inaction, and 'due process' has become DO process, as the reader begins "to realize that the thing that most oppresses people is the law."

Ironically turning the phrase of Associate Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, who said that the "jury should render its verdict in the teeth of the law," Waxman attests to the devolution of the practice of law, and the descent and decay of all legal process to the putrid state it's in today. I'm glad I read this book! I hope millions of others will read it and take action to stop the degeneration of our once great nation.

For Liberty in Our Lifetime, R.J. Tavel, J.D. Founder: Liberty's Educational Advocacy Forum at Freedomlaw.com promoting 'action that raises the cost of State violence for its perpetrators . . . lay(ing) the basis for institutional change.' [Noam Chomsky]

Scathing attack of the Establishment
In the Teeth of the Wind is a comprehensive look into the legal mind and principles of a practicing attorney who unwittingly fell into some monumental cases and became involved with some very unusual people. However, the book is not written for lawyers and is easy for the layman to understand. The book relates one man's quest to fight for the underdog and challenge the establishment. It provides an inspirational account of how a former Assistant U.S. Attorney fell out of favor with the Establishment and became a fighter for freedom. It provides a tour of the Court system and exposes corruption on a incredible scale. It is a natural flowing read, yet riveting. No fluff. Stops you dead in your tracks and says, 'Pay attention this is important.' Fascinating and told with wit and understanding of the human condition. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Although Archibald Cox is best remembered as the specialprosecutor whom President Nixon fired in the infamous "SaturdayNight Massacre" for his investigation into Watergate, Ken Gormley'sbiography reveals the full extent of Cox's distinguished career as apublic servant. Starting out as a clerk for Learned Hand, Cox went onto become a professor at Harvard Law School and an advisor to then-senator John F. Kennedy. When Kennedy became president, he appointedCox to the position of solicitor general, where he argued before theSupreme Court in some of the vital civil rights cases of the era. Andthen, of course, there was the Watergate investigation; Gormleyrecounts in fascinating detail the wrangling between the JusticeDepartment and the Oval Office over Nixon's tapes, drawing uponunpublished documents and interviews with key participants.

In an era when special prosecutors have become common fixtures in controversial news stories, Gormley's portrait reveals how one mancarried out the responsibilities of that office with such integrity andclass as to rally a nation behind him. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

A Terrific Biography Of An Extraordinary Individual!
In a time curiously bereft of public heroes, the life and achievements of Professor Archibald Cox of Harvard University stands in bold relief as areminder of what a man of singular dedication, an ethic of public service,and a lifetime of professional integrity can do to change the course ofhistory.This wonderful biography by law professor Ken Gormley recountsthe life and accomplishments of this extraordinary person, a man who stoodface to face in opposition to one of the most popular and powerfulPresidents of the 20th century and, to his undying credit, never blinked.It is a riveting tale of man whose allegiance was to the simple notion thatour nation is one ruled by law and not by individual personality. It alsotells the captivating story of man who spent a lifetime serving theAmerican people, living by his principles, and passing them on so memorablyas a law professor at Harvard University.

Cox appears everywhere in thepantheon of modern American accomplishment during his more than sixty yearcareer. He first clerked for the legendary Supreme Court Justice LearnedHand in the midst of the Depression before embarking on a course as apioneer in public labor law, soon to be asked to serve the federalexecutive, first as a Special Assistant to the National Defense MediationBoard, and then with the Solicitor General's office.Finally, shortlyafter the end of the war, he accepted a teaching position with Harvard LawSchool, where he was destined to become a leading legal expert in laborlaw.It was in this capacity that he eventually became an advisor to JohnF. Kennedy, a Harvard graduate and the junior Senator from Massachusetts.

When Kennedy won the Presidency in 1960, he appointed Cox the positionof Solicitor General, giving Cox the opportunity to argue brilliantlybefore the Supreme Court as the Government's advocate for civil rightsreform. He also worked behind the scenes as a mediator during Harvard'sinternal student troubles in the late 1960s, trying to mend the hugepolitical, philosophical, and educational issues leading to such dynamicstudent unrest. Yet all of these accomplishments and lifetime enterprisespale in the face of his later involvement as the Justice Department'sSpecial Prosecutor in that newly created post to independently investigatethe troubling issues surrounding the Nixon administrations participation ina wide range of suspect activities.

As such, he was a key figure in theunraveling of the Watergate scandal as well as the subsequent Congressionalinvestigations and impeachment proceedings against Richard Nixon. Instructed to conform, heal to Nixon's dictates or else, to cease anddesist from his pursuit of the White House tapes, Cox quite simply refusedto be cowed. Of course, he was then fired in the infamous Saturday NightMassacre, in which both Attorney General and his assistant publicallyrefused to fire Cox and themselves resigned from the Administration.Republican toady, Solicitor General Robert Bork had no such scruples orcompunctions, and promptly fired Cox. It was this single event of firingCox that awoke the Congress and the nation regarding Nixon's viability, andthis subsequently changed the political equation that eventually led toNixon's own resignation in August of 1974.

This is an entertaining,absorbing, and quite literate book, one that takes a fond and pensive lookat that most rare of human individuals, a man guided by his dedication toprinciples and the rule of law. It is also a wonderful up-close andpersonal look at life inside the confines of the well-furnished parlors ofprivilege Cox has habituated all his life, based on birth, wealth, and, ofcourse, his extraordinary ability. It is a rare open and honest look at therealities of how America works, often on the quite undemocratic basis ofwhere one happens to go to college and professional study, upon who oneknows, and by how well one can rise to the expectations and rules ofconduct prevailing in the power elite. This is a splendid book about a rareand admirable man, and one most people can learn from reading. I highlyrecommend it.

an outstanding book, about an outstanding man
An outstanding insight into the life of Cox, which goes far beyond his Watergate notoriety, yet still provides a wealth of info about Watergate, as well.

A role model for all attorneys.
The legal profession has been sinking ever lower in public opinion polls.Archibald Cox's life and character should serve as an aspirational role model for all lawyers.Cox was a participant in may of the major events ofthe middle third of the twentieth century, and through quiet integrity andcommitment he helped shape the consequences of many of those events.Toooften the biographies of quiet men have all the appeal of reading the phonedirectory, but Professor Gormley brings not only the events, but Cox andhis character to life.I read this book as an attorney at mid-career,and it inspired me.We do have heros in the profession.There are thosein the profession who find success in achievement rather than acquiringmoney or exploiting self-promotion. After reading this book, I think thatthis is a man I admire.To most of the public and to many lawyers, thetelevision sterotype is the legal profession.It is not, but theprofession would be improved by each of us learning from great lives. Perhaps as an adjunct to ethics courses and CLE lectures, law schools couldinclude in the first year curriculum a legal biography class and state barassociations could require annually that each attorney read a selectedlegal biography.This book should be among the first to be read byattorneys, professors and students alike.[Unfortunately, there may bethose who would promote the books by or about the hucksters and charlatansas "heros" of the profession].

Every lawyer should read this book - a career to aspire to.
This book is not just Watergate revisited.It spans the amazing career of a model lawyer.The book provides insight into important moments in labor, political and legal history, from Mr. Cox's clerkship with LearnedHand, through his service on Truman's Wage Stabilization Committee, to hisrole with Comman Cause -- and including, of course, Watergate.The book isextensively researched, and includes numerous interviews with key playersin Mr. Cox's career. Mr. Cox is Atticus Finch in government.His work,brought out in this book, is a reminder to lawyers that carrying that JDimplies a duty to serve.

Excellent Book
As a history teacher, I found this book really entertaining.It gives great information about a time in this country which people have begun to forget.It also shows us what the term "public servant" should mean. ... Read more

Book Description

In The Rehnquist Court and the Constitution, Tinsley Yarbrough provides a comprehensive look at today's Supreme Court Justices and their record--a study all the more valuable for the Court's mixed decisions and hard-to-categorize course.

An accomplished biographer, Yarbrough offers incisive portraits of the nine who now sit on the high bench, and tellingly reviews their nomination hearings. He also explores the workings of the Court, ranging from the selection and role of the clerks to the work load (including the end-of-term "June crunch") and assignment of opinions. But the heart of the book is a systematic exploration of the Court's record in such fields as government power, economic regulation, and criminal justice. In decision after decision, the author discusses the various justices' opinions, arguments, and legal theories; he also offers his own analysis (including a sharp critique of the decision to allow the Paula Jones lawsuit to move forward). Like many writers on the Rehnquist Court, Yarbrough finds a general continuity with the past, shaded by a conservative outlook (especially in matters of criminal justice and affirmative action), but he identifies a significant departure in its rulings on economic regulation. Since 1937, he writes, the Supreme Court had generally adopted an expansive view of federal power over economic matters; the Rehnquist Court has reversed that trend.

The Rehnquist Court has not launched an all-out assault on the Warren Court's precedents, as many conservatives hoped,but as Yarbrough shows it has embarked on important new departures. Thoughtful, wide-ranging, intelligently written, this book will stand as the finest study of the Rehnquist Court for years to come. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Good but not great
In this work Tinsley Yarbrough seeks to summarize the work of the Rehnquist Court (up until 2000) concerning the seven dominate issues of constitutional adjudication. Yarbrough examines subjects such as governmental power, freedom of expression and religion, criminal justice, and unenumerated rights. Begining with a description of the appointments of the justices who conservatives hoped would finally kill the last remnants of the liberal Warren Court era, Yarbrough examines each of the most important issues and concludes that the Rehnquist Court has failed, at least generally, to achieve this hope. Instead, it has walked something of a more moderate role, sometimes limiting precedent but often reaffirming the core principles of the liberal activism of old.

The work is good but it should not be your first introduction to the Supreme Court. It is densely packed with information and is probably best for a reference work to use when you reach a new area of coursework. My biggest problem with Yarbrough's work here is that it is great at synthesizing the many cases of the Rehnquist era but it is light on meaningful analysis and criticism of those cases. Description only goes so far and I think the book would have benefited from a stronger analytical view of the 14 years (then) of the Rehnquist Court.

excellent book
i think if you go through this book you would realise justice is not blind but very racialy prejudiced i would prefer straight shooter brilliant jusice scalia,excellent book

Unfortunate addition to Yarbrough's resume
Mr. Yarbrough has a fine reputation as a leading judicial biographer: his previous works on Hugo Black, and the two Justices Harlan were impressive, detailed and interesting. With "The Rehnquist Court" he pumps out a minor achievement and a heavily slanted analysis of recent Constitutional decisions. There's no denying the hostility toward conservative/strict-constructionist judges and viewpoints and this, as a previous poster noted, deeply taints the work overall. In addition, Yarbrough's style (which has always tended to the dry and tedious) is here especially mind-numbing: the interesting constitutional issues under debate are hidden amongst irrelevant facts and long-winded prose. As a whole, I found the book very disappointing and the steep price tag wholly unwarranted.

Subliminally Biased, but well researched
In terms of informational content and comprehensiveness, this text is quite good. Yarbrough cites many sources and gives the essence of most of the opinions on the cases he covers. That is to say that a given case may have three or four opinions, as justices can agree on the same verdict for different reasons, and Yarbrough does a fine job of explaining each on most of the decisions covered. My huge qualm with the work is the simple fact that Yarbrough commits one of the biggest sins possible in scholarly work: he sharply biases his work without seeming to. His language is subtly biased, and an unwary reader could easily be manipulated.

Well written peek behind the Supreme Court bench
The Rehnquist Court and the Constitution is not light reading, but for those who are interested in the high court, it is good reading. Yarbrough provides a concise examination of each Justice, including his or her background, confirmation hearing, and the political climate of that hearing. He captures the essence of each Justice as both jurist and human being. He then allows the reader to infer the interaction of those philosophies, personalities and egos on the direction that he perceives for significant constitutional issues. He does this without much, if any, editorial comment, though at times his own constitutional philosophy appears to peek out just a bit. Although this book is a bit heavy for anyone other than a constitutional scholar, it is well worth reading. Any student, teacher, judge, lawyer or just plain "court watcher" will appreciate this glimpse into the most secret and perhaps most powerful branch of our government. ... Read more

Book Description

It was New Year’s Eve, 1975. Our college sophomore had just driver his uncle’s pickup into the country club swimming pool and school was starting the next day. A real bite! But with a few bongs and a couple of T-900s—a boilermaker with 151 rum for the shot—the semester started out okay.

Our young "hero" had to make good grades to stay in his private, upper-middle class, WASP school. Otherwise he was doomed to the hinterlands of mid-north Indiana and the farm of his adoptive aunt and uncle. Classes started well, but all around him swirled the distractions he craved: copping buzzes, being involved in the firing of a professor, speed replacing food to stave off hunger, student demonstrations. Out of this mess was a bright spot, however. He was a crack intercollegiate debater, using insights gleaned from doing drugs to create arguments. (Is that really where they came from?) But his grades, otherwise, stunk. So he bagged finals to thumb 1,500 miles to Maine. That stunk too. Back he went to re-evaluate his young life and hope for enlightenment. A summer loomed ahead. What would he do with it? ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Fear and Loathing in Indiana
In a literary era of tales of survival under physical extremes, 1975 is a Dickensian tale of psychic survival. Unlike Dickens however, Small's account is realistic, and some may find this hard to face. Ask yourself, what would have happened if I had been raised by people who were unable to love me but merely treated me as boarder, and who treated my accomplishments as threats or insults to their own biological offspring, who tried to drag me down to mollify their own egos? Would I become a well-adjusted young man respectful of authority and without a trace of bitterness like David Copperfield, or would I laugh at social convention, take drugs, and learn to make authority cringe?

On a different level, this story will appeal primarily to all those who harbor contempt for authority; those who lived in nonconformist frat houses in the 70s; anyone who has hitchhiked very much around America; those who attended "DeForrest" or similar small colleges and are familiar with the sociopolitics; and those familiar with the cultural desert of small town Indiana and the wacky things that intelligent people do there to preserve their sanity.

From a nostalgic viewpoint, it's an excuse to remember what it was like to be alive then, to walk down the halls of your old frat house or dorm and revisit the strange assortment of characters you knew there, remember what it was like to get high for the first time and how good all the music sounded, and the awkwardness and then euphoria of your first sexual fumblings. You know, the fun parts of growing up.

On the down side, while the author's savant-like recall of infinitesimal detail is amazing, it sometimes detracts from the flow of the narrative. Nevertheless, the story will leave you with unforgettable images, some hilarious (that second floor toilet), others disturbing (the fight on the roof, goodbye Eva). I look forward to the next installment.

Memories
Having gone to a small midwestern college during the same period I found this book all too familar.For me, the 70's were an interesting time of both exploration and rebellion.I thought this novel explored both the pain and the joy of the times bringing back memories and feelings I had not visited in many years.I would reccommend this book to anyone but the most right wing.I loved it.

Nineteen-Seventy-five
After reading Nineteen-Seventy-four I could't wait to read the next book. Who would have thought it could have even been better. I felt even more connected to the main character in the second book and found myself hoping he'd get it together. Please keep on writing Mr. Small.

Nineteen-Seventy-four
This book is a great read. The characters really come to life . I felt like they were my friends. Anyone who came of age in the seventies can truly relate to the situations the main character encounters in those strange times. The book made me want to relive those days again. I can't wait for Mr. Smalls next novel.

A great blast from the '70's
THis is a fantastic voyage back to the sex, drugs and rock and roll '70's experience on a small college campus.Mr. Small has nailed the experience, and I felt transported back to that time by the book.If you've forgotten what it was like, or if you're just curious, I strongly recommend this book. ... Read more

Book Description

Alternately vilified as a publicity-seeking egoist and lauded as a rambunctious, fearless advocate, William Kunstler consistently embodied both of these qualities.

Kunstler's unrelenting, radical critique of American racism and the legal system took shape as a result of his efforts to enlist the federal judicial system to support the civil rights movement. In the late 60s and the 70s, Kunstler, refocusing his attention on the Black Power and anti-war movement, garnered considerable public attention as defender of the Chicago Seven, and went on to represent such controversial figures as Leonard Peltier, the American Indian Movement leader charged with killing an FBI agent, and Jack Ruby, the killer of Lee Harvey Oswald. Later, Kunstler briefly represented Colin Ferguson, the Long Island Railroad mass murderer, outraging fans and detractors alike with his invocation of the infamous "black rage" defense.

Defending those most loathed by mainstream, conventional America, William Kunstler delighted in taking on fiercely political cases, usually representing society's outcasts and pariahs free of charge and often achieving remarkable courtroom results in seemingly hopeless cases. Though Kunstler never gave up his revolutionary underpinnings, he gradually turned from defending clients whose political beliefs he personally supported to taking on apolitical clients, falling back on the broad rationale that his was a general struggle against an oppressive government.

What ideological and tactical motives explain Kunstler's obsessive craving for media attention, his rhetorical flourishes in the courtroom and his instinctive and relentless drive for action? How did Kunstler migrate from a comfortable middle-class background to a life as a staunchly rebellious figure in social and legal history? David Langum's portrait gives depth to the already notorious breadth of William Kunstler's life.

... Read more

Reviews (1)

Smart Enough to be Funny
Stand-up comedy is not in the index of this book, but it gets mentioned.Along with a list of Kunstler's film credits is a note that when he tried a comedy routine, he got his biggest laugh for a lawyer joke.I wasinterested, a long time ago, in what Chapter 6 of this book calls Circus inChicago.Back when I was contemplating what I might like to do in a careerin law, I would have enjoyed the opportunity to generate the number oflaughs that are contained in this book.Then I actually found a case thatsaid "Resort to the courts is futile."That was such a changefrom my expectations that an element of humor creeps into my appreciationof the outrageous nature of that truth.As evidence that the author ofthis book is aware of the potent nature of that form of humor, picturethis:"Kunstler objected.The United States attorney jumped up andargued, 'This is outrageous.This man [Kunstler] is the mouthpiece forthese defendants.The Government protests this man's attitude.'"(p.124)I thought that the best legal point in the book was that Bobby Sealecould not be retried on the conspiracy charge after the jury found that theother seven defendants were not guilty of conspiracy.Seale hadn't beencharged with anything else, so further proceedings in his case would havebeen pointless.If there is a fine line between legal logic and the quirksof the system, check this book for the side of the line where the quirksare, and maybe you have already seen bits and pieces of this story on TV. It sure made the newpapers when it was going on. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A sheltered and privileged American in China
After reading Mr. Shapiro's "I Choose China", I have had much mixed feelings.

In the book, Mr. Shapiro's tone about Mao is almost identical as the "People's Daily" - the official Chinese newspaper of propaganda nature. He is positive about Deng XiaoPing and his successors as well.

In reality, Deng abolished Mao's policies and created a capitalistic society in 1979. It makes me wonder why Mr. Shapiro wrote about Mao according to the Chinese official guidelines while most Chinese people know very well that Mao was a man who committed unpardonable crimes to the Chinese people.

To many Chinese, Mao was a devil while Deng was a "kind of" saint. How can the devil and the saint be praised in the same time?

Mr. Shapiro narrated that his money was tight due to the Chinese currency being low in terms of the exchange rates. The cost of foreign travel was astronomical to the Chinese citizens. Yet he was able to travel to the US and Europe for many times including the pre-Deng years. How were his trips funded? The Chinese government gave him special treatment? I would think so. His grand daughter could even attend an expensive private school in Minnesota. Who paid for it? Alas, politics, connections, privileges etc... Were the readers informed? Nah...

To sum up, like they have done to many other westerners who live in China in the past and present, I think the Chinese government for political reasons has used Mr. Shapiro. These westerners were sheltered, were provided comfortable living, and were used for propaganda.

While I admire the great classical translation works by Mr. Shapiro (like Shui Hu and Family by Ba Jin), with much regret, I have to say that Sidney Shapiro only painted the bright side of the Chinese society in his book. The many years of darkness were simply buried.To state it unkindly, the author was a product of brainwash, Chinese style.

A very American Chinese, or a very Chinese American
Sidney Shapiro went to China just after World War II. He had studied Chinese before coming, but he did not have a background in China, and had not planned to stay. He met and married a Chinese woman, and ended up staying on after the Communist takeover, working for the Chinese government as a translator. Shapiro is a very lucid writer, and easy to follow, but he seems obliged to rationalize some things about his adopted country that are hard to defend. For example, he says that Western missionaries left China after the war because they "were not needed anymore." Although I believe that his description of his life in China is an honest portrayal, there is always the feeling that he is sugarcoating policies that were clearly ill-fated. But Shapiro's book is just as noticeable for the things he concedes, such as the lack of press freedom in China. This book would be of special interest to individuals with an American frame of reference, because Shapiro is an American, and he writes in a very American style. Yet, he has lived and worked in China since just after World War II, a period of 50 years at the time the book was written in the mid nineties. Clearly, he has a better perspective on China than any other American born writer. You will not want to miss this book, but I would suggest reading a few of the others first, so that you have a little better framework from which to evaluate this one.

Insightful and fascinating
I read his book with curiosity. I paid attention to hisnarration of political events and found them to be chronologicallyprecise. The only drawback is that he had neutralized many of the notorious events like Tiananmen Massacre and the Cultural Revolution etc.

The Chinese revolution is a tragedy from the very start when Dr Sun had to ally himself with the communists and Soviet Russia, but Mr Shapiro apparently was more influenced by the events starting from 1947 and the full-blown civil wars between communists and nationalists.

One thing I would like to point out is that Mr Shapiro, like all the communists and the people of the privileged class (enjoying free medicare, housing, retirement pay, car, and free trips to USA and Israel), would be doomed to ignore the nature of Chinese society, i.e., communists CASTE society, where 70-80% of Chinese population still live, without the aforementioned benefits: the daughters of those peasants burnt to death in prison-like toy factories set up by the joint ventures of red capitalists and foreign capitalists in SEZ and costal cities, the husbands and youths being the coolie responsible for buidling the skycrapers across China, and the wives tilling the fields under the sun and in the rains for 50 years. Mr Shapiro would not understand that while gestapos could move around in China or out of China using multiple passports, the people in the CASTE could not do so, with miners continuing to die on the yearly basis in caveins and explosions, the oil-workers continuing to be contained in Western China, and the peasant-born children forever bound to their birthplace.

-- CASTE means the children born would have to take mother's birth place as their locality of registration under communist doctrines, for sake of social stability and their ease of economic exploitation.

Certainly, I would give credit to his account of Chinese history, especially the part about Qin's terra cotta sooldiers, the civil service exams, the ancient legal system, and the history of Se Mu Ren (color-eyed people) and the Jew history in China. History-wise, I would only add that Han Dynasty was not a succession of Qin Empire in any sense. In fact, the beginning of Han is a RESTORATION of Zhou Dynasty system, namely, the restoration of dukedoms and principalities, as manifested by the enthronement of those kings and dukes in respective localities of those dukedoms and principalities, under the supervision of nominal king of Chu (a shephard boy, said to be the grandson of last Chu king) and the two generals of Xiang Yu and Liu Bang (later the first emperor of Han).

I would say a critical analysis of the book is worthwhile, and a comparative study with other books such as the one written by Mao's personal doctor from year 1955 to 1976 would be of great help. ... Read more

Book Description

"The sordid controversies of litigants," Benjamin Cardozo once said, are "the stuff from which great and shining truths will ultimately be shaped."As one of America's most influential judges, first on New York State's Court of Appeals and then on the United States Supreme Court, Cardozo (1870-1938) oversaw this transformation daily. How he arrived at his rulings, with their far-reaching consequences, becomes clear in this book, the first to explore the connections between Benjamin Cardozo's life and his jurisprudence. ... Read more

Book Description

The posthumous memoirs of one of America's greatest lawyers offers a provocative look inside his high-profile, high-stakes practice and at the progress of law and politics over the last half-century.

During nearly half a century of practicing law, Arthur L. Liman represented the very best ideals of his profession. He was renowned both for his brilliance as a corporate lawyer and for his commitment to public service and pro bono work. Vanity Fair called him a "big trouble" lawyer--i.e., the lawyer you call when you're in it.

In this candid memoir, written in the months before his death, Liman discusses his life in the law from the moment Roy Cohn's performance at the McCarthy hearings inspired him to become a lawyer (in order to stand against lawyers like Cohn) to his influential investigation of the Attica prison uprising, through his role as chief counsel in the Iran-Contra hearings, with looks at many fascinating cases, clients, and controversies along the way. Full of lively portraits of the moguls, financiers, politicians and criminals with whom Liman worked, and grounded in his insightful, provocative opinions on the practice of law and on today's legal issues, Lawyer is an absorbing read. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Dreck
As an entering student at Yale Law School, the Liman Foundation gave each and every one of us a hardcover copy of this, Arthur Liman's treacly memoir. It took me until my third year to read it; I missed nothing.

Liman's career is utterly unworthy of a memoir; it is the sort of career than anyone of my colleagues at Yale could have with very little effort and even less ambition. Liman happily spends his life at the teat of corporate America; his "public service" is two quick resume-building years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and then he retreats back to the big-firm partnerhsip track.

Any interesting experiences in the corporate world are happily ommitted; he mentions anti-semitism briefly when covering his college years at Harvard, and then never mentions it again. His later-career public service is reserved for high-level work on government committees, but after years of amassing vast sums as a corporate lawyer, he never says, "That's enough," and always returns to his million-dollar partnership at his big firm.

He bellyaches at how much worse big firms are now than they were in the 50s when he was starting out, yet offers no examples of anything he did to help change the oppressive status quo.

I must admit I am glad I read this miserable little book, if only to discover what kind of lawyer I never want to become.

Compelling Figure, Uncompelling Autobiography
Arthur Liman was a tremendous lawyer and citizen of this country. He was one of the more cognitively brilliant lawyers of the past 50 years, and possessed a social conscience of the highest order.

Unfortunately, something is simply missing in this autobiography. I found it uneven and incomplete. The quality of the book simply doesn't match the quality of the person.

A great book, very enjoyable to read
This is a remarkable autobiography. I highly recommend it, especially to those considering entering the legal profession.
Liman is a superb writer who's easy-to-read style makes reading the book both an enjoyable and worthwhile experience. Most importantly, Liman vindicates the legal profession by stressing the important contribution that good lawyers can offer to society. He also provides interesting insight into his role as a defense lawyer in the Michael Milken case and as a key player in the investigations of the Attica Prison riot and the Iran Contra scandal.

Regards,

Hans Perl-Matanzo
(...) ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Terrific Book!
Sikora's biography of Federal Judge Frank Johnson, who's court rulings helped desegregate Alabama, is by far the best told story of the judge. Sikora is an impeccable researcher and a poignant storyteller. Through extensive interviews with Johnson, Sikora was able to include lengthy quotes by the Judge, which make up at least 1/4 of the book. Sikora has captured Frank Johnson as both a judge and a man. This is a must-read for anyone interested in civil rights history. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Rewarding
This is a rewarding book.The author has researched his subject thoroughly, and he brings some interesting analysis to it. There are, however, a few problems.
First, the author argues that Campbell was a Southern "moderate." Judged by the likes of his fellow-Alabamian, the "fire-eating" William Lowndes Yancey, he was. He believed that slavery was a flawed institution, but he vehemently defended both its constitutionality and its morality. (He was after all a member of the Supreme Court majority that decided the infamously pro-slavery Dred Scott case in 1857). He told his fellow-Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Curtis that he freed all of his slaves "some years" before the beginning of the Civil War, but, as the author points out, the assertion was false--whether intentionally or inadvertently it is unclear. Campbell expressed rather tepid opposition to secession in 1861, arguing that Lincoln's election, in itself, was insufficient cause for the separation. But he stoutly defended the constitutional right of the South to go its own way. And when, in the spring of 1861, he attempted to find an alternative to secession, he argued that the Constitution should be amended to protect slavery in perpetuity, and that this amendment itself should be made unamendable.Was this moderation?
The author speaks often and admiringly of Campbell's great intelligence, but facts dropped here and there raise questions. Attending Lincoln's first inauguration, Campbell proclaimed the President "a conceited man" and condemned his address as "a stump speech" totally wanting in "dignity and decorum." And in a letter to Jefferson Davis he expressed the opinion that Lincoln was "light, inconstant, variable." Was Campbell intelligent? Certainly. But did he have good judgment?
It would have been interesting if the author had compared Campbell's decision to resign from the Supreme Court in 1861 to the decisions of John Catron and James Wayne to stay on the Court. All three were pro-slavery justices from states that seceded (Catron from Tennessee and Wayne from Georgia). But Campbell's loyalty was to Alabama, Catron's and Wayne's to the United States. The author ignores the decisions of Catron and Wayne, which would have added an interesting contrast to Campbell's.
The author's writing is uneven. In places, it is engaging and persuasive. In others, it is murky. In yet others it betrays a pro-Campbell bias that tends to undermine the principal arguments of the book. And someone (the author himself or a copy editor) should have checked the text more carefully. It is marred by more than an acceptable number of errors, some typographical, others more substantial.
Notwithstanding this criticism, I found this a useful book. It taught me a lot about Campbell, who was an important historical figure. Anyone who is interested in learning more about the tragic sequence of events that led up to the beginning of the Civil War can read it with profit.

Political biography of a Supreme Court justice and attorney.
John Archibald Campbell's life and political philosophy illustrate the difficulties that Southern moderates faced in developing and implementing asolution to the problems of slavery and secession.Campbell opposed bothslavery and secession. Campbell's legal gifts eventually led him topractice before the United States Supreme Court and subsequently to anappointment to the Supreme Court itself.During his service on the SupremeCourt Campbell opposed the Filibusterers in the New Orleans region, wrote aconcurring opinion in the Dred Scot case, and rejected nullification by thecourts of Wisconsin.As a moderate Campbell was vilified by both Southernfire-eaters and Abolitionist radicals. Campbell served eight years(1853-1861) on the Supreme Court before resigning to become an assistantsecretary in the Confederate War Department.After the war he practicedlaw in New Orleans where he eventually became the lead attorney in theSlaughterhouse Case.His views in this case prepared the way for the broadinterpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment in the Twentieth Century.Thisbook gives a very solid story of the life and labors of an important lawyerof the 19th Century. This political biography is the first full life ofJohn Archibald Campbell.It will be of great use to students of theSupreme Court, American history, and legal scholars as well as those whoenjoy good biography.It belongs in most libraries. ... Read more

Book Description

Outspoken and controversial, Stephen Field served on the Supreme Court from his appointment by Lincoln in 1863 through the closing years of the century. No justice had ever served longer on the Court, and few were as determined to use the Court to lead the nation into a new and exciting era. Paul Kens shows how Field ascended to such prominence, what influenced his legal thought and court opinions, and why both are still very relevant today.

One of the famous gold rush forty-niners, Field was a founder of Marysville, California, a state legislator, and state supreme court justice. His decisions from the state bench and later from the federal circuit court often placed him in the middle of tense conflicts over the distribution of the land and mineral wealth of the new state. Kens illuminates how Field's experiences in early California influenced his jurisprudence and produced a theory of liberty that reflected both the ideals of his Jacksonian youth and the teachings of laissez-faire economics.

During the time that Field served on the U.S. Supreme Court, the nation went through the Civil War and Reconstruction and moved from an agrarian to an industrial economy in which big business dominated. Fear of concentrated wealth caused many reformers of the time to look to government as an ally in the preservation of their liberty. In the volatile debates over government regulation of business, Field became a leading advocate of substantive due process and liberty of contract, legal doctrines that enabled the Court to veto state economic legislation and heavily influenced constitutional law well into the twentieth century. In the effort to curb what he viewed as the excessive power of government, Field tended to side with business and frequently came into conflict with reformers of his era.

Gracefully written and filled with sharp insights, Kens' study sheds new light on Field's role in helping the Court define the nature of liberty and determine the extent of constitutional protection of property. By focusing on the political, economic, and social struggles of his time, it explains Field's jurisprudence in terms of conflicting views of liberty and individualism. It firmly establishes Field as a persuasive spokesman for one side of that conflict and as a prototype for the modern activist judge, while providing an important new view of capitalist expansion and social change in Gilded Age America. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fascinating biography deserves a wide readership
Paul Kens has written a lively, entertaining, and scholarly intellectual biography of one of the most fascinating justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, Stephen J. Field. Kens traces Field's career from his days as a young attorney just landed in gold-rush-crazed San Francisco in 1849, to his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court less than fourteen years later, and on to the end of the century. Along the way, Kens discusses the political and economic events that shaped the thinking of Field and those with whom he did intellectual battle. Throughout, the book deals with an issue central to law in the economic realm: Does the economic power with which society might legitimately be concerned stem from government alone, or do other, private sources of power warrant a governmental response? Field clearly answered this question in one way, whereas for much of their history Americans have answered it in another. It may be a question that, every generation or so, Americans must answer anew....

Kens provides a balanced view. It would be easy to characterize Field as an apologist for the wealthy establishment--and he was so characterized by contemporary critics. But that characterization was not correct. Field's logic led him to take politically unpopular stands, especially with respect to issues of race, immigration, and corporate power. His concern about the potential abuse of government caused him to defend a strong role for federal judicial oversight of state legislation--recognizing that state legislatures might be even more likely than Congress to adopt special-interest legislation. ... Read more

Book Description

Earl Warren served as Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1953 until the end of the tumultuous 1960s. In The Warren Court, learn why conservative critics still view this court as revolutionary, out-of-control, and permissively leftist, while its liberal fans still cheer what they view as the court's progressive activism that secured--once and for all--the rule of law for all Americans. As relevant today as they were nearly half a century ago, the Warren Court's decisions remain with us today: the rights accorded to the accused in Miranda vs. Arizona, the limits placed on school prayer in the court's controversial religious decisions, and the abolition of school segregation in Brown vs. Board of Education. These are just a few of the Warren Court's controversial decisions analyzed here. ... Read more