Bentley's comments (member since Sep 03, 2008)

Bentley's comments from the The History Book Club group.

Thank you all for your adds.

Welcome Hannah..we like our members to be at least 13 years of age. Are you over 13? You mentioned that you were a young reader.

Bentley

More to be added.

This will be a read only thread. Nominations should be made on the Nominations thread.

These are the books that have been recommended to date: (1-15)

1. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

2. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

3. Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes

4. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo

5. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

6. Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak

7. Ivanhoe by Walter Scott

8. The Man Who Made Vermeers Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren by Jonathan Lopez
(moved to non fiction list)

9. The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara

10.Richard II by William Shakespeare

11. The Cid, Cinna, The Theatrical Illusion by Pierre Corneille

12. The Name of the Rose Including Postscript by Umberto Eco

13. Rob Roy by Walter Scott

14. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

15 Ben Hur A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace

Everyone, there will be a series of polls which will help prioritize all of the recommendations made for historical fiction selections. Without your help, it would be very difficult to tell which ones are the most interesting to you. There will be more than one poll which you will have to vote on at the same time.

First, is HISTORICAL FICTION POLL A. Please go to this poll and make one selection.

http://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/26578...

This will be the thread to keep track of current and upcoming polls related to historical fiction.

For now it is on the back burner (smile)

Yes folks a lot of great ideas. I will put together the specialized "historical fiction" reading list based upon input from all of you. All of your selections will be on there. We will have polls and vote on these selections which will be prioritized by votes. When additional recommendations are made, we will add them to the potential and separate "historical fiction" reading list and also place them in a poll to see how much interest there is in some of these selections.

Thank you for your input and I am sure that Elizabeth appreciates it.

This folder will contain books for the historical fiction discussions and will be all voted upon by the group. The historical fiction selection discussions (3 a year) will be led by Elizabeth who is assisting me; she wanted to help out the group which is terrific; because it helps make a separate "historical fiction" discussion possible.

The History Club's primary focus however was, is and continues to be non fiction.

Any member can ask for a buddy read and I will set up a thread for you within the historical fiction folder.

Bentley

Joe wrote: "I guess the caning of Senator Charles Sumner would be a great example of one thing that helped raise tensions that was a direct result of the the Kansas-Nebraska Act."

Yes, I would see it that way too.

Thank you Neil for giving so many of the back up details. It makes judgement of the decision that much more difficult.

I understand the point you are making.

And your avatar is a perfect one for goodreads.

Joe wrote: "The Caning of Senator Charles Sumner

One of the most violent episodes in congressional history took place in this chamber on May 22, 1856. The Senate was not in session when South Carolina Represe..."

The above came up on a talk show that Doris Kearns Goodwin was participating in and she told the story above; I think the timing related to Joe Wilson and his outburst. Of course, Preston Brooks was substantially much much worse. Poor Sumner, he must have suffered post traumatic stress disorder from the entire event...it took him three years before he could come back.

Wikipedia article with even more of the sordid details:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Sum...

It seems the Richmond Enquirer praised the caning and said that should occur every morning. Such were the times.

But Sumner did have his part in this;

"In 1856, during the Bleeding Kansas crisis when "border ruffians" approached Lawrence, Kansas, Sumner denounced the Kansas-Nebraska Act in the "Crime against Kansas" speech on May 19 and May 20, two days before the sack of Lawrence.

Sumner attacked the authors of the act, Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois and Andrew Butler of South Carolina, comparing Butler to Don Quixote and Douglas to Sancho Panza.

Sumner said Douglas (who was present in the chamber) was a "noisome, squat, and nameless animal ... not a proper model for an American senator."

He also portrayed Butler as having taken "a mistress who, though ugly to others, is always lovely to him; though polluted in the sight of the world, is chaste in his sight—I mean, the harlot, Slavery."

Sumner's three-hour oration later became particularly personally insulting as he mocked the 59-year-old Butler's manner of speech and physical mannerisms, both of which were impaired by a stroke that Butler had suffered earlier."

It was a rough period in those days. Hazardous to your health.

Richard Nixon: Cambodian Incursion Address

Delivered: 30 April 1970 from Washington, DC

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches...

Video from Miller Center: (Scripps Library)

http://millercenter.org/scripps/archive/...

This was Richard Nixon's resignation address:

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches...

Delivered August 8, 1974

Video from Miller Center: (Scripps Library)

http://millercenter.org/scripps/archive/...

Hi Neil,

I mentioned that book in message 78. There was a video url which I also posted which I found which was interesting.

Interesting also that you did not think that Ike's decision was a mistake. I do see your point about the greater problem (the Soviet Union) and the potential of the SU taking over absolute power in the Middle East. All good historic facts..getting rid of the one minor problem to avoid having to face a colossal one (the Soviet Union).

I do see your arguments but I wonder if the saying two wrongs don't make a right could also be a counter argument. It is so difficult sometimes to understand motivations after the fact.

I just feel uncomfortable when the US is involved with regime changes. And I do agree with the fact that we are still paying for the consequences of Ike's decisions.

Love your avatar.

Bentley

This is the New York times article at the time of Lincoln's assassination:

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-fre...

This was published on April 18, 1865

Bryan wrote: "Hi Bentley:

It was fun. It was not crowded and the weather was good. I will try to post pictures soon. It was your typical upper-middle class house with all the Victorian trimmings. I also wal..."

That sounds like a great trip..too bad you did not have time to go through the Musuem and library. Would love to see the photos..I also had no inclination that Mary had migraines and a separate bedroom (that might have been the practice in those days) - although Eleanor and FDR certainly had theirs.

Thanks for posting the book on Mary; I had wondered how the trip went.

Hamilton in Federalist 7 refers to:

"Those who had an opportunity of seeing the inside of the transactions which attended the progress of the controversy between this State and the district of Vermont, can vouch the opposition we experienced, as well from States not interested as from those which were interested in the claim; and can attest the danger to which the peace of the Confederacy might have been exposed, had this State attempted to assert its rights by force."

The New Hampshire Grants:

This was a land dispute between states exacerbated by Benning Wentworth:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshi...

A little bit about Benning Wentworth who created this hornet's nest and made quite a bit of money from these deals:

http://www.virtualvermont.com/history/bw...

I guess the printer Samuel Loudon also printed New York money:

http://www.coins.nd.edu/ColCurrency/Curr...

And a book store:

http://openlibrary.org/b/OL14614573M/Thi...

An interesting blog by someone who claims that Loudon was their ancestor:

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/cali-yos...

The First Newspapers:

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topi...

Bryan,

How was Lincoln's home; you said that you were visiting Springfield? (message 27)

Bentley

Yes Andre...but I hope everyone places them on the right thread (smile).

All kidding aside, we are thrilled to have our new members.

Bentley