This book is going to have special appeal for people from the rust-belt areas, particularly Detroit. (I am from Detroit, but my life was mostly se...moreThis book is going to have special appeal for people from the rust-belt areas, particularly Detroit. (I am from Detroit, but my life was mostly sedentary and when I needed money I was lucky to find computer work.)The book gave me a vicarious look into the factory milieu, and nostalgically into the lives of industrial workers. This had a somewhat romantic tinge to it. These are people who took a roller-coaster ride while the country's industrial base went downhill.
This is not a passionate book with compelling momentum. Rather, it is a compassionate chronicle done in a rather meandering style.
Poignantly, the people who built, maintained the factory were the ones who got the job of dismantling it, piece by piece, in the era of "globalization".
Some negative reviews I looked at had very superficial reasons for panning the book. One said it didn't meet the standard expected from a Jon Stewart recommendation. Now that's a howl!!!!!!
Another reviewer said that the book was confusing because it revisited certain sub-plots. In a book designed to be a trip down memory lane the rear-view mirror, I kind of like that reiterative style.
Let me start by pasting in my writeup on the author's book-signing in Tacoma, WA:
11/19/11 - Journalist and author Joshua Phillips ha...moreLet me start by pasting in my writeup on the author's book-signing in Tacoma, WA:
11/19/11 - Journalist and author Joshua Phillips has written a book about torture entitled “None of Us Were Like This Before: Reflections on American
Soldiers and Torture”. He delivered a lecture on 11/16 at the UW Tacoma campus, sponsored in part by VFP.
Lamenting the use of torture by American and allied forces in the “War on Terror”, Phillips wishes to promote deeper public discussion of the issue. He began his talk by referring to a recent Presidential debate in which Republican hopefuls promised to reinstate an official policy of torture. According to Phillips, public support for government-sanctioned torture has risen lately in the polls. Given this trend, he says, it is easy to see that a change in presidents or another 9-11 attack would likely result in a regression back to reinstatement.
Phillips discussed rationalizations used by torture apologists, who claim that torture is effective, that it has prevented terrorist attacks, and that its use by the US is limited. Phillips counters these claims on their own terms: Far from being an effective tool, torture is actually an impediment to intelligence gathering. It forces fake confessions, and destroys the trust between the intelligence community and the local populace. And there is no evidence to support the notion that a terrorist attack has been prevented through the use of torture.
The claim of limited US torture “use”, Phillips says, is a specious form of denial referring solely to the CIA waterboarding program, -- ignoring the widespread problem in the military forces.
Torture is employed by many governments, both despotic and democratic, but democracies, Phillips says, have learned to get away with torture by avoiding leaving marks and traces. His book, however, is not hypothetical, but a rigorous journalistic investigation incorporating testimony of involved soldiers and victims.
Several hundred incidents of torture involving US soldiers in the recent wars have been recorded, but Phillips’s research reveals a far bigger problem. Some of this activity was ordered by superiors, some encouraged or tolerated, and some in violation of regulations. The Bush administration’s non-compliance with Geneva accords. and other pro-torture memos, were a significant step toward loosening the taboo. But because of a leadership failure, US forces were already practicing torture before any of these authorizations.
As anyone can well imagine, the reasons for the spread of torture can vary considerably. In many cases, combat soldiers in the war zones were given responsibility of extracting “actionable” information from detainees, even though they had no training as interrogators. Detainees, not charged, were held under suspicion, often misinformed. Unrealistic deadlines were set for confessions, to extract information that didn’t exist, such as where the WMD’s were.
A lack of moral leadership in the command structure was a significant factor. Sometimes looking the other way was as harmful as giving explicit orders. “Soldiers didn’t need manuals or memos to lead them to torture,” says Philips. “US troops in Bagram tortured their prisoners in banal and crude ways, informed by myths and memory.” Motivation for torture can range from peer-pressure to anger (i.e. revenge for 9/11), and even boredom.
Witnesses who report on unsanctioned use of torture can expect to pay for their whistle-blowing. As an example, Phillips cites the case of the soldier who revealed the Abu Graib scandal: He was subject to subsequent death threats and had to be given a secret identity. This sent a powerful message out to anyone else inclined to come forward.
Soldiers involved in torture, Phillips says, typically are haunted by remorse and guilt which affects their mental health. Afraid to talk about their involvement, they have nowhere to turn, and are at high risk for depression, drug-addiction and suicide. Often, being able to talk about their experiences is therapeutic, but sometimes even that is not enough, as in the example of one soldier interviewed by Phillips who later took his own life.
In the lecture, Phillips preferred to confront the torture problem without widening the discussion to the overall evils of war. Some people in the audience seemed to disagree with this position. However, since many people who believe some wars, such as WWII, are justified, it is probably wise strategy to limit the focus to the issue of torture itself.
During the question-and-answer period, when Phillips stated that under the right circumstances, anyone could become a perpetrator, some in the audience took offence. But history has shown, from Nazi Germany through Vietnam and beyond, that ordinary people, in a paradigm of war or violence, can become involved in evil. This is the meaning of the soldier’s words that provided the title of the book.
I was not happy with this phrase book. I guess my background in foreign languages spoiled it for me. The pronunciation guide with its corny spelling w...moreI was not happy with this phrase book. I guess my background in foreign languages spoiled it for me. The pronunciation guide with its corny spelling was especially annoying and distracting. Words like "Kah-pree" -- really!
Plus there were no dialogues to give you a flavor of the language.
Obviously, there's a market for this book. But it's mythical to think you can learn this way.
I couldn't take this book. I went to the library and picked up a beginning Italian course.(less)
Note: I have an edition not listed on Goodreads: Samuel Clements "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Together with the Celebrated Jumping Frog of Cal...moreNote: I have an edition not listed on Goodreads: Samuel Clements "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Together with the Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County and Other Tales". - Edition: 1940 by the Book League of America
The typeface of this novel is a very enjoyable depression style which makes for pleasant reading.
This may be the third time I've read this book. True, visionary writing -- a literary gem. (less)
This book I found to be sophomoric, lacking any literary value. I was stunned by the vacuous pretentiousness -- the contrived banalities. All phoney. ...moreThis book I found to be sophomoric, lacking any literary value. I was stunned by the vacuous pretentiousness -- the contrived banalities. All phoney. I didn't finish the book. (less)
This was a well-crafted sketch depicting both the American Revolution and the modern tea-party movement. For me, this was just the right survey view t...moreThis was a well-crafted sketch depicting both the American Revolution and the modern tea-party movement. For me, this was just the right survey view that actually made historical facts interesting and enlightening. Done by a highly disciplined professional Harvard historian. I'm sure no one cares what I think or what books I read, but if they did, I would recommend this book.(less)
The edition I own is published by Henry Hold and introductiona and notes by Frank Vogel.
I picked this book up at a flee-market. I am an in...moreThe edition I own is published by Henry Hold and introductiona and notes by Frank Vogel.
I picked this book up at a flee-market. I am an intermediate-level German student, and wanted to have some entertaining short-length German literature to practice my German reading. I also liked the old German script. I was pleased with the narration.
In the author's mind, this tale began as a children's tale, and is now however considered a seminal fanstistical novella from the German romantic tradition. To call it simply a fairy-tale is to miss the deeper meaning the German fairy-tale, or "Maerchen". I found this work very interesting from a social-commentary standpoint, and it gives good insight into the mind of someone living back in 1814 along the French-German frontier and experiencing all the relevant upheaval of the time involving Napoleon, etc. (Commercial review below). Interesting about this book about a faustian bargain is that it touches upon ethnic stereotypes present in Germany at that time, particularly toward Jews. After reading the book, von Chamisso's attitude toward Jewry is not completely clear to me yet, but it was probably a product of its time, as we all are of course.
Note: At the beginning of the story, as he arrives in the country by boat, the protagonist makes a supplicant visit to the mysterious "Herr Thomas John", who with his great wealth reminds me of the Great Gatsby.
Commercial review (from the publisher above):
"Asked which book by another author he would most like to claim as his own work, Italo Calvino once said without hesitation, Adelbert von Chamisso's Peter Schlemiel. First published in 1814, this brilliant novel is not only a precursor of Poe, Kafka, and the magic realists - it is a timeless fable with a remarkably contemporary flavor. When a mysterious man in a gray coat asks Peter Schlemiel if he would sell him his shadow, that "lovely, lovely shadow" of his, he naturally thinks the man must be mad. But then the stranger makes him an offer he can't refuse. In return for his shadow, Schlemiel receives a neverending source of riches, and he is convinced he is on the road to happiness. Yet he finds that without a shadow he is rejected by society and unable to find the fulfillment of love. After a series of fantastic adventures, Peter Schlemiel realizes that he must discover a new way to give his life meaning if he is to go on in the world. Adelbert von Chamisso was born in France, but moved at an early age to Prussia, where he lived during the Franco-Prussian war. Chamisso felt that he belonged equally to both war-torn cultures. Peter Schlemiel was written soon after Prussia's defeat by Napoleon, and was Chamisso's answer to a world in turmoil. The novel was an immediate success, and it catapulted him to international fame."(less)
The book I bought was an 1893 edition published by Henry Holt and Company. Introduction, vocabulary (german-to-english), and notes were by Arthur Palm...moreThe book I bought was an 1893 edition published by Henry Holt and Company. Introduction, vocabulary (german-to-english), and notes were by Arthur Palmer.
Riehl was a specialist in historical prose, and this is a splendid example, bringing mid-1700's times into full life. It depicts the fictional aging (even then)Castle Neideck and its loving caretaker Phillipe Burg-Balzer. The story has sympathetic depictions of characters in various walks of life. Humor, social commentary, and sympathetic character-portrayal lend immense interest to this well-told tale.
The excellent vocabulary was done with meticulous care. The explanatory notes were interesting.
It is said that Riehl became somewhat of a leader in field of historically accurate prose, but I wouldn't be able to judge that.
I liked reading in the old Deutsche Schrift (German script).(less)
Jane Austen had an outstanding command of the English language and was a genius. Her novels set among gentry in early eighteenth-century England, have...moreJane Austen had an outstanding command of the English language and was a genius. Her novels set among gentry in early eighteenth-century England, have universal insights.(less)
African (victim) perspective on colonialism. A depressing book. The protagonist struggles to preserve his dying native African heritage, in the face o...moreAfrican (victim) perspective on colonialism. A depressing book. The protagonist struggles to preserve his dying native African heritage, in the face of an allegedly soulless French culturo-economic milieu, which he finds disenchanting, but can't escape. I can buy into that premise.
The book states contrary to what "people have wanted us to believe", Germans are not more racist by nature than any other European settlers.
In the epiloque a post-life experience is depicted, resembling, actually, the episode in Wilder's our "Our Town" play, which imagined dead people as continuing to experience life, but on a different plane. I can take it both ways: either as a literal expression of faith, or as a symbolic statement saying "Look! The dead have something to say to us."(less)
For me this was an important document. It's a chatty memoir that provides entertaining and informative commentary on the '60 scene and the emergence o...moreFor me this was an important document. It's a chatty memoir that provides entertaining and informative commentary on the '60 scene and the emergence of the folk-rock genre. In it are Dylan's appreciations of many colorful personalities of the past and contemporary music scene, who are brought to life here: Van Ronk, Woody Guthrie to Ricky Nelson, Bobby Vee, and countless other players, major and minor (no pun intended), that I never heard of.
Also, Dylan discusses the struggles of his musical development and the social costs of celebrity.
Occasionally Dylan demonstrates his old expressive power, as in his description of Andrew Jackson: "Old Hickory, Master of Bloody Deeds -- tall and rawboned...cantankerous, a backwoodsman, oppposed the Bank of the United States. At least he didn't drop bombs killing civilians and innocent children for the glory of his nations's honor. He wouldn't be going to hell for that."
The book has many digressions on many topics, from James Joyce to Homer, to New Orleans. It's encyclopedic, and probably ought to be indexed.
I could fault the sometimes glibness of opinions. For example, It struck me as odd when he states that Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata "sounded like a lot of burping and belching and other bodily functions." I'm not saying Beethoven can do no wrong. But virtually anything can be likened to biological functions, which are, actually, part of living. True, maybe that's just the way it hit Dylan, and he intended no offence.
However, Dylan's explanation of a new musical performance method, involving the use of odd numbers, seemed disjointed. It sounded positive, but I just didn't understand it. It was possibly gibberish.
And I was surprised when Dylan lavished so much praise on Charlie Daniels for the "Devil Went Down to Georgia," when everybody knows that this was taken from "Lonesome Fiddle Blues", the classic Vassar Clements tune.
Overall, though, I respect the accomplishments of this man, and I admire his talent and ambition.
This reader samples a wide variety of interesting Austrian literature, from classic fairy tales to serious literature, such as Kafka and Joseph Roth. ...moreThis reader samples a wide variety of interesting Austrian literature, from classic fairy tales to serious literature, such as Kafka and Joseph Roth. I have to admit the Kafka samples are quite depressing, and I wouldn't want to think in this vein for a long time, bordering on insanity. The fairy tales are great, and sound somehow more authentic in German, though that could just be a romanticization on my part.
I wasn't getting anywhere when I first got the book, but now it's easier. Maybe I have progressed?
The reader has no vocabulary - it's for all learners, not just English-speaking.
That's probably good, at my level. It makes me figure out meaning from context.(less)
The short novel was about everyday hardships of life in Germany after the country was ruined by Nazification and war.
Basically, the story...moreThe short novel was about everyday hardships of life in Germany after the country was ruined by Nazification and war.
Basically, the story is about an aging marital couple and their quest for positive values in a dark era. It's about how people can come together in chaotic times.
Here's a quote used on the book cover, in my somewhat clumsy translation:
"When two old people embrace, it may seem, to young people, if not unseemly, at least a bit laughable. But when the tenderness of youth radiates the happiness of both present and future, they embrace with all their memories and hopes of eternity."
This was a good book for intermediate German reading. I didn't have to use a dictionary much.(less)
But the book is astoundingly brilliant. The hero makes me think of D.'s "The Idiot", wherei...moreThe German is probably over my head.
But the book is astoundingly brilliant. The hero makes me think of D.'s "The Idiot", wherein the protagonist doesn't fit the usual expectations of a hero.
Some of the story is pretty ribald (?). There's an immediacy that cuts through conventional values, and that seems to be its point.(less)
This "memoir" is at least partially fictional. For example, it's unlikely that a psychiatrist, no matter how deranged, would have his daught...moreThis "memoir" is at least partially fictional. For example, it's unlikely that a psychiatrist, no matter how deranged, would have his daughter systematically preserve stool samples from him on the picnic table, and analyze their shape to discover divine advice.
And while it is believable that a psychiatrist would dedicate a room in his office for his own self-pleasuring, it is highly doubtful that he would call it his "Masturbatorium".
So as a memoir, the book falls short. When I think of memoir, I think of an honest record of recalled events, with a significant insight into the meaning of the events. Robert Louis Stevenson comes to mind (Did he write a memoir?).
The Polish writer, Maria Konopnicka, describing a chronicler, said "what he saw, what he heard, he recorded accurately, but what he did not see and did not hear he imagined so beautifully, that reading the book caused everyone's heart to blossom."
Well, that does not exactly fit Augusten Burroughs. However, I do believe that the most shocking parts of it did happen, in some form or other. The book is entertaining in a freaky way, dwelling sensationally on some of the most revolting aspects of sexual perversion, exploitation, child-abuse, drug-abuse, and other craziness. It shows us, in our face, the outrage of self-absorbed irresponsibility, and asks "why?". In that way it encourages us all to question ourselves and our motives, even if we think we are "normal".
Some of the character profiles are sophomoric, but I read the whole book.(less)
This gave me a good concept of who Susan Sontag was.
Her son published this diary posthumously.
Through the day-to-day diary ent...moreThis gave me a good concept of who Susan Sontag was.
Her son published this diary posthumously.
Through the day-to-day diary entries, mostly fragments, you get a good idea of her biography from the age of 17 to around 30.
Born in 1933, she was barely 17 when she started college.
Her early romantic and sexual relationships give me a good insight into feminist issues, and the issue of a woman's self-actualisation, starting with erotic experiences. Reflections on her sexual goals and frustrations are interspersed with philosophical, psychological ruminations.
According to Sontag, it seemed as though she and her lovers would [accidentally:] discover and read each others' diaries, and so she would write her diary with this in mind..Hmm.
Amid failed relationships, including her marriage, she offers unsparing portraits of the people trapped in them: The recurring themes of arguments, etc... In her bitter unflattering description of her ex-husband, I saw myself, unfortunately.
Note: I could not put this book down! An excellent documentation of the gentile who posed as a holocaust surviver and wrote a fake memoir entitled "...moreNote: I could not put this book down! An excellent documentation of the gentile who posed as a holocaust surviver and wrote a fake memoir entitled "Fragments: Memories of a Wartime Childhood". Other imposters are documented in the book also. The hoax was only discovered after he won awards and recognition from Jewish organizations. Shows how gullible people are.
The only thing I would have wanted is an index. In fact, I might go thru and make my own index.(less)
This is the first of three volumes, comprising a thorough historical study of the Jewish Holocaust. The author's method places high emphasis on docume...moreThis is the first of three volumes, comprising a thorough historical study of the Jewish Holocaust. The author's method places high emphasis on documentational evidence for his sources, but anectodal testimonials are not excluded.
Hilberg begins Volume I by explaining how a long European tradition of historical anti-semitism, social as well as legal, established a precedent and set the stage for the Nazi era.
He then proceeds to show us that creating the machinery of destruction entailed the heavy cooperation of all facets of German society: Civil Service, the Business Sector, the Army, and the Nazi Pary. (This is brought home by the wealth of official documents from various departments, an audit trail left behind by "normal" people.)
Next, Hilberg explores in detail the formation of the ghettos, concentration camps, and how their emergence varied according to location; How ghettoization and deportation were carried out in the Reich, in colonized areas, or in the occupied areas. Beginning experiments in gassing techniques are also documented.
After that, Volume I explores the "mobile killing operations", in which special commando units operated, seeking out victims and carrying out mass murders on the front lines during invasions, (1941-3?). (less)
Very entertaining and informative, for former Buffalonians, like myself. Interesting story of the Pan American Exhibition, its racism, the assassinati...moreVery entertaining and informative, for former Buffalonians, like myself. Interesting story of the Pan American Exhibition, its racism, the assassination of McKinley and its aftermath.
Good portrayal of the city's problems: The downhill trend of economic activity, -- bad luck exacerbated by poor planning: a microcosm of our nation; the story of to big-money stadium sports, corrupt political leadership -- corporate welfare leading to immense waste of resources.
At the same time, the city's great cultural life, the ethnic vitality, and the citizens' hopes and dreams and accomplishments are treated poignantly here.
The quality of critical analysis varies in this book. In one passage, Goldman states that in Buffalo there is an excess of government workers, that they are too highly paid, and that the taxes there are the highest ever, anywhere. These claims are backed up mostly by citations of libertarian screeds from the Buffalo News. In fact, in 2003 it would have been hard to tell an Erie County social worker that his department was over-staffed.
Ironically, Goldman castigates the News' bias elsewhere in the book.
Wonderful story-telling. Also, a master of English prose. The hero of the story is a "bad guy", and the author exposes negative, competitive...moreWonderful story-telling. Also, a master of English prose. The hero of the story is a "bad guy", and the author exposes negative, competitive thoughts in his head that anyone can probably find disturbingly familiar.
I suppose you could say also that some of the other characters, Farfrae and Elizabeth-Jane, were too goody to be true.
But that does not detract from Hardy's insight, narrative power, and literary expressiveness, which left me totally bowled over.
This is not the edition I read, but I didn't want to bother filling in the cumbersome goodreads form to add it manually.
Title translation: "Edward Abramowski, harbinger of 'Solidarity' (Times and Peoples, pub.")
Abramowski, a Polish political activi...moreTitle translation: "Edward Abramowski, harbinger of 'Solidarity' (Times and Peoples, pub.")
Abramowski, a Polish political activist and social theorist during the last days of the Czars.
In my naivete, I had always thought that communism in Poland didn't exist until it was brought there by the USSR. This biography brings to life the days of burgeoning Polish communist movement at the turn of the last century.
Abramowksi, breaking with the prevailing theorists of his time, saw communism as an unfolding creative outgrowth of human motivation, rather than as an ordained, inevitable progress of history.
At that time (turn of the last century), Poland was occupied by the Tsarists. Abramowski was a proponent of achieving Polish independence and self-reliance by organizing at the grass-roots level; forming local people's coops and communes to provide necessities -- thus bypassing the structures of the Czardom, and its successor, Russian communism.)
He felt that solidarity was a more practical resistance than armed struggle. Hence the title: "Abramowski, Harbinger of Solidarity".
This is a good view from inside the White House bubble, from the experience of the White House Press Secretary, who actually was a career politico wit...moreThis is a good view from inside the White House bubble, from the experience of the White House Press Secretary, who actually was a career politico with roots in Texas. Initially impressed by his entry into the inner circles, he eventually becomes disillusioned.
I think liberals should give McClellan credit for stepping out of the party line. McClellan does clearly admit that the Bush administration misled us into the Iraq war ("What I do know is that war should only be waged when necessary, and the Iraq war was not necessary").
True, he may not appreciate the tremendous consequences of the Iraq adventure, -- but then again, the guilt could be too much to bear.
The book includes a discussion of the Plane affair, and other tricks. In at least two instancess, the author expresses the deep sting of being deceived by Rove, and even the President himself.
It's interesting that McClellan thinks that the "culture of deception" has some roots in the behavior of the Clinton administration. Food for thought.(less)
These are well-crafted tales, that often bring in Mann's autobiographical persona, but sometimes involve other themes as well. The stories are arrange...moreThese are well-crafted tales, that often bring in Mann's autobiographical persona, but sometimes involve other themes as well. The stories are arranged chronologically by date-written.
The very earliest one, the anecdotal "Vision", is a cerebral attempt to record one's own unconscious while being awake at the same time (is it possible?). Maybe this was some form of self-hypnosis! (I remember Salvator Dali claimed to have the power to experience dream images while remaining in a conscious state, although I don't believe that is possible..Hey, you never know!)
By contrast, other stories in the collection can be quite emotion-laden, such as the one entitled "Der Wille Zum Gluck." (The Will to Happiness). First I didn't know what the title implied -- it sounded dry. But it was about the intensity of true love, which defines its own happiness. Romantic love triumphs outweighs all obstacles. This story brings home that truth.
Another love-story, "Gefallen" (Fallen), was an astoundingly accurate portrayal of a young man's powerful striving for romantic love: Physical attraction, akin to spiritual passion; extreme iconization, and eventual loss and despair. Reading this, I remembered the adolescent obsessions of youth.
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