Persepolis

Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi (2004)

Originally published in French in 2000, Satrapi’s Persepolis draws from the author’s own story of growing up in Iran during the time of the Islamic revolution and the bloody war with Iraq.

Born into a socially progressive family, Satrapi is ten years old when Islamic fundamentalists take over all aspects of Iranian society from schools to dress codes. The author was not unlike many of her generation, who were weary of the corruption and scandals during the U.S.-backed Shah administration. However, for free thinkers like Satrapi, the revolution presents even more challenges.

The author presents herself as an outspoken and occasionally rebellious young woman. She is expelled from school following a physical altercation with a severe principal. Still more frightening is her description of a harrowing encounter with a women’s branch of the Guardians of the Revolution, a group of loyalists that were dispatched to the streets to enforce codes of dress and behavior. Young Marji is stopped, harassed, and cited for numerous violations of these rules. In spite of her Western dress, she is somehow able to avoid detention.

The most remarkable feature of the book is the author’s ability to inject humor into an often gravely serious situation. Much of Satrapi’s childhood is consumed with fears that a friend or family member will be executed, or that her block will be flattened by a Soviet-built Scud missle coming from Iraq. (Sadly, a close friend of hers is killed in this way.) In spite of these horrors, there are many light moments in this volume.

Also important is the format that Satrapi chooses, the graphic novel. One hopes that young people will be more motivated to read this important story in a visually appealing package. Strongly recommended for teens to adults.

Honky

Honky, by Dalton Conley (2000)

Conley writes of his experiences growing up white in an overwhelmingly black and Hispanic housing complex. Much of this memoir reads more like the sociologist he would eventually become than the child who grew up as a minority in a poor neighborhood.

From a young age, Conley relates that he was aware of the many advantages that his race gave him. Indeed, after he attends an area school—in which he is the only white student—his parents game the educational system and enroll their son in a school in Greenwich Village.

The clash of cultures looms larger in Conley’s life as his new friends begin to ask about coming to his apartment. The author relates his embarrassment about his neighborhood and his contempt for his less fortunate neighbors as he gets older and begins to focus on his own academic future.

In spite of the book’s title, Conley only relates one incident in which the title epitaph is used against him. He also only describes one instance during which he worried for his own safety in his old lower East Side neighborhood.

The climax of young Dalton’s story is the shooting and maiming of his black friend, Jerome. Conley’s parents make the decision to leave the old neighborhood for subsidized housing in a better part of town.

Dalton’s memoir doesn’t read like a personal account as much as a sociological elucidation of the events that shaped his young life. In spite of this fact, it is still an interesting, quick read. Recommended.

Mississippi Sissy

Mississippi Sissy, by Kevin Sessums (2007)

Sessums writes his extraordinary personal story of growing up in the Deep South in the 1960s and 1970s. The author loses both of his parents at an early age and ends up in the care of his grandparents, who struggle to raise a young man who seems to have so little in common with those around him.

The author’s father is a star athlete, which puts greater strain on the effeminate Kevin. One of Sessums’ earliest memories is of one of his father’s coaching assistants making snide remarks about him in the locker room after a game. It is the boy’s mother who encourages him to embrace who he truly is and to not worry about the frequent name calling to which he is subjected.

Compounding Sessums’ struggles to find himself are some disturbing encounters with men who take advantage of the boy. The author is victimized by a prominent pastor and, on another occasion, by another man in a public restroom. Young Kevin struggles with what it means to love and be loved, in addition to the hardship of being a gay person in a society that is anything but supportive of the concept.

One of the more interesting aspects of the book is Sessums’ association with Eudora Welty and her circle of friends in Jackson. The young man finds strength and support from this group, especially from doomed cultural critic Frank Hains.

The author spares few details in describing some of his early sexual experiences, which may make for challenging reading, but Sessums' story is often moving and hard to put down. Recommended for adult readers.

Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid

Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, by Jimmy Carter (2006)

The former president, who has been engaged in Middle East politics for nearly 35 years, casts a spotlight on the ongoing conflict between Israel and her neighboring states. While Carter acknowledges that there has been tension in this region since the beginning of recorded history, he ties most of the current conflict to the 1967 Six-Days War and its aftermath.

It was this round of hostilities that resulted in Israel’s occupation of the Golan Heights, the West Bank and other territories. Carter turns repeatedly to U.N. Resolution 242, passed six months after the Six-Day War, which calls for the “withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict.”

The same resolution calls for “termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgement of the sovereignty… of every State in the area and their right to live in peace…” In other words, it asserts the right of Israel to exist. But Carter cites what are, in his view, numerous Israeli violations of Resolution 242 and subsequent decrees. The end results of these actions have been to geographically and economically isolate the Palestinian people, and to stall the peace process. At the same time, Israeli civilians have continued to settle in occupied lands, which has further fanned the flames of hatred and distrust between the two sides.

The former president describes the multi-pronged offensive Israel has waged against her neighbors as often excessive. With American military backing and the U.S.’ permanent presence on the U.N. Security Council, Carter challenges Americans who have tended to look the other way when Israel ignored international agreements. While the view of Israel as a Goliath in this sensitive region is more common in Europe and much of the Middle East, it’s clear that a number of American critics took issue with this charge by the former president.

Whether or not one agrees with the author’s conclusions, Carter’s short book is an excellent brief history of the conflict in the region and should be required reading for anyone looking to gain a better understanding of this troubled land. Highly recommended.

All Guts and No Glory

All Guts and No Glory: An Alabama Coach’s Memoir of Desegregating College Athletics, by Bill Elder (2007)

Elder was born in Alabama but also grew up in Ohio, where his father moved his family to pursue business opportunities. He would later return to the south at the start of his career in college athletics.

The author had a keen eye for racial segregation early on, often asking questions of his parents that they didn’t want to answer. Elder recalls attending a Birmingham Barons baseball game at Rickwood Field, during which he asked his father why there were separate seating arrangements for blacks and whites. Compounding the schizophrenia of the segregated south, blacks and whites were allowed to sit together in the same facility when they attended games played by the Negro League Birmingham Black Barons.

As a sophomore in college, Elder returned to the south to attend school at Howard (now Samford) University. He then earned a master’s degree at the University of Tennessee. The second half of this book recalls the author’s experiences at newly opened Northeast Junior College.

By the end of three seasons, Elder had established a record of 53 wins and 22 losses. This is all the more impressive since he served as a department head, athletics director, and intramurals director in addition to his duties as Head Basketball Coach at Northeast. While he had built a strong program at the school, he still coached an all-white squad.

It was at this point that Elder was asked by the university president to begin recruiting black basketball players. While he received assurances that he would have the full support of school administration, the author quickly found himself alienated among a faculty that were clearly uncomfortable with an integrated athletics program.

Worse for the coach and his young players was the reaction of the broader community, who made it clear on a number of occasions that they did not appreciate black student-athletes. Elder’s struggles to coach in this hostile environment comprise the most compelling pages of this short autobiography.

I was disappointed that more time wasn’t given to Elder’s time after the integration at Northeast. One gets the sense that even over thirty-five years it is not a topic the author enjoys revisiting. In spite of this, I found it a captivating account throughout. Highly recommended.

Strapped

Strapped: Why America’s 20- and 30-Somethings Can’t Get Ahead, by Tamara Draut (2006)

Draut, a fellow at Dēmos, a New York City-based think tank, describes the challenges facing the age group often referred as Generation X. Her book paints a dismal economic picture for today’s 20- and 30-somethings.

The author describes a debt-for-diploma system that has not only required students to take out large loans but has priced college out of reach for many. The average student now graduates with $20,000 in debt, a figure that rises to $45,000 for those who chose to go to graduate school. This economic reality stands in stark contrast to that of the World War II and Baby Boomer generations, who were more likely to obtain federal grants and graduate with little or no debt.

Today’s generation often accumulates more than student loan debt. Draut describes how deregulation in the credit card industry has led to a new wave of credit offers to those who are younger and less financially secure. The author describes a generation that relies increasingly on credit cards to finance car repairs and other emergency expenses.

Draut describes the phenomenon of dwindling pay for workers in her chapter “Paycheck Paralysis.” With a large percentage of today’s women in the workforce, the author expounds on the fact that it now takes two incomes to reach the major milestones of home ownership and having a child even as these goals could be accomplished with one income forty years ago.

After devoting the first three quarters of her book to describing these economic challenges, Draut explores why this generation doesn’t demand more of their government in helping them live a better life. Former president Ronald Reagan’s influence and his insistence that “government isn’t the solution, it is the problem,” are cited as major reasons that today’s 18 to 34-year-olds are more likely to blame themselves for their shortcomings than to point to failing public policy.

The author often refers to the stereotypes of Generation X as being slackers at the office and as being irresponsible with their money, although she rarely tells her reader from where these criticisms originate. Even so, Draut has told a story that many younger readers will find all too familiar. Although her book is long on describing problems and short on solutions, it is an engaging read. Strongly recommended.

Grace (Eventually)

Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith, by Anne Lamott (2007)

Lamott’s latest book is a collection of essays, mostly republished from other sources. Her take on faith and spirituality was not what this reviewer expected, although it probably should have been: it is the first of her books I have read.

Because the essays here were originally written to stand by themselves, the repeated themes—her addictions and her contempt for George W. Bush—are initially tiresome. Those unfamiliar with Lamott’s liberal politics will almost certainly not make it past the first pages.

As the title suggests, Lamott’s quirky and sometimes humorous observations grew on this reviewer (eventually), even as I felt that I was getting something that was radically different from what I expected. Even for one who agrees with her politics it is a challenging read: her retelling of a misspent youth, which includes the aforementioned struggles with addiction and an abortion, is hardly the stuff one expects to read in a book on faith.

But as the words go by it becomes apparent that for Lamott, there is little if no separation between her politics, her past experiences, and her religious faith. The author often comes across as neurotic and fragile, and as a person who is frequently buoyed by her beliefs.

Lamott bears all in this slim volume, and while this reviewer generally doesn’t care for writing that so overtly seems to double as therapy for its creator, it’s hard to deny that there are some kernels of wisdom here.

Unfortunately, because this book so often treads into the political, it will be off-putting to those who disagree with the author on that score. Fans of Lamott will cheer and ask for more.

The World Without Us

The World Without Us, by Alan Weisman (2007)

Weisman sets out to examine what would happen to the earth and its natural systems if humans were suddenly gone from the planet. From the beginning, it is a fascinating proposition: what are the consequences of human activity and what vestiges of human existence will last far beyond our time on the planet?

To answer the question of how the earth would fare without us, the author explores what humans are doing to the planet now. Weisman uses the example of 30-year-old abandoned buildings in Varosha, a resort on the island of war-torn Cyprus, to predict what will become of the architecture that man has constructed.

Far more worrisome are the toxic hotspots that we will leave behind. Some of the chemicals used to create bombs, missiles, and other destructive hardware will endure for hundreds of thousands of years, if not longer. The world’s 441 nuclear reactors have produced spent uranium fuel rods that have a half-life of 4.5 billion years. Incredibly, animals have returned to places such as the Chernoybl site in Ukraine, and there is evidence that nature is already finding ways to adapt to new realities.

What could become of facilities such as petroleum refineries as well as the nuclear plants is covered here. If abandoned, the nuclear facilities would certainly overheat and spill radioactivity into the air, a sequence of events that would have consequences for the planet—and all of its remaining inhabitants—for the rest of its existence.

Expertly researched and written, Weisman’s effort is aided by a number of naturalists, engineers, and other experts throughout. The author has done an excellent job of presenting scientific issues in a way that the layman can read and appreciate. This book should have a place in all library collections. Strongly recommended.

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, by Stephen King (2000)

King has written a short biographical tale of his life as a writer. The story begins with his first memories of growing up in a single parent household with his mother and brother David. He regales the reader with powerful stories of his childhood illness to hysterically funny accounts of his neglectful, if not psychotic, babysitter.

As a only masterful storyteller can, King pulls at the reader’s heartstrings with his gripping story of a sick child suffering the painfully long needles poked in his ears. His retelling of this story has the reader sitting at the edge of their seat quickly turning the pages so we will know if the small child will be able to hear after the procedure.

King takes us back to the struggle his family endured because of their abandonment by his father. We fall in love with the little boy who had to undergo so much hardship with only his brother and his imagination for friends. Once we are hooked he continues his story with a man’s long struggle to make it into the world of writers.

We are then introduced into the world of writing, editing, submitting, and rejecting. King goes on to describe his life and various writing jobs. He tells us about his failures as well as successes. One example is a magazine submission he made to the late Alfred Hitchcock when he was still a child. Through the young King’s eyes we can envision Hitchcock’s matter-of-fact notes on King’s manuscript.

King’s moving account of a writer’s life offers warmth and encouragement. This reviewer would urge those who wish to become a writer of any kind to read this book. Highly recommended for all audiences.

Jane Fonda's Words of Politics and Passion

Jane Fonda's Words of Politics and Passion, ed. by Mary Hershberger (2006)

This collection of Fonda’s writings and speeches spans over 30 years and includes transcripts of the actor/activist’s broadcasts for Radio Hanoi.

Many readers past a certain age will know Fonda for her vocal opposition to the war in Vietnam, but far fewer will know of her work to curb teen pregnancy. She speaks often of her efforts with The Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention, which she founded in 1995.

Fonda seems to have come full circle with her feminist ideals. Her opposition to Vietnam came relatively late in the course of that conflict and coincided with her discovery that in the course of pursuing her career as an entertainer, she had allowed herself to be made over to meet others notions of what she should look like. By the early 70s, she seems to have reached the conclusion that America was being lied to about Vietnam. At the same time, she felt as though she had been living a lie. Ever aware of how long it took her to find her own voice, Fonda continues to work on a number of efforts to elevate the status of women in society.

The writings in this collection are well chosen and, because they are smartly arranged, they follow the arc of Fonda’s political and philosophical development. It’s hard to disagree with much of what she says, with the exception of one passage in which the activist suggests that the way to deal with Osama bin Laden is to sit him down and talk to him. (It is this reviewer’s opinion this statement places her other ideas—most of them perfectly valid—in jeopardy.)

Whatever one thinks of Fonda as a political figure, this is a well-edited volume of words from an important voice in American life. It should have a place in most academic and public library collections.

Thura's Diary

Thura's Diary: My Life in Wartime Iraq, by Thura Al-Windawi (2004)

Less than a week before the American invasion of Iraq, 19-year-old Thura Al-Windawi began writing her thoughts about what was happening to herself, her family, and her country. She somehow managed to write almost every day for next two months, at the same time coalition forces swiftly gained control of Baghdad and the rest of Iraq. It was also during this time that her family fled from their home in the heart of Baghdad for the countryside, although they were able to return in the weeks after the defeat of Saddam's Army.

In spite of the Iraqi propaganda machine, Thura is well aware of the political situation within her country. When, after the arrival of coalition forces in the capital the Information Minister claims that the Americans are losing, it is obvious to everyone that they are not. The young woman laments the loss of her people and their homeland.

As is well known now, the American occupation doesn’t lead to a more stable Iraq, and Thura finds her life after Saddam as uncertain as it was before. As time goes on, she finds herself able to go out even less than before the conflict, as emboldened extremists begin to detain women who don’t completely cover their bodies; it is not uncommon women to be captured and even killed. Al-Windawi's anger shifts from the Americans toward her own countrymen in the midst of the looting and destruction of the country’s greatest treasures.

Of course, Thura is most concerned with her own family throughout this tumultuous account. The clan’s situation is especially difficult as her younger sister is diabetic and needs insulin. Much of Thura’s time is spent helping her mother clean the walls of soot left by oil fires that blanket the city. She expresses her desire to go out and help her neighbors, which is now an impossible task. Above all, Thura wants to return to some sense of normalcy.

Al-Windawi’s diary is a poignant firsthand account of life in Iraq during the war. While there are a few descriptions of the horrors of war, there’s nothing here that is too upsetting for the recommended age group of eighth grade and up. Younger readers should be able to deal with the material as well, with some adult supervision.

Don't Tell Mom I Work on the Rigs

Don't Tell Mom I Work on the Rigs: She Thinks I'm a Piano Player in a Whorehouse, by Paul Carter (2005)

Paul Carter's short biography primarily concerns his travels, often to remote corners of the earth, as a worker on oil rigs. The author and his co-workers work hard and live hard, and their stories are sometimes hard to believe and often laugh-out-loud funny.

The author was born in England to his mother and a stern father, a navigator in the Royal Air Force. His early childhood was not a happy one and the mother would later move with her children to Scotland. Still later, following a job opportunity for his mother's new boyfriend, the family moved to Australia.

Carter's career in the oil industry started in Western Australia but would later took him to Brunei, The Philippines, Vietnam, Japan, and many other places. He writes about the challenges of traveling in dangerous places like Nigeria. In some places, the rigs themselves are attacked by locals with muskets, or worse, shoulder-launched missiles.

If rigging is a rough life for men, animals often fare even worse. Carter writes of co-workers maimed and killed working on the rigs. Readers who are readily squeamish should also know that a number of animals meet a violent end in this short book. Even so, the author has produced a compact, authentic, and often hilarious volume that should appeal to a wide array of readers.

What Color is Your Jockstrap?

What Color is Your Jockstrap?: Funny Men and Women Write from the Road, ed. By Jennifer L. Leo (2006)

Leo returns with another installment in the Travelers’ Tales series. The book provides laughs even in the short introduction, as the editor recalls another parody title from a previous volume, The Thong Also Rises. Other titles from the series include Whose Panties Are These?, and There’s No Toilet Paper on the Road Less Traveled.

Leo’s latest collection includes over 35 stories, all written by different authors about their adventures and misadventures experienced while away from home. The tales themselves are as diverse as the locales, from China to thousands of miles above the earth.

Frequent air travelers will appreciate Susan Orlean’s short “Skymalling,” an appropriately titled piece about the popular in-flight catalog. Writes Orlean, “Skymall is the land of products I never think I want, serving needs I never thought I had, and which I can’t quite bring myself to buy but can’t help considering once they have been brought to my attention.”

The reader is reminded that there are often many bumps in road while traveling: Bill Fink writes about his challenges with some particularly severe innkeepers while traveling in Italy in “The Hostile Hostel.” Scott Turner pens a hilarious essay whose title is borderline unbloggable—suffice it to write that it concerns the challenges of dealing with a municipal sewage utility in Eastern Africa. (Full disclosure: the reviewer knows Turner professionally.)

Those who enjoy the thrill of the hunt (for a mate, that is) may enjoy Sara R. Levine’s racy account of bar hopping in “Hip-Hop Hustle, Oaxaca-Style.” A less provocative tale of romance on the road is Kayla Allen’s “Making Eyes in Paris.”

Of course, not all trips are to idyllic locales. In “Trying Hard to Like India,” Seth Stevenson writes of the difficulty of enjoying the destination while being constantly confronted by people in poverty. Tamara Sheward recalls her ill-advised trip to a war zone in “Day Trip to Chechnya.” In spite of the subject matter even these tales have moments of comic relief.

Obviously, this is not a book for the whole family, but for the adult reader who isn’t put off by the quirky or risqué there are a lot of laughs to be had here.

Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer

Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer, by Warren St. John (2004)

Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Warren St. John knows plenty about the fanaticism that surrounds college football in the Deep South. Like millions there, he grew up idolizing the life and career of "Bear" Bryant, even meeting the legendary coach once. His younger years coincided with a period of domination for the Alabama program, fueling his love for his team and the game.

Now a writer in New York, St. John decides to explore the question, "What is it about sports that turns otherwise sane, rational people into raving lunatics?" To answer the question, he takes a leave from his regular work, buys an ailing RV, and spends a season with the most hardcore fans, who comprise the tailgating scene. What he finds surprises even him, at times.

We are introduced to the Reeses, a couple who skipped their daughter's wedding because the date coincided with a game (although they did make it to the reception.) We also meet Don Cole, the Heart Guy, who in spite of being on the list for a heart transplant, defies his doctor's orders to travel to as many games as he can get to.

While the book offers hilarious accounts of many of these characters, these fans are more than crazed caricatures. We really get to know some of them, like Jerral Johnson, the Show Chicken Man. Johnson is a former businessman, who is living a second life with prize chickens and Alabama football as his twin passions. He's recently lost his old football buddy to heart failure.

We also meet John Ed Belvin, the ticket scalper - - er, ticket broker - - who alternately makes a killing and takes a shelling off of playing the Alabama ticket futures game.

Of interest to many in the South will be the time the author spent with sports columnist and radio announcer Paul Finebaum, the quintessential curmudgeon of the Crimson Nation. St. John describes the many precautions Finebaum must take, as he is frequently concerned about his personal safety.

The author straddles two worlds, which makes for an interesting cultural study. But while he references scholarly work on the psychology of crowds, he never loses his everyman focus. He pokes fun at how many of the fans butcher the English language, but he can get away with it as he is a native son.

In large part because St. John is such a skillful writer, this enjoyable book will appeal to fans and non-fans alike. The author has found the universal elements of his subjects and their humanity - - sometimes funny, sometimes disappointing, and occasionally disturbing - - shines through on every page.

Originally reviewed Fall 2004

Journey from the Land of No

Journey from the Land of No: A Girlhood Caught in Revolutionary Iran, by Roya Hakakian (2004)

The last few years have seen a number of accounts of life in Iran around the time of the Islamic Revolution of 1979. All of these memoirs view the events of that tumultuous period from a unique perspective. Azar Nafisi describes the crackdown at universities and the challenges of teaching Western literature to her students in Reading Lolita in Tehran. In Even After All This Time, Afschineh Latifi writes about her escape from and eventual return to Iran. Journey from the Land of No details the experiences of a young girl and her family before and after the reign of the U.S.-backed Shah.

Hakakian was born into a Jewish family 12 years before the revolution. Even as a young child, Roya is challenged by her poet father and her talented older brothers to think for herself. The reader follows the author as she becomes more aware of the world around her and discovers what it means to be a religious minority in an overwhelmingly Muslim country.

The author shares a number of newfound insights, such as when she learns that she cannot replace a young boy as song leader in her synagogue because she is a girl. Other scenes, such as the first time she finds a swastika scrawled beside a line of street graffiti, are truly chilling. Each chapter brings new tensions, along with increasing evidence that society has become increasingly hostile toward Jews and women in general.

A radical interpretation of Islamic law becomes the new order in Iran at a time when the war with Iraq is in full force. Writes Hakakian, “With hundreds of thousands killed in the war, grief and vengeance were the only feelings the public could safely express, all that we felt anyway. With every street renamed, the city's grid had become a map of morbidity, pointing to doom in all directions. Every address was an intersection of death and an ayatollah.”

Of the three books mentioned in this review, Journey is the most accessible, which is not to say that the writing is inadequate to the task. Hakakian is an accomplished storyteller who has produced an absorbing account of her youth. Readers will find themselves pulling for young Roya and wanting to read more about her transit to America. Highly recommended.

A Man Without a Country

A Man Without a Country, by Kurt Vonnegut (2005) [audio book edition, read by Norman Dietz]

Vonnegut's latest book took five years to write and while it might not be coming as quickly as it once did, the author still has good stuff.

Part memoir, part stand-up routine, part political diatribe, this is a book readers will love or hate. Vonnegut pays homage to his roots as a humanist and a socialist. He worships the likes of Eugene Debs, once Socialist Party candidate for President, who hails from his home state of Indiana. Contrasting Karl Marx's passion for workers' rights with the U.S. policy of legalized slavery he asks the question: "Who do you imagine was more pleasing in the eyes of a merciful God back then, Karl Marx or the United States of America?"

The first three-quarters of the book is classic Vonnegut: contemplative at one moment and gut-busting funny a page later. Referring to the U.S. Surgeon General's warnings on packs of cigarettes, the author declares his intention to sue the Brown & Williamson tobacco company for not following through on its promise to kill him. "I am now eighty-two," he writes. "Thanks a lot, you dirty rats. The last thing I ever wanted was to be alive when the three most powerful men on the whole planet would be named Bush, Dick and Colon."

Some of the last pages veer more toward his angry side, at times featuring liberal use of the f-bomb. At a few points I found it just a bit tiresome as he sounded more of a curmudgeon. Still, a large chunk of this book is right on good stuff. And when Vonnegut's giving you his best, it's really magic.

Love him or hate him, Vonnegut is a cultural icon who brings his unique take on life, love and politics one more time.

Originally reviewed 1/9/06

Air Ball

Air Ball: American Education’s Failed Experiment with Elite Athletics, by John R. Gerdy (2006)

Gerdy has seen college athletics from every angle. He played basketball at the college and professional level, and then went on to work as a legislative assistant for the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and as an associate commissioner for the Southeastern Conference.

In Air Ball, his fourth book on American sport, Gerdy doesn’t rehash the scandals that have plagued big-time Division I football and basketball programs. The problems within the current system are well documented and affect institutions at all levels, he says, as he details the many ways the current state of college athletics undermines higher education and the broader community.

The author believes that college athletics too closely mirror the professional game, robbing students of study time as well as a chance to truly integrate with the campus as a whole. The focus on elite sport teams also pushes many to watch sports rather than actively participate at a time when obesity has emerged as one of society’s greatest challenges.

The author proposes a number of specific reforms that are certain to promote heated discussion. Gerdy proposes that game times be pushed up, even when that means that some teams won’t be able to play in prime time. He proposes a limit on eligibility in the freshman year to allow new students the opportunity to focus on academics and to transition to college life. Gerdy’s most drastic measure is the elimination the athletic scholarship. The current arrangement is too close to the professional model of pay for play, he says. This, along with the high costs of travel, coaches’ salaries, and tutors for athletes, undermines the credibility of institutions of higher education.

The author addresses a number of the sacred cows of coaches and athletic directors, among them the assertion by some that reform would lead to a drastic decline in the quality of play. He believes that these concerns are secondary to the issue of determining whether athletics compliment the mission of the university. Gerdy asserts that nothing less than a complete transformation of sports programs will accomplish this. Failing that, they must be abolished altogether.

Informing and provocative, Gerdy’s book should be required reading for educators, college administrators and anyone else who is concerned about the state and role of athletics in higher education. Highly recommended.

Beer and Circus

Beer and Circus, by Murray Sperber (2001)

The author makes a sweeping indictment of higher education in this, his fourth book about college athletics. Sperber argues that large public institutions have become too big to provide a quality education to their charges. The author describes an arms race of college athletics that places a huge emphasis on building strong teams and getting schools placed in prominent athletics conferences. Administrators, he says, pin their hopes on national championships in the hopes that this will lead to increased visibility, and enrollment, for the university.

Not only does this approach rob students of a quality education, says Sperber, but it gambles with taxpayer money as these big programs rarely pay for themselves. Another point in the volume is that the party scene that accompanies these sporting events is very damaging to students. There were plenty of stories in the Indiana Daily Student during my time in Bloomington that highlighted the drinking and partying of students. Nationally, the most high-profile cases have been deaths from alcohol poisoning. The author makes a strong, if evident, case that universities should be providing a good education, rather than a great tailgating experience, to their students.

Originally reviewed 2/11/04

Stay tuned this week for my review of John R. Gerdy's Air Ball: American Education's Failed Experiment With Elite Athletics

Ahmad's War, Ahmad's Peace

Ahmad's War, Ahmad's Peace: Surviving Under Saddam, Dying in the New Iraq, by Michael Goldfarb (2005)

This book is Goldfarb's tribute to the late Ahmad Shawkat, a Kurdish translator who worked with the author when he was covering the war in Iraq for WBUR radio. A London-based reporter for the American public radio station, Goldfarb first met Shawkat shortly before the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003.

Shawkat was more than a man who knew the language. As an intellectual, he had moved in revolutionary circles for many years, agitating against Hussein's government. He had been captured, imprisoned and tortured on a couple of occasions and had once even met the dictator. As a Kurd, he rejected the sectarian leanings of many of his own people in favor of a single, unified nation. As Goldfarb explains, Shawkat was uniquely qualified not only to translate words but to provide context to what the reporter was seeing and hearing on the streets of a new Iraq.

The first section of the book follows the two men as Goldfarb reports on the war. (His dispatches can be heard on WBUR's Inside Out web site.) The last section is the story of Shawkat's tragic death at the hands of an assassin and the months after when the author returns to the war-torn country. The middle section, Ahmad's Life, is the author's reconstruction of his translator's life story. From his early years as a bookish boy through college and into adulthood, Shawkat was a man who never stopped searching for answers.

Goldfarb's view on the war itself may surprise some readers. Although he is very critical of the Bush administration's handling of the post-war situation, the reporter initially supported U.S. action there in the belief that the Iraqi people could be freed. He and Ahmad speak about this shared belief at length, alternately dreaming of the future and despairing as the country falls into chaos and internal strife in the months after the fall of Saddam's army.

Michael Goldfarb describes the qualities he looks for in a translator. Often, he writes, he cannot find all of those things in one person. In Ahmad Shawkat, he finds a scholar, an intellectual, a writer, a patriot and at the end a close friend. Goldfarb tells a remarkable story, which could be difficult to read due to the fact that one knows how it ends. In spite of this, he produces a moving, poignant read from start to finish. Highly recommended.

Originally reviewed 2/20/2006

Why Lincoln Matters

Why Lincoln Matters: Now More Than Ever, by Mario M. Cuomo (2004)

"Conservatives and liberals alike should always resist the impulse to make Lincoln over in their own image," writes the former governor of New York, "but it would be even worse not to use him as he might be used." Cuomo makes a passionate case that the words and deeds of the nation's 16^th president are as relevant today as they were some 140 years ago.

The author uses quotes from Lincoln's speeches and letters to make his point, which is often to show that the former president would not approve of the current administration's policies. Pointing to Lincoln's income tax on the wealthy, Cuomo argues that Lincoln would not have cut taxes for the richest Americans in a time of war. The governor makes the case that Lincoln envisioned a progressive role in creating and expanding opportunity for all Americans.

Cuomo's point is harder to make when it comes to matters such as civil liberties in a time of national emergency and the nation's courts. Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus in 1862 and 1863 and while he implemented a number of reforms in the federal court system, Lincoln often clashed with the nation's highest court. Cuomo writes that Lincoln "did not think of the Supreme Court as the separate and independent branch of the government that it was supposed to be," rather he tried to make it "an extension of the presidency."

It is in the final pages that Cuomo uses Lincoln's words to construct an "address to Congress" for the year 2004. In it, Lincoln shows his disapproval for the war in Iraq. The former president also states that the current terrorist threat is not as a great as that which faced the nation during the Civil War.

Points such as the last make this a provocative read in places. While Cuomo clearly aligns Lincoln with modern liberals, people of all political stripes will get something out of this concise but cogent book.

Cradle of Freedom

This post is one in a series of reviews commemorating Black History Month

Cradle of Freedom: Alabama and the Movement That Changed America, by Frye Gaillard (2004)

Longtime author and journalist Gaillard has written a thorough account of the Civil Rights movement as it happened in the state of Alabama. From the Montgomery bus boycott to Bloody Sunday in Selma, some of the most pivotal events of the time took place in the heart of Dixie.

What sets this book apart from others is stories of lesser known figures of the time. Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, for example, gets more coverage here than in most books on the movement. The Birmingham leader is one of many who was fighting the fight long before more famous folks like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. came to town, bringing the glare of the spotlight with him.

We also read of the accomplishments of Sam and Amelia Boynton, a husband and wife team, who began fighting for the right of themselves and other blacks in their county to vote starting as early as the 1930s. Amelia would later stand as one of the "courageous eight," a group who defied a court order forbidding civil rights activities, to invite Dr. King to come to Selma.

The tension between local leaders and the better known national leaders figures large in this volume, but Gaillard is fair to all parties involved. While King's presence in a city brought national exposure, he was regarded by many to be too cautious, too willing to negotiate with white political leaders and business interests. Younger blacks, in particular, were ready for things to change more quickly than did some of the national leadership.

The book also tells the story of dozens of foot soldiers in the movement, like Viola Liuzzo, a white mother of five from Detroit who was slain by Klansmen while ferrying freedom marchers outside of Selma. We also read of black laborer J. D. Cammeron, and of the indignities he suffers as he is involved in scuffles with police in Gadsden.

While many books have been written about seminal events in the movement, this volume's appeal comes from the many personal stories it tells. This is a tale about real people, everyday men and women who, through individual acts of bravery become an army that finds collective gains. Nearly any reader interested in the Civil Rights Era will find something of value in this well-written offering.

Originally reviewed 12/17/2004

Between Worlds

Between Worlds: The Making of an American Life, by Bill Richardson (2005)

The current governor of New Mexico has only recently announced his intention to run for president but when he wrote this book with journalist Michael Ruby he was preparing for his second gubernatorial bid. He would go on to win the following year by a wide margin, having garnered praise from voters across the political spectrum for his conservative fiscal stance and his education proposals.

Born in California to an American father and a Mexican mother, Richardson never completely fit in with white kids or with the Mexicans with whom he grew up in Mexico City, but his is hardly a fish out of water story. In fact, the man seems to have excelled at most everything he’s tried save academics.

As late as his college days, the man who would go on to become Ambassador to the United Nations was a largely apolitical creature, preferring instead the thrill of the baseball diamond. He had become a star prospect until injuries to his pitching arm sidelined him. Though he wasn’t a terribly motivated student he did well enough to get to graduate school. After his schooling he made a calculated move to New Mexico, where he launched his political career.

The bulk of the book concerns Richardson’s trips abroad during his service in the U.S. House. The congressman faced tough negotiations with some of the world’s most notorious leaders, including Saddam Hussein and Fidel Castro. President Bill Clinton nominated him for ambassador and Richardson was later given the challenging assignment of Secretary of the Department of Energy.

The governor’s ego is evident in every chapter and he comes off as something of a braggart at times. He recounts butting heads with a number of figures, often fellow Democrats. He describes his often-public dustup with Democratic National Committee chair Terry McAuliffe as Richardson seems determined to keep himself and his state in the limelight, even though it ruffles some feathers. Through it all, he seems to enjoy the political game as much as the end result.

Richardson’s description of state politics hardly matches the excitement of the first half of the book and this makes for a somewhat anti-climactic reading experience. Even so, this gifted and determined politician has written a tale that many followers of politics will find very interesting. Recommended.

Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot

Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot, by Starr Smith (2005)

Starr Smith exposes a side of Jimmy Stewart that many people have never seen. Apparently, the famous actor from Indiana, Pennsylvania wanted it that way. Smith, who worked with Stewart when the two were stationed in Tibenham, England, with the 453^rd Bombardment Group, offers a flattering portrayal of the Hollywood star.

Over the objections of his boss at MGM, Stewart volunteered for service after being drafted and failing a physical (he was too light under the military’s height to weight ratio). The actor wanted to be more than a stateside trainer of bomber pilots in the Army Air Corps and he had to find his way around someone in the military brass, who didn’t want a famous actor to be lost in the fighting. In the end, Stewart was allowed to fly on some of the missions he helped to coordinate. He would go on to fly 20 combat missions on his way to numerous honors including six battle stars and the French Croix de Guerre.

As Stewart rose through the ranks, he proved to be a hard-working leader and strategist. Aged 32 when he began his military service, the airman was often 10 or more years older than the pilots he commanded. His mild, folksy demeanor, his attention to detail and his skill as a flyer won him respect among the enlisted men.

Stewart’s efforts did not go unnoticed by the officers’ corps either and he eventually reached the rank of Brigadier General. Smith was privy to some of the rumors that the actor would eventually earn the crucial rank of group commander. However, the war was over before such a plan would be carried out.

Upon his return, Stewart insisted that he receive no attention for his service. He even refused a homecoming parade, a decision that greatly disappointed Indiana community leaders. Stewart allowed a museum to open with his name there some 50 years later, but only after he was convinced that the landmark would stimulate the local economy.

There are some aspects of Stewart’s family life and post-war career here, but the bulk of the book covers his military service from 1941 to 1945. Smith’s account will appeal most to fans of Stewart and to those who appreciate personal accounts of military history.

War on the Middle Class

War on the Middle Class: How the Government, Big Business, and Special Interest Groups are Waging War on the American Dream and How to Fight Back, by Lou Dobbs (2006)

As the title suggests, Dobbs takes aim at a number of politicians and institutions in this short volume. The author provides a straightforward account of the process that has led to the exportation of jobs and entire industries from the United States to cheaper labor markets. Dobbs also spotlights immigration policy and health care as major issues that are sorely in need of reform.

Readers looking for an account that picks sides among political parties are likely to be disappointed. In Dobbs' view, both major parties are equally responsible for ethical lapses, and for contributing to the squeeze on the American middle class. The author suggests that more voters follow his lead by changing their party registration to Independent.

But in places, Dobbs’ unwillingness to criticize one side of the ledger and favor another is confusing. One of the better examples of this is when the author lists the eight major conglomerates, which own nearly every major voice in American media. After detailing the mammoth holdings of companies such as Viacom, General Electric, Time Warner and NewsCorp, he assails the media as too liberal. His evidence for this charge is the often-repeated statistic that a large majority of news reporters identify themselves as Democrats. While this is an interesting statistic it’s hard to believe that this factors into news reportage to near the extent as the widespread corporate control over American media.

In spite of these flaws, one is hard pressed not to credit Dobbs with writing a salient account of several key issues that constitute a threat to the middle class. The author writes with conviction and clarity on several important matters before the country. While his book is short on solutions, it has the potential to educate readers on some of the major forces in American life.

The Truth (With Jokes)

The Truth (With Jokes), by Al Franken (2005)

Comedian, author and host of his own Air America radio show, Al Franken covers little new ground in a book that will appeal almost exclusively to Democrats and liberals. Even so, Franken’s love of country and sense of humor make this book a joy to read.

“The only comedian to have performed at Abu Ghraib,” so far as he knows, Franken addresses the outrageous assertion by commentators such as Rush Limbaugh that “nobody got hurt” there, in spite of the photo evidence showing one detainee dead and another badly beaten.

Franken takes aim at the Republican Party for its passage of legislation in the Terri Schiavo case. He points the finger at outgoing Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a medical doctor, who formed his opinions on Mrs. Schiavo’s condition without ever having met with her. After her autopsy showed what many doctors had already concluded, that Schiavo had irreversible brain damage, Frist would claim that “Terri’s Law” was about merely about ensuring an accurate diagnosis.

But for all of his criticism of others, he maintains his ability to laugh at himself. After detailing a 2004 Defense Science Board report, which concluded that Americans were “strangely narcissistic” in the eyes of Muslims, Franken writes:

“… I think about narcissism a lot. One of the things people like most about my books is how I relate politics and global events to anecdotes about myself, especially my USO tours and the repeated confrontations in which I get the better of Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz. But enough about me…”

Franken finishes with a letter to his grandchildren, dated ten years into the future. He correctly predicts a Democratic takeover of the U.S. House in 2006. He goes on to predict gains for Democrats in the years after that, along with the passage of universal health care and public financing for elections. And what are his grandchildrens’ names? Barack, Hillary and Joe III (the last name having been in the family for many years.)

In an era of negative, often divisive, attacks hurled from one side to the other, Franken shows that one can make their points without being ugly. Better yet, he has fun while doing it. In print and on the air, Franken accomplishes what all too few writers and commentators do: he makes following public policy fun.

Alabama in the Twentieth Century

Alabama in the Twentieth Century, by Wayne Flynt (2004)

Professor Emeritus of History at Auburn University, Flynt’s eleventh book marks the pinnacle of a career studying Alabama and Southern history. Having spent most of his adult life in the state, Flynt is “a native son who has lived, loved, taught, debated, and grieved within the state for 60 of the 100 years described.”

The author is frank and forthcoming with his criticisms of the state, starting appropriately with the tragedy of the 1901 Constitution, a document written by Bourbon Democrats to extend their power and influence while disenfranchising most poor whites and nearly all blacks. The author believes that the injustice of this parchment continues to cast a pall on the state, and he provides plenty of examples of a culture stunted and a people denied to convince the reader of this fact.

Flynt examines the body politic with his chapter “Every Man for Himself: Politics, Alabama Style.” The author takes the state’s anemic tax levels to task, also making the case that the burden falls heaviest on those who can least afford it. Like fellow academic Harvey Jackson, he is critical of a state that accepts low taxes, even though the result is a state government that can provide little for its people.

The professor writes chapters dedicated to education, as well as to women and African-Americans. Particularly in the latter case, Flynt eloquently describes a group that, in light of its smaller numbers, has made a contribution disproportional to the state’s success. Sadly, it is a people that have all too often received the least benefit from it.

But lest critics suggest that Flynt is a man who doesn’t love his native state, the author also gives credit where it is due, whether it is the innovation of engineers in Hunstville contributing to the nation’s space program or its many famous educators, athletes and entertainers. Dozens of pages are dedicated to figures such as education pioneer Julia Tutwiler, baseball slugger Hank Aaron, singer Nat King Cole and U.S. Supreme Court justice Hugo Black, who all once called Alabama home. For all of the challenges they faced, it is clear that Alabama has produced many accomplished and gifted individuals.

At over 600 pages this is not a book for the casual reader, but it is highly recommended for those who want to delve deeper into the recent history of the nation’s 22^nd state.

Why White Kids Love Hip Hop

Why White Kids Love Hip Hop: Wangstas, Wiggers, Wannabes, and the New Reality of Race in America, by Bakari Kitwana (2005)

Kitwana, a former editor of The Source magazine attempts to answer the question of why so many white kids seem to gravitate toward hip hop music. Included in this short book are some interesting points, but the author generally seems to raise more questions than he answers.

The strength of the book is the provocative statements borne from Kitwana’s belief in hip hop’s strong influence on politics and the broader society. The author’s conclusions about both raise eyebrows and they start at the very beginning when the author asserts“the hip-hop generation is the first one to grow up without experiencing de facto segregation.” Such statements will go farther in sparking a spirited debate about the politics of race and class in America than they will in answering the title question. So it is with much of Kitwana’s book.

Like other books that examine the role of popular music in society, Why White Kids seems to overemphasize the impact that hip hop has in challenging the racial politics of the past and in transforming society. At the other end of the spectrum, some critics charge that hip hop has done little or nothing to change society, or that it isn't a movement at all. Both views are often taken to extremes, in the view of this reviewer.

Kitwana’s work provides a lot of food for thought, and while it doesn’t go as far toward answering the question as many would like, it is sparking debate among fans and critics of hip hop culture. The buzz about this book is indicative of the fact that this is a timely topic about which there is a great deal of interest. Readers of this book should expect a broader discussion of rap music within the framework of American culture, rather than a definitive answer to the title question.

America: Back on Track

America: Back on Track, by Edward M. Kennedy (2006)

The senior senator from Massachusetts identifies seven challenges for the United States to right its course from recent years. Like many liberals, Kennedy believes that the country is headed in the wrong direction. His goals for the country include protecting national security, creating an economy that works for all and continuing the march of progress toward equal opportunity for all.

Kennedy is one of the more polarizing figures in American politics, and not only for his progressive views. He has often tended toward sharp rhetoric, which speaks to his home base but sometimes alienates voters in other parts of the country, who think him too liberal on social issues and soft on national security. The senator addresses these issues in his short book by praising his older brother’s tough military stance during his short term as president and avoiding the strong and polarizing language that many on the left have issued against the current administration. Overall, his book is a solidly levelheaded assessment of the issues.

The senator is direct with his criticisms however, as he counters the conservative campaign against government. He advances a more expansive role for government through most of the book. Not surprisingly, Kennedy has high praise for Medicare. Citing its low administrative costs and relative stability, he advances this program as a model for covering all Americans with health insurance, not just those over age 65. The senator expresses his view that government will inevitably make mistakes, but he encourages his readers to rally behind those programs that work.

Although he supported the 2002 war in Afghanistan, Kennedy believes the American invasion of Iraq was a grave mistake. He outlines the reasons for his views in his chapter on national security and he is no stronger than when he discusses the difference between a preventive and a preemptive military campaign. He believes that a preemptive strike is justified, such as when Israel attacked those nations whose troops were amassed at its borders in 1967. But by taking action before all of the evidence had been collected, Iraq falls under the former category, he says. It is an error that he believes the country must never repeat.

Kennedy’s calls for increasing the minimum wage and protecting minority rights will surprise few, but he writes directly and passionately about the issues he has chosen for the book. This work is recommended for those interested in recent political debate, particularly those looking ahead to the midterm congressional elections later this year. While there is little new here, Kennedy makes a strong and focused argument for his cause.

Terri: The Truth

Terri: The Truth, by Michael Schiavo with Michael Hirsh (2006)

The right-to-die issue is an emotional topic for many and it would be hard for some to find this book by Terri Schiavo's husband and not have some bias even before they scan the title page. In the interest of full disclosure, this reviewer agreed with Michael Schiavo's decision to remove his wife's feeding tube before having read the book. Those who agree strongly with Terri's parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, are fairly warned.

In 1990, Terri Schiavo collapsed in her home and experienced cardiac arrest. The 26 year old fell into a coma for ten weeks and was diagnosed several years later as being in a persistent vegetative state.

In 1992, Michael pursued a malpractice trial against two of his wife's former physicians on the grounds that they should have diagnosed his wife with bulimia and recommended a course of treatment. (Terri had weighed as much as 250 pounds as a teenager but had thinned considerably prior to meeting Michael. At the time of Terri's collapse, her weight had plummeted to 110 pounds.) Michael Schiavo writes that the Schindlers supported Michael in his legal action, and had to this point never voiced any concerns about how Michael had cared for their daughter since her collapse.

According to Schiavo's account, it was only after Bob Schindler confronted Michael about the settlement money on Valentine's Day 1993 that Michael's relationship with his in-laws took an ugly turn. Michael claims that Bob felt entitled to some of the settlement money that had largely been allotted for his daughter's care.

After the Schindlers' unsuccessful bid to assume their daughter's guardianship, years of feuding between Michael and his in-laws followed. In the meantime, Terri's condition did not change in any discernible way. Michael's decision to remove his wife's feeding tube in 1998 set off a flurry of court filings, appeals, and 11th-hour legislation that he details in his book.

Michael writes that this work is not a legal analysis of the many court decisions - although there is ample detail provided - rather it is the story of what he went through as a man, as Terri's husband, during these years. Given the furor exhibited by right-wing talk radio and even the U.S. Congress' passage of "Terri's Law," I believe Mr. Schiavo when he writes that he received death threats and other forms of intimidation during the many years he tried to carry out what he believed were his wife's wishes.

After all he's been through, it's understandable when Michael comes off as bitter but one thing he is not in this book is glib. He meticulously details his efforts to care for Terri, a point corroborated by one facility which dubbed him the "nursing administrator's worst nightmare."

As one can imagine, a debate with this level of passion will contain an abundance of attacks and counterpunches. The Schindlers asserted that tests indicating trauma to Terri's body in 1991 provided evidence of physical abuse. On the other hand, Michael claimed that the Schindlers wanted his wife's malpractice settlement to save their own shaky finances. Even so, to agree with the Schindler family after reading this book, one would have to ignore the scientific fact that Terri's cerebral cortex had completely liquefied, meaning that Terri had no hunger or thirst impulse, she was blind, and that she was not in any pain. One would also have to dismiss the rulings of a dozen court hearings, which all ruled that Michael Schiavo had the right to stop the artificial feeding that was keeping Terri alive. Most importantly, one would have to dismiss the right of a loved one or power-of-attorney to choose to stop treatment when it is clear that there is no hope of recovery.

This provocative book deserves to be read by persons on all sides of the right-to-die debate. Unfortunately, it may likely be shunned by many because of their preconceived notions toward the subject matter. The Schindlers have written their own book, A Life That Matters: The Legacy of Terri Schiavo. Books @ LP will review this volume in the coming months.

Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century

Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century, by Kevin Mattson (2006)

Mattson, a history professor at Ohio University, has written a balanced profile of the author and activist who is best known for penning The Jungle. The landmark book was not a literary masterpiece but it did alert millions of readers to the atrocious conditions faced by immigrant workers in the Chicago meatpacking industry at the turn of the 20th century. Sinclair once said of his signature book, "I aimed for America's heart, and hit its stomach, instead."

Sinclair emerges as a man of contradictions. He started out an ardent socialist but as soon as he began to find wealth he moved to a palatial home in Southern California. The book tracks the author's move rightward toward mainstream politics, starting with his support for the first World War. He would later support World War Two and even the conflict in Vietnam at the end of his life.

In spite of his later embrace of the Democratic Party, Sinclair was never able to hide from his past: his own words were used mercilessly against him in a California gubernatorial run in 1932.

Mattson praises Sinclair for the fact that he took responsibility for his ideas. Even though he was often not taken seriously by them, he wrote governors and presidents in an effort to convince them to adopt his economic policies.

Mattson offers a frank criticism of Sinclair's writing, especially in regard to his works of fiction. Mattson points out that they didn't sell well for the simple fact that they weren't very good and Sinclair often struggled to sell his ideas to publishers. The author was rarely able to divorce himself from the activist and he simply didn't take the time to develop his stories and characters. He did however find success with his Lanny Budd series.

This short book is a quick and interesting account of Sinclair's life and it should appeal to a wide array of readers.