Customer Reviews:
Portrait of a Legend.......2007-01-13
"Singing in a Strange Land" is very valuable as a sketch of this highly successful, complex legend. It was a compelling read that prompted me to read biographies of two of the most famous supporting characters, Mahalia Jackson and Clara Ward. For chronicles of these I read, and highly recommend, "Got to Tell It", Jules Schwerin's unsparing bio of Mahalia and "How I Got Over", Willa Ward-Royster's portrait of her gifted sister Clara Ward. Besides the priceless info about Mahalia and Clara, these biographies provide further details about C. L. Indeed, one of the vignettes in "Got to Tell It" (a conversation between Mahalia and Aretha about C. L.'s alleged drug use) paints a portrait of C. L. that leads me to suspect that daughter Erma Franklin's cooperation with "Singing in a Strange Land" was possibly conditioned on Salvatore's silence on some matters. Notwithstanding details of C. L.'s life unavailable elsewhere, and whatever self-exposure a preacher betrays in his sermons, "Singing in a Strange Land"'s shortcoming is the reader is left in the dark about C. L.'s thoughts and feelings. This is not the author's fault as Salvatore repeatedly refers to C. L.'s reticence to speak about personal feelings -- particularly about his early life in the Jim Crow South. Accordingly the reader is forced to draw inferences about the man, many of which may be unflattering due to the minister's impious personal life (e.g., his wife's decision to leave the philanderer though it meant painful separation from four of her young children).
You Need This Book!.......2006-04-21
If you live in America, particularly its big cities, you need it. If you lived through any part of the 20th century, you need it. "Singing in a Strange Land..." is a timely witness of the life of Rev. C.L. Franklin as an intersection of many apparently unrelated roads. Most interestingly, it gives insight to a time before Rev. Franklin was thought of as "Aretha's daddy". It chronicles the era when she was "the Rev.'s singing little girl".
Aside from the strictly biographical aspects of this volume, there is much to reward those interested in subjects as diverse as the show business of gospel music, Detroit municipal politics, the civil-rights movement and even the growth of the Black community in Buffalo, NY! But, it it is a true pageturner, because Mr. Salvatore's writing never bores.
Now dear reader, I am no expert on literature or scholastic research, but like the man in the museum looking at a Picasso, " I know what I like". I like this effort by Mr. Salvatore, and I believe you will, too. Don't miss it!
You cant put the book down..............2005-12-14
I enjoyed reading the book not only to hear about black history but to read about my daughter's history. Alyssa Ellan Smith who will be turning one on 1/4/05 will always have her history of her family in a book. Her grandmother Carl Ellan Kelley a remarkable woman who overcame many roadblocks in her life looks into Alyssa's eyes. Alyssa is a blessing to us but in an eerie feeling to look at Alyssa is to look at C.L. Franklin. From her eyes to her chin to the smile on her face she is an identical to her great-grandfather. We hold up pictures of the two and put them down in amazement. The book finally told the truth of Carl Ellan Kelley she was only a child who because of shame was raised by her grandparents who raised her to be a wonderful person. Thank you C.L. Franklin for giving us the gift of life our Grandmother and mother a woman who inspires me.
A winning biography which includes so much more than civil rights history alone.......2005-09-05
Readers interested in both black church music and black history will relish Singing In A Strange Land: C.L. Franklin, The Black Church, And The Transformation Of America. More than just a biography of C.L. Franklin, Singing In A Strange Land uses Franklin's background to explore both African American religion and musical development in America. Salvatore spent eight years extensively researching, including interviewing Franklin's associates, to develop a winning biography which includes so much more than civil rights history alone.
refreshing well written biography .......2005-02-10
This is a refreshing well written biography that stands as a reminder that a conservative theologian can support progressive social change. Unlike much of today's moral preaching that right is right and everyone else deserves to be burned if they commit heresy like defending gay marriage or claiming that the pro-life vs. women's rights is an economic war, the Reverend C. L. Franklin supported civil and individual rights as common decency for everyone. He used a voice that Motown would have wanted to have tospread the word of freedom to his followers in Detroit and others as a leader in the Civil Rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s. Nick Salvatore using public records, family information, and interviewing older members of Reverend Franklin's New Bethel Baptist Church puts together quite a full picture especially of the pulpit over three decades just after World War II until he was shot and fell into a coma ultimately dying. Readers get a feel for inner city Detroit politics and social upheaval as a backdrop to a deep look at one of the most influential civil rights spokespersons of the era.
Harriet Klausner
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Black Issues Book Review, published by Thomson Gale on September 1, 2005. The length of the article is 628 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Noteworthy Faith Title: Singing in a Strange Land: C.L. Franklin, the Black Church, and the Transformation of America.(Book Review)
Author: Alvelyn J. Sanders
Publication:
Black Issues Book Review (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 7
Issue: 5
Page: 73(1)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Journal of Southern History, published by Thomson Gale on May 1, 2006. The length of the article is 807 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Singing in a Strange Land: C.L. Franklin, the Black Church, and the Transformation of America.(Book review)
Author: Dennis C. Dickerson
Publication:
Journal of Southern History (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 72
Issue: 2
Page: 507(3)
Article Type: Book review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
The Venture of Islam has been honored as a magisterial work of the mind since its publication in early 1975. In this three-volume study, illustrated with charts and maps, Hodgson traces and interprets the historical development of Islamic civilization from before the birth of Muhammad to the middle of the twentieth century. This work grew out of the famous course on Islamic civilization that Hodgson created and taught for many years at the University of Chicago.
"This is a nonpareil work, not only because of its command of its subject but also because it demonstrates how, ideally, history should be written."—The New Yorker
Volume 1, The Classical Age of Islam, analyzes the world before Islam, Muhammad's challenge, and the early Muslim state between 625 and 692. Hodgson then discusses the classical civilization of the High Caliphate. The volume also contains a general introduction to the complete work and a foreword by Reuben Smith, who, as Hodgson's colleague and friend, finished the Venture of Islam after the author's death and saw it through to publication.
Customer Reviews:
INFORMATIVE, BUT SLOW GOING AT TIMES.......2006-07-03
Hodgson covers the first few hundred years of Islamic history in this volume. He does not aim to tell about everything that happened, only give us a broad look at the period. Islamic literature, law and customs are all included.
My biggest problem here is with the introduction, which takes up about a fifth of the book. Hodgson feels compelled to justify his entire branch of study in this chapter, as if the subject were somehow unimportant. Again and again he points out that that what we know is not the full truth. Islam and the Arabs are too complex for that. I have never liked this approach both because it is obvious and unworkable. The whole truth cannot be known or fully appreciated, yes, but our limited brains are at the same time forced to make judgements and conclusions. Failure to recognize this has stripped many an academic work of much of its value.
There are better resources out there.......2006-04-27
Since you're reading about this book, I assume you're interested in a scholarly work, as opposed to "Idiot's Guide" or "___ for Dummies" style. In this case, I recommend that you read instead "The Legacy of Jihad" by Andrew Bostom and Hugh Fitzgerald, a scholarly work that is more comprehensive, better researched, and more objective. I purchased both books, but after reading a few hundred pages of both, I decided to keep "The Legacy of Jihad" and return "The Venture of Islam" to the bookstore.
Outstanding.......2005-09-30
I bought the 3 volume series of Marshall Hodgson's series on Islamic History after having heard about it in a conference. I count myself lucky that i have it with me. This series is a real gem, a scholarly work which deserves its place among the best of Islamic history books there are. Hodgson did not let his own bias filter through in these books and the result is a very objective and masterly look at Islamic history or 'Islamdom" as Marshall calls it. Definitely worth having this series on your shelves.
Sohail Abbas
abbas25304@gmail.com
A masterpiece survey of Islamic history. THIS IS THE ONE!.......2005-05-11
I originally read volume 1 and 2 for an upper division history course in university and the effect these books had on me is profound.
This is THE survey book on Islamic civilization and history. There are several other worthwhile survey books on the topic (especially Lapidus), but this is the master work in the field. This is where you should start.
It is sad, but true to say that the 3rd volume is not as good as the first two volumes. This is due to the fact that Hodgson passed away before he could finish it, and it was completed by his friends in the academic community. That being said, Volumes 1 and 2 are masterpeices!
Everything you ever wanted to know about Islmaic history is here in as much detail as can possibly be done in a survey work. If you want more detail, you should read books that delve into specific topics in more detail (i.e. The Assassins, the Abbasid Caliphate, Pax-Mongolia, The Saljuks, The Gunpowder Empires, Adib court culture, etc.), but for an all-emcompassing work on Islamic history, culture, and society, from pre-Islamic pegan times in the Arabian peninsula all the way to the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1921, Volumes 1 and 2 are THE MUST HAVE books on the subject. No library on Islamic History is complete without these two.
Hodgson himself has become a psudo-legend in academic circles because of this work. His obsession with detail, exhibited in this work, reminds me of J. R. R. Tolkin and his imagined "Lord of the Rings" histories except that Hodgson's work is the real thing! Venture of Islam has influenced writers outside Academic circles such has Frank Herbert's Science Fiction masterpeice "Dune." Herbert fans will recongize this as soon they look at the table of contents for The Venture of Islam
For those interested in reading more about Hodgeson himself, I highly recommend an essay written by Edmund Burke III which analyzes his academic works and how his life as a Quaker influecned his skills and style as a historian and a writer.
One cautionary note: This is not light reading. This work is indended for historians, or at the very least serious history students. Those seeking a casual "glossing over" of Islamic history should look elsewhere.
Archetypal Islamic History for Hodgson's Generation.......2003-10-02
When surveys of Islam are mentioned, Hodgson's three volume work is the most formidable of the three often mentioned-the other two being either that of Lapidus or Hourani (although Hourani's history is limited to Arab history only). This first volume focuses on Hodgson's justifications for his own idiosyncratic preferences which he obviously aspired to be broadly accepted in the field as well as writing the early history of Islam through the absolutist tradition of the Abbasid dynasty. His awkward terminology has in general not been adopted although his insistence on rigor and uniformity in the transliteration of Islamic languages has become standard, and the general outlines of the history that he presents have stood the test of time. Most may leave this book behind, being bogged down in the first hundred or so pages of caveats and academic hair-splitting; however, those who persevere onwards will find the going gets better when the actual history begins wherein the analysis and information conveyed are generally profound.
Throughout Hodgson's rather phlegmatic march through the history of the central Islamic lands (being Muslim Spain, North Africa, and the lands from the Nile to the Oxus River), there is undoubtedly a dusty quality to his work that shows his methodology to be at least a generation behind the times. It is evident that he was influenced strong by the rise and fall of civilizations world history of the likes of Toynbee, and there is some indication that were it not for his untimely death that he would have wished to write just such a history. Though this is a weakness in part of his work-weak because its broad strokes necessitates a glossing over many technical and philosophical issues (the devil and often the more interesting question are in the details)-it did at it time overcome many of the faults of Orientalist scholarship of and prior to his time by integrating Islamic history in the broader streams of human civilization with antecedents and inherited legacies rather than the usual misrepresentation of Islamic civilization as sui generis.
I still recommend Lapidus over Hodgson because Lapidus is more up to date, a single volume and bibliographically also more recent, although Hodgson's work has more style and continuity and coheres better than Lapidus's disjointed text.
Book Description
"Put together one of the world's best science writers with one of the universe's most fascinating subjects and you are bound to produce a wonderful book. . . . The subject of complexity is vital and controversial. This book is important and beautifully done."—Stephen Jay Gould
"[Complexity] is that curious mix of complication and organization that we find throughout the natural and human worlds: the workings of a cell, the structure of the brain, the behavior of the stock market, the shifts of political power. . . . It is time science . . . thinks about meaning as well as counting information. . . . This is the core of the complexity manifesto. Read it, think about it . . . but don't ignore it."—Ian Stewart, Nature
This second edition has been brought up to date with an essay entitled "On the Edge in the Business World" and an interview with John Holland, author of Emergence: From Chaos to Order.
Customer Reviews:
Intriguing and thought provoking........2007-05-08
This was a very intriguing book. The author's method of discussing the topic is by interviewing the various individuals involved in complexity research. It is sometimes a little difficult to follow because it's difficult to decide who is doing the questioning and who the answering, but once past that, the reader will find that the author follows a very coherent outline of the topic.
In general Lewin starts with the inception of the concept by its various originators and the way that they have developed methods (largely computerized programs) to test their hypotheses. He also discusses the difficulty which these individuals met in trying to promote their ideas of complexity, chaos, and self-organizing criticality to the various academic departments to which they were attached. The author interviews a number of the best known scientists for their impressions of the output of the research into complexity. Some meet it with great skepticism while others, though cautious, seem to think that complexity theory has a great deal to say about dynamic complex systems.
Those of you unfamiliar with complexity but have read something on chaos theory or self-organizing criticality (particularly Per Bok's how nature works: The Science of Self-Organized Criticality (Copernicus)) will realize that this is simply another component of the dynamic system, another way of putting mathematics and computer generated programs to use in understanding things like evolution of species and ecosystems, of financial, business, and economic systems, and natural physical phenomena, even historic events (such as the abandonment of the Chaco Canyon Pueblo system.
I found especially interesting the appendices, particularly that dealing with global economics and business. It was interesting to see what the predictions were and what the author and his sources thought businesses should do to make their particular market share more stable in a world economy that is forever changing not only within a specific region or a specific business type but within an entire suite of interacting businesses world wide.
Very worthwhile reading.
Fascination at the edge of chaos........2004-11-27
Before I read this book I had no idea what Complexity theory was. I picked up a sentence or two in another book about it, and decided to investigate. While Roger doesn't really state what complexity *is*, it is suffice that he tells you what it's all about.
I liked that the book was written as a journey into complexity, rather than throwing data at you. It flowed much more easily than anticipated, so much so I'd recommend it to my less academic friends.
If you're looking for a good introduction to complexity - especially in the field of biology, then pick up nothing other than this book. If you're looking for a more advanced insight into the science, I'd suggest you find something else. Although a magnificent intro, it's not in-depth enough for you to start adapting the idea to your field in my opinion.
Engagingly Written Science.......2002-02-19
Roger Lewin engagingly writes of his discussions with leaders in the field of complexity, the study of non-linear, dynamical systems in the life sciences. Studies in 'chaos' theory and related fields like cellular automata have led to new formulations of self-organization and non-vitalistic emergence in living systems. Although still considered a fringe element by some of their colleagues, people like Stuart Kauffman, Chris Langton, Norman Packard and others are exploring models of "...common dynamical patterns in the realms of physics, biology, and society..." (193) which may radically change our understandings of evolution and consciousness. A cheering trend toward non-aristotelian directions.
Why read complexity?.......2001-08-04
I am not a scientist. I am, however, interested in a wide variety of subjects and fascinated by complexity. I am not referring now to the book, or the subject but the expression in the real world of all that there is to know and understand. How can anyone live and not recognise at the deepest levels of their understanding that everything that exists does so in dependence on other things that exist and that this interdependence, because of the number of dynamic variables, cannot be described otherwise than a complex system. It is at this point that anyone who has read the book or who is a part of this book will protest that I have missed the point. I have not. This book isn't about a vague subjective comprehension of all things being related. It is much more scientific than that. I have started off this way because I am aware that in the hustle of everyday life-the place where most readers of books reside-the subject of the science of complexity is beyond even the periphery of what might occur to them as a topic to take an interest in, let alone find relevant. Having a general, non-expert appreciation for the immense complexity of which we are a part is an appropriate mindset to bring to any reading of the subject. The book is deserving of a wider appeal than for just new wave idea groupies.
I find Lewin strikes the right balance with his reader presenting difficult concepts with elegant clarity yet providing enough detail to challenge the reader. To make the material too simple would leave the concepts incoherent-to provide too much would leave the reader behind. He also presents a balanced view of the subject. There are detractors in the scientific community. They are heard from. Lewin develops various concepts directly related to complexity rather cleverly. We are given a piece of concept that is added onto later in a different context providing us with a kaleidoscopic way of thinking of the material. It is all connected but our focus shifts slightly giving us a new view of the subject. In the beginning there were Boolean Networks. Other concepts follow: edge of chaos; complex adaptive systems; emergence. If anyone has ever wondered even in passing why is it that discrete bits of biota or data that do not amount to much in themselves can produce not only something more complex when put together but something that is more than the sum of its parts then Complexity is of interest to you.
This book doesn't have to be the final authority or explain it all to be a very good read. And, in reference to other reviews, novel new ways of approaching scientific inquiry don't come from just anyone. Personalities matter. Putting the subject of complexity in the context of those who have been pursuing its secrets is not only acceptable but adds to our understanding. The implications for the opening up of new ways of seeing what we've heretofore been looking at `through a glass darkly' are incredible. I can see why some of the leading scientists might find the subject worth their time and energy. So many things we wish to fix about how we operate within the system that supports us have proved intransigent to change. Perhaps this is because up to now we have been hampered by a too narrow view of what dynamics are relevant to a particular line of inquiry.
Lewin has presented complexity as a good mystery novel. It is a non-fiction mystery novel the ending of which has yet to be written.
A fine SECOND book on Complexity.......2001-01-29
The scope of complexity science is vast, encompassing many disciplines. This book focuses on how the new idea of complexity relates to biology by discussing the idea with many leading biologists of the day. Other reviewers were put off by the book's lack of definition of what complexity is, and the lack of resolution as to what terms such as "edge of chaos" mean. But that is exactly the point. These terms do not have clear definition today. Complexity is a very immature field, frequently pursued at the visceral level. It is hard to define what it *is*, but frequently easy to identify it where it exists. I can understand the other reviewers' concerns with the lack of definition, and can only suggest that because of the narrower focus (biology), this is an appropriate second book on complexity.
As a second book, narrowly focused on the question of complexity in biology, it is outstanding. Specifically, the question is one of how self-organization (complexity) relates to evolution and what this means for natural selection. Complexity is frequently talked up as the unifier of the sciences. Lewin takes a balanced approach, taking the time to talk to complexity theorists and understand their ideas, then talking to mainstream biologists to see how the ideas relate. His conclusion shows no inherent bias. Where other books on complexity show extreme (perhaps undue) enthusiasm, Roger Lewin's concusion is decidedly "wait and see". I found his insights to be on target and relevant.
I mentioned that this is a good second book. For an introduction to complexity, read John Holland's "Hidden Order". For a history of the Santa Fe Institute and some of the personalities there, read Mitchell Waldrop's "Complexity". Either or both of these would serve as an adequate introduction to this book.
Book Description
This breakthrough book provides practical applications of how to transform companies to operate on the "edge of chaos" based on the principles of living, self-organizing systems.
Customer Reviews:
Great organization building book, but not related to Chaos.......2003-06-26
Overall, I think this is a great book about organization building. It mainly talks about how you can change an organization. You need to face the challenge of "shared vision", "corporate culture", and "goverance". As a change agent, you need to improve your personal leadership/personal mastery, relationship and dialogue with others.
The reason I only give it 4-star is because I can't find a strong link between all these great lessons and Chaos/Complexity/Quantum. I think all these lessons exist everywhere in all great organization building book.
Net, I recommend this book to anyone who are interested in organization building, but not about Chaos/complexity theory, etc.
Some good insights in a miasma of thought........1999-08-14
While there are some good insights into human nature and life in this book, it is such a distraction when an author litters their ideas with leftist dogma. If you are going to refer to economic phenomena, you should understand what you are writing.
A GREAT book & a must-read for anyone in business today........1999-04-22
Kay Gilley, keynote speaker, executive development consultant, and author of Leading from the Heart and The Alchemy of Fear:
This isn't a good book: it is a GREAT book. And, it is a must-read for anyone doing business on the bridge into the 21st Century.
Mark Youngblood has done a masterful job of simply and succinctly helping us understand the promise of ever-present, fast-paced, and dynamic change in our businesses. Encouraging us to transcend the limitations of Newtonian organizations, he brings tangible application to what it means to lead and work in a quantum one. He offers the promise that when we learn to embrace with the fluidity of chaos that we will be both more effective and enjoy our lives and work more. His examples are simple and direct and bring crystal clarity to the concepts he presents.
My personal copy is always near at hand, well-marked with dog-eared pages, sticky notes, and a long list of page reference notations in the back. When readers show up at my book signing with books that look like this, I know they have been well used...and my copy Life at the Edge of Chaos has indeed been well used. I can't recommend this book too highly.
Courageous steps to create non-toxic organizations........1998-01-15
Youngblood takes a big risk. He challenges the most essential, basic assumptions about how organizations work. By providing solid historical evidence of how our current paradigms were developed, he assures the reader that change is possible. Since big business is the single largest entity on the planet, and therefore responsible for the whole, my hope is that major corporations will embrace the creative programs proposed by Youngblood and have the courage to change to environments which are non-toxic for employees, stakeholders, communities and our planet.
practical marriage of mgt, theory & quantum principles.......1997-12-11
As the primary author of the world's only organization theory textbook with a transformational perspective, I appreciate Mark's courage and boldness in articulating this new paradigm of organization. This book picks up where mine (and others) leave off: he clearly spells out a "road map" of where we are organizationally, how we got there, and what to do about it. A stunning achievement!!!!
Average customer rating:
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Complexity : Life at the Edge of Chaos
Roger Lewin
Manufacturer: JM Dent
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ASIN: 0460860925 |
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Martian Peace: Why We Must Explore the Ocean and Space
Danny Quintana
Manufacturer: Beckham Publications Group
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0931761808 |
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