Customer Reviews:
Thoroughly enjoyable!.......2007-02-06
I picked this book because of my interest (to say the least) in politics and political tactics. This truly reads as a 'how to' book with great insight to the thinking of one of the most successful Senate Majority Leaders. At times I could recognize the self-aggrandizement typical of politicians, but I still finished appreciating his work much more than expected. If you are interested in politics, especially conservative politics, you will find the book fascinating. I couldn't put it down!
Fantastic........2006-10-26
After several attempts by professional Cat Wranglers and Herders to describe
their profession, Mr. Lott finally gives us a fantastic How To guide. Each Chapter brings attention to the difficult process of maintaining a proper herd of felines.
Probably the slowest part of book is his philisophical take on Cat intellect and , surprise, Cat Pride. Not a scientist, Mr. Lott attempts to connect ancient cat worship to meow mix television commericals.
It's a worthwhile read for any potential Cat herder.
3.5 stars... Interesting at some points but not nearly enough.......2006-01-02
Trent Lott's auto-biography comes at a curious point. He's not retired from politics, so why this book at this point? Lott was the Republican's majority leader untill he ran into a massive wall following insensitive remarks at Senator Thurmond's 100th birthday party. A good portion of the book is devoted to that.
"Herding Cats" (312 pages) has some interesting moments, in particular in the early part of the book, where Lott retells the early part of his life. Lott was a student at Ole Miss in 1962 when the university broke segregation and the first black student enrolled. Lott offers some interesting insights on what the atmosphere on campus was like. I wish the book was more like that. Unfortunatly, too much of the book is devoted to a retelling of Lott's recollections of meetings on the Hill as a House Representative and later as a Senator. "I caucused with so-and-so, which lead to the adoption of such-and-such bill", I am paraphrasing, obviously.
As to the infamous Thurmond incident, Lott keeps to his often-stated explanation that "I was just paying an old friend a compliment". Reading his book, I am convinced that Lott is a decent man, and not a racist or one who is pining back to the days of segregation. That said, "Hearding Cats" simply does not make for compelling reading, but for certain passages.
Disappointing!.......2005-12-31
Read the book with the hope of getting insight into Washington politics. Instead I found mostly superficial reporting of various events, and rationalizations for being on both sides of many issues.
Clearly Lott is upset about losing his leadership position, and with Frist's role in it. Lott felt betrayed and undermined by Frist - someone he had taken under his wing and befriended. Personally, I think Lott's remarks about retiring Senator Strom Thurmond might have been a bit careless, but were only intended to be kind to an old man at the end of his career. Lott is also less than satisfied with President Bush's lack of support - again, despite Lott having pursued votes that he claims were against his better judgement and intended simply to assist President Bush.
So, I gues the "hidden," perhaps unintended insight of the book is that there is a lot of back-stabbing in Washington. I suspect the real motivation for it is to prepare the ground for Lott to reclaim his position when Frist leaves at the end of his current term.
A Tribute to Himself.......2005-12-14
A subtitle of this book might be : It's All About Me, Me, Me.
Here we have yet still another autobiography pitched as an insider's guide to Congress when it is really mostly about the insider himself, and what a wonderful person he is. Lott provides his personal history in excruitiating detail inlcuding such cliff hangers as his first campaign to be student body president at Ole Miss ( which incidentally he implies he lost in part becuase he rejected the support of the local KKK chapter ).
In enlightening us on the rest of his life he doesn't miss many opportunities to blast the "liberal media", Bill Clinton, and colleague, Jim Jeffords, who jumped from the Republican ship on Lott's watch. When you are reading his account of all the unfairness that lead to his being dumped from the Leader position by his Senate colleagues because of his statement about Thurmond, you might have some cheese at hand to go with all his whine.
And, until I read this book ( well, actually skimmed the middle parts when the eye glaze over became too prominent ), I had no idea that most of what happened of importance in the US during his time as Leader in the Senate was actually because of him. I always thought Clinton was more responsible. Speaking of Clinton, Lott was just "disgusted" over the whole Lewinsky scandal, and defintely thought Clinton should have been impeached. Interestingly, he did not have a similar level of "disgust" over Bush's actions leading to the deaths of some many Americans and Iraqis.
Reader beware. This is one of those books that supports the theory that one should never read autobiographies of egomaniacs.
Customer Reviews:
An Amazing Life.......2006-08-16
The amazing story of a woman who helped to shape health care on Hawaii and lead a group of missionaries to serve in hospitals and leper colonies half way around the world from home.
I was first introduced to Mother Marianne in the film Molokai witch was primarily the story of Father Damien, and his service among the lepers on the exile island of Molokai. This story overlaps with that one for many years but from very different perspectives.
This biography is a delight if somewhat difficult read. It draws heavily upon source documents from the period of Mother Marianne's life, 1838-1918. It has been said that our life will be measured by the "-" the dash, what we do with the years between our birth and our death. Marianne made the most of those years in fact she lived and gave, and served enough for a few lifetimes of lesser people.
Born in Witzenbacher in 1938, her family immigrated to Utica, New York when she was just 2 years old. In 1862 Barbara Koob professed orders to become a nun. She established and expanded hospitals and medical services first in Utica and then Syracuse New York. The first ospitol in Syracuse opened in 1869 and mother Marianne was in charge from 1970 to 1877. In 1877 she rose to the position of Provincial Mother of the Sisters of St. Francis of Syracuse.
It was in that position that she received the request to come and serve in Hawaii, in establishing the hospitals and overseeing medical care on the islands in the Kingdom of Hawaii (At that time often referred to as the Sandwich Islands).
The islanders in Hawaii immediately recognized a strength of character, the internal life of Mother Marianne. She was a favored friend of Queen Kapiolani and King Kalakaua who both though Presbyterian, gave to the work of Mother Marianne and meet with her personally on many occasions.
Mother Marianne had to use all of her skills to make the mission on Hawaii work, she had to contend with Parliament, Business owners (tax payers who did not like spending money on lepers). And With the personalities in the church, and her own order.
Marianne not only revolutionized how the patients in the leper hospital and eventually on Molokai we treated and cared for. She set up and oversaw hospitals on many of the islands.
Marianne said on more than one occasion that "God has called us for this work. If we are prudent in our duty he will protect us." And she was right, not one of the scores of nun's who served there for many long years.
This book will challenge you! You will see service to other people as the greatest calling and the greatest gift. You will witness the life of an amazing woman who cared for all who came into her circle and did all she could to help them be better men and women.
Biased opinion.......2000-11-28
I have been enjoying this book mostly because it is the story of my great great grandfather's sister, Mother Marianne. The personal history about the life of one of my ancesters and the times she lived in is facinating. I am also interested in the history of the island of Hawaii, which I had only thought of as a vacation spot before this book. The conflicts and politics of the early colonial powers is something I had never even heard about. I am only halfway through, but its a good book to show what immigrant life in the US was like in the late 1800's, as well as the life and choices of women in that time. What is shows of the treatment of the Hawaiians is sad.
Book Description
Mademoiselle de la Valliere, after having begged me, and begged me often, to come and help her to entertain the King, grew suddenly suspicious and uneasy. She is candour itself, and one day, bursting into tears, she said to me, in that voice peculiar to her alone, "For Heaven's sake, my good friend, do not steal away the King's heart from me!"
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Mademoiselle de la Valliere, after having begged me, and begged me often, to come and help her to entertain the King, grew suddenly suspicious and uneasy. She is candour itself, and one day, bursting into tears, she said to me, in that voice peculiar to her alone, "For Heaven's sake, my good friend, do not steal away the King's heart from me!"
Book Description
As Madame de Maintenon's character happened to please the King, as I have already stated, he allotted her handsome apartments at Court while waiting until he could keep her there as a fixture, by conferring upon her some important appointment. She had the honour of being presented to the Queen, who paid her a thousand compliments respecting the Duc du Maine's perfections
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As Madame de Maintenon's character happened to please the King, as I have already stated, he allotted her handsome apartments at Court while waiting until he could keep her there as a fixture, by conferring upon her some important appointment. She had the honour of being presented to the Queen, who paid her a thousand compliments respecting the Duc du Maine's perfections
Book Description
I admit, Sire," I answered him, "that I am not the person required for affairs of that sort. Your cousin is proud and cutting; I would not endure what she has made others endure. I cannot accept such a commission. But Madame de Maintenon, who is gentleness itself, is suitable--no one more so for this mission; she is at once insinuating and respectful; she is attached to the Duc du Maine. The interests of my son could not be in better hands.
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I admit, Sire, I answered him, "that I am not the person required for affairs of that sort. Your cousin is proud and cutting; I would not endure what she has made others endure. I cannot accept such a commission. But Madame de Maintenon, who is gentleness itself, is suitable--no one more so for this mission; she is at once insinuating and respectful; she is attached to the Duc du Maine. The interests of my son could not be in better hands."
Book Description
My sisters thought it of extreme importance to possess positive knowledge as to their future condition and the events which fate held in store for them. They managed to be secretly taken to a woman famed for her talent in casting the horoscope. But on seeing how overwhelmed by chagrin they both were after consulting the oracle, I felt fearful as regarded myself, and determined to let my star take its own course, heedless of its existence, and allowing it complete liberty.
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My sisters thought it of extreme importance to possess positive knowledge as to their future condition and the events which fate held in store for them. They managed to be secretly taken to a woman famed for her talent in casting the horoscope. But on seeing how overwhelmed by chagrin they both were after consulting the oracle, I felt fearful as regarded myself, and determined to let my star take its own course, heedless of its existence, and allowing it complete liberty.
Book Description
The King's studies with his preceptor, Perefixe, had been of only a superficial sort, as, in accordance with the express order of the Queen- mother, this prelate had been mainly concerned about the health of his pupil, the Queen being, above all, desirous that he should have a good constitution. "The rest comes easily enough, if a prince have but nobility of soul and a sense of duty," as the Queen often used to say. Her words came true.
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The King's studies with his preceptor, Perefixe, had been of only a superficial sort, as, in accordance with the express order of the Queen- mother, this prelate had been mainly concerned about the health of his pupil, the Queen being, above all, desirous that he should have a good constitution. "The rest comes easily enough, if a prince have but nobility of soul and a sense of duty," as the Queen often used to say. Her words came true.
Book Description
Pere de Latour, going further, wished to impose hard, not to say murderous, penances on me; I begged him to keep within bounds, and not to make me impatient. This Oratorian and his admirers have stated that I wore a hair shirt and shroud. Pious slanders, every word of them! I give many pensions and alms, that is to say, I do good to several families; the good that I bestow about me will be more agreeable to God than any harm I could do myself, and that I maintain.
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Pere de Latour, going further, wished to impose hard, not to say murderous, penances on me; I begged him to keep within bounds, and not to make me impatient. This Oratorian and his admirers have stated that I wore a hair shirt and shroud. Pious slanders, every word of them! I give many pensions and alms, that is to say, I do good to several families; the good that I bestow about me will be more agreeable to God than any harm I could do myself, and that I maintain.
Book Description
I do not desire to hold up to ridicule the rites of that religion in which I was born and bred. Neither would I disparage its ancient usages, nor its far more modern laws. All religions, as I know, have their peculiarities, all nations their contradictions, but I must be suffered to complain of the abuse sometimes made in our country of clerical and priestly authority.
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I do not desire to hold up to ridicule the rites of that religion in which I was born and bred. Neither would I disparage its ancient usages, nor its far more modern laws. All religions, as I know, have their peculiarities, all nations their contradictions, but I must be suffered to complain of the abuse sometimes made in our country of clerical and priestly authority.
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Memoirs of Madame De Montespan
Madame LA Marquise De Montespan
Manufacturer: IndyPublish.com
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1404320180 |
Book Description
Since the birth of Mademoiselle de Blois, and the death of Mademoiselle de Fontanges, the King hardly ever saw me except a few minutes ceremoniously,--a few minutes before and after supper. He showed himself always assiduous with Madame de Maintenon, who, by her animated and unflagging talk, had the very profitable secret of keeping him amused.
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Since the birth of Mademoiselle de Blois, and the death of Mademoiselle de Fontanges, the King hardly ever saw me except a few minutes ceremoniously,--a few minutes before and after supper. He showed himself always assiduous with Madame de Maintenon, who, by her animated and unflagging talk, had the very profitable secret of keeping him amused.
Average customer rating:
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Angus Wilson: A Biography
Margaret Drabble
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0312167741 |
Amazon.com
Said to hold the future of the English novel in his hands, Angus Wilson was at once fresh and revolutionary, recording the attitudes of 20th century England in savagely funny short stories and animated fiction. In Angus Wilson: A Biography, long-time friend and fellow-novelist Margaret Drabble reveals the colorful background that provided Wilson his unique perspective. The youngest of five siblings by 13 years, he spent his childhood eavesdropping on adult conversations and playing homosexual games with two of his older brothers. After attending Oxford, serving in the war, and working at the British Museum, Wilson suffered a breakdown. A psychotherapist encouraged him to write as a form of therapy and unknowingly launched his career.
Customer Reviews:
Fascinating But Sad.......2007-06-18
Drabble's biography of Angus Wilson should be sold in a set along with Andrew Motion's biography of Philip Larkin. Together they represent the best of biographical writing in the English language in recent years. Wilson, unlike Larkin, has lost popularity of late. His prose seems dated in ways not easily explained by those, like Drabble, who appreciate it. Still, Wilson is a major post-war figure, popular on both sides of the Atlantic for some three decades as a novelist and biographer, chiefly of Dickens and Kipling. Drabble and many other contemporary writers studied with Wilson for a time, but he never secured a proper position. His biography is a great object lesson for novelists who quit their day jobs too soon; although able to make it for a time, Wilson's last years were rather hard-going. He drank his share of champagne for years, but in the end was scarcely able to turn out a meal. If ever there was a need for gay marriage, Wilson's life proves why.
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For Whom the Cloche Tolls
Angus Wilson
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 184232439X |
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Reflections in a Writer's Eye: Travel Pieces (Penguin Travel Library)
Angus Wilson
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0140095802 |
Average customer rating:
- A Literary and Literate Biography
|
The Strange Ride of Rudyard Kipling
Angus Wilson
Manufacturer: Viking Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0670677019 |
Customer Reviews:
A Literary and Literate Biography .......2005-08-12
I'll give this biography of Kipling a top rating but with a couple of reservations. First, "Strange Ride" is very, very English. Some of the references and phrasing are incomprehensible to Americans -- or at least this American. It's the old problem of two countries divided by a common language which is really not so common. Secondly, the author presumes a fair amount of advance knowledge about Kipling by the reader. If you think kipling is something the Brits eat for breakfast, you probably won't comprehend this book. Read some of Kipling's stories and poems and a simpler biography of his life before trying this one.
Reservations aside, this is an insightful literary biography in which the author derives most of his views from Kipling's own writing. Rather than focusing on daily events in Kipling's life or a chronology the author is more interested in broad themes. One theme, for example, to which he refers frequently is Kipling's lifelong apprehension about his place in society because he never went to a University or punched the other tickets to acceptance by Victorian society. A second theme is Kipling's interest in children and his own searing experiences as a child. A third is Kipling's concept of duty, "take up the White man's burden--send forth the best ye breed."
The author does some outstanding interpretations of many of Kipling's works, including his masterpiece, "Kim," and stories such as "Dayspring Mishandled" and "The Church that was at Antioch."
Clever and immensely talented, Kipling was also a flawed and incomplete artist which makes him more interesting as a person than the ordinary. He is surely one of the most maligned of all major literary figures, but only Shakespeare has produced more memorable and quotable lines of verse. Probably no other story by any author has had such an impact as "Mowgli's Brothers" from "The Jungle Book." Several movies, the Boy Scouts, and the Tarzan myth all derive from "The Jungle Book."
As noted above this is not always an easy book. The National Review selected "Strange Ride" as one of the top 100 non-fiction books of the 20th century. I'm not sure I agree, but it is a worthwhile biography about the most important writer of England's latter days of imperial glory.
Smallchief
Average customer rating:
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The Strange Ride of Rudyard Kipling
Angus Wilson
Manufacturer: House of Stratus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1842324470 |
Customer Reviews:
Kipling: Life and Works .......2005-08-12
I'll give this biography of Kipling a top rating but with a couple of reservations. First, "Strange Ride" is very, very English. Some of the references and phrasing are incomprehensible to Americans -- or at least this American. It's the old problem of two countries divided by a common language which is really not so common. Secondly, the author presumes a fair amount of advance knowledge about Kipling by the reader. If you think kipling is something the Brits eat for breakfast, you probably won't comprehend this book. Read some of Kipling's stories and poems and a simpler biography of his life before trying this one.
Reservations aside, this is an insightful literary biography in which the author derives most of his views from Kipling's own writing. Rather than focusing on daily events in Kipling's life or a chronology the author is more interested in broad themes. One theme, for example, to which he refers frequently is Kipling's lifelong apprehension about his place in society because he never went to a University or punched the other tickets to acceptance by Victorian society. A second theme is Kipling's interest in children and his own searing experiences as a child. A third is Kipling's concept of duty, "take up the White man's burden--send forth the best ye breed."
The author does some outstanding interpretations of many of Kipling's works, including his masterpiece, "Kim," and stories such as "Dayspring Mishandled" and "The Church that was at Antioch."
Clever and immensely talented, Kipling was also a flawed and incomplete artist which makes him more interesting as a person than the ordinary. He is surely one of the most maligned of all major literary figures, but only Shakespeare has produced more memorable and quotable lines of verse. Probably no other story by any author has had such an impact as "Mowgli's Brothers" from "The Jungle Book." Several movies, the Boy Scouts, and the Tarzan myth all derive from "The Jungle Book."
As noted above this is not always an easy book. The National Review selected "Strange Ride" as one of the top 100 non-fiction books of the 20th century. I'm not sure I agree, but it is a worthwhile biography about the most important writer of England's latter days of imperial glory.
Smallchief
Average customer rating:
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The World of Charles Dickens
Angus Wilson
Manufacturer: Academy Chicago Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0897331729 |
Book Description
Word count: 8405.
Books:
- Midnight Diary Fear Street (Fear Street Superchillers)
- Mostly on the Edge: An Autobiography
- Mrs. Ike: Memories and Reflections on the Life of Mamie Eisenhower
- North Korea Under Kim Jong Il: From Consolidation to Systemic Dissonance
- P. A. Stolypin: The Search for Stability in Late Imperial Russia
- Paradoxes of Mahathirism: An Intellectual Biography of Mahathir Mohamad
- Pinochet: The Politics of Torture (Fast Track)
- Prince of Edisto: Brigadier General Micah Jenkins, C.S.A (Confederate Biography)
- Reaching for Glory: Lyndon Johnson's Secret White House Tapes, 1964-1965
- Rebekkah's Journey: A World War II Refugee Story (Tales of Young Americans)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See
- Thermopylae: The Battle for the West
- The Financial System and the Economy: Principles of Money and Banking
- Solving the Corporate Value Enigma: A System to Unlock Shareholder Value
- The Invention of Hugo Cabret
- Twisted Roots
- The Entrepreneur's Guide To Preparing A Winning Business Plan and Raising Venture Capital
- Essential Works of Lenin: "What Is to Be Done
- The End of Affluence The Causes and Consequences of America's Economic Dilemma
- They Were Counted
Here's Where I Stand: A Memoir
Mississippi Politics: The Struggle for Power, 1976-2006
Nothing to Fear: Lessons in Leadership from FDR
Congress from the Inside: Observations from the Majority and the Minority
A Deficit Of Decency
