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A political/ideological take on the war

Revisado: 12-04-22

This book in summary: President Nixon won the Vietnam war, despite how badly liberals messed it up.

This really isn’t history, so much as an idealogical defense of a certain view of the war. It gets really tedious.

If you hate liberals, this book is for you. If you’re looking for a history of the war with its myriad of causes, and the consequences of the events, stay clear of this one.

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Misleading!

Revisado: 09-23-22

The misleading description says “so begins Robert Fagles translation“, but this is Alexander Pope’s. The reader does an adequate job, and the sound quality is acceptable. But this is not Fagles.

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Dated but still relevant

Revisado: 08-10-22

This work is from 1989. I’d be interested to hear an updated one which could address things like the hook-up culture, using tinder, or struggling with gender nonconformity.

While dated, I found the book to be very worthwhile. It is a qualitative study that is a compilation of stories that the researchers gathered about men and women who shared about their (mostly heterosexual) sex life.

Yes. It’s worth a listen.

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Glorified podcast

Revisado: 05-16-20

The short, 2 1/2 hour audible original is Multiple stories around Johnny Cash’s for Folsom Prison concert. Neither compelling nor boring, it’s a middle-of-the-road weaving together of various interviews to cobble story lines together.

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Full cast brings this to life

Revisado: 08-12-19

I’ve watched the 1950 movie, read the book and listened to two previous audio versions. This version is very well done, with a talented cast, sound effects, and an outstanding audio production that is second to none. BRAVO!

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Moving, literary nonfiction

Revisado: 07-25-19

This book is a nonfiction account of the lives of — surprise! — three women. It is their accounts of their struggles to find romantic love (mostly heterosexual) and how that affects the trajectory of their lives, for better and worse. It is not a story of their struggles with career, school, family, etc. It’s an interior struggle that plays out with the key men (and a few women) in their lives.

While focusing on the particular, the book becomes universal. By the end, you are left with the impression that all of us have romantic triumphs and wounds that shape who we are. Even for this male reader.

The writing and narration are superb. Non-fiction is often just a “data dump” — here are facts. This reads like good literary fiction. The narrators convey the emotional subtext of the story very well. The level of writing and narration elevate this book out of the genre

One small complaint: the arbitrary switching among the stories of the three women. I think I would have preferred to hear one story, start to finish, before moving on to the next. When the next switch came, I was left hanging on to the previous story and needed to take time to reacquaint myself with the woman’s story I was rejoining.

I am impressed with the level of immersive reporting that went into this book. It’s obvious this author spent years on this project. Well worth the effort to produce something as well done as this.

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Don’t let this one get past you!

Revisado: 07-25-19

Are you an Ambrose skeptic (life me)? This one is great. Are you an Ambrose fan? This one is great. Why?

This is a series of essays, starting with the clay feet of the founding founders, and proceeding chronologically through American history up to the turn of the century. Along the way, Ambrose throws in wonderful autobiographical anecdotes.

I am normally somewhat of an Ambrose skeptic. Why did we win World War II? Our boys were b enter, our country was better, etc. I love our country, but not to the point where historical writing hits you over the head with it. I’ve read many partisan histories of the Civil War — both North and South — and they are tiresome. I’m being pounded with an obvious point of view. Much with the same with some history written by Ambrose.

That said, this one is different. Do his views come out? Of course. But they are some very real gems in this collection, starting out with the first one, the essay on Grant and reconstruction, and his efforts to the D-day museum built.

Are you a history buff. If so, this one is for you. I finished this audio book in less than 24 hours. I could not stop listening. Enjoy.

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Yes. Get this book.

Revisado: 06-17-19

I purchased this book because the author has some podcasts that are very interesting.

This is a short history of western philosophy, told via the lives and works of influential philosophers. The style is easy and engaging. The reader is wonderful! The chapters are each about 10 minutes in length, allowing you to easily get an overview of some very complex ideas.

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The bad is not so bad

Revisado: 05-27-19

This collection of essays introduced me to Roxanne Gay, and it was quite an introduction. Powerful writing, insightful ideas, and cultural analysis from a different perspective than my own. Thanks!

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2 hours and 43 minutes of my life gone forever

Revisado: 05-17-19

A magazine length hagiography. Is there a point to this? I wish I had paid for this book so I could have the satisfaction of insisting on a a refund.

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