unauthorized kristallnacht introductions improvisation

books:

The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope

37 reviews
Jonathan Alter

Simon & Schuster, 2007

Great First 100 Days
The most interesting book on FDR I've ever read. I learned a lot more about the state of our nation when FDR was elected and what FDR did to keep our republic on a more democratic path. I'm sure our new President-elect and his staff are reading this book so they can learn how to make great things happen in Washington in only 100 days.

Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt

3 reviews
H.W. Brands

Doubleday, 2008

Master Historian's FDR Biography Receives Strong Reviews
Franklin Roosevelt led the Allies to victory in World War Two after tackling the economic crisis of the Great Depression. This book by master historian H.W. Brands has received strong early reviews. (I will include my own review once I finish reading it.) KIRKUS REVIEWS said that this book "will likely be the go-to popular biography for quite some time... a thoroughly readable, scrupulously ...

The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl (Edition 001)

188 reviews
Timothy Egan

Mariner Books, 2006

A healthy reminder of how easy we have it.
Save for the descriptions of dust and dirt, which get a little tiring, this book is a great read. His writing style is very readable and his research and understanding of the material is obvious. It is a good lesson for these times we live in. Perhaps we could use some of the wisdom of those times to understand what we need to do to cure our environmental and economic ills.

15 reviews
Robert A. Johnson

HarperOne, 1985

Excellent book about love!
It gives a great perspective as to how we humans experience love. It also gives a good explanation of what is the difference between romatic love and, true and mature love. It talks about expectations, desires, passion, commitment, fears, etc. It helped me to understand why my love parners acted the way they did in our relationships, as well as why I kept fighting for those unfruitful ...

Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (Mass market version): Divine Mercy in My Soul

18 reviews
Saint Maria Faustina Kowalaska

Marian Press, 2005

Great Book
I really enjoyed this book. I would suggest this book to anyone who wants to understand Jesus' Mercy. I also found another great book you should think about reading if you are considering strengthening your faith. It is entitled "The Enlightenment, What God Told Me After One Million Prayers, a Message for Everyone" by John H. Eagan. This book will bring you closer to understanding who God is ...

The Great Crash of 1929

48 reviews
John Kenneth Galbraith

Mariner Books, 1997

Relevant Again - and Readable as Always
Galbraith wrote The Great Crash in 1954 and he notes in his introduction that every time it was about to go out-of-print a new speculative mania would come along and a new printing would issue. One expects that the 2008 version must be in the works. Galbraith writes for the general audience, which means he not only leaves out most of the arcane details, but he also writes in an engaging ...

Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression

16 reviews
Studs Terkel

W. W. Norton & Company, 2000

gives voices to those who lived through the Depression
As a former grad student in History, I found this book fascinating. Author Studs Terkel interviews people who lived through the Depression and gets their takes on that difficult period. We hear the experiences and memories of those who lived through it from multiple points of view. The book was published in 1970 and much of the research was accordingly done during the second half of the '60s ...

The Great Depression and the New Deal: A Very Short Introduction: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short ...

2 reviews
Eric Rauchway

Oxford University Press, USA, 2008

The Depression and New Deal Discussed Concisely
The Oxford University Press publishes a series called "Very Short Introductions" written by authorities in their fields. The series helps to introduce busy and curious readers to a wide variety of subjects. The series numbers nearly 200 volumes and includes subjects from history, philosophy, religion, science, and the humanities. This series constitutes an admirable way for any person to learn ...

Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman

51 reviews
Yvon Chouinard

Penguin (Non-Classics), 2006

A fun, unique, and compelling biz book
This book will appeal to 2 types of reader (and I trend to both categories): 1. The hardcore, outdoor purist (and core Patagonia dirtbag customer) who is interested in how Chouinard turned his passion into a thriving business; 2. The socially responsible businessperson who is curious about the inner workings of a successful values led business, particularly how one balances the sometimes ...

The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression

140 reviews
Amity Shlaes

Harper Perennial, 2008

The Forgotten Man
Execllent, scholarly work. A must read to see how much the Depression and the New Deal are reflected in our current financial mess and government.

Look Homeward, Angel

62 reviews
Thomas Wolfe

Scribner, 2006

A tour de force of pure emotion
Thomas Wolfe reminds me of the eager kid who was smarter than the rest, surging ahead for pure love of learning and life itself. This transcendental outlook pervades this meandering story which in lesser hands would become saccharine, but veers away from that precipice with carefully constructed characters who are not cut-outs used in the puppet show of stories with a "moral," but these vivid, ...

Cheech & Chong: The Unauthorized Autobiography

3 reviews
Tommy Chong

Simon Spotlight Entertainment, 2008

Good reading for C&C fans
Chong provides a very interesting walk through his life and career and tells some good "behind the scenes" stories, but I would have liked more detail in certain areas. More info on how they made the movies and albums would have been nice. It would also have been interested to hear Cheech's side of some of the stories, but it is understandable why that isn't in there. Still, it is a very ...

Posters for the People: The Art of the WPA

1 review
Ennis Carter

Quirk Books, 2008

posters for the people
This is a great compilation of WPA posters. It provides a nice link historicaly between Art Deco and the silkscreen posters of the 1960's 1970's rock era. I was pleased to see some woodcut examples as well. Anyone with an interest in graphic design, modern art history, and the interaction of art and social/civic issues should buy this book. Posters for the People: The Art of the WPA Ben ...

Cullotta: The Life of a Chicago Criminal, Las Vegas Mobster and Government Witness

13 reviews
Dennis N. Griffin, Frank Cullotta

Huntington Press, 2007

Cullotta: The Life of a Chicago Criminal, Las Vegas Mobster and Government Witness.
Very good book, very detailed and informative. One of the must have books for the true Mafia fan.....

48 Hours of Kristallnacht: Night of Destruction/Dawn of the Holocaust
Mitchell G. Bard

The Lyons Press, 2008

On the nights of November 9 and 10, 1938, rampaging mobs throughout Germany and the newly acquired territories of Austria and Sudetenland freely attacked Jews in the street, in their homes and at their places of work and worship. At least 96 Jews were killed and hundreds more injured, as many as 2,000 synagogues were burned, almost 7,500 Jewish businesses were destroyed, cemeteries and schools were vandalized, and 30,000 Jews were arrested and ...

The Innocent: A Novel

32 reviews
Ian McEwan

Anchor, 1998

The thrill lies not where you expect
McEwan creates well the atmosphere of a post-war, pre-wall Berlin, amplifying our imaginings. The interaction between Brits and Americans is full of subtle humor, and as it later turns out, great regard and humane understanding. The narrative is smooth and concerns an everyman, virgin, British geek assigned to an American intelligence project consisting of building a tunnel crossing the border ...

Furious Improvisation: How the WPA and a Cast of Thousands Made High Art out of Desperate Times

6 reviews
Susan Quinn

Walker & Company, 2008

Passionately written wonderful read
There are writers who can give us an accurate account of a time in history, and then there are those rare and gifted ones who can take us by the hand and deliver us to the sights, sounds, politics and emotions of another time. Susan Quinn is such an author, and it is no wonder she receives starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and others for this wonderful book. Quinn's tales of Hallie ...

Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945 (Oxford History of the United States)

66 reviews
David M. Kennedy

Oxford University Press, USA, 1999

An Iluminating Book
I've never read a book this long (858 pp) before for pleasure, but I found the Freedom book so illuminating. I am 87 yr old and the book covers my youth, from age 8 to 23--and oh, did I experience personally the depression and the war! It was good to fill in the details and understanding of things where I had fragmentary but profound experiences. I remember farmers dumping milk because they ...

In an Uncertain World: Tough Choices from Wall Street to Washington

58 reviews
Robert Rubin, Jacob Weisberg

Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2004

A book on decision making and policy making. Excellent.
This book is by former President Clinton's Secretary of the Treasury, Robert Rubin. Robert Rubin, was previous to his role at Treasury, co-chairman of Goldman Sachs, a position he rose to through the ranks over about twenty years. His specialty was risk arbitrage, involving multimillion decision making on placing bets or investments on whether or not a merger or acquisition would ultimately go ...

Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression

92 reviews

Bantam, 2007

Excellent memoir
Little Heathens by Millie Kalish is a wonderful book about the author's life on an Iowa farm in the 1930's. She makes the setting and times come alive and I especially enjoyed getting a glimpse of my parent's generation and what their childhood might have been like. The values she was taught as a child enabled her to become a member of the armed forces, go to college and become a college ...

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