Biographies Books

Robert Caro's The Power Broker, a biography of Robert Moses, contains every attribute of a Shakespearean tragedy. Moses was brilliant, driven, an over-achiever, but possessed a deeply flawed character which aroused feelings of both esteem and disgust. Like all of Shakespeare's tragic protagonists, he was capable of both good and evil. Fully able to redeem himself, he instead moved unheedingly towards his doom. That 30+ years of unquestionable power within New York State's political, corporate, and labor elite forestalled this doom speaks to the measure of the man. Indeed, it took a Rockefeller to push him from the mountaintop.

One of the best biographies I've ever read, The Power Broker's 1,163 pages artfully and suspensefully tell the tale of a man for whom the words great and ignominious qualify as adjectives. Initially an ardent reformer, Moses was increasingly corrupted by power. At the apex of this power, Moses answered to no one and ran a wide reaching web of political commissions and public authorities as his personal empire.

His transition from reformer to elitist provides the backbone of Caro's epic. Once a voice for the common man, Moses eventually attained what can only be described as aristocratic contempt for the mob, the rabble, the lower echelon of economic achievement. The reader may marvel that such a powerful man was heretofore unknown to them, but the reader will certainly grow increasingly disenchanted at such a man's venality.

The Power Broker is a classic deserving the attention of every student of history. Despite it's heft, it remains a page turning pleasure throughout. As such, it most assuredly merits the highest ranking I can give it: 5+ stars. Trite though the term may be, Robert Caro has authored a masterpiece.

This book, written by Robert Caro - probably the best living biographer, was his first book. It is a massive, thorough, detailed, engaging study of how one man - Robert Moses - planned, shaped and built - the modern city of New York.

It is about the acquisition of power and its utilization by one man in order to bring his vision of New York City to fruition.

Robert Moses - the primary subject of the book - together with the notion of power, and New York City itself as well as its residents being the other subjects - was trained in urban planning England, was a visionary, a planner, and a "Power Broker" - and thus the title, whose materials where New York City, planned, designed, built modern New York by stamping his vision in the form of new parks, spaces, roads and parkways, new neighborhoods, new subways/rail-lines, new beach and recreational facilities and areas, had an impact on the way millions of New Yorkers as well as visitors to NYC experienced NYC - experienced NYC - for decades. His shape of NYC is still shaping how humans experience reality in such city.

This is a tour de force. This is a good book for those interested in New York City, local and state government politics, the modern bureaucratic / administrative aparatus of government and those who wield the helm. Whether you agree with Robert Moses vision of NYC or not, he had a tremendous impact. The impact was not limited to NYC. Seen as the expert on urban planning, his model, his vision, his views, spread throughout the entire field of modern urban planning. Thus, his impact is not just local or state. It is in fact national and international. Modern cities - the leadership of which visited or modeled their cities on NYC - where shaped by his creations.

A long book. A detailed book. A hard book. But excellent, very interesting, and well worth the effort and time. Probably the prime example of what an excellent biography is and should be. It made Robert Caro, its author, into the preeminent biographer of the last several decades. It set the standard. I don't know if it has or will ever be matched.

I have been waiting to read this book for a very long time, and the wait was well worth it. Mr. Caro presents a massive, well-researched piece on one of New York's most influential (and controversial) public officials. I am a sucker for great detail, and so I enjoyed Caro's painstakingly detailed portrait of how a young, idealistic reformer evolved into the ruler of a huge bureaucratic empire. What Caro makes very clear is how Robert Moses became so corrupted by power (and self-importance) that he failed to grasp how his projects were not always in the public interest. Moreover, Caro paints a vivid picture of Moses' cynicism and shrewdness, and how he parlayed those into greater and greater power. For instance, Moses realized that most state legislators were political hacks who never bothered to read the fine print of the laws that they passed. He played on this to insert such fine print into legislation which made him virtual Tsar of development in both New York State and New York City. In addition, Moses was able to convince most New York politicians that he was indispensable to them, and so had them virtually eating out of his hand (i.e., his tactic of threatening to resign, unless he got 100% of what he wanted). At once fascinating and frightening as to how one man could harness such a degree of power!

While Robert Moses' achievements are the main focus of this book, Mr. Caro also devotes a great deal of attention to the political situation that existed in New York during the era of Moses. In doing this, he gives readers a fine education on how New York and its municipalities were governed at that time (and in many ways, are still governed), along with an in-depth look at other contemporary political figures (i.e., Al Smith and Fiorello LaGuardia). I would equate reading this book with taking a college-level course, as you learn and think so much while reading it.

On a critical note, not all of Mr. Caro's conclusions about Robert Moses are universally accepted. For instance, Mr. Caro accuses Moses of single-handedly wrecking the Bronx with the Cross Bronx Expressway. However, many people have argued that this was only one of many factors that destroyed the Bronx, and not all of these things were brought by Moses. Perhaps Mr. Caro should have given space to opposing viewpoints regarding the Moses legacy. Overall, though, I think that it is a great book: required reading for anyone interested in the development of New York during the 20th century.

After 40 years of writing biographies, Robert A. Caro deserves an all time winning award in history. In 1974 he wrote the biography of Robert Moses, Big Bob the Builder in New York. It is an incredible biography. By focusing on one person, Caro succeeds in revealing the peculiarities of this particular epoch in New York. It is a detailed account of how power works in New York between 1934 and 1968. The book is about personalities, Robert Moses of course, but also about the Rockefellers, Al Smith (the governor of New York), La Guardia (mayor of NY). And the book is about building. Every student in building ought to read this book. Robert Moses was a genius in obtaining power, preserving it and ruthlessly exercising it. The resuls are dazzling. Nowadays New York shows a multitude of Moses battlefields. The high ways, the parks in and outside New York, the playgrounds, the tall apartment houses. Robert Moses, Big Bob the Builder once was a celebrity in New York,. His fall after so many years of exercising of power could be no surprise,. His legacy is in doubt. Did he neglect the possibilities of mass transport and were his investments exclusively focused on cars? Did he have solid preferences for the middle class and did he try by all means to neglect the needs of the lower class? Every builder, urban planner, politician, municipal employee, developer, student of history shoud read this book. It is a big big six star
luuk oost

[...]

Robert Caro's biography reads like an extraordinary work of investigative journalism - damning, erudite and compelling - that surely would have been appreciated by Robert Moses had he not been the subject.

It is a fascinating study of the evolution of government in New York City and Robert Moses' ability to shape laws as the "best bill drafter in Albany" and to seize upon prevailing trends and work the levers of the City, State and Federal governments to his advantage. It is during the Great Depression when Moses is able to mobilize maximum resources, largely from the Federal government, for some of his most ambitious projects.

While at most times a scathing indictment of Moses and his methods, Caro does credit Moses - New York City's first Parks Commissioner - for his contributions to green spaces in the city and his creation of a premier state park system.

Caro insists that judgment about Moses' legacy is premature and that one can only say New York would be a very different place without Moses. New York was indeed a very different place at the time of publication of the Power Broker; Caro has recently commented that some of Moses projects, such as the Triborough Bridge, have been a boon for city residents. Although he never cared for mass transit, it's a shame Moses couldn't come back to start work on the stalled new Penn Station.

Listed as a 'summer read' in a local magazine list - I hadn't heard of this book. I picked it up and finished it from one afternoon into the next morning. And -- there was nothing surprising or new to be found here in the book - the pace at which its written and the uncomplicated natural way Lindbergh examines her life and her impressions of life's stages will have me passing this book on to many people in my life.

What timeless wisdom there is in this little book. Although it was written many decades ago, the challenges and issues faced by Anne Morrow Lindbergh are the same ones faced by women in today's crazy, bustling world. In fact, although women in Siberia, Cameroon, or Ceylon might not have her specific set of circumstances, they can still identify with Lindbergh's ponderings about a woman's life, her obligations, her relationships, and her needs. She lived in an upscale suburb of Connecticut and was the mother of five children, and yet there's something in her writing that can touch the souls of women everywhere whether in a grass hut or trailer beside a busy highway

The chapters in Gift from the Sea center on Lindbergh's musings during a two-week vacation at the shore. Leaving husband, children, and house behind, she lives in a bare beach cabin without heat, telephone, plumbing, hot water, rugs, or curtains. She finds simplicity beautiful and longs to take it home to Connecticut when her vacation ends.

Lindbergh takes a shell at a time and describes it in relation to other things in a woman's life. For instance, the moon shell reminds her that quiet time, solitude, contemplation, and "something of one's own" is needed. The double-sunrise represents the pure relationship found in early stages of friendship and marriage, and she reminds the reader that there is no permanent return to an old form of relationship since all are in the process of change. The oyster bed symbolizes the middle years of marriage and family, especially as the home itself grows and expands to accommodate the growing family.

I first read this book when I was a young mother and could readily understand Lindbergh's comment that saints were so rarely married woman because of the distractions inherent in raising children and running a house. "Human relationships with their myriad pulls--woman's normal occupations in general run counter to creative life, or contemplative life, or saintly life." Now in midlife, I can better understand her affinity for all the shells as reminders that each cycle of the wave, the tide, and the relationship is valid.

This book came very highly recommended by two friends who are avid book readers. However I hate to admit that the book did not move me as much as my friends claimed that it moved them. I was more interested about the background references to the author's personal life and how the book came into being. That I would have read voraciously. The book is short but I don't intend to read it again to see what I missed. I believe a book either moves you or it doesn't. This particular book despite other rave reviews did not move me despite my great affinity for the sea and women writers. I wonder if perhaps if the book would have touched me differently if I read it in the beach rather than on a plane which I did.

I have never been a big fan of books on CD. This changed with Gift from the Sea with the forward by Reeve Lindbergh and beautifully read by Claudette Colbert. This is a beautifully written and recorded book. I keep it in my car and play it quite often. I have orderered additional copies to share with friends. It is indeed as relevant today as it was fifty years ago and probably even more pertinent in today's fast paced world where we fail to slow down give ourselves alone time to comtemplate our lives. Reeve Lindbergh's forward about her mother was a lovely bonus. Although I have not read any of her children's books, I have read everything else she has written that I can find and encourage anyone who has not read her books to check her out on [...].

This is a very touching book and it brings up many feelings that I needed to get in touch with. I would highly recommend it.

nicholas and alexandra should never had become czar and crazina of russia.nicholas was just to weak spirit and alexandra to strong without know the real russia people.she saw russian as childern who needed to be told how to run their lives by the papa czar.she hide her son illness and brought in a sexual twisted man of god into her family,ruin the romanov's relationship with it's people.stopping changes that would give citzen russian say in their country.in the end the people turn on the romanov's every thing end tragical.

I read this book many years ago and have never forgotten it, and I just recently purchased a copy of my own. Robert Massie is an excellent writer who makes this book memorable for the fun and loving family that the Romanovs were and their terrible, tragic end. I'm now collecting more books on the Romanov dynasty and the individual people who made up this fascinating family. For anyone with an interest, this is the place to start.

Far and away one of the best biographies I have ever read. Massie masterfully gives life to the doomed, tragic last Russian Tsar, Nicholas II, and his family. I was absolutely rivetted from page one by this outstanding work. The book gives a sympathetic portrait of Tsar Nicholas, his wife Empress Alexandra, and their ongoing struggle to cope with their haemophiliac son, Alexei, heir to the Russian throne. Alexei's illness indirectly leads to the downfall of the Romanov dynasty and the family's murder. An astonishingly good read, and one I highly recommend to all who are interested in this era of history.

Robert Massie's "Nicholas and Alexandra" is a biographical study centered on the lives of the last Tsar and Tsarina of Russia. Massie's portrayal of the last ruling Romanavs is like many other works on the subject in that it is poignant, dramatic, and vibrant; but never dull. However, Massie's work stands out above other works on the subject for its thorough account of the lives of the imperial couple and most of all, its sympathetic portrayal of them.

Nearly all works of the period agree that Tsar Nicholas II was not the blood-drenched despot the Bolshevik revolutionaries claimed him to be, and although he may not have been as benevolent as his contemporary Franz Josef of Austria-Hungary, he at least lacked the bellicose nature of his German counterpart (and early advisor), Wilhelm II. Massie's account demonstrates how Nicholas II was ill-prepared to ascend the throne in after Alexander III, but unlike the contention of other historians, Massie makes a reasonable case in defending the intelligence of the fallen autocrat.

Massie's account of Nicholas and Alexandra does not absolve the couple from their failure to prevent the collapse of the reign and ultimately their country, but it does partially excuse their inflexibility and fatalism on the serious of misfortunes that continued to plague Nicholas from the very day of his coronation; when hundred of Russian peasants were stampeded to death in a overzealous crowd on Khodynka Meadow. Yet, no Romanov apologist can ignore the detrimental influences on Nicholas's reign, including his wife Alexandra, a German Kaiser, and especially a corrupt starets. That such an array of persons from various strata of society could at times impose their will on a man raised to be an autocrat was a tarnish on Nicholas' character.

Despite his habit of being easily swayed at times, Nicholas is not one-dimensional in Massie's account. It is noted how Nicholas ignored the advice of able ministers and most of all; remained unyielding to grant the masses of his subjects the representation and constitution they desired--until it was too late. Even Massie can be counted among the historians who muse whether the Romanov dynasty might have survived had the Tsar been more accommadating to the popular demands of his people--or if war had not erupted in the manner it did in 1914.

Although Massie's work is very thorough, it only briefly touches the clandestine operations of the Tsarist police state in rooting out revolutionaries and assassins from its masses prior to 1917. Indeed, other works (e.g. Edmond Taylor's "The Fall of the Dynasties") are careful to point out that Tsarist police included a host of known double agents whose loyalties were perpetually in doubt. While Massie makes note of that insecurity in his account of Prime Minister Peter Stolypin's assassination in 1911 by a Tsarist agent, he fails to explain how widespread the problem actually was. Indeed, Taylor describes as monarchy's slide to collapse as a "suicide", not because they were unable to stop that slide, but rather because they were unwilling.

Just as it is difficult to excuse the corrupt system of Tsarist counter-revolutionary activity, historians are also unable to justify the Russia's policy in WWI of placing the needs of France above that of her own. The disaster at Tannenburg early in the war is described in detail by Massie, and is correctly portrayed as a premature offensive launched by Russia (with the support of Nicholas) to rescue its beleagured ally from the German onslaught through northern France. Indeed, even after his abdication and arrest, Massie notes how Nicholas pleaded with Kerensky to continue to support the Russia's allies in the war effort--a mission with which the Provisional Government leader would complete in the summer of 1917 with disastrous consequences. Although Massie's "Nicholas and Alexandra" does not outright label the monarchy as a principle agent of its own destruction, his book nevertheless provides a strong case to the conclusion that the last rulers (and their ministers) of the Romanov dynasty practiced an inexplicable policy of self-immolation.

It is perhaps this mystery--or lunacy--of the Romanovs that continues to fascinate so many readers 90 years after their unglorious deaths in their Siberian imprisonment. Undoubtedly, the story of the last Romanovs will continue to perplex students of history for decades to come, and Robert Massie's work will will remain the foremost account of the twilight of Imperial Russia.

Massie has written a masterpiece.
Graceful, informative ,never boring.
One of the best introductions into the insanity
of the Red Revolution and the rise of communism.

I thought this book was the best book on Vietnam that I have ever read. Its a facinating look into life as a line officer in a front line Marine Infantry batallion during the early part of the war. Caputo holds nothing back when it comes to describing life on the front line and what goes through the minds of these young, too young Marines who fought on the front line. An excellent read and I highly reccomend it.

Its a page turner from start to finish. A very unique view of the war.

I assigned this book to my college students for a closer glimpse of the Vietnam Conflict. I had not read it before, but had done research and study on the subject. I found Caputo's book to be insightful, controversial and thought provoking. He doesn't glamorize the war but explains how it effected soldiers and one of the many reasons it was such a mess. Throughout the book, Caputo shows how the conditions changed the average American teenager into a robotic killer and how their experiences stayed with them. In the end, he speaks against the war, but not in the normal Jane Fonda version of bashing the military and labeling them rapists and baby killer. Caputo talks about how the government was at fault and created the situations that lead to PTSD and other issues for returning soldiers.

A must read to understand the war and its effects on our soldiers.

In keeping with the theme of this Memorial Day weekend, I would like to offer my thoughts on "A Rumor of War," a classic tale of Vietnam. Philip Caputo has crafted one of the most moving and disturbing testaments to the men who fought and died in that far away land. When the book was first published in 1977, the New York Times called it "The troubled conscience of America speaking passionately, truthfully, finally." I became aware of this classic memoir when my friend, Capt. Kyle Kalkwarf, West Point Class of 2002, told me that it was one of the best books about war he had ever read. He recommended that I add it to my reading list. He was right in doing so.

Caputo's recollections of his time as a Marine in Vietnam are filled with anger and sorrow at the misbegotten policies promulgated in Washington and carried out with disastrous results by General Westmorland and his subordinates. The author makes it clear in his introductory remarks how he felt and feels about that war and the impact that it had upon him and his comrades in arms:

"Beyond adding a few more corpses to the weekly body count, none of these encounters achieved anything; none will ever appear in military histories or be studied by cadets at West Point. Still, they changed us and taught us, the men who fought in them; in those obscure skirmishes we learned the old lessons about fear, cowardice, courage, suffering, cruelty and comradeship. Most of all, we learned about death at an age when it is common to think of oneself as immortal. Everyone loses that illusion eventually, but in civilian life it is lost in installments over the years. We lost it all at once, and in the span of months, passed from boyhood through manhood to a premature middle age. The knowledge of death, of the implacable limits placed on a man's existence, severed us from our youth as irrevocably as a surgeon's scissors had once severed us from the womb. And yet, few of us were past twenty-five. We left Vietnam peculiar creatures, with young shoulders that bore rather old heads. . .

This book is partly an attempt to capture something of its [the war's] ambivalent realities. Anyone who fought in Vietnam, if he is honest about himself, will have to admit he enjoyed the compelling attractiveness of combat. It was a peculiar enjoyment because it was mixed with a commensurate pain. Under fire, a man's powers of life heightened in proportion to the proximity of death, so that he felt an elation as extreme as his dread. His senses quickened, and he attained an acuity of consciousness at once pleasurable and excruciating. It was something like the elevated state of awareness induced by drugs. And it could be just as addictive, for it made whatever else life offered in the way of delights or torments see pedestrian." (Pages xv-xvii)

Caputo's last comments in the section just quoted seem to be eerily in keeping with the themes of the stunning films, "The Deer Hunter" and "Apocalypse Now."

In one of the most gripping passages in the book, Caputo recaptures the spectrum of emotions he felt during a helicopter assault - running the gamut from fear to courage:

"A helicopter assault on a hot landing zone creates emotional pressures far more intense than a conventional ground assault. It is the enclosed space, the noise, the speed, and, above all, the sense of total helplessness. There is a certain excitement to it the first time, but after that it is one of the more unpleasant experiences offered by modern war. On the ground, an infantryman has some control over his destiny, or at least the illusion of it. In a helicopter under fire, he hasn't even the illusion. Confronted by the indifferent forces of gravity, ballistics and machinery, he is himself pulled in several directions at once by a range of extreme, conflicting emotions. Claustrophobia plagues him in the small space: the sense of being trapped and powerless in a machine in unbearable, and yet he has to bear it. Bearing it, he begins to feel a blind fury toward the forces that made him powerless, but has to control his fury until he is out of the helicopter and on the ground again. He yearns to be on the ground, but the desire is countered by the danger he knows is there. Yet, he is also attracted by the danger, for he knows he can only overcome his fear by facing it. His blind rage then begins to focus on the men who are the source of the danger - and of his fear. It concentrates inside him, and through some chemistry is transformed into a fierce resolve to fight until the danger ceases to exist. But this resolve, which is sometimes called courage, cannot be separated from the fear that has aroused it. Its very measure is the measure of that fear. It is, in fact, a powerful urge not to be afraid anymore, to rid himself of fear by eliminating the source of it. This inner, emotional war produces tension almost sexual in its intensity. It is too painful to endure for long. All a soldier can think about is the moment when he can escape his impotent confinement and release this tension. All other considerations, the rights and wrongs of what he is doing, the chances for victory or defeat in the battle, the battle's purpose or lack of it, become so absurd as to be less than irrelevant. Nothing matters except the final, critical instant when he leaps out into the violent catharsis he both seeks and dreads." (Pages 277-8)

Caputo's thoughtful and passionate recounting of the growing up that he did in the cauldron of Vietnam added to my understanding of what many of my generation experienced as they fought in Southeast Asia and returned to a country that had grown sick of the fighting. As our nation once again wrestles with combat fatigue and the questions of when to withdraw and how to withdraw from Iraq, I am grateful that this time around - unlike the situation that existed in the late `60's and 70's - even those who oppose the war have not showered those returning from the Gulf with opprobrium. They desire our admiration and our gratitude.

Thanks Kyle, for recommending this book, and for your continuing service to our nation.

Al

Caputo wasn't much of a marine. He started complaining about Vietnam before he arrived. Every page is filled with criticism, cynicism, griping, complaining, and self-serving tripe. He wanted to be a hero, but he didn't have what it took to be anything but a whining wimp. Certainly he writes well. But writing well and living well are entirely different. He doesn't understand honor or duty. Sure the war was politicized, but so is every war. Sure the rules of engagement were stupid, but a soldier serves. Caputo did not serve; rather he whined. Many of us who served in Vietnam believed there were many things that made no sense. But we didn't turn tail and run. We served. For those who want to understand what is was like to be a soldier in Vietnam, read "We Were Soldiers Once... and Young" or "Steel My Soldiers' Hearts". If you want to know what is was like to be useless in Vietnam, read this book.

This is probably the most important book written on the Iraq War. Michael Yon does an outstanding job of telling it like it is--no politics, no right or left, no spin, just the facts. He also reports the facts that the mainstream media usually deems unfit to print. Yon is critical about mistakes that were made, but at the same time shows that the Iraq War is in the process of being won. He credits the surge and a successful "community-policing" style of counterinsurgency strategy. The turnaround in events in Iraq is nothing short of spectacular. This book is easy to read, a page turner and will keep you on the edge of your seat. The stories and pictures Yon uses are especially powerful. Highly recommended. For those that support an immediate withdrawal of troops, this book will change your mind.

This book is an extremely exciting tour from the grunt's point of view. Since this point of view is often overlooked, it is nice to see it done so well.

HOWEVER, If you want to understand how we got into the war or who we are fighting now you will not get any idea from this book. It seems that MOST of our enemies are either Al Qaeda or Al Qaeda sympathizers. There is almost no discussion with any of our enemies, so what little information is provided about our enemies either says that they are fanatics or dismisses them as illevant. If there had been an index, you would see that there is exactly one reference to Moqtada al Sadr... (who was even cut from Yon's otherwise excellent coverage of the execution of Saddam!) and a few, minor references to Nouri Al Maliki. Considering this, it would seem that Yon expects the Americans to stay in Iraq forever, solving problems, eliminating insurgents, etc. There is no Iraqi political presence.

The sample is great, and I plan to read this book (I have read quite a few others like it). But at $23.96 for a download!!!!!????? I'll wait for the price to come down, if it ever does, or buy a paper copy used.

Why is the Kindle version of this book $4 higher than the current hardback price?

I would spend ten bucks to buy a version that I cannot share with others, but I won't spend more than what I would pay for a hardback.

This book is a much-needed memoir of our involvement in Iraq. For the duration of America's involvement in Iraq, the citizenry has been deprived of an accurate view of what our brave troops are accomplishing in Iraq. The media simply had little interest in actually sharing the positive aspects of our involvement in Iraq. Yon counteracts that tendency by providing a number of stories that provide a more positive aspect of our troop's actions. Simply stated, Murtha's version of the war is not born out by Yon's. If you read this book, your view of the war will be changed. Maybe not radically, but it will be changed to some degree. It is well written, but not unfair or biased. These traits make it a sure way to open your eyes.

I gave this book 4 stars only because it was published in 1995, which is over a decade ago. It is a good source for background information about a corporate executive I respect--and there are few of those to be found. Buffett told the author he would nothing to help or hinder, and the journalistic quality and information is well-presented and -documented. A good place to learn more about the "Oracle of Omaha". I'd like to see Lowenstein do a follow-up covering the more recent years.

Before writing my impressions of this book, I think it is first important to identify the reviewer so others can see my perspective. I am a young graduate with limited to no investing experience. I became interest in Warren Buffett after reading a fair amount of articles on Buffett the person; his success in investing, his political views, his recent contribution to the Gates charity, and most importantly, his character. I became intrigued enough to inquire about the details of who this man is and his philosophy.

This was exactly what the book offered; it is a biography, not an investment guide. That said, it is not really possible to unlink Buffett the person and Buffett the investor. His core values are too in entwined for it to be anything other. Lowenstein does a great job of presenting information in terms that a layman like myself can understand (with some help from simple research) while still providing enough information to get the details about Buffett's investment strategies and core values.

I found the book to be both informative and enticing. It has instilled in me a great respect for the man, as well as an interest in becoming less of an investment layman. The book is a bit dated, now being about 13 years old, but after reading it, I find this point moot. Buffett's approach has been the same since he learned from Graham, just with more information and an increasing scope in which to apply his tactics.

In my opinion, Lowenstein did a fantastic job researching his subject matter. The book is ripe with references and further signs that he truly knows his subject. I also found little to no signs of a subjective approach in respect to either glorifying Buffett or demonizing him, as far as is humanly possible. Buffett's mistakes are presented as clearly as his amazing triumphs (and they are quite amazing). Lowenstein's approach is instead to provide as clear as possible a presentation of Buffett's character, which is again entwined with his (enormous) successes and (minor) setbacks.

Highly recommended for those interested in his character. Again, this book is a biography, not an investment guide, but it seems hard to separate the two in regards to Buffett.

This is a biography. It talks about his parents, what he was like as a kid and how he got where he is today. It is college level reading, but flows nicely. Specific chapters fill us in in detail about some of the more complex times in his life like the beginnings of Berkshire and being investigated by the SEC.

I've liked the book. I'm not quite done, but it's kept my interest for like 500 pages - and that's not easy (if you knew me).

Well researched, analyzed, and written.

I see why Buffett was silently acceptive in autographing it. Superb job in reporting both analytical economics and personal life. Truth.

I will read more from this author.

Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist by Lowenstein is one of the most delightful books I have ever read. It was difficult to put this book down. If you enjoy an enterprising adventure, you'll love this one. More than investment epic biography; it is an exciting light fun read. There are tidbits of investing genius around every corner. My connection came when I learned how enterprising Warren was even as a young boy and then it gets better and better. Our investment club, also selected this book to study in 2008 and it has been exceeding expectations. It is one of several books I have read on the topic of Warren Buffett and it is by-far-and-away, the best. This is one you will want to keep for your collection and share with your kids, friends and family.

I was in a book store and I was attracted to the title and the cover color. I picked up the book and read the jacket and I was hooked. I hardly ever buy non-technical books -especially non-fiction. But I was hooked after reading the jacket so I bought the book and assiduously read and enjoyed it. Also I am a Wharton alumnus. I also took classes with Len Lodish.

Eric Ericsson

The book spells out tips for starting a business (use credit cards instead of banks) and the mistakes the authors made along the way (when do you enter the market). You can even contact them after reading and talk to them about your ideas. The encouraging aspect of the book is that while they are starting their business, they spoke to their classmates who were making $200,000 on wall street and working for the dot-coms, but John and Kyle were not discouraged. I am happy that they were able to take an idea like a computer mouse shaped like a gold club and turn it into THEIR company. Congrats guys!

There is so much in this book that I can relate to, having started my own company around the same time in Silicon Valley (although in software). John and Kyle made the same mistakes that many entrepreneurs thankfully make - they followed their passion instead of their senses, and didn't buckle under the pressure and the unknown. One other valuable lesson from this book -- document your process. This is a great way to share your successes and your mistakes with others. I wish we had more stories like this when I was working on my MBA - something more than the dry, non-applicable case studies stuck in front of us. And John and Kyle also provided one other important gem: how to save a few bucks a month at the neighborhood gym. Thanks guys.

The Mousedriver Chronicles is the story of 2 Wharton MBA's who take a business plan developed on their entrepreneurship course at Wharton and decide to make a go of it. In 1999 they turn away high paying jobs at investment banks and over funded dot.com startups to go it alone.

Their idea: to make and sell a computer mouse that looks like the head of a golf driver.

They fund the venture themselves, find a manufacturer in Hong Kong, move to San Francisco (to be part of all the start up vibe in The Bay area) and run the business from the kitchen of their rented flat.

Their story is brilliantly relayed as they grapple with manufacturing, marketing and distribution hassles. The single product focus of their new company, named Platinum Concepts Inc., makes for a wonderful entrepreneurial story with excellent lessons about what it takes to succeed as a self funded start up. The two founders quickly learn that they need more than the theoretical knowledge acquired on their MBA at Wharton; they need to be street wise. They experiment with different mechanisms to make things happen and end up categorizing their execution strategies as follows:
Plan A: Make use of their business school network and contacts
Plan B: Hit the streets and the shops to find a creative solution
Plan C: Work the Yellow Pages

More often than not, plan B and C worked far better than plan A.

One of the founders, John Lusk, began sharing their entrepreneurial adventure with friends and family via a monthly email called "The Insider". The Insider was a real, often humorous, sometimes highly insightful newsletter about their adventure. The insider subscriber list grew and grew. MBA lecturers began distributing The Insider as prescribed reading. In 2001 Inc. Magazine featured a cover story on the company and its two founders. The Inc. cover story entitled "An American Start-up" focuses on the impact of The Insider e-mail newsletter. The email newsletters were used as the foundation for the book published in 2001 entitled The "Mousedriver Chronicles".
The company has since been shut down but the Mousedriver website still serves as a portal for entrepreneurs and copies of The Insider newsletter can be found in PDF format on the website: www.mousedriver.com

MouseDriver is about two guys who graduate from Wharton with MBAs in 1999 (the heart of the internet boom) and start a business manufacturing and selling a computer mouse that looks like the head of a driver golf club, turning down high paying jobs at dotcoms, investment banks, consulting firms etc.

As a small business consultant (Transcendence Consulting, LLC tcllc.net) I can tell you right now that if you are looking to start a busines, buy this book TODAY. It is an amazing look at the entire process of starting a business, from the ability to jump head first, manage yourself during
the highs and lows, deal with self doubt and solve an endless supply of problems. It is an easy read that will take you no time at all to complete.

In short, I am an amateur historian of Russian history and found this biography to be very detailed, thoroughly researched biograaphy while at the same time reading as a top notch novel. I can't recommend it more. If you are interested in the man, this transitional period in Russian history or are after a great read, you won't be disappointed. Enjoy!

i THINK PETER MASSIE's biography on Peter tue Great is a classic book. You read it more as a novel than an historical biography. I highgly recommend it for people interest in history. Peter the Great is an icon of Russian and Universal history, with a stunnig personality, with very dark and very positive sides. It is a most for people who want to understand russian history.

Massie's biography of Peter, the Czar of Russia is unquestionably author's best book.

For nearly quarter of a century Peter strode upon his nation like a colossus.Though tyrannical and cruel Peter unlike other Russian contemporaries was broad-minded and had progressive outlook toward life.Russian Czar was dynamic had unbridled curiosity and insatiable thirst for knowledge.

Old Muscovy state ,as author rightly puts it, was conservative,xenophobic rigidly adhering to antiquated ways.Interacting with foreigners in Muscovy's German suburb Peter realised how backward his nation really was.A fact which prompted him to undertake 'Great Embassy' to the West.Peter strove to modernise Russia particularly its armed forces incorporating latest in western technology.There was hardly a sphere of human endeavour in that nation which lay untouched by Peter's reforming zeal. Czar can rightly be dubbed the architect of modern Russia.

Czar's love for war,soldiering ,sea,ships,navigation lends colour to this biography.Big events of his life was Great northern War and founding of the city of St. Petersburg along the banks of river neva.In the former case, Peter wanted to make Russia a maritime power .this was not possible as long as Russia had no natural access to sea.In the south ,Tartars blocked Russia's route to sea and in the north Swedes controlled the Baltic coast.Peter's determination to break the stranglehold led to war with King Charles XII of Sweden.

The book is also a brilliant sweep of late 17th and early 18th century history.Author narrates Streltsy revolt which precede peter's accession to power,the reign of King Louis XIV of Bourbon dynasty,splendid court life of French nobility. Religious strife ,dynastic quarrels leading to wars of succession,rise of Holland, growth of Ottoman power and Glorious revolution in England.Hence I deem this book an essential reading for History buffs.

My only grudge is bibliography which looks inadequate considering the scale of research undertaken by the author for its production.Research notes not very impressive .However footnotes adequately compensates for this lacuna.

Book carries good quality maps especially on Battle of Poltava. Reader is easily able to follow the ebb and flow of the battle ; different manoeuvres practised by Swedish and Russian infantry and cavalry units.

On the whole,Massie has done an excellent job.

Much like Pierre Berton's great Canadian history books, Robert Massie brings history to the "people" with Peter The Great. In this long but highly readable biography, Massie illumimates the distant past of a backward nation which grew into a major European power under the energetic Peter. We read about the palace intrigues in the Kremlin in Peter's early years, his rise to power, and his historic trip "incognito" through Holland, Austria and England. A major part of this book is devoted to the Great Northern War with Sweden, and the fascinating character of Swedish king Charles XII. I knew very little about that attempted invasion of Russia, and Massie paints a vivid picture of the Swedish campaign. The author also brings us inside the Ottoman Empire and the life of the Sultans and Grand Viziers. He puts Peter's life in context with the greater world and shifting alliances of Europe.

The brutish nature of life in Russia in this era is not glossed over. So many labourers died in the construction of Peter's centrepiece city St. Petersburg, and the cruel punishments of the time are depicted. Overall, this is the type of historical biography they don't write anymore. History can be and should be written to appeal to a broader audience, and also to tell things as they were, without resorting to revisionism. Books such as this encourage readers to explore history more.

I love to read history and have numerous books about many people and events that happened throughout history. But this book has to be my absolute favorite. Peter the Great was an amazing person and led a life without one dull moment. Once you start reading this book it will be difficult to put it down. Even though he did not live into old age, he lived a life full of adventure and you will never be bored while reading this book. You will find that Peter the Great is one of the best leaders of all times and I often wonder how Russian history would have evolved if Peter had lived to be eighty. It is too bad the man cannot be cloned.

This book is an incredible story of survival. I have seen the movie also. I would recommend both!

One of those amazing stories that makes you realize just how much the human spirit can take, and still survive. And just how inhumane we humans can be towards each other. Once you start reading, you won't be able to put this down.

Szpilman reveals the tragedy of Jewish life in Warsaw under the German occupation from 1939-1946. Szpilman's autobiographical work was first published in postwar Poland in 1946 but then quickly removed from circulation by Polish authorities. An accomplished pianist before the war, Szpilman played for Polish Radio during the siege of Warsaw and later within the Jewish ghetto to provide food for his parents and siblings. With the systematic liquidation of Jewish life in Warsaw and separation from his family, Szpilman's life took a series of surprising twists. As the reader views life in the ghetto through the eyes of a survivor, his escape from the ghetto before the Jewish up-rising and his ultimate survival consistently depended upon a timely combination of luck and sympathetic acquaintances B including a German army officer.

Included with Szpilman's memoirs are excerpts from Captain Wilm Hosenfeld's diaries and Wolf Biermann's own brief commentary. Hosenfeld's equating of National Socialism with Stalinist Communist and Biermann's emphasis on Szpilman's willingness to break with his past detracts from the overall quality of this work. Nevertheless, this work is well written and will retain the reader's attention to the end.

I could not put down this book, and read it in two sittings. Wladyslaw Szpilman, the famed pianist and composer, describes his harrowing account of life under Nazi terror. As a Polish Jew, Szpilman was considered by the Nazis to be entirely subhuman, and it is a miracle he survived the persistent and random acts of violence that surrounded him. He was nearly sent to a death camp along with his five family members, and somehow was pulled off the Birkenau-bound train to a grim prospect of survival. The images in this book are harrowing, such as the depiction of the shattered skulls of little girls, victims of the Nazis' "preferred" method of killing children by picking them up by their legs and swinging them into a brick wall. Imagine the horror....Szpilman's account is so matter-of-fact at times that you wonder how he survived. The fact that he did is a testament of human endurance, but also the ways of fate. There were occasions when he survived simply by the luck of the draw in a Godless universe.

Why do I consider a first person account detailing the horrors of the Holocaust to be uplifting? The events described by the author are harrowing and nearly unbelieveable to the degree that I was astonished that the man, in the end, survives. Perhaps that is why I am so uplifted by this story. He survived. He defied evil by daring to live. He also dared to pick up the pieces of his shattered life and continue to live. He does this without any fanfare or obvious heroism. I think that is what makes this particular telling of the Holocaust so remarkable. The author writes it in such an unremarkable fashion that it forces you to sit up and take notice. By simply stating that the caramel was his 'family's last meal together' makes you pause to reflect on such an event. Beautifully written. Highly reccommended.

As a side note, Roman Polanski's adaptation of this book is truely brilliant. Adrien Brody's portrayal of Szpilman is awe inspiring and heart wrenching to watch. Both men do the book and Szpilman's memory justice.

I read this book around '84. In 1988, my uncle Rich, a retired college dean and my fabulous Aunt Cecilia went off to London for a year, American College, I think. I went on a road trip to the UK...England, Scotland, Wales, spent a few days with them, brought my aunt a copy of 84 Charing Cross Road. My uncle didn't get the concept, economist that he was. Letters? Who wants to read someone else's letters? Lurch forward about a month. The end of my road trip, both had read and loved this book. I gave the vid to them when it came out, it's a wonderful movie. They came home, at any gathering my Aunt Cecilia always asked...what are you reading?

84, Charing Cross Road is a delightful collection of letters chronicling the 20-plus years' correspondence between screenwriter Helene Hanff and Frank Doel, bookseller of Marks & Co. It begins with a request in which Helene inquires after a series of books she wants to buy, saying that Barnes & Nobles's sells "marked up, grimy schoolboy" copies of the books she wants (my, how things have changed!), and continues through a friendship between Hanff and Doel in which the two never meet. As their lives grow and change, Hanff and Doel's friendship remains the one constant.

It's a special friendship, and Hanff is sharp-tongued and witty, making her a delightful narrator. I have a feeling that not all of the letters are preserved here in their entirety, but they're reprinted word-for-word, including Hanff's idiosyncratic punctuation--no doubt due to the fact that she typewrote all of her letters, but nonetheless, the letters show Hanff's personality and her rather abrupt way of corresponding.

It's a short book (just about 100 pages), but it's a special book, nonetheless, about a shared love of books. 84, Charing Cross Road is a must-read for any bibliophile. It's too bad that a woman on the subway accidentally tipped soda into my bag and all over my copy of this wonderful book...

I discovered this book on a dusty HS library shelf and as in Ms. Hanff's words, devoured it "all at once" not coming up for air or cigarettes. I also bought the VHS many years ago as soon as it came available. Since then, I've gone on to go out of head for Donne, Quiller-Couch, Austen, and Blake (though not anywhere near Donne!).

What a great movie this story made. I have watched the movie many, many times and have loved it every time. Now, I just had to read the book. The strange thing is that since I know what is going to occur at the end, my eyes become teared which makes the book difficult to read. Of course, that happens at certain moments in the movie as well. What a powerful story!

In less than one hundred pages, Helene Hanff has given her readers a rare and special gift. Here in this delightful little book are the notes she exchanged with the employees of Marks & Co., a used-book store in England. Being fond of the old-fashioned yet still highly personal act of letter writing, and being equally fond of old books and used-book stores, Hanff seemed to have compiled these letters just for me. I doubt there is anyone who can read this book without experiencing a wide range of emotions complete with laughter and tears.

A lifelong letter writer, Helene Hanff studied playwriting at the Theatre Guild. She has written scripts for "The Hallmark Hall of Fame" and for "Ellery Queen." Her other writings include several children's books as well as articles for Harpers and New Yorker magazines.

Living and writing in New York City, Hanff finds herself unsuccessful in finding certain rare or out-of-print editions of books.

"Gentlemen:
Your ad in the Saturday Review of Literature says that you specialize in out-of-print books. The phrase 'antiquarian booksellers' scares me somewhat, as I equate 'antique' with expensive. I am a poor writer with an antiquarian taste in books and all the things I want are impossible to get over here except in very expensive rare editions, or in Barnes & Noble's grimy, marked-up schoolboy copies."

So begins the opening letter dated October 5, 1949, and addressed to Marks & Co. at 84, Charing Cross Road in London. What follows on the pages of this book are the letters Hanff wrote to Marks & Co., and specifically to Frank P. Dole. Also included are the responses to her requests, mostly from Frank P. Dole. Through their twenty-year relationship, the two strangers become in some ways like family. Frank introduces his family to Helene in letters. She corresponds with the family as if they are her own. Knowing that in a time of rationing, certain items are not readily available to the residents of London, she takes great care to ship Christmas and Easter gifts to the store with plenty of eggs and meat for everyone there.

The final entry, dated 1969, brings the relationship between the bookstore, Frank Dole and Hanff full circle. The twenty years between the first and last notes are fondly recalled on the pages of this book.

These short notes, her requests for specific books, the monetary transactions that took place, and the solid relationships that developed allow the present day reader to glimpse a bit of the nostalgic... a gentler time when costs were lower, trust was higher, and people were more willing to be compassionate to complete strangers.

This is a truly delightful little book that has captured my heart. And, by the way, the fact that I discovered it while browsing through my own favorite little used-book store lends a special sort of appeal to it. I treasure the gifts within these pages--the gifts of self, of the written word, and the appreciation for the simpler things in life.

by Lee Ambrose
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women