Walter Lord Books

This is a great book to read! Very interesting and intense. Great reading material.

OK now that I have the conch I have a few things I'd like to say about this book. First if you don't know what the conch is all about then you'd better pick up this book and read it. Secondly if you think you know who the Lord of Flies might be without reading this book your wrong. Third and lastly do yourself a favor anyway and pick up this book, it's a fun, quick read. I liked this story of young boys stranded on a island having to fend for themselves and at the same time trying to keep some sort of organization among themselves as they wait for a possible rescue. But therein lies the problem as their little world begins to turn up-side down as different personalities begin to clash. I felt as though I too was on the island with these kids as I read along. I've said enough now, who wants the conch now?

What an incredible first novel, a story of civilization, how humans create it and how easily it can be destroyed. It deals with fear, and the atrocities it can make people commit. Golding wrote often about the connection between humanity and civilization. Does civilization make us human? This story can mean many things to many people, making it wonderful fodder for literature classes and idle pondering.

Ted Brautigan from Hearts In Atlantis called this book a rare good story written well (not a quote, but close enough). It must have been in the world from which Ted came. In this world the story is weak, predictable, laboriously plotted, written in rather lame language festering with pronouns and descriptions that paint no picture.

The innocence of the age in which the book was written shows through and through: things that the author intended to be shocking pale in comparison with daily news stories of today.

This is the worst book I ever read. From the first time I read it 40 years ago, I could not imagine why it had not been banned. The viewpoint of mankind presented is so degraded and ugly that it should be. There is NO REASON to expose our young people to such negativity. No wonder they have so many psychological problems! Please, teachers, read positive works with your young students. The world is not like that, and it is our job to give them positive views for their future and ours!

I love this book. It is written as a story about the life of Jesus and those around Him. A must read for those who want to understand more about Jesus. I would recomend this to everyone and especially young people and new christians

OK.....I've never met Walter Wangerin, Jr....but he's managed to embarrass me in public several times!!! I've been a huge fan for well over 10 years and probably should've expected some kind of emotional reaction in reading another one of his great novels...but to have an employee of Subway come up to me at lunch this week and ask if I was crying was a little much...ha. I explained to her that I was reading a wonderful book and she replied..."that's so sweet!".
And it is with great sweetness, amazing tenderness and super-abundant passion for his subject matter that Wangerin tells the tale of the greatest story ever told.
The manner in which he colors so carefully within the lines of the Gospel narratives in telling the stories of, not only Jesus Himself, but most especially Mary, Simon Peter, John, Mary Magdalene and even Judas Iscariot is truly spellbinding. From his amazing interpretation of the reason behind Judas' betrayal (trying to force Jesus' hand in overcoming the Roman and Jewish authorities and establish his "earthly" kingdom)...to the astonishing description of how John came to be known as "The Beloved Disciple"....to his humorous, heartbreaking and absolutely priceless portrayal of Simon Peter, we are treated to some of the most mesmerizing words ever written about the intensely human folk who walked with Jesus.
Perhaps the most vivid words, however, are written about Jesus' incredible mother. Wangerin takes great pains in interpreting the stories of her awestruck and intensely human conflict in watching the drama of Jesus' heavenly mission as He prepares to die for the sins of lost humanity. The beauty of her story lies most profoundly in the myriad ways that Wangerin describes her as a woman swept away by motherly devotion and pain for her precious "Yeshi" as she watches His suffering firsthand. Her bold and seemingly irreverent tirades against God on behalf of Jesus seem totally in synch with a woman who clearly understands that the Almighty -is- the father of "their" son. And some of the most beautiful writing about Mary is from the "pen" of John (Wangerin writes the book -as- the beloved disciple)...as he cares for Mary in the latter years of her life...as he witnesses to the Gentiles...only to have Mary interrupt him with humorous corrections about the life of HER son....to the pet name she gives him to address her...to the earthy humanity of this most amazing of women and lastly in his telling of her final hours...Mary's story is a thing of beauty as told by this amazing writer.
Some of the most famous Gospel passages describing Jesus' life literally jump from the pages...from the Sermon on the Mount to the raising of Lazarus, the Nativity story, the Crucifixion (told, not as graphically as I'd have expected, but with a reverent beauty and elegance that left me stunned) to the Ascension. One of the final stories...Jesus' post-resurrection appearance on the beach as the disciples are fishing (with Mary along as the instigator of the boat trip!)...leading up to Jesus' restoration of Simon Peter....is truly one of the most amazing things I've ever read.
Wangerin's multi-hued and overwhelmingly passionate rendering of the character of Jesus' Himself is so masterful that one is left in awe of his ability to make it perfectly clear that Jesus was man and divine at the same time. The Crucifixion scene followed by the first appearance to the disciples in the upper room concludes with John writing these words to his Lord...."And when one week later, you grant Thomas as the last of all to see your wounds and to receive his peace, he falls to the floor and utters the confession I have never since ceased to sing unto you: My Lord, my Lord and my God!"
So much Scripture is interwoven into the novel from start to finish that Wangerin's words are given a much deeper import and resonance than would otherwise have been possible. These stories are so much a part of the lives of believers that Wangerin's intensely personal renderings of the life of Jesus resonated deeply within my spirit...and made me understand that these stories are truly OUR stories and part of who we are as Christians. After the powerful telling of Jesus' death and resurrection in the novel, it became clear to me, in a way I'd never grasped, exactly WHY the early disciples who lived through all of these things truly abandoned their old fear of death.
I'll conclude with Wangerin's dazzling description near the end...of John the Beloved trying his best to summarize his telling of the life of Jesus.... "Well, then: I cannot lay my pen aside until I've given expression to the mystery inexpressible, the timelessness and the placelessness of the Lord. What I write here, what I indite as last of all, might be sung, could someone give it music. Me? I confess, there is no music in me-except insofar as I love it. I can't sing. I growl below the soaring voices of the blessed. I don't make melodies. And all the singers I have ever known have left me to my poor, inglorious means: a way with words, a memory weighty and comprehensive and dagger-sharp with detail, a knowledge of Greek and the Scriptures, and the spirit that drives me to write things down."
These last words seems almost to describe Wangerin himself. I don't know if Wangerin can sing a note in tune, but I know that his God-given talent with words have the power to bring me to tears. And to make my spirit sing.......

More than once this work brought tears to my eyes. The author blended different aspects of the four gospels into this compelling novel. One thing I was confused about was the Beloved is supposed to be John. In this book, that is not all too clear since an account of John is told in the third person.

Walter Wangerin, vertelt het levensverhaal van Jezus Christus in romanvorm afwisselend door de ogen van Johannes, de leerling die Hij liefhad, en Maria, de moeder van Jezus. Bekende personages en verhalen uit het Johannes evangelie (hoewel natuurlijk ook uit de andere evangelieën en Handelingen is geput) worden mensen van vlees en bloed. Hoewel het gevaar van romantiseren, dramatiseren en meer inleggen dan op basis van de Bijbel ons is meegegeven, houdt Wangerin zich behoorlijk aan de ongeschreven en voor vele lezers gevoelige spelregels. De gemiddelde gelovige is immers grootgebracht met een bepaalde bijbelvertaling en zienswijze op hun Heiland, ook in het al dan niet uitbeelden, verhalend vormgeven van Zijn leven. Het boek grijpt, zoals goed lezen van de Bijbel ook doet. Boeiend om gesprekken met een groep over te hebben die zowel de Bijbel als de roman gelezen hebben. Op Boekencentrum.nl vind je voorbeelden.

This is another book which really puts you in the presence of our Lord. You feel as if you have experienced actually walking and entering into the conversations that took place during the earthly life of our Savior. You laugh, you smile, you cry when reading this journey through the life of Christ. Please read and enjoy.

As a big fan of both A NIGHT TO REMEMBER and DAY OF INFAMY, I was excited to read this one. But even as an enthusiast of WW2 History and this particular author, I found it pretty slow going. Plodding details without the candid, human elemnt Lord generally writes best. I finished the book feeling unenlightened and not particularly better informed about the events @ Dunkirk.

Much of the book tells how the British organised and executed one of the biggest rescue operation in history.Evacuation -remarkable achievment-of cornered Allied troops took a week and those seven days by far darkest days in the history of British Empire.Because trapped at Dunkirk were the cream of BEF.It included men like Brooke,Montgomery,Horrocks,Alexander who went on to command armies which retook the continent from the Nazis.But I must say author bored me with all those details regarding evacuation and it took considerable patience on my part to go through this text.Author,however,has furnished fresh insights on what is widely regarded as miracle of Dunkirk.I disagree with this notion.On May 23-24 the advance of Guderian's XIX armoured corps was abruptly halted along Aa canal.All sorts of arguments were advanced justifying the halt order.In Hitler's warped mind French armies holding out below the Somme river appeared more menacing than trapped BEF at Dunkirk.This was in consonance with German thinking France being mortal foe than Britain.By taking that line Nazi leader made Germany's defeat in World War II inevitable.This misperception regarding 'centre of gravity'of war caused Germans postpone the assault on Dunkirk.British shrewd enough to exploit reprieve and mounted biggest seaborne rescue operation.Here lies the truth and not as some British historians[Ellis,Fuller] make us understand than terrain around Dunkirk[marshy,slushy]would have impeded German attempts to seize the port.Circumstances conspired to deny the Germans ultimate truimph.

Walter Lord weaves an exciting tale as he relates the British 'evacuation' (i.e. retreat) of Dunkirk. The Brits were aided by several 'miracles' that are closely examined by Lord: Hitler's decision to stop his tanks from annihilating the escaping British (he was saving the tanks for France), 9 days of calm seas on the English Channel, and literally thousands of small private English boats that aided in the escape of some 338,000 troops - essentially the entire British Expeditionary Force and a sizeable force of French soldiers. Lord describes the Churchhill's efforts to keep the French happy as they were left alone on the Continent.

In his "We Shall Fight on the Beaches" speech of June 4, 1940, Churchhill acknowledged to the House of Commons, "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations. But there was a victory inside this deliverance, which should be noted."

The escape from Belgium encouraged Churchill: "We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God's good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old."

Lord interviewed some 500 survivors of Dunkirk to write his book, which informs the telling with an immediacy and verite missing from more academic treatments.

Highly recommended for the general reader of history, especially WW II.

The evacuation of Dunkirk after the Nazi blitzkreig of 1940 has always amazed me. This is a period and event that don't figure too prominently into most textbooks, even though it was one of the most crucial times in World War II (just because Pearl Harbor wasn't bombed yet, after all, doesn't mean there wasn't a war on).

I was quite pleased with the way Walter Lord was able to pull together all of the information about the evacuation and the events leading up to it. The story is complex. Columns of refugees heading to the coast, the British plan for evacuation, the Belgian surrender nearly dooming the effort, resistance to keep a pocket around Dunkirk and the beaches, weather conditions and how they affected air battles, the use of the mole...Lord has managed to fit it all in and more.

The book is very good in presenting a general account of how events occurred. Lord has also managed to find several personal stories and tidbits, from the acts of officers in helping the evacuation to the unsuccessful attempt to use kites as barrage balloons at the harbor.

There have been few books on this subject (at least those available in the U.S.), and this book describes this crisis well. Over 300,000 troops escaped envolopement from the Germans by evacuating from Dunkirk. Lord does his capable best in writing how the British and French were outflanked and almost destroyed, but the Germans turned a great victory into a minor one. Goring and his Luftwaffe did inflict terrible damage and caused much death, but the fact is the greater part of the British Expedionary Force was allowed to escape and fight again another day.
One thing I like about Lord's writings are his personalization of the conflicts. We hear from soldiers who actually fought and escaped through Dunkirk. His writings also tell the story through a description of what went on and the military strategy involved. Lord is one of my favored authors. He devoted much time (2 years) for each book he has written. It is a shame we no longer have him here to write great books.

A mountainous, jungle-covered island is the setting of A. B. Feuer's exciting Pacific war narrative. Sparsely inhabited by stone age-like indigenous people -- cannibals still inhabited the island's deep interior -- Bougainville was known for steep, muddy trails, isolated villages, mosquitoes and copra.

At the heart of the book are W. Jack Read, the District Officer at Buka Passage, and the quiet manager of the Imus Plantation, Paul Mason. Of greater importance to the story -- these men were loyal coast watchers for the Royal Australian Navy.

Each coast watcher was expected to observe Japanese movements in the air, and on the sea. Strategically located on 'The Slot', Bougainville was on a likely Japanese invasion route to Australia. Read and Mason dutifully reported flights of Japanese aircraft passing overhead and ships snooping around the island.

The author successfully captures the urgency of the moment when the Japanese land in force -- the coast watchers and their minions must retreat at once into the island's interior. The book offers a detailed picture of how Mason and Read moved their bulky tele-radios, food and supplies to safer locations with the aid of native policemen and loyal tribesmen.

To complicate things, Mason and Read were duty-bound to arrange the evacuation of European civilians from the island as well. The elderly and church workers were especially troublesome -- some never left -- often losing their lives as a consequence.

Much of the story develops into a cat-and-mouse chase through the island's interior. At every turn, Mr. Feuer offers fascinating vignettes of the coast watchers plunging down jungle cliffs to escape Japanese ambushes. The men lay motionless in the dark as Japanese patrols combed trails and jungle undergrowth. Walking without shoes -- to mask their identities -- Mason and Read were suffering nasty cuts and festering ulcers on their feet and legs.

The Japanese knew the coast watchers could not function without plenty of help from the locals. Villagers were put in a difficult position, they must choose between cooperating with the Japanese -- who seemed to be winning the war -- and protecting the coast watchers who have been their friends and employers. Japanese threats paid off as most of the islanders agreed to scout for the Japanese.

Mr. Feuer brings Mason and Read to life on the page as we read how they suffer injuries and sickness from living in the open, with little food. Time and again, their camps and observation points are revealed to the Japanese patrols.

He vividly describes how they fled through the island's interior and stayed alive by plundering the gardens of abandoned villages. One by one, their minions are killed or vanish at the first sign of trouble.

But at least the story has a happy ending -- Mason and Read are never caught. After 17 months on assignment, and finally cornered by the Japanese, Paul Mason was evacuated by submarine.

Mr. Feuer hasn't fashioned his tale from hearsay, much of the sourcing is reprinted directly from after-action reports and memoirs written by Read and Mason. The author is wise enough to allow his subjects to tell their own stories. "Coast Watching In WWII" is a fast, entertaining read.

The author rightfully credits the coast watchers with providing vital information of Japanese movements during the Guadalcanal campaign, which lead to allied victory.

"Coast Watching In WWII" contains 10 rudimentary maps, a section of 16 photographs and a bonus listing of military and police personnel from Bougainville and Buka.

I was really looking forward to reading this book, having been curious about the coast watchers for some time, but in this book, I think Stackpole should have found a different main narrator who wasn't so modest. Near the end the author states that he felt he never was in any real danger, so why does he seems to feel somewhat bitter about not getting more recognition? He definitely seemed to have several axes to grind but I don't think this book was the place for it. In addition, while Stackpole normally does an excellent job of not going into the 'big picture' but allowing average Joes and Jills to tell their story, in this case a bigger picture would have been much appreciated. Just even the basic facts of, how many coast watchers were there, what islands and how many surivied the war would have been appreciated.

I enjoyed that this book was basically a compilation of the coastwatchers own memoirs rather than a biography from a 3rd person. I read this book while I was visiting Bougainville and it was really nice to be able to tie the two together. The book also touched on some local customs that I encountered during my stay.

During my stay, we visited the remains of a crashed plane on Buka Island ...the locals were also able to tell us that it was also the former plantation of Percy Good whose murder by the Japanese was detailed in this book.

A. B. Feuer again uses first hand accounts coupled with his excellent style to tell the story of those brave individuals who were the coast watchers of WWII.
Early on, the Japanese did not pay much attention to this handful of under-trained, under-fed, under-equipped Aussies who were trapped on the islands they invaded. But despite their Australian heritage, these men were well experienced with the jungles of Buka and Bouganville, and with the help of local natives and the US Submarine Force, they soon developed an intelligence network which provided the Allied Powers with much needed information on Japanese ship and aircraft movements. Eventually, the Japanese realized that these men and their radios must be put out of action, and the cat-and-mouse tale which ensued is one of the more exciting I have read. A must-read for any WWII history buff.

Scotland boasts two contemporary medieval mega-heroes of the endless wars to remain independent of imperialistic England. The elder man was a commoner, William Wallace. The younger, subject of Walter Scott's poem THE LORD OF THE ISLES, was born noble, Robert the Bruce, who later clawed his way to kingship.

"His was the patriot's burning thought,
Of Freedom's battle bravely fought,
***********
Of rout and rally, war and truce, --
As heroes think, so thought the Bruce" (Canto III, xxvii)

The Plot:

Canto One: King Robert the Bruce has sailed from Ireland to reclaim the throne of Scotland. Accompanied by his sister Isabel and brother Edward, the King is in a boat heading to rendezvous with loyal supporters. Adverse winds and tides blow him ashore at mainland Atornish Castle. There a pre-nuptial feast is being celebrated for Ronald, Lord of the Isles, and Edith, sister of the castle's master, the Lord of Lorn.

Canto Two: As knightly shelter-seekers, unidentified Bruce and party are given places of honor as the banqueters await the arrival of a holy abbot from Iona to officiate at the wedding. But King Robert is recognized by the hostile Lord of Lorn. He demands instant vengeance for Bruce's murder of his kinsman. The Abbot compels forces both for and against Bruce to sheathe arms. The men of Lorn appeal to the Abbot to add his condemnation to the Pope's excommunication of Bruce. The Abbot foresees Bruce's greatness and will not condemn the king. Meanwhile the bridegroom Ronald loves Bruce's sister Isabel, not his intended Edith, although she is smitten by him. Edith's enraged brother breaks the engagement after Edith joins Isabel in pleading for Bruce. The Lord of Lorn impetuously promises his sister Edith to an English lord, Clifford, who now occupies Bruce's ancestral castle. The abbot's party sets sail back to Iona.

Canto Three: Sentiment among the remaining wedding guests then shifts powerfully against the English and in the king's favor. The Lord of Lorn seeks his sister to depart Atornish castle with her. But she and her old nurse have sought sanctuary and fled with the Abbot's ships. Lorn launches a pursuit, led by piratical Cormac Doil. During the night key Scottish nobles kneel to Bruce and urge him to re-conquer Scotland from the English. Bruce will draw off towards the isle of Skye while his new allies rally more support. Bruce's brother Edward will take their sister back to Ireland for safety. Before Bruce and Ronald, Lord of the Isles reach Skye, a storm makes them take shelter on a desolate island. Bruce, Ronald and Ronald's young page while away the day hunting a deer. There they encounter five retainers of Lorn led by Cormac Doil who seek to assassinate the royal party during a night when both groups share a makeshift shelter. The men of Lorn are defeated because of a warning cry given by a young boy, a mute minstrel whom they had captured with his mother the day before. At dawn Bruce, Ronald and the nameless minstrel boy trek out of the wilderness to rejoin their followers on the rugged island shore.


Canto Four: Returned early from recruiting, Bruce's brother Edward brings good news. The clans are rising! Better yet: Scotland's greatest foe, England's King Edward I, has breathed his last, cursing Scotland to the end. Bruce's growing armada sails for the isle of Arran opposite his ancestral castle on Scotland's west coast. Ronald of the Isles persuades Bruce to say a good word of his suit to his sister, now in the little convent of St. Bride on the isle of Arran. Bruce brings the mute minstrel boy to be his sister's servant. The king dutifully conveys Ronald's suit, which Isabel, briefly tempted, rejects out of respect for the scorned Edith of Lorn. The young minstrel then leaves behind his/her engagement ring out of gratitude to Isabel and slips away to rejoin Bruce's fleet.

Canto Five: Isabel guesses the boy is really Edith Lorn. She sends old Father Augustine hobbling across the island to Brodick bay and the fleet to ask Bruce to send the boy back. But Edward has already sent the boy, now renamed Amadine, on a dangerous mission across to the mainland Carrick shore to tell an old retainer to light a signal fire after dark, should Baron Clifford and the English appear to be off guard at Bruce's old castle. Bruce rebukes Edward, gives the minstrel boy Amadine to Ronald Lord of the Isles as page. A fire leaps up across the strait. The tiny invasion fleet sails. On arrival they learn that no one knows who set the supernatural signal fire. The host advances on the castle by night. Amadine is hidden for safety in a hollow tree. Captured, he is condemned by Baron Clifford and his guest, the visiting Lord of Lorn, to be hanged as a spy. Bruce's men overpower the execution squad. Ronald of the Isles personally rescues his new page. The attackers successfully storm the castle. Clifford falls. Lorn flees in a skiff. The victorious forces briefly celebrate the return of Robert the Bruce to his birthplace.

Canto Six: A heady seven years of victory upon victory ensue. At St Bride's Convent Isabel is now a vowed nun and Edith her faithful lay companion. Meanwhile a late June 1314 deadline is set for the occupying English garrison of Stirling Castle either to be relieved by an army from England or to surrender to the Scots. The day before the deadline, a huge relieving force arrives, led by King Edward II in person. Sister Isabel sends Edith, re-disguised as the page Amadine, to join the Scottish forces assembling at Bannockburn near Stirling. Edith/Almadine still loves the Lord of the Isles but says she will not have him. Edith is sent by Robert the Bruce (who knows her true identity) to a hill above the battle to safety with clergy and the other non-combatants. After many hours of combat, Bruce sees that the English are even more weary than the Scots. He urges his forces to redoubled effort. The English break. Yet Ronald's Men of the Isles are surrounded in a pocket. Edith, hitherto thought to be a mute, shouts and spurs the civilians to join the attack to save her onetime fiance. On the won field of battle Ronald, Lord of the Isles, recognizes the Maid of Lorn and renews his suit. Robert the Bruce summons the Abbot chaplaining his forces to prepare a victory Mass and nuptials for the reconciled couple. He ends the tale:

"Ourself will grace, with early morn,
The bridal of the Maid of Lorn." (Canto VI, xxxvii)

The ship of state rolls on like a juggernaut weighted by innumberable barnacles, albeit very fair human barnacles like Isabel and Edith.

Read this long poem aloud for the sheer joy of its music. Savor its descriptions of some of the most treacherous seas and gorgeous landscapes on the planet. -OOO-

This is a spirited narrative poem that culminates in the battle of Bannockburn in 1314 between Robert the Bruce and the same English villains that you booed and hissed at in Braveheart. The version of the battle given here may not be the way the battle actually happened, but this matters little.

Written reletively soon after the period of focus. His views are somewhat myopic, yet his narrative style makes reading easy and fun. Good if you want the facts in story form. A classic.

Walter Lord takes the most significant historical events of the years 1900-1914, and gives it a human touch that makes you feel that you are there. He reveals volumes in sentences, and never disappoints. From the Boxer Rebellion to eve of World War I, The unique american perspective is well represented.

In this book, Walter Lord, a popular historian, chooses to focus on the years 1900-1914 and gives us accounts of the most famous events of that time period: the Wright Brothers' flight, the San Francisco earthquake, union troubles, Peary and the North Pole, etc. Lord is mostly interested in the drama of historical events, and though he's a good writer, his work is more journalistic than deeply historical. But what he does, he does well.

It's a book about leading music. It was a required book for me to get so.....I guess it's alright if you want like that sort of thing.

The story is exciting and John McDonough is fantastic, but I didn't care at all about the main character and so it mattered little if he lived or died or became rich or poor. Months ago I listened for at least an hour and haven't re-opened the tape case since.