Michael Ventura Books

havnt read it yet... but needless to say its a good book..

Over a decade ago, a friend in LA mailed me an LA Weekely column called Letters at 2 AM about a man partaking in a ritual with friends and I'd never forgotten it. When I stumbled across a book by the same title as the article at the library, and realized it was the same author, I rejoiced. (Yes, reprint this book! I want my own copy!) I skipped the first part of the book, essays on current (now past) events, in favor of the last part of the book, more personal essays on alcohol, ritual, syncronicity, friendship, relationships, and other things that our minds - well, mine anyway - contemplate at 2 AM but don't have words for, let alone articulate so beautifully. I was moved and inspired by his unflinchingly honest reportage on his life.

Michael Ventura teaches at my school. Often he has read things to us in his writing class, and sometimes they have been things he himself has written. He is incredibly wise, wheather he knows it or not, and is a voice that should be heard. Buy this book because, and trust me on this as a student of his, you will not regret it.

I not only have read this book, but I also work for the publisher.

To start, I would like to say that this book is not out of print.

Personally, at Spring Publications (the publisher) we do some pretty heavy, dry writing. But Michal Ventura lightens things up just a bit with his looks into the American way of life. His essays range in topic from the neo-pagan rituals that he has participated (The Witness Tree) in to his own alcholism (In Defence of Alchol). (in his words, "I don't like to drink alone, I love it.")

For anyone looking to find good left in America, Letters at 3 A.M. is just the thing. In my eyes, it is one of the top five books I have ever read.

This collection of essays blew my mind in a big way when I first stumbled onto them in the early 90s. Of course, I was a fan of Ventura's "LA Weekly" column, from which many of these essays come. And Ventura read these essays on Pacifica's KPFK here in Los Angeles, so hearing his magnetic voice read these be-boppin jazz-style essays was a double plus. No one else, at that terrifying time in America, seemed to be saying the things that needed to be said about the Gulf War, mental illness, the fact that our jobs are killing us, and the need for a spirituality of compassion in the barren American landscape of the post-Reagan years. Ventura's essays on Las Vegas are fun. I re-read them every time I venture off to Sin City. I often have my students read Ventura's essays to see what voice and presence in writing are all about--he's got it.

These essays now might seem a little bit dated and heavy-handed; but they can still pack a wallop to the sophomoric mind and those just starting to struggle with life issues--Ventura is perfect for those in their 20s--or their midlife crisis. Put on a Mingus or Parker CD while you read, and it'll be quite an experience.

Ventura is a truly American voice on par with Dos Passos or Randolph Bourne (who? )

A stunning book for any serious Marilyn afficianado - the photos, taken by little known paparazzi photographer Earl Leaf throughout Marilyn's career show so many of her moods, facets, expressions that it sometimes feels like you see her in an entirely new and unexpected light whenever you turn the page. Quite a few of the photographs show her lesser-known sides: her imperiousness, her toughness, her shrewdness, her ability to manipulate - all qualities she tried very hard to hide from her public but which nevertheless make her even more fascinating. Ventura's text gives some interesting insights and a uniquely lyrical point of view of Marilyn and what the images taken by Leaf's lens show of her. From her early starlet days to the years of her decline, we see her slowly eroding emotionally like an apparition fading into the light. Sometimes sad, often food for thought and always beautiful to look at, this is definitely one of the favourites in my collection. There are many images here you most likely have not seen before and will keep revisiting for many years to come.

Marilyn is captured in just about every mood possible in this book. A wonderful book for my MM collection.

The pictures of Marilyn in this book are wonderful..I thought I saw them all until I got this book. I recommend to all Marilyn fans, it is a must.

Bohemia is alive & kicking in Ventura's,'Nighttime Losing Time'. The writing seems to come from direct sexual & musical experience, and has the power of revelation. I'd never heard of Ventura, but noticed on the jacket that post-Jungian sage, James Hillman had endorsed it. A long time fan of Hillman's brilliant insights, I jumped into Ventura's world & came up gasping for air. It is sprawling & rabbits on in some regional Texan patois. But precious & pretentious it is not. When I'd resurfaced I sent it directly to the few friends I knew would rejoice in the sincerity of Ventura's quest for the sources of his creative gifts, the 'places where they ain't got scales.' It took a decade to revisit this book as I was anxious that the initial read may have been a chimera, a projection of my own crises. But no. Friends confirmed its originary clout. And no; it rutted in my creases yet again. It may help if you dig Butch Hancock, Terry Allen, Joe Ely, or Willie Nelson as their music is the soundtrack for Ventura's honkytonk heavies. Narrator, Jesse Wales's apocalyptic vision (p 375) swims in the blood meridian so epically summoned in Cormac McCarthy's magnum opus of that name. Unlike McCarthy's remorseless dudes destined to endlessly repeat their bedevilled lives, Wales finds regeneration and possibly redemption through understanding the meaning of the pain and loss he and his coterie share. Move over Balzac & Baudelaire, Ventura has muscled entry to the dark domains, in the breathless pursuit of ecstasy.

This is a scorching first novel from a first-rate American writer about the back road, the juke joints, and the inner lives around them --- without a trace of bombast or sensationalism that so often come with this territory.

I've done my share of Lit.101 and Great Books, yet this is the only book that came along and successfully conjured in flesh and blood the secret selves that people around me carry in concealment.

Never spent time in that corner of America myself, yet the book had made me see the world in a whole new light.

Strong stuff -- but medicine for all you seekers out there....

(Read his column too in Austin Chronicle if you like this.)

What is unique about this book is that the author went to Garabandal while the apparitions were in progress, and was thus an eyewitness to many of the extraordinary ecstasies of the four visionaries. He also spent time with the visionaries when they were not in ecstasy, and interviewed them extensively, particularly Conchita. The first edition, in Spanish, was published in Spain in August of 1965; the last apparition did not take place until November 13, 1965. Thus, this book is written by an eyewitness with his experiences at, and facts about Garabandal, fresh in his mind, at a time when they were easily verifiable. Essential reading!

What a pleasant surprise. Great writing, powerful images and thoughts. At one point, the main character begins to slip into insanity. He starts to regain his emotional footing when he decides he just doesn't give a damn whether he's nuts or not. Wow.
The writing is crisp, the character is both tortured and honest -- you sometimes feel you're inside his head as he struggles with inner voices, nihilism, loneliness, confusion. To Ventura's credit, the book also stays true to the character, and doesn't betray his basic decency at any point. This is a great book.

This is not a book to be read for fun. Or a book to read for the satiation of hunger. If you decide to step into the world that Michael Ventura is expressing, bring only those questions which live inside you and which you are not only afraid of, but a bit surprised by. There, go, be free. I'm not joking anymore than I'm serious. But this book is outstanding and extremely particular. It ain't the type of book you recommend as good or bad. And I'm not sure what five stars have to do with it either.

This man is absolutly brilliant and his brain is an enigma to most all of our modern mindsets. If you want to peek into a still water image of the path western culture is marching, reading this book will most definatly begin the process. This is not a book that will sing you to sleep, and dont expect to ever, EVER look at the zoo the same agian. Mr.Micheal is a teacher at my school, though "teacher" dosent correctly capture his function from 8 to 10 am, in our 16 year old lives. As a person who has been privledged enough to converse with the man representing this complex and truthful perspective on the world we share, i advise all of you strongly on this book. Although don't expect to find any kind of instint gratification, the man dosent know how to spoon feed. enjoy the clarity.

ventura has opened my chest and massaged my heart while also opening my skull and exciting my mind..this ranks as one of the best books ive read in the past decade..on my second journey through it now..may not be for everyone but its not only for middleaged complex men who think,wonder,question,ache and search..i love this book..try it...the viewpoint is original,interesting,helpful,truthful,beautiful

This man is absolutly brilliant and his brain is an enigma to most all of our modern mindsets. If you want to peek into a still water image of the path western culture is marching, reading this book will most definatly begin the process. This is not a book that will sing you to sleep, and dont expect to ever, EVER look at the zoo the same agian. Mr.Micheal is a teacher at my school, though "teacher" dosent correctly capture his function from 8 to 10 am, in our 16 year old lives. As a person who has been privledged enough to converse with the man representing this complex and truthful perspective on the world we share, i advise all of you strongly on this book. Although don't expect to find any kind of instint gratification, the man dosent know how to spoon feed. enjoy the clarity.

pretty good movie actually , was funny and had its moments that almost makes you cry a little .

A lighthearted film about life, love and not allowing even the most difficult of obstacles to get in our way. Two brothers go through life as conjoined twins. None-the-less, they achieve and experience more in life than the average Jane or Joe. When one wants to become a Hollywood actor and the other finds his true love, things get complicated. Should they chance a risky operation to be separated or continue life as it is?

The storyline is not as predictable as one may imagine, the humor, feeling and soundtrack are great. In fact, I am crazy about their version of the song "Summertime" and wish I could find it somewhere! Unfortunately, so far I can't.

My husband and I weren't even planning to watch a movie when when my son asked us to watch this film and we both truly enjoyed it - we hope you do too!

'Shadow Dancing' is the sum of its parts: essays confronting a variety of pressing subjects (or thought to be pressing in the 1980's) on American society. Some of the essays are stronger than others, there are a variety of interesting and thought provolking insights, but some of the idea development is spotty. However, on the whole, a worthwhile read: a kind of Celestine Prophesy of the mind at times, at others, a male empowerment how-to manual, but always an interesting and thoughtful book. Ventura is an accomplished essayist

I read this years ago when it first came out. Wrote a negative review for my club newsletter. I was very cynical about the recommendation that people simply turn off their TVs, get out of their cars, and take an interest in the people next door. I hadn't found that mere proximity led to having anything to say to people, much less to the restoration of community.

What I have learned since is that Michael Ventura had a brother, Aldo, who spent pretty much his entire adult life "insane...between tumultuous instability and flat-out madness," as Michael put it in his moving 2004 obituary after Aldo's death at 54. In a real community, in the kind of world where people take care of each other just because they are physically nearby, Aldo, who was clearly brilliant and gifted as well as crazy, might have made a contribution, certainly would not have suffered what he suffered as a madman from a poor family in New York City in the late 20th century. This is the background for Michael Ventura's perspective that our materialistic workaholic culture with its permissive social mobility, which allows those of us who are strong, healthy, clear-headed and socially presentable to abandon the rest of us, has thereby damaged the human soul by excluding the nonrational from our day-to-day experience. As a person who values said social mobility, which also allows abuse victims to get away from their abusers, I'm not entirely in agreement with him, but I find great value in the reminder that there are other facets to this jewel called freedom and some of 'em ain't so pretty.

I looked forward to reading "We've Had a Hundred..." with anticipation. It is the first work by James Hillman I had chanced to read and I had been encouraged by comments about the author. As I got into the book, the anticipation quickly diminished. It became a chore to finish the work. Yet I forced myself to read on and finally completed it. I held onto slight hope that something useful and profound might be sprinkled toward the end. My hopes were for naught. There were a couple points of interest throughout the book, but nothing groundbreaking or "framework" altering in my experience.

I really do not get what they thought they were accomplishing. I suppose they did challenge the status quo of therapy. But I did not see the clear alternative they were offering in its stead. I did not see any value in any of their criticisms and saw even less value in their proposed paradigm shifts. I saw no practical value in their ideas - of course, Hillman may bristle at such an accusation preferring "idea" over practical considerations (see page 140). But what is the reader to do with what has been given him by Ventura and Hillman? Precious little is likely.

I was put off somewhat by the casual conversational tone of the work. The book is organized into three parts: two parts dialogue and one part letter compilation. The authors' interaction is oft times irreverent and sprinkled with profanity. Vulgar language isn't a big deal in common vernacular, but learned men throwing the words out is a little off putting in the context (probably just my puritanical leanings, they might suggest). The framework of the book is also a little odd considering that one of Hillman's letters emphasized the need for writing as opposed to spoken word (pages 89ff, 94ff) - this in a book that is two parts spoken word and one part written. He actually contends that spoken word is deficient for psyche searching. Hmm...

I wondered as I read what Michael Ventura's credentials were. Why should I take his commentary on the state of psychology and the world seriously? He seems to have wrestled with this question himself because he seeks to answer it in one of his letters (page 54). The answer? He has been in personal counseling for 10 years and seems to be "synchronistically" surrounded by psychologists. Heck, it appears everyone he knows soon becomes a "shrink". Certainly these things make one qualified to usher the world into a new era of psychology and therapy! Well, on second thought, maybe not. Much of his writing (unlike Hillman's) has an air of self-importance. It was his sentiment I borrowed from for the heading above, "You know the changes we want are so radical; we are scratching at the beginnings of a huge new conceptual framework" (page 208). He also wrote in a letter, "What we're tuned into, what's coming through us, is, at least in part, the beginning of the articulation of a new theoretical framework that would extend psychotherapy in particular and Western thought in general into the realms of the collective" (page 60). And it goes on. Pretty heady stuff. I was reminded of conversations with college mates where we thought we would change the world. Somehow we alone had tapped into the hidden mysteries of existence. How simple and misguided those that have gone before us (or so we must have thought)! Such letter writing and conversations always seem to happen late at night. They probably should not see the light of day (at least not in a publication such as this).

Following is a list of a few of their trailblazing ideas. 1) Perhaps a child's experiences and characteristics or traits are caused by his future destiny rather than vice versa (i.e., that the experiences in childhood instead create one's destiny). Life is lived backward so to speak. Psychology starts off with an upside down premise by attributing who the person becomes to his childhood experiences (pages 16ff, 52ff, 68ff). 2) Individuation is not to be centered in the self but rather must take on a communal or world view. One's psyche is linked to the world and one of the great ills is Western man's preoccupation with the individual and isolation (page 52). The authors' premises are very societal - hence the title's emphasis on the "world" getting worse. The world, animate and otherwise, is part of the psyche and must be embraced and respected. One sees ecological and environmental implications throughout. 3) Pains and hurts are not to be processed. They should instead be kept and cherished. They give you your uniqueness and are your psyche's landscape. They are the source and wellspring of art and creativity. They are not sources of psychosis (page 29ff). Embrace your "madness." By embracing it, it will not overtake you. Dabble in drinking, drugs, sex, spending, eating, fornicating with banana trees (page 182), etc., because these represent your true psyche. To repress such urges is wrong and detrimental. Legalize drugs, institute brothels, etc. A recurring theme is the awful ramification of the West's Puritanism - maybe our greatest evil. It is demonized for its conformity and is referred to as "white bread" society. 4) Psychology is art, not science (page 150). Its root is poetic and found in images. This creative psychology encourages our being rather than represses it.

Certainly more ideas are hinted at and dropped. I am not sure that any are really fully fleshed out or explored, however. They do not offer us a comprehensive worldview to contend with what we currently have. I could glean no new theoretical or conceptual framework from the book. We are just given a view or glimpse of the ramblings of a couple of men who ponder on the deep things of the psyche.

All in all, what's the point? After reading this work I felt like saying, "Ho hum." What difference will this book make in my life or my (or "the") world? I think none. My time is better spent living life forward and processing my experiences and demons. Thanks anyway.

Hillman, un psiquiatra que lleva años trabajando como terapeuta, y Ventura, un escritor que lleva casi otros tantos acudiendo a terapia y tratando a terapeutas, dialogan sin pelos en la lengua sobre lo que echan a faltar en la consulta.

Básicamente, su diagnóstico es que la terapia se ha convertido en una anestesia de los problemas sociales, globales. La distorsión es múltiple: al enfocar la desazón del paciente como algo que tiene que ver sobre todo con su interior, la terapia pierde de vista lo que esa desazón podría decir sobre los problemas sociales y medioambientales; al enfocarla como resultado de los problemas con el padre y la madre durante la infancia, se pierde de vista que el malestar tiene ante todo que ver con las circunstancias actuales del paciente, y que éste no es un 'niño eterno' al que se deba ayudar a crecer, solucionándole los problemas.

El enfoque que ambos autores dan a la cuestión de los abusos infantiles se aleja tanto de la opinión común que a veces uno no sabe si aplaudir su audacia o temer por su salud física, dada la reacción imprevisible (o demasiado previsible) que una audiencia puritana puede dar a este tipo de discurso.

El libro se estructura en dos largas conversaciones, situadas al inicio y al final, y una sección central que consta de varias cartas. Las conversaciones son tan amistosas como vehementes; las cartas, deliciosamente reflexivas y matizadas. En todo momento, prima la sensación imperiosa de que hay que dejar atrás una forma ya inútil o incluso contraproducente de terapia y apostar por un discurso en el que los problemas de cada uno no se separen de los problemas de la forma de vida que uno lleva (por ejemplo: edificios deprimentes, luz invasiva e incómoda, flujo continuo de información-basura...).

El balance de la vida política estadounidense es singularmente agrio: asistimos al final de la República y el comienzo del Imperio, en el sentido de que la capacidad de los ciudadanos conscientes por intervenir activamente en política ha ido dejando paso a la concepción del votante como consumidor, cuya única opción es elegir periódicamente entre dos discursos sospechosamente idénticos e irrazonados.

En ningún momento se cede al desaliento: como Ventura explica a su hijo adolescente, incluso si vivimos en una Edad Oscura, o en el comienzo de una, es nuestra responsabilidad trasmitir a otros la belleza, el pensamiento crítico y la capacidad de discernimiento. Siempre serán necesarios.

The concept is good the presentation is terrible.

Certainly questioning psychotherapy is reasonable. But here we are witnessing a brainstorming session before the crapola is clipped, resulting in a pseudo-intellectual, pompous assortment of oversaturated negative dialectic or in Hillman's own words, "empty protest."

Yes, there are some intriguing thoughts and ideas but the complexity is ignored in favor of a shallow critical approach often given in a condescending manner.

Hillman reveals as one of the supreme voices of the Jungian school and gives smart and crude revelations about a lot of several issues . The reading is deeply absorbing till the last page .
The text is widely recommendable no matter your profession or job .

I was intrigued -- I thought it was an investigative report on Mr. Sinatra's final days (the tackiness of the title notwithstanding), but then I noted from the reviews quoted that this title came out *before* May 14, 1998 (the day of Old Blue Eyes' death) -- meaning this was just a work of fiction. Feh, pfui -- what a waste of my time! I'm interested in *real* books about Frank Sinatra, not fiction! How about someone coming out with a *good* discography?

OK, I picked up "The Death of Frank Sinatra" as an impulse-buy $2.99 hardcover from the "used library books" aisle...so I was pretty much purchasing it by-the-pound...no expectations, other than it was Vegas-fiction and sounded fun.

Now, I feel like I owe somebody. Which is not a good feeling in the hardboiled world Ventura describes so bristlingly.

I have been turned on to a fusion of genres so rich and bountiful, that a full $24.99 pricetag seems only fair. So...if anyone wants to collect the remainder, no pistol-whipping will be necessary.

It's quite simply pulp poetry.

Crackling descriptions of the blood-in-your-urine doings of a Vegas private dick, featuring characters that jump off the page to pin your arms back while kicking your nuts and a geo-real Vegas that resonates with anyone who can "recite" the Strip from the Alladin to the Sahara and whose secret desire is to be buried at the YESCO graveyard.

It's great stuff, and if you've never heard of Michael Ventura, (cause I sure as hell hadn't) you'll soon be saying the same thing I am now..."How the hell is this guy not being read on every Flight 711, instead of Grisham?"

...

The Hamlet-esque mind of Mike Rose is the hook to Ventura's "The Death of Frank Sinatra". His head whirls in the indecision of what he loves or hates and in some cases what or whom is the object of both extremes. The italicized asides in the first person are probably the strongest portions of the book as Rose's wannabe existentialist is continually crippled by loathing for himself, his past, his connections, and perhaps most of all, for Las Vegas which he believes is his puppet master and submissive lover all at once.

Here is the crux of the novel which centers on a private eye who has bathed with and been raised by mobsters but has remained on the edge of the precipice without ever truly jumping in. It is an intriguing dilemma when his unstable brother unwittingly blabs "too much" in front of a grizzled old Outfit veteran, although as with most of the book what is spoken is half said, a half truth and, well, to be blunt, only half convincing. It's all well and good having the circle of insecurity forever turning in one's head, but surely no group of people are as instantly tuned in as Ventura's characters are. It seems half the time that, whoever it is, they are inexplicably able to read their conversation partner's mind, irrespective of intelligence, age or familiarity. What we get is a series of unfinished statements and knowing glances, which doesn't quite wash.

At first, I thought the insight into Vegas, spearheaded by the persona and rep of Frank Sinatra - a nifty touch - was about as illuminating as a travel guide, but without really being conscious of it, the constant bombardment and repetition of the town's warts and all, became quite intoxicating and ultimately revealing. I was less convinced by the insider knowledge of the mob, which seemed to focus on shock value and sensationalism, in marked contrast to the understatement of the book's overall tone. The little nuances that are so prevalent in Scorsese's films, for example, that help to humanize and rationalize are absent for the most part here.

The plot is convoluted and difficult to grasp with several intertwining threads that don't really mesh. However, in truth, most of the action happens in Rose's head, so that's not as disastrous as it sounds. Still, there seemed to be several loose ends that Ventura was content to let lie, which was a little unsettling.

Overall, I felt it was indulgent and melodramatic, teetering on the edge between dark social commentary about an inately corrupt city, and simply incoherent rambling, but the well expressed sadness and stolid, if misguided defiance of the central character, along with the admitted originality of the style was enough to earn 3 stars. Just.

I think Michael Ventura had to use the context of a crime novel to get his story published. However, this novel is really a journey of his own self-discovery. He reminds me of Herman Hesse in the way he constantly enters and exits different doors in his own psyche -- almost at random. The central character, Mike Rose, has a mentally ill older brother. So does Ventura. Avid readers of Ventura's essays know this, and it is very easy for said readers to imagine that Mike Rose is Ventura. If you just want a murder mystery, this won't work for you unless you are particularly daring -- and patient. But, if you like to see someone get to the heart of himself, take a chance. You might be blown away by Ventura's prose. Light reading, this is not, but it is very interesting.

Michael Ventura really knows how to tell a story that's more than just plot or characterization, but also SAYS something. I bought this book, read it right through, and then re-read it in bits right away, just for the enjoyment of it. This is as good as it gets.