Kansas Books

A Precise and complete accounting of the formation and training of the 509th Composite Group which dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Well written and with many pictures, its detail gives the perspective from the soldiers viewpoint.

WELL THE BOOK IS WELL WRITTEN AND I REALLY ENJOY THIS BOOK

This book mixes dating and Christianity, such as "how to find a spirit filled man". I didn't expect to find a mixture of preaching and dating ideas in the same book. I was not looking for a religious book.

77 Ways Your Family Can Make a Difference is an outstanding resource for families with children of all ages. Zeller out did herself with not only 77 ideas of service but in a user friendly style. Families,teachers,church groups and service clubs will find a wealth of resources in this book. A must read for all who need ideas to enhance their service life.

I have only now become aware that my dad's book is available on amazon, as I haven't seen it in any bookstores for some years now. For those who don't know, my father passed away in 2000. I miss him dearly, and personally, this book helps me keep him alive in spirit. To steal an excerpt from one of my own poems, "Great American Desert," "I walk in his trail to keep him alive; in this great land, I will survive." You see, my dad instilled in me a love and appreciation for Kansas that too few Kansans or non-natives lack. Most see Kansas as a desolate, dull, flat state lacking in the "typical beauty" that one would find in a lush, or mountainous region. Although Kansas is not entirely flat as anyone who has lived in Manhattan in the Flint Hills would know, I do not believe that "flat" should be used pejoratively. I find the openess to be a tranquil, sweetly vulnerable place providing much needed solitude. The prairie is a wonderfully mysterious but simple place, where I go to be with my father. This book is a door to all of those wonderful places that many people don't even know exist! Beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder, and perhaps people are becoming numb to the overstimulation of places of "typical beauty", but no matter who you are, I believe that everyone has the potential to see and recognize the bountiful beauty that is Kansas.

As someone who was closely connected to the events detailed in Adoption Politics: Bastard Nation & Ballot Initiative 58, I was very happy to see that Professor Carp has changed his position on open records for adult adoptees since his Family Matters, in which he advocated mutual consent registries as the most equitable solution to the contentious issue of adoptee access to adoption and birth records. Here he clearly comes out for open records for those to whom they pertain, the adult adoptee.

In his introduction to Adoption Politics, Carp says: "In blending adopted adults' access to their original birth certificates with a protection for the birth mothers' right to privacy through a contact preference form (without legal penalties for violation), Measure 58 should be viewed as a model piece of legislation for other states to emulate." (p. 3-4)

And in the conclusion: "It [a coalition of adoption activists, adoption agencies and social workers] would not only confirm that a new age is dawning, but also that this new age makes it imperative to give adult adoptees access to their original birth certificates. It would be a clarion call that in the world of adoption it is time to look with fresh eyes at an old institution." (p. 169)

I do have to disagree with several points, though, such as the following in the conclusion: "But to achieve this goal nationwide, Bastard Nation and its supporters must free themselves of ideological blinders and recognize that adoption agencies do not constitute a single, monolithic 'adoption industry.' They must recognize that, either out of altruism or self-interest, the majority of adoption agencies support openness in adoption, including open records. ... The NCFA [National Council for Adoption]...will become increasingly isolated." (p.168)

I think BN does recognize that. The "adoption industry" usage was appropriate political rhetoric for our ballot initiative campaign in Oregon. On the other hand, in California, for example, many adoption agencies joined the CA Open Coalition in its legislative push for open records for adult adoptees, at BN's urging. One has to recognize that the neutrality of Oregon's Right to Life and Catholic Charities was extremely fortunate and unusual, and not something BN can count on elsewhere. In many states Catholic Charities is one of our biggest foes.

I was dismayed by the imputation of anti-birth mother sentiment to BN as a whole on p. 109 ("BN's dislike of birth mothers"), explained by the fact that "some adopted adults harbored resentment toward their birth mothers, whom they viewed as having callously abandoned them." I can't argue that some adoptees didn't/don't feel that way, but it was unjust to tar the organization as a whole with that sentiment. Nothing in Bastard Nation's policy, strategy or tactics reflects such a bias.

In regard to his discussion of the controversial use of the term "birth whore": the book states that "e-mail messages from Bastard Nation members ... that frequently referred to birth mothers as 'birth whores'" were found on the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup, alt.adoption, by members of the Boys and Girls Aid Society of Oregon, which opposed Measure 58. (p. 86) Carp does say in a footnote that this term wasn't used on BEST (BN's internal e-mail listserv) or in BN publications or in public during the campaign (can you imagine?!), and that the organization wasn't a home for "virulent anti-birth mother beliefs," having several respected birth mothers as members, but he doesn't put those many messages on alt.adoption into any kind of context. (p. 194-195) Only one person used that term seriously, and she wasn't a Bastard Nation member for long. The vast majority of posts were from BN members and others who objected to her use of that term, and several were posts in which BN birth mothers themselves used the term as a joke, as in someone's calling herself the leader of Birth Whore Nation. It is really too bad that this kind of misinterpretation has found its way into this book since one of the points we've always tried to make is that the struggle for open records isn't one of adoptees vs. birth mothers, but of all of us (enlightened adoptive parents as well) against the dinosaur faction of the industry as represented most strongly by the NCFA.

On the whole, though, very well done! The roller coaster excitement of those days was vividly brought back to me, the feeling of making history in adoption reform. The case on both sides is fairly presented, and the legal explanations are exceptionally lucid. (...)

This is the true inside information on the nomination of Ike for President. Along the way learn about New York and the New York Young Republicans. A well written story. I feal like I know the man. May he rest in peace.

Excellent book! Clear and down-to-earth explanation of the Wesleyan doctrine of Sanctification. Dispels many myths and misconceptions about the practical application of Holiness to our day-to-day lives.

AmeriTales Presents Amelia Earhart and the Haunted Winds of Kansas is an engaging blend of history and fiction, sure to get young people excited about the legend of real-life aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart. Cartoony illustrations enhance this adventure in which young Amelia is so fascinated by the roller coaster she sees at the World's Fair in Saint Louis that, with help from her friends, she elects to build a roller coaster in her backyard. Her grandmother forces her to tear it down, but not before she gets to experience a taste of the wild ride! Based on a true incident from Amelia Earhart's childhood (although the "Haunted Winds" are a fictional embellishment), Amelia Earhart and the Haunted Winds of Kansas is a most enjoyable tale, heightened by the clean, cartoon style illustration.

As Ferrell says in his introduction, most Americans today don't know much about our country's involvement in the First World War, despite its influence on the following century and the world we live in today. This volume gives a wonderfully succinct overview of America's entry into the war in 1917, including justified criticism of President Wilson and Sec. of War Baker's inability to put the nation quickly on a total war footing... faults that were, as the author points out, primary in the Meuse-Argonne being the deadliest battle in US history.

Ferrell moves the history along quickly, giving brief overviews of the AEF's smaller battles throughout the spring and summer of 1918 (Cantigny, Belleau Wood, etc) and the reduction of the St. Mihiel Salient in September of that year. He paints a vivid portrait of the failings of US logistics and planning and is equally critical of many divisional and brigade commanders, although he finds little fault with Pershing.

This is essentially an operational level history, but Ferrell does an excellent job of introducing quotes and anecdotes from individual soldiers and officers. These bring the narrative to life at just the right times, and help Ferrell avoid the 'official history' tone of so many less talented military historians.

Like his previous book about the 35th Division "Collapse in the Meuse-Argonne", this is a realtively short volume (195 pp include voluminous end notes) and one wishes for more detail and length. Nevertheless, "America's Deadliest Battle" is an excellent history of America in the Great War - events that are so little written about today. So Ferrell in his brevity, simply leaves the reader wanting more. Hopefully he is hard at work on another book about this important and interesting time.