United States Books

"Ship Ablaze" helps fill in gaps of history that for one reason or other our parents, grand-parents, uncles and aunts. I grew up in that neighborhood and attended the LCMS (Trinity) Lutheran Church on 9th St. and Ave. B., yet I had to wait until late in life to learn of this disaster and the long term impact it had on the area. While the congregation I belonged to was not in worship fellowship with St. Mark's, I am certain that one would find a history of humanitarian fellowship at the time. But, these would be in the old records of that congregation written in German script. We need not only researchers, but multilingual researchers, in this incident as although there were those born in America, they lived a German life. My generation was the first not to speak German from birth. When I went to Germany to live for a while, I find myself very much at home despite the fact that this was post WWII Germany. If there are researchers interested out there who are fluent in German, a place they might want to look at is the resources of the NY Public Library and Concordia Historical Institute, St. Louis (records of the original Trinity on microfilm).

An excellent book about the General Slocum disaster, a 1904 steamboat fire that killed more than 1,000 people, mostly women and children on a church outing. Absolutely mesmerizing from start to finish.

I think this is the year as a reader, as a watcher of television and news, that I've finally reached my endpoint as concerns human disasters. I've always been interested to an extent of this type of story...if we weren't newspapers would not fare well. But I started picking up more of these books after the making of the movie, Titanic, and it's about 7 years later, and I am pretty sure I've had it. Nothing about the writer's abilities, just between the constant onslaught of real life disasters with the hurricane season now ending, the tsunami of last year, constant reportage on this ridiculous war in Iraq, and normal everyday life, I cannot take on any more sorrow and of course, the stupidity and greed that goes with these stories. I didn't even finish this one. If you like this genre, and this type of reading doesn't depress you deeply, as it did me, then this book is for you.

This is not the 'ostrich' burying it's head. It's rather I decided to stop rubbernecking in this manner. I don't do it when there are fires or car accidents, so I don't know why this should be anything different. If I am interested in it from an engineering or scientific view of things, as occurred with the 1927 dynamiting of the New Orleans levees, then I'll go for the history. I know this stuff happened, and where it is absolutely necessary to know more for family research or whatever, fine, I can look it up online. This is not the type of reading that I consider as being of benefit for me, nor is it entertaining to read about the needless deaths of so many. There are other things I'd rather do and read than books of this genre, though it is obvious that as with true crime, this is a popular genre which will not be going away soon.

Karen Sadler

This disaster has been hidden from historical references better than anything I've ever come across. Over 1,000 people die horribly, mostly women and children, and the following has occurred:

The 2004 Microsoft Encarta DVD Encyclopedia makes absolutely no reference to this event.

The book "New York Times Page One" does not show this as one of it's important front page dates.

The book "Chronicles of the 20th Century" (1300+ pages) only makes mention of the ship's owners being found negligent, not the event itself.

The largest loss of life from a single disaster from 1904 until 2001 and they can't mention it! Thankfully, this book does it justice and brings the hidden truth to light.

Edward T. O'Donnell tells a horrific tale in Ship Ablaze. In a matter of minutes a steamboat full of a German-American church group went from enjoying a ride down the East River on a beautiful day towards picnic grounds to fighting for their lives as an inferno consumed the lives of over a thousand people, mainly children and women, through fire or drowning. The very life preservers themselves became instruments for the deaths of many as it dragged them straight to the bottom of the river. The author does a magnificent job of setting the scene for the tragedy but his best work comes in the description of the disaster itself. It is heartbreaking and breathtaking and impossible to pull away from. This book is a wonderful memorial to a time and event that should not ever be forgotten.

I love most of the Little House on the Prairie books, as well as the stories of Laura's great-grandmother, Martha, her grandmother, Charlotte, her mother, Caroline, and her daughter, Rose. I've read every one I can get my hands on. My all-time favorite of the all the series is These Happy Golden Years. This tells of Laura and Almanzo's courtship, and it is so chaste and sweet.

This book definitely belongs on my 10 favorite children's books.

I would rate this book 4.5 stars. It tells of Laura Ingalls years between the age of 15 to 18, and her first teaching job where she goes to live with a family where the wife doesn't treats her shabbily. It's a good story but it mostly told more of her and Almanzo than her teaching.

Although the "Little House" books do not appear to be quite as popular as they were a couple of decades ago, I shared all the books with my grandchildren in the form of audio books. We would listen to them as we drove on both long and short rides. They, and I, enjoyed the first three books(Little House in the Big Woods, Little House on the Prairie, On the Banks of Plum Creek) but then felt the next three were just fair to listen to. When I first started These Happy Golden Years, I heard a grumble or two from the g'kids, but as the story unfolded their listening delight picked up. Soon they were begging me to drive the longer way home so they could find out what happened next. These Happy Golden Years is a sweet love story full of interesting historical facts, plus enough action to keep my grandson interested. The only flaw we found with the audio version of the book is the singing of the actor (Cherry Jones) that did the reading. It was a bit grating at times when she pretended to sing as Pa. (Poor Ma if Pa really sang like that) Other than that it is a five star recommendation.

Now fifteen-years-old, Laura Ingalls can't help but crave getting a job in order to help her family. Ever since her first taste of earning her own money, she is determined to find another position that complements her skills. Besides, with Mary away at college, as much as Laura misses the companionship of her beloved sister, she can't help but feel compelled to assist her family in keeping Mary in a place where she is learning, and happier than ever. To do that, however, she'll have to do what she can to find the perfect job. Now that she has her teaching certificate, she'll be able to do just that.

It seems like only yesterday that Laura Ingalls was racing around the schoolyard with the boys, playing ball and sharing secrets with her friends; now she is basically all grown up, and beginning her career as a schoolteacher. But being a teacher isn't as easy as Laura hoped it would be - especially when many of the students are older than she is. And, to add insult to injury, she's forced to contend with boarding with a couple who spends the late nights hurling insults at one another, and living in miserable conditions. The only consolation is that Almanzo Wilder drives in to town each and ever Friday, to pick her up and bring her to her folks house for the weekend, before she must start another grueling week. It is during these long rides that Laura begins to spend more and more time with the older man. But it also makes her question why he is so willing to drive the twelve miles to her aid each week. Laura is unsure of his motives. She is also too tired and busy to spend much time thinking about them. Instead, she thinks of the paycheck that will soon come her way; and the beauty and splendor of the items she can buy for her family as time goes by.

With each and every book in the LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE series, I have seen Laura get older and older. I have also grown to love her as much as an old friend. Laura is such a responsible, mature individual - quite different from the little rascal she was during her younger years. She seems so caring, and eager to assist her family, and see that her sister gets the education she has always craved. It is so refreshing to see a character who puts others ahead of herself. Like in LITTLE TOWN ON THE PRAIRIE, the reader has the opportunity to learn more about Almanzo Wilder; however, the more you learn, the more you see just how much older he is than Laura, and how strangely the relationship between the two of them develops. Another winner from Ms. Ingalls-Wilder!

Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer

"These Happy Golden Years" is one of the best books I have ever come across. (And I have come across a lot, so don't doubt my taste!) Everything is detailed in an interesting sort of way, and the emotions and lovering part is kept well under control so it's not an immensely disgusting romance novel but not exactly a plain sensible book either. Laura Ingalls Wilder allowed the sequence to be somewhat unpredictable but it exemplifies a good plot that a true book-lover would cherish.
The plot is about fifteen-year-old Laura, now leaving home to teach school. It is a rather big challenge as the weeks drag by, but she learns to deal with unruly Clarence, pouty Martha, shy Charles, and the little ones, Ruby and another boy whose name I cannot remember. And at her boardinghouse, she has to learn how to cope with fussy and quarelly Mrs. Brewster, and spoiled baby Johnny. But the highlight of this part is every Friday Almanzo Wilder comes to pick her up to go home and back again on Sunday. When the term is finished, something has happened and soon Laura finds herself subconsciously in love with handsome Almanzo, and he with her. Of course, they don't just go ahead and marry, because a long-time rival of Laura's, Nellie Oleson, is also after Almanzo, and Laura's older snotty sister Mary is taking all her teaching money to go to college and Pa's claim must be fixed up before the winter. But these things soon pass, and Laura learns the joy of early womanhood as she and Ma make dresses, Laura learns how to deal with money, and realizes Almanzo is really the guy for her. And soon they are engaged. And that is just the beginning of a whole new chapter of Laura's life as a pioneer of America.
This heartwarming little book provides all the things you could want, some romance, a girl's troubles and hopes, and most of all, a glimpse to the daily life which we now look back to as precious American history.

"Unsung Valor" by A. Cleveland Harrison. Subtitled: "A GI's Story Of World War II". University Press of Mississippi, Jackson. 2000.

This is a very complete and detailed book, tracing the experiences of a skinny Southern boy, (in 1943), drafted into the United States Army, deciding on the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP), trained at the University of Mississippi, transferred into a regular Army unit (the 94th Division) and then sent to the European Theater of Operations, ETO, just when things were becoming really hot. General George Marshall had shut down the Army Specialized Training Program so as to supply warm bodies as replacements for all the causalities in the ETO. The author, A. Cleveland Harrison, recounts being wounded (88 artillery fire,) as his Division advanced on the town of Orscholz, his treatment, infection, his stint in hospital and, finally, his recovery. Then, he remained in England until his reassignment, April 1945, to the hostilities in Europe. Happily, the war in Europe ended in May 1945, and the author became a "Clerk-Typist" in Versailles, France and later, a "Mail Clerk-Draftsman" in Frankfurt am Main.

If you have had the opportunity to study the history of World War II, you probably have been exposed to the grand strategies of different battles, the movement of this numbered unit on one side against another number on the other side. You might even have become impatient with the stories of how one American general (or two) could not get along with a certain British field marshal, and begin to wonder how many people were killed by the egoistical personalities of such high ranking individuals. So, this present work, by A. Cleveland Harrison, is a refreshing relief in its detailed examination of the feelings and daily experiences of an ordinary Americana solider in the ETO

I became the fiftieth reviewer of this book because of the correspondence form Dr. Harrison prodding me to add his book to my Amazon Listmania list on the Army Specialized Training Program, ASTP. The first two chapters of Dr. Harrison's book deal extensively with the Army Specialized Training Program. certainly merit a place on any list on the ASTP. Thos chapters speak about an ASTP experience at a Southern university, which, from what I read, quite different than the ASTP experience at Manhattan College, my alma mater. I do not believe that an ASTPer at Manhattan College had to be concerned with how to wear a saber without getting the weapon caught between his legs. On the other hand, the Manhattan College ASTPer had to be concerned with living in an apartment on 7th Avenue.

I am happy to join some 45 other Amazon reviewers in assigning five stars to this book.

Unsung Valor is truly an extraordinary book. I am 44 years old and have studied World War II rather extensively in the past. However, this book has revealed this war (and all wars) to me in a way that is completely surprising and unique. I now have a different frame of reference for studying all wars, especially World War II. For someone like me who has never served in the military, this book provides an invaluable insight to truly understanding the realities of war. The common, mundane, everyday details, which are made so interesting, provide a setting which only heightens the intensity of the actual battle scenes in an unusually enriching and exciting way. This book reads so easily you literally feel as if you are going through the experiences with Dr. Harrison. Unsung Valor brings the reality of war to the reader in a unique way and succeeds where most other narrowly focused books fail. Dr. Harrison should be commended for educating a younger public on the extraordinary sacrifices made by ordinary men who answered when their nation called. It is well worth the read and the time invested.

After posting a message on the 94th Infantry Division's website looking for information on the attack on Orsholz, Germany January 20-21, 1945 I was contacted by Cleveland Harrison. Mr. Harrison put me in contact with other members of the 301st Regiment of the 94th Division who were with a family friend when he was captured outside of Orsholz. Mr. Harrison mentioned his book and suggested it might provide more detail about the battle. After reading his book I was amazed at the clarity and detail of his recollections. I have corresponded several times with Mr. Harrison, and he was gracious enough to sign my copy of his book with a dedication to my friend. His story is wonderfully expressed as the memories and journey of one man in a time of fear and uncertainty. It is written in a way that will touch the average person, and make them understand, if only for a moment, what it was like to see the world through his eyes.
To all the 94th Division veterans, and to you Cleveland, thank you for your service.
Welcome Home.

Upon reading Unsung valor I discovered that Cleveland Harrison and I had been inducted into the army the same day at Little Rock, Arkansas,we went through the same sweltering day of probings,punchings,bendings,spreadings, and at last were sworn into the Army of the United States.our serial numbers were just a few numbers apart,yet I never met Professor Harrison. Upon reading Unsung valor this fall I was immediately taken back in time to 1943, and to the years following throughout WWII of which our president Franklin Roosevelt said" This is the generation which has a rendezvous with destiny"I relived that traumatic,hectic day of gathering together the eighteen year olds of our state predominately ,recent high school graduates ,to perform the miracle of making us into soldiers and sailors to free a world in chains. That group of newly inducted soldiers went to all parts of the globe.Prof. Harrison went as a rifleman;I went into the Army Air Corp as an aerial gunner with the Eighth Air force and was shot down over Germany and spent the last months of the war as a P.O.W..Our generation kept that rendezvous and fully met the responsibility placed upon our young shoulders to the satisfaction of a grateful nation and world. Professor Harrison's book tells about all this through the eyes and heart of a young Arkansas lad who as we said in those day "took up arms as a boy,became a man overnight,and a hero in a twinkling of an eye,some to come home,some to remain. Since reading Unsung Valor I have met Cleveland Harrison via E-mail and have discovered that we have much in common. it took took 63 years and one most touching,moving literary epic to do this.For Professor Harrison's time,effort,and no doubt many shed tears,I am truly thankful to him. Hand Salute <><

With color and great detail, C. Harrison has done WWII students a huge favor. Harrison knows how to vividly explain himself, which leaves a fascinating read of an "ordinary" US soldier's experience in the early to mid 1940's during WWII. While none of those who served in WWII are "ordinary," his journey from the US to England to Germany is one that leaves the reader with many mental pictures and facts which do not easily escape the mind. This book is a must have for any WWII history student.

We owe our veterans a thank you for not only protecting us, but writing about their experiences! Thank you, Mr. Harrison.

There is not much to be said about this book other than that it is well written, easy to read and is one of the most interesting books I have ever read. Once I started reading I did not want to put it down and would recommend it to anyone interesting in this genre.

Bill and Babe now have voices that will always be there for us to hear anytime we pick up this book. Their joy of life, depth of humility, and tough courage would be an inspiration for any life, but their lives were truly extraordinary. The pages speak in their Philly accents and give us a chilling glimpse into some of the most courageous and horrific battles of the European theatre. Thanks, Robyn Post, for this great first-hand account!

I really enjoyed this book. Have read all the other BOB`s related books and this is a great and worthy addition.

Great insight into Wild Bill and Babe. Great characters, great fun.
At the current price you cannot loose however I would spend a lot more because it is worth it.

Looking forward now to reading Don Malarkey and Buck Comptons personal accounts due for release this month.

Throughout this whole book, I was constantly in tears. It truly brought to life what these men had gone through and the "bond" they formed. This really opened my eyes to alot about the war and this wonderful Regiment of the 101st Airbourne. Sad as it was of all they had to go through and endure; their strength and determination left me spell-bound. We should never forget anything about this turning-point in our History and all the sacrifices our brave men went through.

Brothers In Battle, Best of Friends

This book is a must for anyone intersted in WWII. Just two Stand Up GI's Bill Guarnere and Babe Heffron telling their factual stories as it was from their upbringing in the depression, to the front lines in Normandy, Holland, the Bulge, and the end of the war in Europe. If you want to know how it was, with no fluff, then this is a great read and,
YOU ARE THERE!!

I bought this book as reference material on the advice of an architect friend. He told me "If you need help figuring out the style of a house then buy this book" and he showed me his copy. He was right. The book is well organized which helps compare styles quickly and the many black and white pictures of houses that the author uses as examples are great because the b&w contrast helps your eye focus on details. This a great book to have in any architectural office. Its great for novices and experienced alike.

As a writer, you need lots of details to keep the reader interested, and this book has details on houses most people wouldn't know. Of course, if you give no details the story is not interesting, and if you give wrong details, some reader will know it and be disapointed. A book like this can be invaluable.

Great book!!! I'm using for my company to get a true representation of many styles for many of the house I'm designing. A great resource for any firm!!!

great at housing history
great describe for the house component
good picture to show handy book to show at real estate

After some introductory chapters on the history and theory of homebuilding, the McAlesters commence with descriptions of the different styles. Each major style is described with a large stylized diagram with its identifying features labeled, a description of the major subtypes, descriptions of the style's unique elements, a paragraph on the frequency and locations of its occurrence, some historical comments, and then dozens of black and white photographs. The styles are ordered roughly chronologically, from native dwellings and colonial houses in 1600 to the neoeclectric houses of the 1970s and 1980s. (Even my 2006 printing ended with the 1980s.)

I read the field guide cover to cover - something I never before done with a field guide. By the end, it seemed repetitive, but overall I was impressed with almost everything about this book from the introductions to the last diagrams. Every time I travel though a historical neighborhood, I am glad that I read this book.

Great book on the plight of unwanted and abandoned animals and the humans who care enough to do something about it by rescuing them and finding homes for these homeless pets.

I thought it was an okay book, but as I was reading, I found myself skipping through all the blah blah blah to get to the actual animal stories. The stories about the animals were great, but you have to wade through a lot to get to them.

Terri Crisp is a dinosaur and hopefully she has been replaced by more enlightened people. She randomly euthenized every feral cat she came across, proclaiming that ferals are not adoptable and are basically a scurge. Obvioulsy she has never heard of T.N.R. programs. I was very disappointed in this book and in Crisp's actions and can only hope people will NOT use it as a guide to animal welfare. It is just one uneducated womens accounts of her exploits.

This is in response to the post about Terry Crisp's organization being investigated by California's Attorney General's office. This is what's posted on her website:

Noah's Wish Board of Directors, March 26, 2007

We are writing to inform you that Noah's Wish is in the midst of an ongoing civil investigation by the California Attorney General's office concerning funds received by Noah's Wish during Hurricane Katrina. The California Attorney General has taken the position that certain funds donated to Noah's Wish during this period, and its immediate aftermath, are restricted and may only be used for the animal victims of Hurricane Katrina, rather than the animal victims of other disasters or for general disaster preparedness. Noah's Wish disagrees with the Attorney General's position with respect to those funds, but is working cooperatively with the Attorney General toward a timely resolution of the dispute.

In response to the California Attorney General, Noah's Wish has set aside the disputed funds and agreed not to use those funds pending final resolution of the investigation. Noah's Wish is unable to predict when the matter will be resolved. Because Noah's Wish does not presently have access to the disputed funds, it is unable at this time to continue with its efforts to provide disaster preparedness services and volunteer training.

We will provide you with an update once we have resolved this matter.

We appreciate your patience and also wish to express our gratitude for all that you have done to support Noah's Wish in carrying out our charitable mission.

State probe forces animal-rescue nonprofit to close
Queries $8M raised in wake of Katrina
Sacramento Business Journal - March 30, 2007
by Kelly Johnson
Staff Writer
A local animal-rescue nonprofit that gained national attention for its work after Hurricane Katrina, sparking more than $8 million in donations, was shutting down this month amid a state investigation into how it used that money.
Noah's Wish, which rescues and cares for animals in disasters, was preparing this week to close its El Dorado Hills headquarters. About a dozen workers have resigned or been laid off since late last year.
The California Attorney General's Office has been investigating the organization since last summer, examining how Noah's Wish used donations that might have been designated for relief efforts in the hurricane-ravaged area. The probe led to most of the nonprofit's funds being set aside in accounts where they couldn't be used for other operations.
The nonprofit contends the funds were used properly and said it is cooperating with investigators.
The group received millions in donations after news stories showed its efforts in an area devastated by the August 2005 hurricane. Former Noah's Wish insiders allege those millions were intended to relieve suffering in the storm-battered zone but were improperly used for other purposes.
According to documents obtained by the Business Journal from a former employee, an accounting firm hired by Noah's Wish to examine its books concluded that it would be impossible to conduct a reliable audit because so many records were missing from the period when the group and its volunteers were working on the ravaged Gulf Coast.
Documents filed by the nonprofit or provided by the former employee indicated Noah's Wish had about $210,000 in revenue in the year ended June 30, 2005, and almost 40 times that much -- $8.4 million -- in the next six months.
Expenses shot upward, too, from about $212,000 in 2004-2005 to more than $2 million in the last six months of 2005, including almost $400,000 to purchase vehicles. In early 2006, the group bought a storage building in East Alton, Ill., for $65,125 and leased office space in New York City, according to documents provided by the former employee.
Terri Crisp, founder of the group and its executive director until this week, was paid $6,200 in 2004-2005, tax records show. The documents supplied by the former employee covering July through December 2005 indicated Crisp received compensation of almost $141,000.
The nonprofit's board this week acknowledged the investigation on the group's Web site. "The California Attorney General has taken the position that certain funds donated to Noah's Wish during this period (of Katrina), and its immediate aftermath, are restricted and may only be used for the animal victims of Hurricane Katrina, rather than the animal victims of other disasters or for general disaster preparedness," a letter posted online said. "Noah's Wish disagrees ... but is working cooperatively with the Attorney General toward a timely resolution of the dispute."
Noah's Wish has agreed not to use the disputed funds while the investigation is pending, and the nonprofit cannot continue its work without access to the money, the letter said.
A spokesman for the state's top lawyer would not confirm or deny an investigation.
Ralph Nevis of Downey Brand Attorneys LLP in Sacramento, who represents the group, would not discuss the nature of the inquiry.
Founder was asked to leave board
Staff members are being paid through April 11, but this week only the office manager remained at the El Dorado Hills headquarters to close things down over the next couple of weeks.
At one point, the nonprofit had 15 employees working at offices in El Dorado Hills and New York City and from homes in other states. The three-person office in New York closed in January.
"They've reduced the staff because of funding. It's everybody," Crisp said Wednesday. She said she's taking her remaining days as sick leave, but by Wednesday evening a message on the group's Web site said she was no longer connected with Noah's Wish.
Crisp also served on the organization's board of directors from its founding in 2002 until February. She's no longer on the board, she said, "partly because it's a conflict of interest." The Attorney General's office "had asked for me not to remain on the board."
Because she's no longer on the board, Crisp said she did not have the latest information on the investigation or details about what it covers. Investigators, she said, have not interviewed her and were working only through the nonprofit's attorney and its board chair, Amy Maher.
Maher did not return calls Wednesday. Board members Lyn Kendrick, Gail Monick and David Lesser declined to comment on the investigation; another, Heather Hathaway, did not respond to a request for an interview.
Asked about allegations that the nonprofit inappropriately used money, Crisp said, "I don't know of any misuse of funds."
Lori Polk, chair of the Noah's Wish board during Katrina, left it the month after the hurricane. Before and after Katrina, she said, she voiced concerns about "the organization and the allocations of the donations we were collecting." She said she felt she was "fighting a losing battle trying to maintain my fiduciary responsibility to the organization."
The group "did not make decisions based upon board approval," she said, and made "expenditures without approval."
The former employee, who would only speak on condition of anonymity, said that "the amount of money that was spent by the organization was unbelievable."
The Attorney General's authority over charities includes investigating the loss of substantial funds during one year, illegal use of funds, diversion of funds from their intended purpose and excessive amounts paid for salaries, benefits, travel, entertainment, legal and other professional fees, according to the agency's Web site.
Raising money last month
Noah's Wish was soliciting funds as recently as February. In a letter to potential donors, Crisp wrote the nonprofit had "made a concerted effort to only ask for donations when the need truly exists, and not become a pest with repeated appeals."
Later, the letter said, "So why am I contacting you now? Noah's Wish is prepared for the next disaster, but lately this has become increasingly challenging." Because 2006 was a "fairly uneventful year," Crisp wrote, donations declined significantly.
Tax documents for Noah's Wish obtained by the Business Journal reported revenue of $8.4 million, almost all of it from contributions, between July 1, 2005, and Dec. 31, 2005. Some $4.8 million was in unrestricted assets and $1.5 million in temporarily restricted assets at the end of that year, financial documents indicate.
In June 2006, the accounting firm engaged to audit the books wrote the board that it could not express an opinion on the 2005 financial statements, according to documents provided by the former employee.
"A significant portion of corroborating evidence such as vendor invoices, receipts, deposit slips and other supporting data were not maintained during the period that the organization was responding to the needs of animals during Hurricane Katrina. The records that remain are not sufficient to permit the application of auditing procedures that would be adequate for us to express an opinion on the accompanying financial statements," according to the letter from John Waddell & Co. CPAs.
For the second half of 2005, Noah's Wish paid $405,948 in salaries and compensation, according to the Form 990 supplied by the former employee. Of that, Crisp received $140,900, while the second-highest compensation went to Sheri Thompson at $118,125, the tax documents show.
If the numbers are correct, it appears the compensation for Crisp and Thompson is well above the norm for nonprofits of this size, said Ann Lucas, executive director of the Nonprofit Resource Center. The annual median base salary for the executive director of a nonprofit of this size is $130,000, according to the 2006 Compensation and Benefits Survey of Northern California Nonprofit Organizations, which is produced by the Center for Nonprofit Management in Los Angeles.
Noah's Wish committed $1 million to the city of Slidell, La. for construction of a new animal control center; the old one was severely damaged by Katrina. The city has not received any of those funds, Slidell City Attorney Tim Mathison said.

This third of Burgett's four books about his experiences in the 101st Airborne during World War II reveals a young man (19 at the time) at what could be easily seen as his finest (or worst) hours. The author gives this book an intense personal touch that is missing in many accounts of this unit during its defense of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. Burgett takes the reader into the hell he lived through, vividly describing the shortages of basic military necessities such as weapons and ammunition, the incredible struggle for Noville in the early days of the battle and the withdrawal back to the main lines, and the difficulties of being ready to fight after coping with the harsh winter of the Ardennes and the lack of sleep, food, and water.

But what really comes through most clearly in this account is death. Burgett sees much of it in just a few weeks. He sees close friends (the "old men" of his company) and replacements die in what seems to be a random pattern. He takes the lives of German troops without a shred of remorse, yet almost shoots a fellow paratrooper who shot a prisoner of war.

Burgett does not portray himself as a hero--only as a man doing his job. He was very good (and I would also say lucky) at what he did. His story is not the nice neat narrative found in many accounts of the Bulge. It is dark, chilling, and brutal. It makes one wonder what men like him endured--both during the war and the many years since. I highly recommend it and the others volumes about his time in the 101st.

Donald Burgett gives a great view of WWII through the eyes of a 101st airborne paratrooper.

It has taken me far too long to review this book. But what I should say is, this book was single handedly responsible for sponsoring my adoration of military history books and the history of the Second World War.

It is very well written, easy to read, accurate to the finest detail without ever losing the story. It stands alone as one of the finest examples of a first person account of the war by an American paratrooper of the 506th PIR of the 101st Airborne. It would have been a classic by itself, but it the companion piece to a priceless series of four part series by Burgett.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of battles so clearly written I'm sure you could find the streets today. The story of destroying German tanks in the dead of a fog is gripping as anything that happened during the epic Battle of the Bulge.

The impact of this book was one that made me want to be a paratrooper, helped spawned a life-long (over twelve years at this point) love affair with history, one trip to Europe and lead to my BA in History. My copy has been dog eared, read three times and kept in a place of honor among my over 250 World War Two history books.

My only regret is I haven't met the author.

The real story of how a few ill equipped, but determined Allies held the line and were victorious over one of the greatest war machines ever assembled. This truly was the "Greatest Generation"!

"Seven Roads to Hell" is paratrooper Donald Burgett's memoire of the defense of Bastogne by elements of the 101st Airborne and 9th Armor Divisions during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944. Burgett, a member of A Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, has captured the foxhole-level details of the heroic defense of that key Belgian crossroads.

Burgett picks up the story as his unit goes into a rest area after the fierce fighting of Operation Market-Garden in Holland. His unit has been decimated by weeks of combat, and desperately needs rest and refit; instead, the tired and poorly equiped paratroopers are rushed to the front in the Ardennes to help stem a sudden German offensive. The paratroopers lack winter clothing, food, water, and ammunition, but with the elan of the airborne, undertake the defense of Bastogne against German tank and infantry units.

Burgett has provided some commentary on the larger picture, but sticks largely to telling the story as it was visible to him. Burgett is nothing if not honest in his telling and graphic in his details. He and his fellow paratroopers freeze, starve, fight, and strive to make sense of the chaos that is ground-level combat. Burgett's prose is straightforward and he has a terrific eye for details. There is no sense here of the false heroic; Burgett and his mates are fighting for each other.

This book, like Burgett's earlier book on D-Day, is highly recommended to the reader with an interest in the Second World War and especially in infantry combat. Those present and former members of the 506th Infantry may find it an especially inspiring piece of regimental history.

This is an extraordinary book. Gives tremendous insite in to why some crimals lead the path they do. Phenominal read.

Shot in the Heart is a harrowing tale of growing up in the dysfunctional family that produced the infamous killer Gary Gilmore. It's a riveting tale that will remain with the reader long after he or she has finished the book.

There is, however, a strange discrepancy in this work. The author, who wrote for Rolling Stone magazine, touches on the tragic death of John Lennon and how this senseless killing affected him. He then says that his mother, knowing that the author greatly admired Lennon, telephoned him the day after Lennon's death to offer some words of comfort. A few pages later, however, the author mentioned that his mother died in June 1980-almost six months before Lennon was killed.

Is this a mere typographical error, or is something weirder going on? Much earlier in the book, the author relates how his mother told him that she was traumatized as a young girl because her father once forced her to view a public hanging in Utah-in fact, his mother told her sons many stories about executions. The author goes on to say, however, that his mother could not have witnessed this hanging because "(t)here were no semi-public executions in Utah after about 1919, when (his) mother would have been six years old." And it should also be noted that nightmares, ghosts, and a Ouija board make appearances in Shot in the Heart.

Is the past being repeated here? Does Mikal Gilmore believe he spoke to his mother six months after her death-or are we just dealing with a careless editor?

Editing notwithstanding, Shot in the Heart is a compelling memoir. It could be read as a companion piece to Jon Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven-also an outstanding read.

Unbelievably well written. This is the best book I have ever read. The story is gripping Mikal Gilmore seems to capture the reader from the first sentence and never lets go. I found myself trying to read less pages as I finished the book in fear of ACTUALLY finishing the book:) Immediately after I read the last page, I went back to the first page and started reading it again. I would suggest reading it twice, it is better the second time around.

This book stays with you. In telling the story of his own troubled family Mikal Gilmore manages to tell a story about families themselves- all the love, guilt, loyalty and anger that define them. This is a book about searching for meaning, about the toll poverty takes on the human spirit, about broken dreams, the violence of faith, and our terrible hunger for something to believe in. It's uniquely American in the same way books like Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" or Jean Stein's "Edie: an American Biography"
are- as much about the society around its subjects as the subjects themselves. I wholeheartedly consider this book a masterpiece.

I first heard about Shot in the heart several years ago, on a tv show. The last thing I wanted to read was an apologist for Gary Gilmore making excuses. That's about the last thing Shot in the Heart is. Instead, Mikal Gilmore explores how family myths and mysteries shape our sense of self and of our family, and how this affects our vision of our place in this world. He also explores how you can love someone, even if they are incredibly dysfunctional. Gilmore writes with tenderness and courage about his family, the kind of family that made mine seem relatively normal. They were wretched, miserable people, in many ways, but they were his family.
I have always been puzzled by the editing problems I noticed in the book, however. It's not just the mixup on when Bessie Gilmore died. There are two other date discrepancies, one of which has to do with Gary's execution. I'm from Utah, and I picked up on that error right away.
My sister lives in Portland, and Mikal Gilmore's description of a Northwest Portland neighborhood is dead on. Gilmore knows what he's talking about-- he just needed a better editor, I think

I just recently finished a college-level history class, so I was well brushed up on my US history. That's half of why this book is so hilarious - I know what really happened, and Dave Barry makes very funny spins on it. He has the capacity to make the bleakest parts of history look absolutely histerical and silly, and for that, I give it my highest recommendation.

According to Dave Barry, hundreds of thousands of years ago, America was very different. For one thing, there were no car commercials which had broadcast toward Earth from another planet far away. Twenty thousand years ago the Land Bridge was constructed and completed on October 8th. Centuries later Mayans down in Mexico constructed a calendar that it can still be used to tell the location of celestial
bodies... they're out in space.

In a takeoff of where George Washington slept, there were stories that arose. Likewise where Dave Barry slept, there were (different) stories that arose. Have a few laughs on U.S.

I've read all of Dave Barry's stuff, novels too, and this is, hands down the funniest thing you'll ever sink your eyeballs into. It stays on my bedside table where I can get a little twisted history fix now and then. Read it, re-read it and read it again.

I first read this book when I was 12. I next read it... probably when I was still 12. I'm not one to read and re-read books, but this one will always be an exception. If Jon Stewart's "America" uses humor to expose the dysfunctional state of our country in the 21st century, Barry uses laughter to show how we got to this pitiful point. Buy it and read, then re-read it every other year or so. It only takes a couple of hours, and it never gets old.

Dave Barry's "Dave Barry Slept Here" is a hilarious pseudo/satire-history of the United States. Anyone familiar with Dave Barry's wit from his columns will immediately recognize the same wit unleashed on so much of our history that we have heard, if not necessarily really learned, throughout our lives.

Dave Barry writes like a high-school student - intentionally, of course. He attributes great advances to "technology," isn't interested in the Smoot-Hawley Tariff so he skips it because it sounds boring, and decides that every important event in American history happened on October 8th so that he doesn't have to remember any more dates (even the Fourth of July happened on October 8th, 1776). And he ends every chapter with hilarious "discussion questions" that are just as funny as the text.

I've read and re-read this hilarious book, and it's great to just pick up and start reading in the middle whenever you need a good chuckle. Anyone who likes Dave Barry, enjoys American history, or is interested in what three-word sentence you can rearrange the letters in "Spiro Agnew" to spell (hint: the first word is "grow") should read this book and enjoy!

Excellent advice from a incredible coach. From time management to management contribution this book offers what you need to achieve management positions. A must.

Peter Drucker was such a prolific and important writer, thinker, researcher, teacher, and philosopher! Although he is best known a the father of modern management theory, I find that his ideas are applicable to a wide variety of positions and enterprises.

The Effective Executive, like most of his works, is written with the assumption that the reader is part of an institution and needs to learn to function within the challenges of the corporate environment. I have never had a traditional job or position in a large institution, but can totally relate to the challenges of what Drucker refers to as executives and knowledge workers.

As a professional musician and holistic music teacher ([...]), I have worked to integrate the creative, intuitive sides of human nature with the organizational, rational aspects, both for myself and my clients.

Like many artists, I was never taught the principals of management and have had to adapt and educate myself along the way. I owe a lot to Peter Drucker for helping me make sense of the nature of effectiveness and management.

Drucker's wisdom transcends culture and industry. Just the acknowledgement that effectiveness is a skill in-and-of-itself, apart from intelligence, talent, charisma, or creativity, is a powerful distinction. His encouragement that it can be (and must be) learned is a relief!

His 5 basic practices for effective executives are invaluable insights. Here they are, paraphrased:

1) Be aware of and manage your time
2) Focus on results, not efforts
3) Play to and develop strengths, not weaknesses (yours and others')
4) Concentrate and align your actions and your purpose
5) Learn to make good decisions

The examples in the book are a bit old-school, but the principles still hold true. Thank you, Peter, for putting into words what so many of us were never taught at home or in school!

In the spring of 1980, I spent a full day with Peter Drucker.
He then made a full-day presentation at the University of
Southern California in Los Angeles. I made sure to arrive early
so I could sit front row, center. I spent a stimulating day
listening and watching as "the master" spoke on the subject of
managerial effectiveness.

Drucker, a true renaissance man, supported his points with
examples from the worlds of business, government, sports, music
and war.

In "The Effective Executive," Drucker likewise draws on his broad
knowledge. He writes that, to be effective, an executive (whom he
defines as any knowledge worker responsible for making decisions) must master five specific skills...

-- Managing time
-- Choosing what to contribute
-- Mobilizing strength
-- Setting the right priorities
-- Making the right decisions

About managing time, Drucker offers that the effective executive
eliminates time-wasting activities and consolidates time spent on
important projects.

On choosing what to contribute to the organization, he tells that
the effective executive asks "What can I contribute to
significantly affect the performance and results of this
organization"? And he stays focused on results rather than on
efforts.

Regarding the subject of mobilizing strength, Drucker councils
executives to hire and manage people with an emphasis on their
strengths rather than concern about their weaknesses. And
he advises executives to discover and mobilize their own
individual working style.

About setting the right priorities, he offers two important
thoughts. First, "It is more important to convert an opportunity
into results than to solve a problem -- which only restores the
equilibrium of yesterday." And second, "Concentration -- that is,
the courage to impose on time and events his own decision as to
what really matters and comes first -- is the executive's only
hope of becoming the master of time and events instead of their
whipping boy."

On making decisions, he advises stimulating disagreement among the
management team. For disagreement brings consideration of alternatives, in turn, brings understanding. He also reminds us that a decision isn't complete until it becomes a detailed work assignment. Until then, it is merely a good intention.

As with each of Drucker's books, "The Effective Executive" is
loaded with quotable "Druckerisms." For example...

-- "The truly important events on the outside are not the trends.
They are changes in the trends."

-- "He [the effective executive] always assumes that the event
that clamors for his attention is in reality a symptom. He looks
for the true problem. He is not content with doctoring the
symptom alone."

-- "One of the most obvious facts of social and political life is
the longevity of the temporary."

Upon finishing writing my own book, "Strategic Thinking: A Four
Piece Puzzle," I wrote to Peter Drucker asking if he'd write an
endorsement for the book. Sure, I knew it was a long shot, but
what could I lose except a postage stamp?

Sure enough, he turned me down. He mailed back my letter on
which he had scrawled four words, "I don't do that."

I've kept that letter. For two reasons... Not only is it the shortest rejection letter I've ever received, but, more importantly, it's a personal note from the master himself -- Peter Drucker.

I have read everything Drucker has published. This one is as good as all the others.

Peter Drucker wrote this book back in 1966 and it is as pertinent today as it was then. It concentrates on a small number of practices to help executives manage themselves - a precursor to managing others. Drucker makes the point that, "No one is born an effective executive. No one is a natural... It must be learned...In addition, it is not exceedingly difficult." That's welcome news for all of us. We simply need to follow the practices outlined in this book.

The book is meant for a wide audience as Drucker's definition of the executive is broad - "Anyone that is responsible for a contribution that materially affects the capacity of the organization to perform and to obtain results."

The first step on the journey is to "know thy time." Too many managers have no idea where they spend there time. Drucker recommends managers start by recording their time to discover where it is being spent. Once identified, they need to stop wasting time on things that are not important and then work to consolidate freed time into chunks. Significant blocks of time of 2 hours or so are needed to complete important things.

Next executives must ask of themselves, "What can I contribute that will significantly affect the performance and results of the organization." This helps the manager look outward and to identify and prioritize those tasks that are most important to complete.

Then the managers should do the first things first and do them one at a time. "The secret of those people who do so many things and apparently so many difficult things is that they do only one thing at a time. As a result, they need much less time in the end than the rest of us."

Finally, Drucker outlines how to make effective decisions. He craftily breaks down the elements of the decision process and explains how managers can improve in this discipline.

The book is filled with examples and supporting information. Drucker writes in a refreshingly honest and straightforward style. Many refer to this book as a classic. It is worthy of the designation. So much of what is written today is borrowed from Drucker. Managers can not go wrong adding this one to their arsenal of tools.

-- Nick McCormick - Author, Lead Well and Prosper: 15 Successful Strategies for Becoming a Good Manager