Michigan Books

Con Hilberry, a gifted poet and lifelong academic, attempts to get inside the minds of two sociopaths. It is an interesting experiment. Written in the first person, and interspersed with long quotes from his many recorded interviews, this is nothing like any other true crime book you will have read. Well worth reading, it is a shame that this book has not been more widely distributed. This is the book that could have rejuvinated the stagnant and gory genre of true crime. It's time to put Capote and In Cold Blood aside. This is the real deal.

In 1964, Luke Karamazov (then known as Ralph Searl) killed 5 men in cold blood. He was arrested, confessed, tried, convicted and sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole. In 1972, the Michigan Supreme Court reversed his sentence. While Ralph was awaiting retrial in Kalamazoo, 4 women were raped and murdered in the area -- and a few weeks later, Ralph's older brother, Tommy, was arrested for those crimes. Unlike Ralph, Tommy never confessed, but he too was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Ralph accepted a plea agreement to avoid retrial and was again sentenced to life; as part of the plea, he was allowed to change his name to Luke Karamazov.

Conrad Hilberry was a Professor of English at Kalamazoo College at the time of these crimes and the resulting trials, and became interested in the story of two brothers who were both convicted of serial murders. "I began to wonder who these men were and how they got that way. I wondered if I could talk with them." (25) Talk with them he did, as well as with Julie, the woman who was married first to Tommy (before his crimes) and then to Ralph (while in prison). This book is largely a record of those conversations, along with Hilberry's observations and attempts to make sense of their personalities. Hilberry gives us long extracts from his recorded conversations -- mostly with Ralph and Julie, less with Tommy -- and largely allows the events to be told by them, in retrospect. This is not an attempt to reconstruct the crimes or the circumstances of the Searls' childhood, but an effort to understand who they are now, in prison, and who they may have been when they killed. Because Hilberry allows the Searls to tell much of their story in their own words, we obtain a unique insight into their thought processes and feelings.

Hilberry is not an investigative reporter, nor is he a psychologist, criminologist or lawyer. Some people might conclude that he is not qualified to write this book. Hilberry is, however, a poet, and he brings a poet's close observation and insight to his comments on these men. I found his perspective unique and fascinating, and his efforts to understand the Searls in the larger context of the human project -- balancing the assertion of the individual ego against the desire for transcendence -- persuasive. Highly recommended.

This is the only really serious study of the Lyceum in American culture. I think Merle Curti would have been proud to mention this study in his "Growth of American Thought" where he bemoans the fact that no satis-
factory study of the Lyceum movement exists in 1951. But even today there is a surprising dearth of serious studies. So, Prof. Ray deserves all the admiration for a job well done!

The word "lyceum" is a Latin word with a Greek derivative that was a name for the god of the sun. The association with classical learning and culture and the "enlightening" the audience of lyceum events would undergo were intentional. The idea of the lyceum in America arose in the early 1800s as a means to provide common knowledge and ideas, or at least some common experiences, for the population of an America that was expanding geographically, changing demographically from large numbers of immigrants, and engaging with the early phases of industrialism and new inventions such as the steamboat. Lyceums throughout the U. S., including frontier areas, were seen by both promoters and audiences as matrixes for unity and communication for the increasingly complex democratic society. In spite of the high-mindedness and vision of their originators, it wasn't long before lyceums were holding circus-like entertainments and other events straying from their intended purposes. But lyceums drew large local audiences wherever they were held, inevitably playing a large part in forming the democratic public culture, much as the universality and eclecticism of television does today. The lyceum--the numerous ones in all parts of the country--is studied not only as representing the diversity and interests of 19th-century America, but also as a central, fundamental ground of rhetoric as "that art by which culture and community and character are constituted and transformed." Though "lyceum" is now an antique word and only traces of the idealism of its originators remain, one recognizes by Ray's historical and social study that the lyceum contributed greatly to the foundation of a unique American culture. This author is a professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Northwestern University.

If you are looking for a gift book that someone will remember, this is it. This is the kind of book that imparts information in a clever and entertaining way. Readers learn about mail delivery to the Great Lakes freighters, while enjoying the heartwarming story of a little girl sending her Dad a birthday card while he is working on the freighters. The illustrations are beautiful, and really add to the story. This book should be in every school's library.

This is a beautiful book, it is well written and extremely accurate. The book tells a story about a young girl who wants to send her father a birthday card. Her father works as a sailor aboard a Great Lakes freighter and she is happy to learn that a boat in Detroit, Michigan delivers U.S. Mail to all ships passing Detroit. She sends his card and he receives it a few days later when his ship passes Detroit. The illustrations are also wonderfully done and very accurate. What I liked best about the story is that it is educational and emphasizes a strong family bond. I rated this book five stars and have bought several copies as Christmas presents and have donated a copy to my daughters school library.

This is beautiful book. It is well researched and the information is presented thoughtfully. The quality of the printing, binding and map reproduction is excellent. This is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the Great Lakes Region and it's history. I highly recommend it.

Expertly compiled and deftly edited by David I. Macleod (Professor of History, Central Michigan University), "Mapping In Michigan & The Great Lakes Region" is a compilation of twelve studies that, taken together, illustrated the many different configurations taken by geographical, urban, and property maps of and around the Great Lakes and the state of Michigan, including changes within a single region. The sixteen learned and expert contributors reveal the history of the area's cartography and deal with such specifics as the peninsulas and freshwater seas, the history mapping this region, how the Europeans appropriated and settled these lands, social and political negotiations and conflicts, and more. Profusely illustrated throughout with reproductions of historic maps from the beginnings of regional exploration down to the present day, ""Mapping In Michigan & The Great Lakes Region" is a seminal work of meticulous and articulate scholarship which is very strongly recommended for academic library American History reference collections, as well as a personal library acquisition selection for cartography enthusiasts.

Short of a Stanley Lombardo translation -- Where are you, Stanley? -- that would do Xenophon full justice, this is a fine, taughtly crafted version of the Anabasis. Rouse is all vernacular, and all business. Still, Lombardo would put more swagger in the warriors' exploits, and sharpen their tongues. Rouse sometimes erred on the side of middle-America "mass market" folksiness, but only slightly. Here is a passage from the first page that captures his nice, streamlined sense of pacing:

"But when Dareios died and Artaxerxes succeeded, Tissaphernes slandered Cyros to his brother and said he was plotting against him. The king believed him, and siezed Cyros to put him to death, but his mother begged him off and sent him back to his province. When Cyros got clear of this danger and disgrace, he determined never again to be in his brother's power, but to make himself king instead, if he could."

Now, here's a passage from the Rex Warner translation (Penguin), which takes nearly half again as long with the same ideas:

"But, after the death of Darius, when Artaxerxes was established on the throne, Tissaphernes maligned Cyrus to his brother and accused him of plotting against him. Artaxerxes believed the story and arrested Cyrus with the intention of putting him to death: but his mother by her entreaties secured his life and his recall to his province. Still, after the danger and disgrace from which he had escaped, Cyrus took measures to ensure that he should never again be in his brother's power; instead, if he could manage it, he would become king in his brother's place."

This is one of those books you have on your list of "books-I-am-going-to-read-someday." Okay, someday arrived. I should have read it decades ago. This is a fairly good translation and the story is written, as was the custom at that time, from the third person point of view. The story begins with a bang and immediately carries us into the expedition itself. When a Greek mercenary army attempts to help Cyrus overthrow his relative, (his brother, Artaxerxes, was the Persian King), it marches all the way to Babylon to give battle...and wins! But Cyrus is killed in the battle and the Greeks find themselves stranded. After the Greek generals are killed in a treacherous parley, the army does not disintegrate, as Artaxerxes and the Persians expect. Instead, they elect new officers, Xenophon among them, and proceed to march out of the Persian Empire across 1,500 miles of hostile terrain teeming with savage adversaries. Xenophon employs a straightforward, soldierly style as he describes people, places and events. It is a wonderful narrative and the action keeps you turning pages until the end. By a happy coincidence, history has preserved this enchanting adventure story. If you prefer to hear a recorded version of it, I recorded it for Audio Connoisseur and you can find it here at Amazon.

There are a few discussions of the greatly neglected Sarah Grand in other books, but this is THE BOOK on this important WOMAN WRITER. I thought that this was a biography at first, but it's not. It really gets into the Victorian period, and I learned a lot. I have only read one Sarah Grand book, but I want to read them all now! Are they in print?

For anyone interested in the sadly neglected British author Sarah Grand, or the phenomenon she named -- the new woman -- this book is a must. The research is incredible and the writing is unusually clear and even moving for a work of criticism. I've only read one novel by Grand -- The Heavenly Twins -- but this book made me want to read more. I read a library copy of Magnum's book, but I wish it would come out in paperback so I can get my own, since as a teacher and reader I will want to consult it in the future.

Recipes in "Michigan Cooking and Other Things," are practical with easy to follow directions. In addition to recipes for preparing delicious, practical Michigan foods, Eberly has included stories about the history of Michigan. She's dug up recipes used by lumber camp cooks and others. My "Michigan cooking" is thumbworn and used more than any other cookbook in my collection. It's a standard!

Love the michigan cookbook & have had it for years. We live 6 mo. in Fla. & have a Mich. day there. We are the chaimen for it this year & need different ideas for puzzles & games. I remembered your ad in back of book for puzzles, fill-ins on Mich. Do you still sell any of this? I would like to purchase one if you do, or if you have any items that would be helpful to us. Thank You Marcella Best P.S. The book travels with me

As a student of plant biology, it is essential to have a manual that makes fine distinctions by species and describes them as they occur in that area. Voss does this wonderfully in Michigan Flora (all three volumes), giving concise descriptions of the plants of Michigan along with some natural history notes (edibility, how often the plant has been found, etc.). If you live in or around Michigan, and would like a guide to the plants of the area, Voss' three volumes are the best guide you can get for your money (Gleason and Conquist is good, too, but more expensive, and no drawimngs and photos unless you buy the $125 companion volume).

Although out of print, I just recieved a copy of this great flora only a week or two after ordering. It seems like there should be other copies of it out there. Also, look for a new edition that includes all three volumes in one binding. This is a great ref. for most of the Mid-West, not only Michigan.

I am the author's Granddaughter so I may be a little partial but I think that the photography is wonderfull and the literature is the best collection I have ever read. I definately would give it a five star rating even if I was not his granddaughter.

I am the author's Granddaughter so I may be a little partial but I think that the photography is wonderfull and the literature is the best collection I have ever read. I definately would give it a five star rating even if I was not his granddaughter.

Very informative field guide; snakes are listed under Family, Subfamily. Data as to distribution, habits and habitat. Color plates clear and professional, making identification simple. Included are sections on Biology of Snake, Snakes and People, Conservation, Controlling Problems and Snakebites. Handy pocket reference.

Very informative field guide; snakes are listed under Family, Subfamily. Data as to distribution, habits and habitat. Color plates clear and professional, making identification simple. Included are sections on Biology of Snake, Snakes and People, Conservation, Controlling Problems and Snakebites. Handy pocket reference.